427 replies to this topic

[Knuguy]

Openfire,
Thx for that post. As a newbie I appreciate all the good info I can get. Would most of that apply to river fishing as well, say after mid Sept.?

[fisher12]

Openfire,
Thx for that post. As a newbie I appreciate all the good info I can get. Would most of that apply to river fishing as well, say after mid Sept.?

Only river mouth fishing.

[DEVIN]

how is the peir? are salmon still there or have they made it up the river?

..DEV..

[Meppsman]

how is the peir? are salmon still there or have they made it up the river?

..DEV..

Yup, I would move up with them and maybe try lures in estuaries

[DEVIN]

Yup, I would move up with them and maybe try lures in estuaries

any recommendations for lures?

[Meppsman]

any recommendations for lures?

Yes, glad you asked!

Nighttime
-Glow Spoons
-Custom Painted Lures
-Sometimes non-glow

Daytime
-Little Cleo's
-Rapala J-13
-Flatfish
-Rapala RNR
(Bright colors are good, but Silver and Gold can also work)


Of course, there is really no official list Sometimes they might attack just anything

[Porter86]

the knot burst off two spoons at the part which is looped around the spoon's hole not at the knot itself.
Which knot do you use?

palomar knot

It's the simpliest and strongest knot to tie.

Just tag the ends with a cigarrette and your good.


There are stronger knots but it's like Velcro shoes

I use to use the palomar knot as well before, but than I was watching one of Itelo's episodes and he demostrated how to tie the tighest knot for fishing, were it loops back through the hol and leave a circle and than wrap the tail around the line 4-5 times and than put it through the circle and because it only wraps around each other it makes it the tightest knot aparently...and I find a whole lot easier to tie and quicker than the palomar knot.


I finally read this, and this was awesome reading!! I have come away with soooo much knowledge now about fishing salmon at the piers. I really really really thank you all for all your input on this. OFF is probably one of the best things to happen for a lot of, to come together share our stories, meet new people we may never have before, and learn new things and ways to fish different fish. 1,000,000,000 + haha.


I'm thinking I'm going to try this weekend stay out most the night and see what happens. I know most have moved up already but it's worth a try anyways right...who know I might get lucky(HA)


MikeyMikey...I understand what your saying about nets and what not, but I can not afford the $40 right now for a proper net, I have one that was my grandpa's but it was only a 2 foot net. In my instance, my family and me even worse are going through rough times, my dad is about to be on strike with Mississauga transit, and my mom got screwed out of a really good job for being to nice to the employees...and I'm filing for bankruptcy, and I'm lucky to clear $1,200 a month, while helping pay bills at home. I tend to have just enough money for gas for 2 weeks after I help out with bills at home. But I would never ever just take someone's net, I would politely ask if someone with a net would mind helping me out...but first thing I have to do is catch something that needs a net haha.

[DEVIN]

Yes, glad you asked!

Nighttime
-Glow Spoons
-Custom Painted Lures
-Sometimes non-glow

Daytime
-Little Cleo's
-Rapala J-13
-Flatfish
-Rapala RNR
(Bright colors are good, but Silver and Gold can also work)


Of course, there is really no official list Sometimes they might attack just anything

THANK YOU VERRYYY MUCH. and once more thing for the cleos and spoons.. i only have 3/4oz.. do i need smaller?

[Meppsman]

Nope, perfect size

[NADO]

if your going for steel you want to go one size down.

[DEVIN]

if your going for steel you want to go one size down.

steels hit the same lures as the salmon?.. yeah i was wondering weather or not they would.. and how about those blue fox or panther martin/ mepps spinners can they work aswell for both salmon and steels?

[Meppsman]

Salmon caught late in the evening today on a J-13

steels hit the same lures as the salmon?.. yeah i was wondering weather or not they would.. and how about those blue fox or panther martin/ mepps spinners can they work aswell for both salmon and steels?

Yup, Rainbow Trout will hit the same lures as salmon, but usually 2 sizes smaller. Brown Trout can be caught on even some bass type lures.

[dsukh]

Most of the recent talk here at OFF has been focused on salmon fishing and there seems to be an influx of new fishermen searching the forum for salmon info. So, I thought that I would take this opportunity to share some of the basics I’ve learned over the years while fishing for salmon at Port Credit.

