Hey there! Any good shore fishing in a 3 hour radius around Toronto?

[OldTimer]

(07-23-2015 11:37 AM)Blackbeard Wrote:  I am looking for a great spot for a family to get out of the city to go fishing. I don't want to "try out" a random spot and waste an entire day and catch nothing. Therefore having my kids turn to not like fishing because of a bad first trip. I am looking for a sure fire spot that a family will enjoy, I'm not asking you guys to give up your hidden holes. I also gave a 3 hour radius to make it easier to come up with a location.

Apparently this forum enjoys giving new people a hard time and not helping out. It explains why it is so empty and has posts from 2 years ago still up on the front page. Thanks for nothing, I hope the 5 of you here enjoy each other.

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(07-23-2015 12:01 PM)tweedwolfscream Wrote:  If you don't think this forum is helpful, go to any other forum and ask "where's a good place to catch perch and bass in southern Ontario" and see if you get anything more useful. We've made some general and specific suggestions and tried to get you to narrow down your question to make it easier to answer. The forum is very helpful in terms of discussing technique, and helping with locational research, but people aren't here to promote and expand the forum by offering up their spots randomly. Sorry, if you're depending on your kids catching fish on their first try so that they don't get a bad impression of fishing, there's really nowhere where that can be guaranteed. Especially if you yourself, as their "guide", aren't very experienced at fishing... and I'd say the same about myself. And the 3 hour radius doesn't tell us much about whether you're looking for a daytrip from Toronto, a cottage rental or camping trip in Shield country, a hotel stay in some town, or what. They all have fish.

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Quote:='MuskieBait' pid='15524' dateline='1437672719']

Since you are new to this and fishing...

Asking for a sure fire hole IS asking for a hidden hole. What makes a spot "sure fire" is the fact that not many people know about it and fish it. As I've mentioned above, the more people fish a location, the greater the fishing pressure and the worse the fishing will become. Fish are more intelligent than most people give them credit. They will quickly learn to avoid baited hooks, fishing lines and fishing lures, either by refusing to bite, or by staying clear of the area. Add on top of this anglers who keep their catch (even if fish were kept within legal limits), which reduces the number of fish in the area, many of these fishing spots cannot sustain the pressure, thus the fishing turns from "sure fire" to "mediocre" to "not worth your time" very quickly.

Asking for "sure fire" spots publicly doesn't work. Anyone who has fished long enough knows that sharing a "sure fire" spot publicly will greatly accelerate the decline of said spot. How many member are on this forum? How many other people who do not register but can view General Discussion visit the forum each day? The number of people who will be exposed to this "sure fire" information snowballs very, very quickly.

Unless a "sure fire" spot is kept secret, many semi-productive fishing locations within 3 hour radius of Toronto are more of less public knowledge. As such, these area are frequently visited (hence semi-productive) and definitely busy during the summer months. You mentioned you wish you get out of the city and enjoy some fishing. But going to one of these popular fishing locations is really no better than fishing along the Harbourfront or Toronto Islands or even Grenadier Pond. You will certainly experience the same crowds, and I can honestly say the same fishing pressure in many of these places...which makes them no better.

These are reasons why members here are not being straightforward with their suggestions. There really isn't any to suggest. I can easily tell you to fish at Gamebridge on Talbot River, Gores Landing on Rice Lake, Port Perry on Lake Scugog, or Port Maitland on Grand River. They are all semi-productive, but as such extremely busy.

In addition, instead of starting kids of Largemouth/Smallmouth Bass, start them off on Sunfish species, Rockbass and, as you have asked, Yellow Perch. Fast and furious action is what interests kids. Short fishing session also ensures that kids do not get bored (either by no fish biting while trying to something "big", or catching too many panfish and losing interest). Since you didn't mention whether you idea is part of a larger family vacation (which we were trying to ask) or a day trip, driving 3 hours one way to fish a 2-hour session is a bit of a chore. Kids will spend more time in the car than actually fishing.

Instead, take them somewhere where fishing isn't the only focus. As people mentioned above, Toronto Islands is a great place to start kids fishing. It certainly feels like you are away from the city. There are many fish, big and small, to be caught, including many sunfish and rockbass easily available if you look in the right place. There are wading pools, beaches, frisbee golf, Centerville rides, bike rental...etc. Make it a fun day out instead of fishing. That's the number 1 mistake when trying to introduce kids into fishing. It's not always about catching a fish, but the entire experience surrounding the fishing trip.

If you are still looking for areas to fish, the ones I've mentioned above (Gamebridge, Gores Landing, Port Perry and Port Maitland) are areas you can try. But even so, if you don't learn the necessarily techniques to find fish, tie proper fishing rigs and present the bait properly, none of it would matter. I've fished next to entire family of 10 that had fished in the same spot all day and caught absolutely nothing while I pull up fish on my first cast at 2pm in the afternoon. It's not always about the spot...it's often more about how you fish the spot.

