330 
FOREST AND STREAM 
Canadian Trout and Ouananiche 
Some Advice From a Master Authority on “ Where To,” “ How To,” and “ When 
To ” Get Some Glorious Fishing 
By E. T. D. Chambers. 
S O many inquiries reach me from American 
anglers, especially in the spring of the year, 
as to the time to come to Canada for trout 
or ouananiche, and in regard to locality as well, 
that it may be well to give to the many the in¬ 
formation that the mails have conveyed to the 
few. 
As a general rule I do not advise fishermen to 
come up this way before the 15th to 20th of May. 
By about the 18th of May, at the latest, the early 
trout fishing in Lake Edward should be at its 
best, for it commences almost as soon as ice 
leaves the lake. Both the railway station and the 
hotel, where boats and guides can be obtained, are 
on the very edge of the lake, and the trout of 
John, the Mistassini, Peribouca or Ashuap- 
mouchouan. These rivers rise two or three hun¬ 
dred miles to the north and are very broad in 
their lower portions. The ouananiche ascend 
them to spawn. It is necessary in order to fish 
them to take some days for the trip, sleeping at 
night in a small tent that the canoemen bring 
with them. Guides and supplies are obtained at 
Roberval. It is also necessary to have trained 
men in order to avoid the dangers of the trip, for 
these rivers contain magnificent falls and very 
heavy rapids. The country through which they 
run is a perfect network of lakes and streams, 
so that any number of beautiful round trips may 
be made, obviating all necessity of the camping 
Some of the Most Beautiful Scenery in the World on This Trip. 
thus early in the season. With almost equal 
avidity they seize the Jock Scott, silver doctor, 
grizzly king, professor and brown hackle. They 
fight hard when hooked in the cool water in 
spring, and often run up to four and five pounds 
in weight, while in the months of July and August 
the average weight of those taken in the vicinity 
of Lake St. John will not exceed two or three 
pounds each. Then those in search of larger 
fish must ascend some of the great northern trib¬ 
utaries of the lake, such as the Peribonca, Ashuap- 
mouchouan and Mistassini. At one side of Fifth 
Falls of the Mistassini, a beautiful cataract 
twenty to twenty-five feet in height, is a deep 
pool, some twenty feet m diameter, contained in 
a rocky basin the ve.-ge of winch is about half 
way up the falls. This pool serves as a fish- 
ladder for the ouananiche in surmounting the 
chute on their way to their spawning ground 
above. Not infrequently they will take the fly 
while resting in this pool, prior to their final 
plunge over the summit of the cataract. An then 
a battle royal ensues. For very often, despite 
the utmost efforts of the angler to limit the field 
of hostile operations to the pool in which he met 
the foe, the latter will succeed in taking a header 
out of the water of the basin and leaping into 
the angry rapids at the very base of the falls, 
twelve or fifteen feet below the rocks upon which 
the fisherman is standing. Then it is a miracle 
indeed if he succeeds in keeping his tackle in¬ 
tact and in saving his fish. 
But from about the 8th or 10th of June until 
nearly the middle of July there are splendid 
large ouananiche to be taken in the Grande Dis¬ 
charge of Lake St. John with the fly. The fish¬ 
ing continues here throughout the season, but 
after the 10th to the 15th of July the fish are 
apt to run of a smaller size, while in the month 
of August and early part of September they are 
more easily taken on the spoon, except a few 
miles up the Metabetchouan River, where they 
readily rise to the fly at the end of the season. 
For summer fishing in the Grand Discharge I 
have found the best flies to be the smallest sizes 
Jock Scott, and silver doctor, the General Hooker, 
small gnats and hackles, professors and grizzly 
kings. 
this body of water frequently run from four to 
six pounds in weight. Angling in the lake, 
where the largest fish are taken, is principally 
with bait. For fly fishing it is necessary to as¬ 
cend Rat River, or some other of the lake’s feed¬ 
ers. The early lake fishing for ouananiche 
sometimes commences in Lake St. John in the 
middle of May. The 20th to 24th ought to be 
about the right date. The fishing at the Grand 
Discharge continues good the greater part of the 
season, and two or three dozen ouananiche in a 
day is by no means an uncommon catch in the 
height of the season. The fish vary in weight 
from a pound to eight pounds each, the most 
common size being from two pounds to three 
pounds and a half. They fight splendidly when 
hooked, and often take ten to forty minutes to 
kill, if very large fish and taken on light tackle, 
and the rapid character of the water in which 
they are taken adds largely to the excitement of 
the sport. 
After the middle of July, when the fish in the 
Grand Discharge run smaller, better sport may be 
had in any of the large tributaries of Lake St. 
party returning by the way that it starts into the 
woods. Some of the most beautiful scenery of 
the north is to be had on these trips, notably at 
the various falls of the Mistassini and Peribouca 
Rivers, at Lac Tschotogama, and among the 
islands of the Grand Discharge. But upon all 
such wanderings it is well for the tourist to have 
a rifle with him, for a bear may be met upon the 
portages or be seen swimming a river at any 
time. 
Pike may be taken of enormous size in Lake 
St. John and in its larger tributaries, whitefish 
abound in all the waters, brook trout are to be 
had in the smaller streams and in many of the 
lakes, and the namaycush, or large lake trout, are 
plentiful in deep water. 
And those who like to try the fishing for sea 
trout may return to Quebec from Lake St. John 
by way of the Saguenay and stop off for the 
purpose at Tadousac, at the mouth of the river. 
The ouananiche take large-sized flies in this 
early part of the season, those tied upon No. 1 
and No. 2 salmon hooks being preferred. Nor 
are they very particular in their choice of flies 
SHAD FISHING WITH FLY. 
Stratford, Conn., May 14. 
Editor Forest and Stream : 
“Yes, shad take the fly.” In reply to J. J. H., 
Shad Fishing: 
The first known caught with a fly to my knowl¬ 
edge was under the Holyoke Dam in 1862 or ’63, 
by John Healy, on the Hadley Falls side of the 
river, when he caught three one evening while 
casting for trout. Later, about 1874, after the 
bridge was built across the river one-quarter 
mile below the dam on the rapids, they were 
Dung color. Care was required in landing them, 
of line on large spool, usually using three fly 
hooks on leader about one foot apart—namely, 
White Miller, Scarlet Ibis, and Turkey or Cow 
Dung color Care was required in landing them, 
which was done by bringing them to the pier 
island and letting them die before lifting to the 
bridge. The best fishing is in the rapids where 
the line will float. In 1873 I caught quite as 
good many, fishing from Mayo’s Bridge over the 
James River at Richmond, Va. May and June 
is the best time. E. E. BLISS. 