The following info is geared towards fishermen who are new to salmon fishing and should serve as a quick primer/reference that will get a “noob” catching salmon in the least amount of time (hopefully). This info may be useful to some, but redundant for other more experienced anglers. So, noobs keep reading and salmon pros click the back button

I should point out that while this is written about Port Credit, most of the basics covered should also apply to other pier fishing scenarios, whether it’s Bronte, Port Hope, etc… Additionally, the following guide is based on my years of fishing Port Credit from mid July to early/mid September.

The largest salmon run in Ontario enters the Credit River through Port Credit in Mississauga, and there’s no better way to get ‘em while they’re fresh than “pier fishing” AKA “spoon chucking” at the mouth of the river... There are other techniques, but none as fun, exhilarating or rewarding as hooking up via the spoon in open water in my humble opinion…

So let’s begin. The first consideration people usually have when they get into salmon fishing is what gear to buy. There is no one right answer, so rather than getting into a drawn out explanation, I’ll just quickly tell you what I use, as it has worked nicely for me. Mileage may vary.

My Gear:

Rod - I have 3 rods that I use for this type of fishing, a 9’, 10’.6” and an 11’.6” (which also doubles as my river rod for steelhead).
Reel – Spinning reel with a spool capacity of 8 – 240 (the spool can hold 240 yards of 8 lb test diameter line)
Line – I load my reel up with 20 lb Power Pro braid (6lb diameter)
Lures - My “spoon chucking” arsenal includes 3 basic lures: Little Cleos, Krocodiles and Rapala J-13’s in various colours and finishes, all tested and proven at Port Credit. More about this later…
So now that you know what I’m packing, I’ll tell you what you need to know about catching salmon at Port Credit, spoon chuckin’ style:

Rule 1) Timing is everything.

If you take anything away from this guide, this should be it. I don’t care how skilled an angler you are, if you don’t fish when the salmon are within casting distance, you obviously won’t catch any fish. Remember, this is shore fishing, so unlike those with a boat, we must wait for the salmon to come to us.

Not to beat this point to death, but I’ve read posts from people who say that they didn’t see any fish being caught. Well, the reality is that if you were there at 1:00PM on a sunny day in clear water in the middle of August, it’s usually a foregone conclusion that you’re in for a good old fashion skunking… A savvy salmon fisherman may have caught 2 or 3 fish just 7 hours earlier and you would be none-the-wiser. I used to feel bad when I would run into guys at Port Credit while I was on a Sunday afternoon jog, seeing them casting cleos in the middle of the day… I would ask, “Any luck?” and they would say “No, nothing… I think it’s still too early in the year… Maybe anther 2 weeks”. It would be the 3rd week of August and I had already landed well over 2 dozen in the past month.

Here’s the deal, when it comes to casting lures from shore at the mouth of the Credit, to have any reasonable expectation of actually catching salmon, you have to time it right. So, when it comes to “timing it right”, you have 4 basic options, listed from best to worst:

a) Crack of Dawn.

This in my opinion is the very best time. When I say “crack of dawn”, I mean you should arrive at Port Credit while it is still pitch black and stay until the sun has risen.

At this time, the salmon are tight into the shore, actively and aggressively feeding. You will often see large boils on the surface of the water… these are salmon. When you see that happen, immediately cast past the boil and retrieve through the spot.

You have about a 2 hour window (depending on when you arrive) to hook as many salmon during this time before the sun gets too high in the sky and the salmon retreat back into deeper water, out of casting range. The window can be extended by an hour or so if it is overcast, but by 8:00 am, it’s usually game over, time to go home.

I usually show up well before dawn, at around 4:30 AM or so, and start with my glow in the dark cleo and stick with this lure until it is completely light outside, when I’ll then switch over to my other standard (non glow) lures.

Fishing during overcast / inclement weather OR when a well defined mud-line exists within casting range.


If there’s a well defined mud-line, you can catch salmon all day long by casting right to the mud-line edges as illustrated in the image below:



Mud-lines form during and after a significant rain event. Salmon can often be found at the edges of the mud-line. If the edge of the mud-line is within casting range, work the edges and you may have a very good day

c) Night Fishing.

Beginning in mid to late July, the salmon begin to stage at the mouth of the Credit. During the day, they are in deep water, way out of casting range. However, at night they move into the river mouth… within casting distance.

What you need is a “glow in the dark” spoon, such as the standard ¾ ounce green/white glow cleo and a camera flash to charge the lure. I usually flash the lure every 5 casts or so.

This is pretty straight forward. Cast, cast, cast, cast, cast, charge… and so on. Put in your hours and you will eventually hook up. Yes, I said hours. Be patient and you will be rewarded. This type of fishing can be hit and miss. Some nights you’ll have multiple hook ups, other nights, nadda.

d) Dusk.

