Fish certainly can see at night...and fish certainly bite lures at night. As you can see in the pictures above, the Pike and Walleye were both night time catches. In fact, we usually fish in full dark without using the headlamp because the light tends to scare the fish and keeps them further away from the shore.
I've also caught Largemouth Bass at night...on Zara Puppy (smaller size Zara Spook), spinnerbait and swimbait.
MichaelAngelo on this forum has caught a Tiger Muskie and a couple of Muskies in the dark on buzzbaits.
I haven't fished in Port Credit for more than 10 years, so things could very well be different now. Port Credit is very channelized. Even back then, the river has very little structure and not much shoreline and submerged vegetation. The water is also quite high in nutrient and it almost look like pea soup with algae in the summer. All of this are contributors to the lack of fishing success...because there simply are not much habitat for fish. However, I would put effort to find those rare structures and concentrate on them. Try to focus around Lakeshore bridge and the walkway bridges, and the pier that protects "Snug Harbour". Since the water is stained, try to slow down your presentation to give fish more time to find and see your lures. It may also suffer the same issue as the Toronto lakeshore where heavy boat traffic and pedestrian traffic simply push fish out of the shallows. Summer is a very busy time at Port Credit, so I would suggest you to try some more in the spring (for pike) and fall (pike and bass).
I'm just looking on GoogleMaps and Tall Oaks Park looks like a decent place to try. You have jetty rocks and weedbeds nearby. I would put some effort into this area early morning and later in the afternoon/evening.
From what I remember of Lakefront Promenade, it wasn't too bad at all...with good rocky structures near shore and some weed clumps between the rocks. But that area has changed a lot since the power plant was decomissioned from what I heard. I would still put time there in the spring, before Pike closes and after Pike opens. I would also put time there just after bass opens. I have seen bass on nests along that shoreline before, and I have seen bass cruising along the shorelines as well. Unfortunately, I wasn't there to fish those times (family/friends BBQ or bike ride along the trail). Again, it is a high traffic area, so try early in the morning and later in the evening.
I'm just going to draw from my experience fishing downtown Toronto and say that in these busy urban areas where the habitat is not very rich and pedestrian traffic is heavy, fish tends to come and go very quickly between spots...unless something like bait schools, favourable water temperature, remaining vegetation or spawning needs keep them holding in one area. In most areas, the waterfront simply lacks prey items like Perch, Sunfish and Rock Bass. The minnow species tend to move around in schools. As such, fish are more apt to move around rather than hold in a certain area. I would tend to be more observant of what can be seen in the water to determine if I should put more effort in a area, vs. fan cast the area quickly and move. If I decided to put more effort, then I would switch from search baits to slower presentation.
I've fished Erindale Park many times, especially in the spring and fall for Salmon and Steelhead. It was there that I caught my first Chinook Salmon and my first Steelhead. I've even caught Smallmouth Bass on roe bags while fishing for Steelhead in May (enough times to make me think "huh").
Erindale Park is quite busy as well. I would try to downside there and fish plastics more. Try any crayfish and tubes around 2-3" in size, since that is the predominant size of crayfish that I find in the river. Like I said above, try to twtich plastic jerkbaits as well. Fish are going to hold in the deepest pools in the summer..but they may well switch to low light period hours to feed. One time, I was just there for a picnic with my church group and I was fishing with worms under a float for anything that bites. I caught a 6" Creek Chub so I put that on a larger hook and free lined the chub in the current. I saw a big Smallmouth Bass came over to chase it at the end of the drift as the current swept the chub toward shore...but the bass dropped the chase once it was too close to shore. That was pretty cool to see. But most of the bass that you'll find are smaller (unless you fish in really deep holes) up to 2lbs...so downsize your bait to appropriate size. You do get some big fish that would run up from the lake to spawn in the river in the spring, but they usually drop back out to the lake by the time bass season opens.
Lake Aquitaine has changed a lot since I fished there as a kid. I remember one year, probably 10 years ago, when I saw an infestation of juvenile goldfish and juvenile bullheads around 3-4" long. There were no sunfish to be found and it was simply full of these little fishes. Something has change in that lake after this episode. I went back several years later and there were still sunfish around. In fact, I caught my first Green Sunfish after all these years fishing there (it has mostly Pumpkinseed and Bluegill, with some Rockbass, Black Crappie and Yellow Perch). I didn't find any Rockbass anymore. They used to be very common. And with that change also went the bass. I did catch a juvenile Largemouth Bass on worms while fishing for the sunfish, so there has to be some adults around. But I used to catch many more juvenile bass also. I would say try to fish the areas away from the dock and lookout and work the shorelines toward the outlet. Most people tends to stop at the dock area and it receives the blunt of the fishing pressure. I know someone who used to fish the lake in those back areas and did well with bass. He likes to use spinnerbaits a lot because it can get quite weedy in the summer...and spinnerbait is just a good search bait in general. Again, try to focus during morning and evening. Even back then when it was good, we didn't catch much during late morning to late afternoon. The first 4 hours after sunrise and the last 3 hours before sunset seemed to be the best.
I used to ride my bike and fished at Centennial Park too (since I live on the east end). It was a lot of fun back then...non-stop sunfish with a few bass mixed in. But it isn't the same anymore. Last time I went back to Centennial Park for nostalgic walk down memory lane, I struggled to even get a sunfish to bite. It has received a lot of fishing pressure since. My friend used to sneak into the golf course and fish the ponds to catch some decent size bass...but he was a kid and they usually just tell him to beat it back then. I would not try it as an adult.
I would also assume that those ponds are not as good as they used to be.
This is just a fact of urbanization...with more people in the area, these urban spots receive a lot of fishing pressure...and habitat remodeling...and things just go downhill.
One last thing I like to say...It's not necessary to fish 80lb braid unless you are flipping THICK weed mats. I find anything over 50lbs to be excessive for bass and pike. You can also consider using lighter and shorter steel leader, or simply go fluoro. 40lb fluoro is OK for most pike you'll find. With highly pressured fish and super clear water (such as Lakefront Promenade), I would actually use a 4 feet 10lb fluorocarbon leader for bass...and 4 feet 15lb fluorocarbon for pike. I've fished in a small lake in Cambridge quite often where the pike will not bite if you use any line over 10lbs. They can be that finicky. At the Toronto Islands, I've sometimes had tough time getting bass to bite on 8lb fluoro using a whole live nightcrawler...
I would also use lighter rods to 1) cast thinner lines 2) use smaller lures and 3) maximize distance to cover more water. The Pike and Walleye in my picture was caught using a medium action, 4-piece, Shakespeare UglyStik travel rod.
Nothing fancy and very low end. The fish from the Toronto Islands were all caught with a medium action, 7', 2-piece Pflueger GX-7 rod. Nothing fancy either.
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