BTW, we do enjoy each others' company quite well, because members who remain on the forum are ones that realize discussion about fishing techniques and exploring fishing locations is more important and productive than giving away fishing spots. The old adage...

"Give a man a fish and he'll eat for a day; teach him how to fish and he'll eat for a lifetime."

Unlike other forums, we're here to teach people how to fish, not merely give them fish.

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Documented opinions vary Blackbeard …….. The respondents in this thread have about 600 thankyous for being helpful. Many man-hours (and years) have been spent offering volumes of advice, knowledge, and tips to help novices improve in this wonderful pastime……………………… all help, no harm.

Not even a commercial stocked pond is sure fire. Even professional “guides” get skunked.

I am sincerely sorry that your unrealistic wants are not in line with reality, your knowledge and your capabilities.

However, I do wish you well in your future endeavours and fishing adventures. Take care.

Cheers,

OldTimer

[MuskieBait]

(07-23-2015 01:59 PM)OldTimer Wrote:  Not even a commercial stocked pond is sure fire. Even professional “guides” get skunked.

I used to fish a place called Daniel's Ark...a spring fed quarry that was stocked with Brook Trout, Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout and Yellow Perch. There are a handful of times I've been skunked fishing at that stocked pond. There have been also been many times when people around me were skunked while I clued in on the "preference of the day" to catch my limit without effort.

I've spent $600 on a Goliath Grouper charter and was skunked (for Goliath Grouper) fishing with arguably one of the best Goliath Grouper guide in the world (Ben Chancey). I was skunked in April after spending $450 on a charter while trying to troll for big game pelagic fish in Mexico with a captain that had won deep sea fishing tournaments.

Again, the old adage...

"That is why it is called fishing and not catching."

The only guarantee where you can come home with fish spending the least time and money is to visit a fish market. Even then, if you are looking for cod and the shop didn't receive a shipment that week, you can still come home without cod...but maybe you can come home with some other fish.

[OldTimer]

When my son was quite young - he (like many new-to's ) gauged our angling outings based on his quantity caught, strikes, and/or size (if numbers were low).

Fast forward about 30 years............ now he enjoys spending time just getting out together to enjoy the outdoors with its sights and sounds (or lack of sound),.... fish are a bonus. We release most anyway.

[MuskieBait]

Also wanted to add...

Many of my best spots are dangerous to fish and difficult to reach. I am not about to send your kid into a chest deep swamp filled with mosquitoes, thigh deep in a strong current in low visibility water, rock hopping over chest size boulders along a steep jetty, or hike into thick forests cover full of fallen timber and poison ivy. These challenges are what kept these spots "sure fire" because most people will not venture into these areas. They are no place for a family to visit.

Just last weekend, I was fishing with a couple of friends in one of these spots. Despite our combined 100+ years of fishing experiences, we lost countless lures to trees, bushes and submerged logs. We were enveloped by vegetation and you had to be able to cast with branches immediately beside you and over your head, and tall plants immediately in front of you. The bank of our spot had multiple muskrat holes and the muddy bank was difficult to navigate. Even with extreme care, we all stepped thigh deep into these muskrat holes. We also had to scale a short, but steep and muddy slope to get to our location. My friends slipped once while getting down and once getting up the slope, even with the help of a vine to support our descent and ascent. The ground had patches of Poison Ivy, some visible but some covered by other plants. An attempt to brace a fall can easily land a hand on Poison Ivy. A careless step can easily disrupt plant tissue allowing the irritating oil and sap to contact shoes, clothing and skin. We were all covered in DEET or citronella, but mosquitoes continued to bite. Our spot was as "sure fire" as it can get as we caught multiple Green Sunfish on demand, one small Northern Pike and a couple of Grass Pickerel. All of us who went there realize the risk and we are capable adults. But it is no place for kids to visit. I'm not making any of this up.

Are these really areas you wish to fish with your kids to get them interested? I think not.

[Eli]

This might be further than you're willing to drive, but if you bring your kids to the docks at Dow's Lake here in Ottawa, it's pretty sure fire for small panfish. Worms or canned corn will work. It's not a 100% guarantee, but it's a surefire as fishing gets. Only thing that can be guaranteed in fishing is water...and even that's no longer always true.

[MuskieBait]

(07-24-2015 10:02 PM)Eli Wrote:  This might be further than you're willing to drive, but if you bring your kids to the docks at Dow's Lake here in Ottawa, it's pretty sure fire for small panfish. Worms or canned corn will work. It's not a 100% guarantee, but it's a surefire as fishing gets. Only thing that can be guaranteed in fishing is water...and even that's no longer always true.

Yeah, but he wants to fish up north outside of the city...and Dow's Lake is right dead smack within the city of Ottawa.