This can be hit and miss, but occasionally the salmon will creep to within casting distance while feeding anywhere from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM. Signs to look for are birds (terns?)diving into schools of alewives and seagulls grabbing fish off the surface. Chances are the birds are not the only creatures actively feeding on them. Cast right into or preferably past where you see the birds diving, and reel your lure right through the school of Alewives. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve hooked into salmon doing this. The birds can be your best friends… Aerial fish finders.

I don’t waste my time chucking spoons at Port Credit unless it is during one of the above 4 times. I guess that about wraps up rule 1)

So, this brings us to

Rule 2) Replace the dull treble hooks that came with your spoons.

Ditch those trebles and replace them with super-sharp Owner siwash hooks, or at the very least, Gamakatsu siwash hooks if you want to save a few bucks. The bottom line is to get rid of the trebles and replace with siwash hooks. You will get much better hook penetration, and I’ve never had a siwash-hooked salmon get off unless my line snapped.

A pack of Owner siwash hooks will run you about $9 for a 6 pack, but given all the time, energy and expense you’ve already invested, is it really worth skimping out on the one single most important piece of fishing tackle?

Rule 3) Have confidence.

If you strictly follow rule 1) and 2) above, you are maximizing your chances at hooking up with Mr. Chinook Salmon. A good fisherman is a confident fisherman.

A final note about lure selection:

The reason that shore fishermen use spoons is primarily because they are heavy. This allows you to launch your presentation as far as possible, which is vitally important when shore fishing at Port Credit. For this reason, I recommend a ¾ ounce Little Cleo, as opposed to the 2/5 and 1/3 ounce models.

Similarly, Krocodiles come in a couple of sizes. Again, you want the largest size.

Lure color: I’ve found that the best colours are yellow/silver, blue/silver, green/silver both regular and hammered finish (cleo) and fire-tiger.

For visual reference, here is my Port Credit salmon line-up:

My Cleos:


edit to add a pic of the yellow/silver cleo... This is probably the best colour of them all. You may have noticed that it's missing from my collection. That's only because I lost it the last time I went salmon fishing, and I haven't got around to replacing it yet. Here is what it looks like:



My Luhr-Jenson Krocodiles:


My Rapala J-13s:


I think I've pretty much covered the basics, but in case I've missed anything, members with knowledge of this subject should feel free to add to this if you have any additional info.

Hey Openfire, thanks for that indepth guide for us noobs.

A few questions though. You mentioned that your 11' is UL and ur 9' is M. What is your 10'6? Can you really use a UL on the pier? I thought that pier fishing would require a stronger backbone on your rod to cast. I'm looking into buying a rod for pier fishing for next year and I am wondering what rod length, weight and action I should get to start. I currently have a 9'L to do my river salmon run in September.

Thanks!

-danny

[DEVIN]

One thing I feel that needs to be mentioned is hook sets with long rods. Make sure you give your hardest hook set once a fish bites. The past few days I lost lots of salmon after just 4 seconds battle. Don't rely on the fish to get a good grip on the hooks.

hey are their still action at port credit? i toaught it was over

[georgianbaydrifter]

I have been fishing trout salmon and steelhead for 15 yrs now and use all three methods to take fish casting, baitrunning, and float fishing. by far the lowest probabability of foul hooking a fish is by casting ( unless you are one of the jibronies dragging size 5 spinners or 3/4 oz cleos through pools loaded with fish) however in my personall experience foul hooked fish occurs most under a float usually because you are fishing to deep and when you take the rig out of the water it tickles their bellies. Fish naturally tend to feedupward and running shorter leads will have two advantages 1) fish suspended in the water column will not be spooked by seeing your terminal tackle shot, swivels, knots ect and 2) when a fishes rises to take you bait it swims back towards bottom resulting in a very pronounced sinking of the float. when it comes to fishing off bottom the mouth to finned ratio has a lot to do with the anglers ability to decipher whats going on atthe hook. On my home trib there are guys who snag fish intentionally off the bottom they are easy to spot: heavy gear, small trebles hidden in yarn, and are usually shinning the pool with lights and stomping their feet on the dock in an attempt to move the fish around and increase the chance of a swim by (lining). These "anglers" are also setting the hook any time a leaf brushes thier line. when bottom fishing i put my rod in a ''balance type'' position in my rod holder i find this helps me determine the difference between debris hitting the line a swim by and an actual take. bottom fishing can be a productive teqnique to take fall run fish and learning to read the rods movement will result in many less snagged fish, fewer than one in ten for me are foul hooked and many have hit the bait so hard the hook is in their rakers. Salmon do eat once in the creeks while fishing wilmot creek this fall i witnessed fish pulling out of their pod and turning downstream after seeing my baits hitting as far as twenty feet away. Be curtious to land owners most just want ppl to ask before they start to fish and leave no trace. pack out you garbage ever the smallest piece can be damaging to wildlife caught a 3 pound brown on Lake O trib with a plastic ring of sorts collared around its neck. and let the good genetics go free you will be able to tell the difference between a type 1 and type 2 fish after awhile.

