Summer fun in Sunset Country

It's been a busy summer around Kenora...actually it's always kind of depressing this time of year because our summers always go by way to fast!  Fall is a great season though, fishing is good and hunting season is about to start ramping up.  

 

The Kenora Bass International did not go very good for Chris Savage and I this year...it was dismal actually.  We did have a decent practice and were optimistic heading into the event but it just seemed like we couldn't catch a break throughout the weekend.  Here is my buddy Cameron Mosbeck with a nice largemouth he caught while out with me a couple days before the tournament.  

We actually had a mixed bag of smallmouths and largemouth going prior to the tournament and figured we had some good options...here was a nice smallmouth from practice one day.

We fished the southern end of Lake of the Woods in the tournament this year and caught several nice muskies like this one over the course of the week and during the tournament.  I went back a few days later to try to film a TV show and we got shut out.  Typical for me, I have probably caught 200 muskies in my life and maybe five when I've actually been fishing for them.  

After the KBI I was able to get out and shoot a few TV shows.  My buddy Jamie Bruce and I got a great topwater smallmouth show done that will be a good one!  

At the International Falls Bass Championship at the end of August it was the father/son team of Travis and Jace Peterson who bested a full field of 60 teams.  They, along with some of their family that were at the even were sporting pink t-shirts in support of Travis's mom Jeanne who is battling cancer.  Was great to see these guys!  They are good friends of mine and great people!

In between tournaments and filming TV shows I have been doing a few guide trips.  The walleye fishing on Lake of the Woods this summer has been top-notch on just about every day that I've been out there.  Can't wait to eat my next batch!  

This past weekend, my buddy Mike Reid and I took third at the 19th annual Bassin' For Bucks tournament out of Sioux Narrows.  We have fished this event together every year since it started and always have a lot of fun fishing together.  

Coming up over the next few weeks there are a few more tournaments left on the schedule before we get into full blown hunting mode.  
Sept 26-27 - Shoal Lake Last Chance
October 3-4 - Whitefish Bay Fall Classic
October 10 - Frank McClymont Memorial Tournament (out of WSL in Kenora)

Fish, fish, fish...

It's been a while since my last post on here, sorry for that!  I spent three weeks in June on the road for the last two FLW Tour events at Lake Chickamauga and the Potomac River.  After I got home it was right into guiding and tournament fishing back in Sunset Country. 

Things went alright at Lake Chickamauga, I ended up squeaking into cheque range there after a pretty tough practice.  After the event I stuck around for a few days and had some absolutely incredible fishing.  Found a few big schools of fish and caught a nine pounder, a seven pounder and a bunch between four and six.  I only had a week off between this tournament and the last one at the Potomac River so I just stayed at Chickamauga a few extra days.  Glad I did!  
The Potomac tournament did not go so well.  After only catching six bass in the three practice days I managed to catch a limit for 12 pounds on day one, which landed me in 28th place.  On day two, though I scraped out a limit again, they only weighed 9 pounds and I came up about a pound short of cashing a cheque, so that was disappointing.  

Back at home, I teamed up with my buddy Jay Samsal for the Kenora Walleye Classic, an inaugural event on Lake of the Woods.  We caught a bunch of fish and had a fun tournament.  Unfortunately we did not catch big enough "kickers" to earn us any money.  Here is a 29 incher from practice. 

I have also had a few guide trips on Lake of the Woods...fishing has been excellent for everything, especially walleye.  Here is a nice batch for dinner!  

Last week at the Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship, my friend John Peterson and I attempted to defend our wins there the past couple of years but things did not click for us this year.  We ended up with a dismal 38th place finish.  I'm not sure if we just had to many memories from the past few years or what, but nothing seemed to go our way last week.  
Still, this is one of my favourite tournaments and my favourite weeks of the year.  I love Rainy Lake and the town of Fort Frances, already can't wait to go back again next year!  
Congratulations to Scott and Steve Sandberg on the win there this year!  

One of the best stories that I heard last week came from Duane and Travis Peterson, John's brother and nephew.  The day before the FFCBC on Rainy Lake, they had a 48" musky grab a two pound bass they were reeling in.  The fish would not let go of the bass and they ended up landing it.  The musky never had a hook in it.  Pretty good stuff!

Up next, we have the KBI tournament next week on Lake of the Woods, can't wait to get it going!

Open water in Sunset Country and my first FLW Tour Top Ten!!!

Things finally clicked for me in an FLW Tour event a couple of weeks ago at Lake Eufaula, Alabama when I earned my first Tour top ten finish, landing in fifth place after four days of fishing.  It was certainly a fun event, especially since my Dad was down to practice with me and fished the tournament on the co-angler side.

I got on a good topwater bite that lasted throughout the day.  It was fun fishing.  Unfortunately I lost a couple of heartbreaker fish on the final two days that hurt but still it was a great tournament.

I caught most of my fish on the new Jackall Binksy topwater lure and the old school Pop R.  Here is a shot of the new Binksy...it's pretty cool!  

