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[jettabambino]

Well... I leave next week.. CANT WAIT TO GET AWAY...

I have never fished for small mouth.   I watched a few of Rod's videos but am wondering the following...

1.  What do I use for Small Mouth...  I have seen people say tube baits.. but I cant get any at tackle stores out here... Am I fine using a spinner or a small apex...?

2.  Do I simply go fishing early in the morning and late at night... I know St Marys has boats.. but I have been told they are pretty rickety... so I will most likely fish from shore.. I am thinking the shore lines have kids playng in the lake during the days...

3.   Does anyone know if I can buy worms over there..?

4  Any other fishing spots on Saltspring..?

[CohoJake]

I used to do a lot of fishing for smallmouth when I lived close to the Snake river in Washington.  I did well with a small selection of tackle -   1/4 to 1/8 ounce jigs with clear or orange curly grub tails bounced along the bottom, tiny tube-baits on jigheads designed for panfish (perch and bluegill) - in clear or black, and worms fished under a bobber.  I have hooked the occasional fish with spinnerbaits or floating rapala plugs, but that was usually when fishing was slow and I was going through everything I had.  Smallmouth like large boulders and other structure, so be prepared to lose lots of tackle.

[DanL]

Back in the day I used to do a yearly smallmouth trip to St Mary’s. My go to lures were spinner baits and crank baits like Rattlin Raps or Shad Raps. You can cover lots of water and wont snag up too much. Soft plastics and jigs also work well but the technique is a little trickier to pick up.

If you flyfish, rabbit leeches in black or purples on a full float or slow sink tip were always reliable producers.

Take out a boat and work all the shorelines, lilypads, bays and shallows. The shoreline has limited access and you will run out of areas to try pretty fast.

[Alexi]

I will going to the St. Mary's Lake as well in 2 weeks !  I heard the small mouth basses don't bite as much in August, is that true ? I read they tend go deeper, you have to do deep weed line fishing ?? I don't even know what that means... Can some experts give some insights ? also, will there be any salt water shore/beach fishing there on the island without a boat ? I am going to bring a tandem fishing kayak without trolling motor with me.
thanks
Alexi

[DragonSpeed]

We stayed at Lakeside Gardens.

I used their aluminum boat - it was fine.  You can rent them by the day... Without a boat, you're going to be pretty limited, pretty quickly.  fish EARLY morning... Sunrise... as the day(water) heats up the fish will go deep.

I had good action just to the LEFT (looking out from lakeside gardens)  toward the water intake.  There were kids playing in the water about 20 feet away.. Bass and Trout didn't seem to care.

I used mostly just an egg sucking leech that had a bit of aluminum sparkle...   

If you have an anchor... bring one.  Easier than drifting away from your fishing location

[Flytech]

Any flat fish work too, a buddy had an eagle steal his trout when I was there last.

[Drewhill]

First or last light using dew worms off the bottom work best. Biggest problem is the perch. They'll go after your bait as soon as it hits the water. You can get worms at the Home Hardware in Ganges but be prepared to pay a small fortune. Best bet is to bring your own over.

[Shawn6o4]

I don't mean to hijack your thread but I'm sorta thinking about planning a trip there for Sept 7-12, are the fish still active at that time? I've only fished for bass at deer lake, so I will uses the tip mentioned.

[jettabambino]

No hijack at all.   That is what is so good about this forum.

I will also give a report when I am back

[Shawn6o4]

Most of the resorts offer camping,  check them out.

[Drewhill]

I was there last year at that time and it was a lot slower than early season. We found last light produced better than first light for some reason.

[Damien]

I spent about 10 years fishing there once per year.

1.  What do I use for Small Mouth...  I have seen people say tube baits.. but I cant get any at tackle stores out here... Am I fine using a spinner or a small apex...?

For smallies, rubber stuff works great.  If you can't find anything locally, PM me.  I will send you away with some tricks.  I am a self confessed bass-guy with more stuff than I will ever use.

2.  Do I simply go fishing early in the morning and late at night... I know St Marys has boats.. but I have been told they are pretty rickety... so I will most likely fish from shore.. I am thinking the shore lines have kids playng in the lake during the days...

If it floats and you can row.  You're good to go here.

3.   Does anyone know if I can buy worms over there..?

Don't know.  Good to bring a carton if you find them enroute.  A nice back up to have.  There is good trout fishing there and the smaillies with take a float/nightcrawler readily.  Vary your depth, and find drop offs.  And most people know, tipping your wedding band, flatfish etc with a piece of worm is a failsafe for virtually all lake swimmers

4  Any other fishing spots on Saltspring..?

TONS!  PM is your friend.

[jettabambino]

full report to follow but I am still here.. all I can say is...

used plastic worms and caught a few... switched to a rapala and caught a few more...  but man o man.. Bring worms.. The town is sold out of them but another fisherman gave me one and I was hitting fish after fish... Like one every 3-5 minutes

being that I couldn't find worms I went to get shrimp and they work just as well!  going out for the final day

[Shawn6o4]

Awesome bambino,  can't wait till I go in September but I'm sure the fishing is pretty slow in Sept.

[Drewhill]

Were you hitting bass or perch? That lake is filled with perch that can get pretty large and can be confused as bass. Also try the Home Hardware in Ganges for dew worms.