Life is short......Fish hard

Ps williams trophy 2 is an excellent alewife fake painted in glow paint and put a black spot on it near front casting off port hope piers at the end of august full moon........blammo hope you got lots of line on that areo 3000

[moonsumoonsu]

Hello there! i was thinking of fishing the bronte pier for salmon and trout. When fishing 3/4 little cleos, is there a specific presentation, also bronte pier is REALLY deep? (just reel it in, jig etc) Also this whole topics been about pier fishing late summer and fall, are there any salmon in early/mid summer? i heard the small salmon move in to feed on the alewives .

[moonsumoonsu]

Most of the recent talk here at OFF has been focused on salmon fishing and there seems to be an influx of new fishermen searching the forum for salmon info. So, I thought that I would take this opportunity to share some of the basics I’ve learned over the years while fishing for salmon at Port Credit.

The following info is geared towards fishermen who are new to salmon fishing and should serve as a quick primer/reference that will get a “noob” catching salmon in the least amount of time (hopefully). This info may be useful to some, but redundant for other more experienced anglers. So, noobs keep reading and salmon pros click the back button

I should point out that while this is written about Port Credit, most of the basics covered should also apply to other pier fishing scenarios, whether it’s Bronte, Port Hope, etc… Additionally, the following guide is based on my years of fishing Port Credit from mid July to early/mid September.

The largest salmon run in Ontario enters the Credit River through Port Credit in Mississauga, and there’s no better way to get ‘em while they’re fresh than “pier fishing” AKA “spoon chucking” at the mouth of the river... There are other techniques, but none as fun, exhilarating or rewarding as hooking up via the spoon in open water in my humble opinion…

So let’s begin. The first consideration people usually have when they get into salmon fishing is what gear to buy. There is no one right answer, so rather than getting into a drawn out explanation, I’ll just quickly tell you what I use, as it has worked nicely for me. Mileage may vary.

My Gear:

Rod - I have 3 rods that I use for this type of fishing, a 9’, 10’.6” and an 11’.6” (which also doubles as my river rod for steelhead).
Reel – Spinning reel with a spool capacity of 8 – 240 (the spool can hold 240 yards of 8 lb test diameter line)
Line – I load my reel up with 20 lb Power Pro braid (6lb diameter)
Lures - My “spoon chucking” arsenal includes 3 basic lures: Little Cleos, Krocodiles and Rapala J-13’s in various colours and finishes, all tested and proven at Port Credit. More about this later…
So now that you know what I’m packing, I’ll tell you what you need to know about catching salmon at Port Credit, spoon chuckin’ style:

Rule 1) Timing is everything.

If you take anything away from this guide, this should be it. I don’t care how skilled an angler you are, if you don’t fish when the salmon are within casting distance, you obviously won’t catch any fish. Remember, this is shore fishing, so unlike those with a boat, we must wait for the salmon to come to us.

Not to beat this point to death, but I’ve read posts from people who say that they didn’t see any fish being caught. Well, the reality is that if you were there at 1:00PM on a sunny day in clear water in the middle of August, it’s usually a foregone conclusion that you’re in for a good old fashion skunking… A savvy salmon fisherman may have caught 2 or 3 fish just 7 hours earlier and you would be none-the-wiser. I used to feel bad when I would run into guys at Port Credit while I was on a Sunday afternoon jog, seeing them casting cleos in the middle of the day… I would ask, “Any luck?” and they would say “No, nothing… I think it’s still too early in the year… Maybe anther 2 weeks”. It would be the 3rd week of August and I had already landed well over 2 dozen in the past month.

Here’s the deal, when it comes to casting lures from shore at the mouth of the Credit, to have any reasonable expectation of actually catching salmon, you have to time it right. So, when it comes to “timing it right”, you have 4 basic options, listed from best to worst:

a) Crack of Dawn.

This in my opinion is the very best time. When I say “crack of dawn”, I mean you should arrive at Port Credit while it is still pitch black and stay until the sun has risen.

