The Origins of Smallmouth Bass in Nova Scotia

"Where did the Smallmouth Bass in Nova Scotia come from ?", is one of the more common questions I get asked via email from this site.

I didn't know the answer until my brother, Warren, told me some of the history recently. Here is the story.

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Before the 1870's Nova Scotia was renowned for its Trout and Salmon but the only bass were Striped Bass, which ran annually along the coast.

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Smallmouth Bass were introduced into a private pond in Maine somewhere around 1870.

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Whether by flood or finding other escape routes through brooks or streams, the Smallmouth Bass in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia today are thought to be descendants of that original planting.

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They made their own way into New Brunswick but our Bass were officially planted in 1942 in Bunker Lake, Yarmouth County.

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There were other government sponsored stocking efforts in the mid 60's in King's County and again in the 70's in Digby County but I suspect that by far most of the spread of Smallmouth Bass in Nova Scotia was done by private citizens trying to stock their favourite ponds and lakes with something fish'able as Trout became more and more difficult to find due to the ravages of acid rain in the 70's.

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Whatever the case, we got 'em now and I spend a lot of time during the dog-days of summer flicking bugs and poppers at them. They are a game fighter and can be as easy to catch as Perch or as fussy and sullen as any Trout that swims.

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I can't say I don't long for the old days of pristine Trout waters but Heck, I've always figured if a fish, no matter what kind, is willing to take a fly - I'll oblige by throwing one at it.

Advanced Float Tubing Techniques: Don’t Try This at Home!

One of the issues when fishing from a belly boat or float tube is simply getting into and out of it.

Just putting on the flippers when wearing waders can be a performance worthy of the Cirque du Soleil.

Then there is that whole backwards, duck-walk to get into deep enough water to float your tube. It is a pain, but worth it once you are floating along like the King of Podunk in your La-Z-Boy Recliner picking off fish no one else can reach.

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It really is idyllic floating along, enjoying the day and the fishing; well, that is until you have to pee.

That means kicking to a secluded spot with an easy place to land.



Sometimes you need to compromise; secluded but not so easy to land or, easy to land but not so secluded. It is a tough choice, made tougher the
longer you wait to make the decision.

I thought I had it licked a while ago while floating one of the nearby urban lakes. I had a big bottle of Gatorade with me and figured once the juice was finished I could use the bottle to pee in if needed. That way I could be not only discrete but avoid a possibly hazardous landing too.
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Sure enough, not long after having this brilliant idea I had the opportunity to try it out.
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So there I was floating in deep water, just behind a little island with both arms jammed down my waders as I tried to make the arrangements for the necessary deed.
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It was a bit of a shaky start but soon everything was going according plan.




I drifted there with that goofy look babies get sometimes when wearing their diapers, congratulating myself on the plan coming together, then it struck me; I had also enjoyed a Tim's double double earlier in the day, on the way to the lake.
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Maybe a Gatorade would fit back in the bottle coming out. Please, just trust me when I tell you that a Gatorade and a Tim Horton's, double double coffee sure as heck won't.
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I use float tubes that are a bit easier to get in and out of now a'days and once the waders were swabbed out with Javex , well, you know...

Win a Dream Trip Fishing Video Contest

This came in the mailbag the other day. It is a chance to win a dream trip. Start sorting trough those videos boys!

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Hi,

We are contacting you to see if your would consider posting something about the Waterfall Resort's fishing video contest.

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Waterfall Resort, Alaska's premier fishing resort and home of the $100,000 Fishing Tournament has announced a YouTube Fishing Video Contest.

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The Grand Prize is a 3-Night, 4-Day all inclusive fishing trip to the Legendary Waterfall Resort in Alaska.

The resort is world famous for large salmon and halibut fishing. For contest rules please visit: http://waterfallresort.com/video-contest

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The deadline for submitting videos is July 31st. Here's a quick video about the contest too: Click here for video .

Come on, pull out your favorite fishing video and you may just win a great prize!

Best of Luck.

Water Fall Resort

The New Float Tube

Got to try out the new float tube Tuesday evening, Brad “Fish Hawk” and I hit one of our favourite secret spots for some pretty good fishing. There were lots of Smallmouth Bass, a couple of Speckled Trout and even a few Yellow Perch.

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The new float tube worked great. It is bigger and more comfortable than other tubes I have used. The small flippers I was using were a little under-powered for pushing it around the lake in the wind but are so comfortable and light that I’ll have to really think about whether or not to use my scuba fins next time. I’ll probably stick with the small flippers. Heck, it’s not as if I’m in a hurry.

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Tactics for the evening were pretty simple. I started with a Wooly Bugger and Brad started with a leech pattern of some sort. I picked off three Bass from under the shore vegetation as we were kicking out. As we moved away from our launch site Brad started connecting with fish. He had changed up to a streamer with a bit of green he called a Baby Bass.

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I soon switched over to a streamer, using one with a bit of yellow to represent the perch so plentiful in this lake. Fishing streamers around structure and through the open spots in the Lily Pad beds was absolutely deadly.
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All told, it was a great outing. I lost count of how many Bass we brought to hand. The Trout were a pleasant surprise and even the Perch were bigger than average.

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The weather continues crappy. Last night was cold and drizzly. Today continued cold but the sun showed his face toward the end of the day.

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Smallmouth Bass are an interesting fish. Here is a shot from last night of a tiny Bass that hit a streamer nearly his own size. What was he thinking? Probably the same thing I do when picking up a great big bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken.

A New Float Tube

Well, I have not been doing much fishing. A combination of laziness and crappy weather has kept me off the water for the last couple of weeks. It is raining again today with the prediction of a thunder storm later on. It has been the wettest June I can remember.

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Of course anyone who knows me will tell you that my memory is not the greatest. For example; I remember catching a 17 inch trout in Long Lake one time while fishing with my Dad and brother Dave.

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No one else seems to remember that but, that time when we were twelve that I lost the worms just as the fishing was getting great, well, everyone seems to remember but me.

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My buddy Brad can remember every detail of every trip we have ever taken. Me, I just remember a montage of salmon takes and leaping trout. Usually the events of the trips get jumbled together into one long and pleasant reverie rather than a linear account of particulars. Of course there are certain things I remember vividly, such as rowing the length of Grand Lake once because someone figured we had enough gas to make the trip. We didn’t as it turned out.

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Anyway, memories of fishing trips are suspect as anyone who has ever listened to a fishing story will tell you. For today I’ll keep one eye on the weather and the other on my book as I look for a chance to get out and try for some bass in the new float tube I picked up second-hand last evening.

It is a Tout Unlimited, Kennebec model. Looks like it will be very comfortable. With an extra float tube, I can invite someone else to come along on a tubing trip, instead of always having to go alone.