Hey, I was just wondering if it's possible to fish in the Don River. I know that the fish there might be sick or something, but first of all, is there any fish in there? I'm planning to fish in the Davies Avenue area, close to the DVP. If there is fish, any tips on bait or lures. Thanks a lot.
Fish are not sick in the Don, they are just fine.
But you do want to know season availability of various fish species at different times of year in the Don River.
The Don is an urban river, as such, it does not have a lot of ground water influx or tree cover to keep the water cool. And add to that many stormwater drains that contributes to flash floods and sediment load, it is a highly altered river.
The White Sucker that can be found during the spring spawning run should have left the river by now. The very small limited amount of Steelhead should have returned to the lake as well. At this time of year, you may find a few Common Carp around, and perhaps some Smallmouth Bass in deeper, cooler pools or runs. Don't expect any size to these Smallmouth though. You may be able to find a few Brown Bullhead in the slower areas. They should be spawning now.
Worms will catch them all...but you may be bothered by Creek Chub and Common Shiners. You can use corn for Common Carp and Brown Bullhead too. If you want to avoid the minnow species, then you can use leeches or live minnows for bass. Any crankbaits and plastics that works for bass elsewhere should work for the Don too.
Spend the time and experiment. Each day the fishing condition may be different.
I haven't fished the Don, however, there are videos of people catching various fish in there on youtube. You can check them out and hopefully gain some tips. As Muskiebait said, worms are probably your best bet to use in a river like the Don.
Thanks, in my last trip I didn't even get a bite.
Don't be discouraged...I get skunked there too.
