Its that time of the year again when we can all get out there - wherever there is for you - and catch some walleye, pickerel, glass eyes, or whatever you want to call them.

You know how tasty this fish is, and it can put up one heck of a fight before it will give you any kind of a chance to catch it.

Of course you know that the Kawartha Lakes region of Southern Ontario is rated as one of the best and most productive areas in which to fish for this splendid species.

You are going to read many a tale of getting out to one Kawartha lake or another to fish walleye in deep waters especially where rocks and boulders are present. This is the right train of thought for many of the Shield lakes, yet for the Kawarthas, an abundance of walleye can be found in much shallower waters as little as 10 feet or less, and in weed-orientated areas.

Jigs or spinner bait, and why not some juicy worms, all are going to help you manage a good catch now that the season has opened once again.

Its about 8:30pm here so I think I might just go and check out a spot under the bridge as angle a few visiting walleye as they pass by.

So happy fishing in the Kawarthas, and do drop by to let us know how you are managing your catch at the beginning of the season.

Thanksgiving weekend turned out to be a bright and warm weekend this year. After working for most of the Saturday morning, it was high time I headed out side for some fresh air and sun as I noticed many others on the river passing by in their boasts. My office window is not far from the river, so now and then I take a peek outside to see whats going on, and also to stretch a bit which helps relieve the constant sitting at the computer working. The temperature seemed warm enough for shorts and t-shirts, so what better time than to launch my old orange canoe and get in some more fishing before the season was over.

The river is a few hundred feet from the house as I dragged the old canoe along the tallish grass field down to the water - some more good stretching and cardio exercise - yes? Into the water I slid the canoe and off I paddled, which this afternoon was easy as the current was gentle.  However it did make fishing at the same time difficult, unless I tied down the canoe to a log, tree stump, or old tree branches jutting out into the river, every now and then to get in some good casts.

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Its time of the Lindsay Central Exhibition, and I can hear the Truck and Tractor pulling event going on in the distance as I make my casts in this cool September night.  This is the second year that the Lindsay Ex. is being held at its new fairgrounds on the south edge of the town of Lindsay.

I had been been stuck in the house all day today working on another project called Mopeds and Scooters | Save on Gas and felt it was about time I went out for some fresh air. So what if I hadn’t cooked dinner yet.  I had had a late lunch, and a much needed respite was necessary.

It was about 8pm. when I decided to go out and fish, but before that I had to retie my fishing line with a new snaphook - snagged the last hook in the rocks and snapped the line. Anyway it only took a few minutes and I was soon off to try my luck first at the dock.

The moon had not risen yet, as the darkness of night emerges even quicker with every passing day of September.  Cast after cast and not much happening until - fish on!  Not a keeper but a good little fight.  Had to use the pliers to pry out the hook.  A few more casts and then I got bored with this location so my next move was to fish from under the bridge.

Its a steep descent along uneven ground down the river bank at the bridge, and at night a slippery one at that. A little more difficult tonight than usual but I arrived standing up at the large boulders under the bridge at one of my favourite spots.  Next problem was to get properly balanced on the uneven shaped boulders.  Too cool for a dip, especially at night - lol.

Almost an hour had passed from when I first ventured out and no more luck tonight.  By now a bright full moon was rising and it reminded me of my girlfriend who currently happens to be thousands of miles away.  In the past on many a moon-filled night, I composed poems to her and this night with its beautiful full moon, who else could I be thinking of but her :_]

Okay, you want me to get back to the fishing, so, I was using the same hook as tied on earlier, a Mustad size #4, with a 3″ Yum Walleye grub (green body and orange tail) slipped onto it, which helped land the first little fighter this night.  But a rumbling tummy and the thought of having to cook dinnner when I got back to the house, seemed like it was time to quit. However, like most anglers out there, I had to try just a few more times.  Determined to catch something better, I changed the Walleye Grub with a 3″ white original scent Berkely PowerBait Power Grub.  I used to have lots of success with this and hoped that the same would be the case tonight.  Thank goodness my persistence was rewarded.  Casting close to the shoreline, trying hard not to get snagged in the bull-rushes, I hooked on to a good fighter.  A few minutes of whining reel, and nicely bowed rod, I saw the keeper of the night.  A lovely walleye, weighing in at 3lbs. and 17″ long.

