Fat Shad
Growing up in the inner city Salmon were the end all and be all of big fighting fish for us. Humber river was the first place we discovered them. We used to take the subway there everyday after school when the salmon were running. We used to use marshmellows thinking that they loved to eat them, soon I realized that the marshmellow just floated off bottom enough that the fish would breathe the bait in rather than eat most of the time. Once I realized this sad fact salmon fishing became a little boring to me. Until one day in high school I started chucking around an old Mepps in the lower part of the Humber River hoping to connect with a Pike. On this day I got giant hit and thought I had the pike of a lifetime on until a saw 20 plus pound salmon with the spinner hanging out the side of its mouth. I was so excited that the fish actually hit the bait. It was this fish that sparked that old flame for “The King Of The City”. Since then I have discovered that they will hit all kinds of baits if you time it right.
Every year there is a time he when the Salmon come from all over Lake Ontario and bunch up in river mouths in cities across Southern Ontario. I never miss this magical time when the giants of lake Ontario are willing to whack baits with some weird type of instinctual rage, lol! You know what I’m talking about if you have ever felt a salmon destroy your bait on a retreive, if you’ve never experienced this you are truly missing out. And yes these fish can and do destroy your baits often enough. I have had fish bend my split rings straight, bend my hooks straight and pull the wiring right out of balsa would crankbaits, its unbelievable and I love it, lol!!!
The key to catching these bullies is the water temperature. If the water is in the mid 60’s and lower you have an excellent chance at connecting with a real “Sow Cow”. When the water is in the high 60’s and higher you may see fish every where but getting one to bite is another story.
Another factor to consider is the water clarity. If the water is like chocolate milk you can forget about hooking one legally with a lure. The clearer the water the better it is for the most part but there have been times in stained water where we have pounded them.
As for equipment, I like heavy gear. I like using 7′6″ St. Croix Tournament Legend MH flippin’ sticks for chucking giant spoons, swimbaits and cranks. These rods are awesome because the tip is softer than most fippin’ sticks on the market. This softness lets crankbaits wobble nicely and also allows you to muscle fish in without breaking off. Despite its soft tip the rod has a ton of backbone that lets you power them in and tire them out before they spool you. The reels I’m using are Cacutta’s, Chronarch’s and Curado’s. I’ve been spooling the reels with 17-20lb Berkley XT for Crankbaits and Swimbaits. When spoon fishing 20lb Power has been the number one performer.
When the water has been on the warmer end of the preferred temperature spectrum spoons have out produced Cranks for the most part. The most successful retrieve that has been working with spoons has been the slow and steady retrieve. However the jig and flutter retrieve has had its days so don’t be affraid to experiment. Every spoon on the market can work but the ones that have worked best for me are Williams Trophy Takers, Glow Cleos, big “no name” five of diamonds glow spoons and Northern Kings (great for the jig and flutter technique).
Crankbaits have worked best also on a slow and steady retreive. But there have been time with Husky Jerks and Rogues where the jerk, jerk, pause has killed them! We have caught them on almost every type of Crank you can think of. Here is a list of some of the baits that I have caught them on: Rapala Taildancers, Rapala J13’s, Rapala Risto Raps, Rapala Shad Raps (one of my best days ever was on this bait in a firetiger pattern), Rattlin’ Raps, Bill Norman bass crankbaits, Rattlin’ Spots, Bomber long A’s in deep diving and shallow diving, Husky Jerks, Rattlin’ Rogues, Wally Diver’s, Wally Minnow’s, Fat Free Shad’s, Reef Runner’s, Fast Trac Minnow’s and the list goes on, lol!, oh yeah I’ve even caught one on a spinnerbait near the Toronto Islands! Some days I just keep changing lures, sometimes you’ll catch one and then nothing until you switch lures. Switching baits often can really pay off at times but make sure you have a quality snap that won’t bend on you. Overall I like Crankbait fishing for salmon better than spoon fishing because they tend to smash Cranks harder! When night time sets in I use glow tape on my Cranks so the fish can see my bait better. I recharge the tape with my camera flash every now and then. I do the same with the glow spoon’s.
I’ll be out there tonight because the water is cooling off at the moment and I gotta’ hunch that the Cranks will have the block on fire! Hope to see you out there.
Peace T
Posted by Taro in Fishing. No Comments
Passion best describes Taro Murata. Introduced to fishing at the age of 3 by his grandmother, Taro’s love of fishing remains unchallenged!
Growing up in downtown Toronto, Taro had limited access to rural fishing experiences. Taro then began exploring and fishing every body of water that was accessible in downtown Toronto. He challenged the myth that good fishing was only found in northern locations. Taro’s experiment of fishing urban waters quickly proved to be an overwhelming success! This philosophy of fishing urban waters even influenced where he went to university! Talk about passion!! He researched various universities that didn’t meet his criteria of being next to a body of water until Taro chose Carlton University in Ottawa. His decision for going there?, “because it’s located along the Rideau River and the Rideau Canal!” He quickly proved his theory correct once again. His enthusiasm and passion for fishing quickly spread across campus introducing the sport to a new generation.
After completing university, Taro found himself teaching English in Hong Kong. Surrounded by water, fishing was never far from his mind. It was during this time that Taro began to combine his love of fishing with his natural ability to teach. Taro’s passion and energy transformed fishing into an art form! He wanted to spread the word that you could catch fish in urban waters! Taro has taken this philosophy all over the world; from monster Sea Bass in Hong Kong to Stripers in the Bronx!
Taro created Fish City TV to introduce urban fishing to the masses. He wants to share his wealth of knowledge with the hope that they too will be inspired! Like Taro always says, “get fish or die trying!” Taro is also a top ten tournament angler, a full time sport fishing guide, http://www.fishcitytours.com
Fat Boy Radio! Shad P Interview Part I
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3 VG Silver Rapala Lures; 2″ Fat Rap Sq Bill, 2 1/8″ & 2 5/8″ Deep Run Shad Raps $6.27 |
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FAT CB BDSO MS AMERICAN SHAD LUCKY CRAFT FAT CB BDS-0 CRANKBAIT LURE, 1 3/4″, 1/4OZ, MS AMERICAN SHAD… |
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FAT CB BDSO ORIG TENN SHAD LUCKY CRAFT FAT CB BDS-0 CRANKBAIT LURE, 1 3/4″, 1/4OZ, ORIGINAL TENNESSEE SHAD… |
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LUCKY CRAFT FAT SMASHER 75 3/4oz 3in CHART SHAD… |
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Rapala Dives-to Fat 5/8 Oz Fishing Lures The “Fat Body” DT with its wide rolling action is perfect when a slow retrieve with plenty of wobble is the preferred method. Its balsa construction and husky profile create a wide rolling action at virtually any speed. The square lip deflects off obstructions with fish triggering action…. |
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Bomber Fat Free Fingerling Fishing Lure Technique: Cast and retrieve with erratic action simulating a wounded baitfish…. |
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Bomber Fat Free Fry Fishing Lure Technique: Cast and retrieve with erratic action simulating a wounded baitfish…. |