With the great weekend forecast ahead of us I decided to hop out onto the Ottawa River for a few hours to aid in our decision process for Saturdays fishing. I arrived at the river to find it howling, lumpy and dirty. I knifed my way out to some sheltered areas in search of my favorite fish to target, Gar.
My first impression was how low the water is. Unreal. I am concerned about a dry summer and then the real issues start. I have never seen the river near this level in mid May, nevermind April!
I found water temps up into the mid to high 50’s. Usual areas that hold gar early season are void and nearly dry. Search mode I went! I found them, a bit lethargic from a long winters nap but found some bold enough to attack my bait. I started off with what we call “pencils”. The first fish swam about 5 feet and came a crashed my bait. Being alone I didn’t bother setting up the tripod for that little guy. Probably about 35-36 inches.
I picked away for a few hours landing 5, the best one being about 46 inches. No giants today but being that it was simply a scouting mission I was pleased. I left them to play with again tomorrow!
Here’s two of the better ones from today….