Alright, now you were hoping that as a good catch and release kind of guy (fish that is) I would have spared this walleye and thrown it back into the Scugog for another day. Hey, remember I mentioned that I hadn’t cooked dinned yet, so what better reason than to keep it - if you know what I mean?

With my girlfriend so far away, the next best thing for me to do was to spend it outside with the moon, memories of her, and a good fish on the line.

Happy fishing in the Kawarthas!

I’ve always been a catch and release guy (fish that is) but this year my buddies said ‘why not keep the fish and give them to us to eat.’ Well, I decided to do just that this year in the Kawarthas.

It then got me thinking about whether to give them the fish I caught, currently Walleye (Pickerel) and Crappie, whole and fresh (say a few hours that is because they don’t live right next door) or as fillets of fresh fish first to surprise them with the evenings meal.

My first choice was an easy one and no problem. Catch the fish first, then bag them and finally drive them over to drop them off for the next meal the buddies had planned.

The second choice was a little more interesting. As I said before, I’m a catch and release angler, so I never got around to filleting fish so this choice was a more difficult one to make.

OK! what could be so difficult about filleting a fish anyway?

The first obstacle was not having a fillet knife. The general rule of thumb is make sure you use a sharp filleting knife. Filleting and cleaning fish can only be done properly if one has a proper clean and sharp knife - fillet knife preferably. Next obstacle was to spend a little bit of money and buy myself a good fillet knife.

Once the fillet knife was purchased, next came the filleting process. Filleting walleye (and for that matter freshwater perch) is supposedly a fairly easy thing to do. And walleye are supposed to be a bit easier to hang onto when compared to northern pike and trout.

This is what I’ve learned so far about filleting walleye. If you have any different techniques or methods and tools to use, please let me know.

You might want to scale the fish first by scraping the outer skin but this is only a preference thing.

Start with the belly of the fish toward you and the head of the walleye away form you. Take your sharp fillet knife and make a cut behind the pectoral fin into the fish up to the spine (halfway through the body). If the fish had a neck, this is basically where you are cutting.

Turn your knife and cut parallel to the backbone. Continue the cut toward the bottom of the fish and right through to the end of the tail. You will now have one fillet attached to the outer skin. You should be able to see the rib cage attached to the meat.

Put that fillet to the side. Turn the fish over and do exactly the same thing on the other side. Cut under the pectoral fin turning the knife and running the cut all the way through the length of the body and out the tail. This cut might be a little tougher than the first one as you no longer have the “other half of the body” to act as a base. Take your time.

OK. You’re well on your way to learn how to fillet walleye. Next step is getting the rib cage off the fillet.

Take the first fillet and place it on the cutting board skin side up with the top of the fillet to the right. Place your hand on the top of the fillet pushing your fingers firmly into the skin to give you a good grip (some people push their knuckles into the fish rather than their fingers). This will flatten the ribs to the cutting board. This is what you want. It will ensure you don’t waste any meat.

Next, take your thumb and lift the side of the fillet closest to you and slide your knife between the rib cage and the meat. Start at the top of the fillet and cut toward the belly that was once there. The key is to put pressure down on your knife as you cut along the rib cage making sure you slide your knife all the way through the fillet. You will know you have enough pressure on your knife when the blade gives a bit as you are making your cut. Slow and steady in the process is important. Once you get the hang of it, you will discover it is the fastest and cleanest way to remove the rib cage.

Next place the fillet skin down on the table with the tail closest to you. Begin a cut at the tail to remove the meat from the skin. Carefully cut along the length of the fillet toward the top and completely remove the fillet in one piece.

The second fillet is no different, so repeat as above.

Finally removal of the Y bones. This is simple in a walleye fillet and something that can be done without sacrificing much meat. You will notice the fillet has a ‘center line’ running through it. By running your fingers on the fillet parallel to the center line you will be able to feel the Y bones. Take your knife and make a cut along the outside of the Y bones. Typically the length of the cut should be about one third of the fillet. Cut through into the cutting board. Secondly make a cut along the center line of the same length. Remove this piece of meat (which is full of Y bones).

That’s about it I think.

Next clean up the fillet and get it in the frying pan or package it for delivery to a friend - thats if you are a catch and release angler like me.

Happy fishing! Happy Filleting!