Here are a couple of nice fish from practice...

 

Back at home the ice is out and the water has been warming quickly, already into the 60's on Lake of the Woods.  Before I went to Eufaula I had a great day of bass fishing with some clients from Southern Ontario.

This week fishing has been good for everything, crappies are shallow, walleyes are still relatively shallow (8 - 12 feet) and bass were starting to make beds already in some of the shallow bays.  I love fishing this time of year!  
Remember there is still plenty of time to book your dream fishing trip to Ontario's Sunset Country!  Visit www.ontariossunsetcountry.ca to find all the information you need to book your trip!  
If you need any fishing or hunting gear or outdoor clothing for your trip, visit www.krugerfarms.com for all kinds of great stuff and GOOD deals! 

Late ice and Bass travels

While I was home between the Smith Lake and Beaver Lake FLW Tour events I got out around home and had some fun on the ice, in the boat and in the woods.  Always lots of good stuff to do in Sunset Country! 

My buddy Sean McAughey and I got out on the ice one last time and shot a TV show for my program Fishing with Gussy, catching burbot on Lake of the Woods.  We caught some nice fish and even cooked up a few out on the ice.  It'll be a good show!  

We were catching them on a Northland BuckShot Rattle Spoon tipped with a piece of cisco belly meat.  Good times! 

A few days later, Jay Samsal and I were in the boat, on the Rainy River, catching walleyes.  We filmed a good show there as well, it's such a fun place to fish when these big walleyes load up in April.  We caught our fish on a new Northland jig that they are going to introduce later this year, a great jig for river fishing.  

I miss having the time to do a lot of shed hunting in the spring because it's one of my favourite things to do but it was nice to get out for one day with my friend Brian Talling.  

We found a few sheds and this skull, likely from a wolf killed deer earlier in the winter.  

After the tournament at Smith Lake I left my boat in a storage locker in Nashville.  When I got back to Nashville I had to pick up the boat late at night and make the 9 hour drive over to Roger, Arkansas and Beaver Lake for the next event.  

The Beaver Lake tournament did not go quite as well as I would have like unfortunately.  I caught some nice smallmouths in practice and focused on fishing for them in the tournament but unfortunately I was not able to figure them out during the tournament.  I managed to put together a limit each day but it was not enough and I ended up in 80th place, not good.  This photo was from a delay on the morning of day two due to some bad weather.  

During practice at Beaver I played around with a new camera mounting post that some friends of mine have designed.  It is great for using with sports cameras like the GoPro, iON or Shimano cameras.  A great, innovative design for filming your fishing experiences.  You can view them online at the EZCam website:  http://ezcampost.com/

Ice fishing and FLW Tour stop #2

Between some ice fishing around home in Sunset Country and traveling to fish the FLW Tour, it's been a busy past few weeks.  Things have been going good though, it's been fun!

I love this time of year because the weather is so nice and the fishing is so good.  Great time to be on the ice.  Here, Chip Leer and I hold a nice lake trout that we caught while filming a recent episode of Fishing with Gussy.  

Our friend Nicole Smith with a nice walleye!

Now is the time of year to catch big pike!  This one fell for a Northland Predator Rig tipped with a large, dead cisco.  

My pal Eric Naig from Northland Fishing Tackle with a jumbo pike!  

Chip Leer with the big trout of a recent three day trip...this one was close to 20 pounds, caught on an Impulse Tube. 

Northwestern Ontario is the top ice fishing destination in the World.  It's a great place to visit throughout the rest of the year as well!  To plan your dream fishing or hunting trip, visit www.ontariossunsetcountry.ca 

After ice fishing for a few days it was back on the road to Lewis Smith Lake, Alabama for stop #2 on the FLW Tour.  I fished a tournament at Smith Lake a couple of years ago and really enjoyed it...would love to go back again at some point!  

Smith Lake has a great spotted bass population and I decided to spend my time chasing them during the tournament.  I had a great practice and caughts several fish over four pounds, most of them on suspending jerkbaits. 

Smith also has a great population of big striped bass like this one.  They are a workout on the lighter bass tackle.  

This was a five pound spot from the last day of practice.  I ended up having a decent tournament, finishing just inside the prize money (top 60) with a 56th place finish.  Unfortunately I did not get my hands on any of these magnum spots during the tournament, but I managed to put together enough fish to cash a cheque for $10,000, so I'm happy! 

I caught just about all of my fish last week at Smith Lake on a new Jackall jerkbait called the Dowzvido 90 SP.  It's a nice bait, with a lip to help it get a little bit deeper.  It's going to be a great bait around home this summer.

Next up on the Tour schedule is a stop at Beaver Lake, Arkansas, a lake we've visited in each of the past two years.  I've had a couple of decent finishes there so I'm looking forward to going back there.  In the meantime, I'm still ice fishing around home and hoping to hit the woods in search of some shed antlers.  Always lots to do in Sunset Country!