HUNTING AND FISHING GROUNDS AND PLEASURE RESORTS. 
41 
Until very recently comparatively but 
little had been written to place on record 
the noble game in the forests and the 
magnificent fish to be found in the wa- 
ters of the Province of Ontario. There 
are certain localities abounding with the 
means of amusement. for all those who 
rejoice in the manly and exhilarating plea- 
sures of rod and gun. Of the larger va- 
rieties of game, in the great wilderness, in 
the north and west, moose, caribou, deer, 
bear, &c., are found in the greatest abun- 
dance, but are scarce in the southern por- 
tion of the Province. 
ducks, snipe, ruffed grouse, woodcock, 
and golden plover, are very plentiful, 
and sportsmen can get good shooting; 
and in the innumerable rivers, lakes, and 
streams that are interspersed throughout 
the Province, the lordly salmon, speckled 
trout, maskalonge, bass, and pickerel of- 
fer abundant sport to the angler. 
In the southern portion of Ontario, 
large game is scarce, but in the great 
wilderness in the north and west, moose, 
caribou, deer, &c., can be found in the 
greatest abundance. Of late years this 
vast game region has been rendered 
comparatively easy of access. Guides 
and outfits are obtainable at almost any 
of the larger towns or at the Hudson 
Bay Co.’s Posts. No better fishing 
grounds can be found anywhere than are 
afforded by the many lakes and rivers 
that dot the surface of the country. In 
that portion of the Province extending 
from Lake Ontario, north, between 
Georgian Bay and Ottawa Bay, and 
thence around Lake Superior, the angler 
will find innumerable lakes and rivers, 
abundantly stocked with salmon, tront, 
bass, maskalonge, &c. Salmon fishing 
privileges are leased; but the other fish- 
ing, we believe, is open to all. 
Swans, geese, 
of the spot, the scenery is unique. 
Leaving the western section of Onta- 
rio, the Thousand Islands of the St. 
Lawrence afford splendid trolling for 
black bass and maskalonge, pike, and 
pickerel. The largest sized maskalonge 
are taken here, forty or fifty pounds not 
being unusual, not with an ordinary 
bait, for they scorn the small bait that 
is so tempting a morsel to their kindred 
pike, but, says Weld, a good authority, 
‘“T have invariably taken them with fish 
of a large size, such as no other angler 
would ever think of putting on his line.” 
There is also good spearing here at 
night, and a weck or two spent on any 
of these islands will amply repay the 
fisherman, besides giving him the invig- 
orating benefits of the river breeze, 
There is no difficulty in getting canoes 
or accommodations at any of the farm 
| houses on the banks of the river, but 
hotels are few and far between. The 
whole channel of the Lake of the Thon- 
sand Islands is a famous spot for sport- 
ing ; myriads of wild fowl of every de- 
scription may be found there, and the 
facilities for coming upon them round 
some interposing point, by suddenly 
rounding one of the many islets, or 
again, by lying concealed on one of the 
islets and taking them on the wing in 
their flight past, make this amusement 
more varied than in most other shooting 
grounds. Itis necessary to have a good 
Newfoundland or retriever dog when 
shooting from the shore. The water va- 
ries in depth from five to eighty feet, flows 
at the rate of three miles an hour, and 
in addition to the piscatorial attgactions 
The 
fishing here has been so admirably de- 
seribed by Lanman, in his “ Wander- 
ings,” and by Genio C. Scott, in his 
“Fishing in American Waters,” that it 
