I went to two of my favorite lakes yesterday. The ice was out but the water was still pretty cold....about 47F. You know, it is not so much what you know but how much you have forgotten about flyfishing. The general wisdom is that fishing is best in the early morning. But that does not apply to early in the season. I had forgotten that. At my 'buggy lake' I saw no midges coming off until around 1PM. I saw two midges and one emerging but nothing before that and absolutely nothing at the previous lake earlier. At this time of year it is better to fish later in the day. We are late this year. The lakes should be alive with hatches of midges and boatmen. Right after I saw those two midges flying around I saw the first rise of the day but then it was time for me to go home. I will fish later in the day for the next few times.
At the earlier lake, I did see some signal on the scope and almost right away got a half hearted hit. I brought in a 10-11 inch Yellow Perch. I had decided earlier that if I got a perch from this lake, I would take it home. A small one would be hard to fillet but somehow I would cook it.
MNR had told me some time ago that they should not be stocking trout in a lake with Perch because they eat the same food as trout and occupy the same territory, unlike Bass. They virtually would starve out the trout with their superior numbers. This lake is big enough that not all the food could get eaten and so it does produce some large Rainbows. With this in mind, it practically becomes our duty to catch, kill and eat perch. You would be doing your trout lake a favour (and yourself).
The small perch (and bass) can be cooked whole. Check the internet for recipes and instructions. My 11 incher (see it is getting larger) tasted just fine and the skin and bones separated nicely. Don't forget to scale it at the lake. You don't want to make a mess at home that you will have to clean up.
At the earlier lake, I did see some signal on the scope and almost right away got a half hearted hit. I brought in a 10-11 inch Yellow Perch. I had decided earlier that if I got a perch from this lake, I would take it home. A small one would be hard to fillet but somehow I would cook it.
MNR had told me some time ago that they should not be stocking trout in a lake with Perch because they eat the same food as trout and occupy the same territory, unlike Bass. They virtually would starve out the trout with their superior numbers. This lake is big enough that not all the food could get eaten and so it does produce some large Rainbows. With this in mind, it practically becomes our duty to catch, kill and eat perch. You would be doing your trout lake a favour (and yourself).
The small perch (and bass) can be cooked whole. Check the internet for recipes and instructions. My 11 incher (see it is getting larger) tasted just fine and the skin and bones separated nicely. Don't forget to scale it at the lake. You don't want to make a mess at home that you will have to clean up.
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