Visiting Ontario (Midland) from Alberta, Where to Fish?

[NorthernAbGuy]

Hey All. Sure was interested to see this forum pop up on a search engine. I visit Ontario every fall for about a month for work. This year I will be in Midland from Oct 4 to Nov 6. I usually try to get out every weekend while I'm there, hit as many places as I can find. I was looking at a map a bit, and was hoping to try Orr lake, Bass lake, Little lake, and Lake Simcoe. I don't know these areas at all, and I am not able to bring my Kayak, so any advice on where to go for some good shore fishing in the Midland/ Georgian bay /Orillia /Barrie area would be appreciated. Any tips on what to use for baits/lures would also be appreciated. I am looking forward to fishing for Bass, and panfish, as these are not available where I live. Thanks in advance.

[Giuga10]

Welcome NorthernAb,
I don't know about the other lakes but I know Simcoe like the back of my head .
If you can find any pier, marina or public docks you'll be able to get some decent fishing done. Right now the Perch in Simcoe are going crazy, if you get a good day of fishing you can easily catch 50 fish. Also if you dont mind doing some night fishing the Walleye and Pike come pretty close to shore. Some good areas to try are Cooks Bay, Jackson's Point, and the mouth of the Talbot River. There are many more spots that you could probably get from the other members but those are some spots you could try.

Heres a pic of the Perch I caught last year on Simcoe right around this time of year:

We kept 51 Perch and 1 Largemouth Bass and caught over 100 Perch and 2 Largemouth Bass


Good luck and enjoy your stay,
Giuga10

[NorthernAbGuy]

Thanks Guiga, I'll look for those spots at Simcoe. I haven't caught any perch in a while, but sure is fun when you tie into a school of them and they keep biting one after another! The Walleye and pike bite after dark sounds pretty good too, I've just been looking online at some crankbaits with that in mind.

[Giuga10]

(10-02-2012 11:06 AM)NorthernAbGuy Wrote:  Thanks Giuga, I'll look for those spots at Simcoe. I haven't caught any perch in a while, but sure is fun when you tie into a school of them and they keep biting one after another! The Walleye and pike bite after dark sounds pretty good too, I've just been looking online at some crankbaits with that in mind.

No problem. BTW in Cooks Bay you'll definitely be able to get some solid Bass action if you know what you are doing lol . Cooks Bay is known for it's solid Big Bass action many 5+ LB Bass are pulled out of that area and same with the Pike. Cooks Bay has an extensive amount of weed growth which makes it a perfect area for Bass and Pike and if you're lucky maybe even a Muskie. For Panfish you'll be able to find those guys left and right in Simcoe, if you want to catch one just to say you have drop a worm or small jig right beside a dock and watch the feeding frenzy for some good Panfish try to cast along edges, weed beds and shallower edges, worms are like a steak dinner to Panfish so load up for some solid action, though small jigs work great too also you can try a small spinner like a Size 1, 2, or 3 Mepps Aglia.

Hopefully this helps,
Good luck,
Giuga10

[MichaelAngelo]

Welcome welcome! I'd love to see some of your catches from Alberta if you've got pictures . What kind of fishing do you do there?

[NorthernAbGuy]

I'll see what I have for pics, Mostly just stocked trout ponds near where I live. Couple of hours away, there are some lakes with Pike, Perch and Walleye. I just got a Kayak this year, didn't catch a whole lot of fish tho, as I worked far too much this summer. I got a lil nervous about losing my iphone from the Kayak as well, so didnt get pics of some things either.

(10-03-2012 09:17 AM)MichaelAngelo Wrote:  Welcome welcome! I'd love to see some of your catches from Alberta if you've got pictures . What kind of fishing do you do there?

[NorthernAbGuy]

   
   
   
   
   

[MichaelAngelo]

Awesome thanks for the pics! How are you finding the yak? Just leave the iphone on shore LOL or put it in 2 ziplock bags...

that's why I don't have an iphone... it would last me maybe 1 trip ....

Yak fishing is one of those things I've wanted to do. I'm still on the shore and... inflatable beach toy hahaha

[NorthernAbGuy]

I'm loving the Kayak. I bought a Hobie Outback used on Kijiji. I see there are a couple for sale out here for a good price. I love being able to pedal along with a rod in my hand. I bought the larger fins and rudder and the thing just flies along with minimal effort. I have mostly used it on small lakes, Largest was Sturgeon lake, it does OK in small waves, I haven't had to test it in larger waves. There is lots of info on the website & the forums. I bought a kart for it, so I just take it off the truck, put on the cart, set it up to launch, and roll it to the water & away I go.

[NorthernAbGuy]

So I got to Simcoe last weekend. I fished from the Innisfil town dock. Caught a couple of small perch, and a couple of Gobies. I have been going to a place in Midland that has a bunch of Largemouth bass. I have been using a drop shot rig almost exclusively, with live or plastics. I'll post up some pics in a bit