At this time, the salmon are tight into the shore, actively and aggressively feeding. You will often see large boils on the surface of the water… these are salmon. When you see that happen, immediately cast past the boil and retrieve through the spot.

You have about a 2 hour window (depending on when you arrive) to hook as many salmon during this time before the sun gets too high in the sky and the salmon retreat back into deeper water, out of casting range. The window can be extended by an hour or so if it is overcast, but by 8:00 am, it’s usually game over, time to go home.

I usually show up well before dawn, at around 4:30 AM or so, and start with my glow in the dark cleo and stick with this lure until it is completely light outside, when I’ll then switch over to my other standard (non glow) lures.

Fishing during overcast / inclement weather OR when a well defined mud-line exists within casting range.


If there’s a well defined mud-line, you can catch salmon all day long by casting right to the mud-line edges as illustrated in the image below:



Mud-lines form during and after a significant rain event. Salmon can often be found at the edges of the mud-line. If the edge of the mud-line is within casting range, work the edges and you may have a very good day

c) Night Fishing.

Beginning in mid to late July, the salmon begin to stage at the mouth of the Credit. During the day, they are in deep water, way out of casting range. However, at night they move into the river mouth… within casting distance.

What you need is a “glow in the dark” spoon, such as the standard ¾ ounce green/white glow cleo and a camera flash to charge the lure. I usually flash the lure every 5 casts or so.

This is pretty straight forward. Cast, cast, cast, cast, cast, charge… and so on. Put in your hours and you will eventually hook up. Yes, I said hours. Be patient and you will be rewarded. This type of fishing can be hit and miss. Some nights you’ll have multiple hook ups, other nights, nadda.

d) Dusk.

This can be hit and miss, but occasionally the salmon will creep to within casting distance while feeding anywhere from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM. Signs to look for are birds (terns?)diving into schools of alewives and seagulls grabbing fish off the surface. Chances are the birds are not the only creatures actively feeding on them. Cast right into or preferably past where you see the birds diving, and reel your lure right through the school of Alewives. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve hooked into salmon doing this. The birds can be your best friends… Aerial fish finders.

I don’t waste my time chucking spoons at Port Credit unless it is during one of the above 4 times. I guess that about wraps up rule 1)

So, this brings us to

Rule 2) Replace the dull treble hooks that came with your spoons.

Ditch those trebles and replace them with super-sharp Owner siwash hooks, or at the very least, Gamakatsu siwash hooks if you want to save a few bucks. The bottom line is to get rid of the trebles and replace with siwash hooks. You will get much better hook penetration, and I’ve never had a siwash-hooked salmon get off unless my line snapped.

A pack of Owner siwash hooks will run you about $9 for a 6 pack, but given all the time, energy and expense you’ve already invested, is it really worth skimping out on the one single most important piece of fishing tackle?

Rule 3) Have confidence.

If you strictly follow rule 1) and 2) above, you are maximizing your chances at hooking up with Mr. Chinook Salmon. A good fisherman is a confident fisherman.

A final note about lure selection:

The reason that shore fishermen use spoons is primarily because they are heavy. This allows you to launch your presentation as far as possible, which is vitally important when shore fishing at Port Credit. For this reason, I recommend a ¾ ounce Little Cleo, as opposed to the 2/5 and 1/3 ounce models.

Similarly, Krocodiles come in a couple of sizes. Again, you want the largest size.

Lure color: I’ve found that the best colours are yellow/silver, blue/silver, green/silver both regular and hammered finish (cleo) and fire-tiger.

For visual reference, here is my Port Credit salmon line-up:

My Cleos:


edit to add a pic of the yellow/silver cleo... This is probably the best colour of them all. You may have noticed that it's missing from my collection. That's only because I lost it the last time I went salmon fishing, and I haven't got around to replacing it yet. Here is what it looks like:



My Luhr-Jenson Krocodiles:


My Rapala J-13s:


I think I've pretty much covered the basics, but in case I've missed anything, members with knowledge of this subject should feel free to add to this if you have any additional info.

How do you actually present the spoons? Let them sink and slowly reel them in, or sorta jerk them and let it sink, jerk it let it sink? I really want to try catching some salmon from the piers. Also i was wondering, this whole topic is about big prespawn salmon, in the summer, wont there still be juvenile salmon feedling on alewives?

[DEVIN]

Is it close to that time everyone

...DEV...

[NADO]

WOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOO SAAALLLLLMOOOONNNNNNNNNNN

[CJR]

Almost