Catching trout during heatwaves

The ideal time to catch brook trout in Quebec (also known as speckled trout) is early in the sportfishing season, up until mid-June or early July (depending on the area). But we all know that when fishing is at its best, most people cannot go, since they are busy earning their bread and butter working. Most Quebecers go on vacation around the end of July and early August, right when heatwaves usually occur. As you can imagine, fishing is not very fruitful this summer. This trend is not expected to change, since meteorologists are predicting that the weather will be warmer than normal until September.

Early in the fishing season, when brook trouts emerge from their winter lethargy, they chew on all the food they can find and are more easily lured by the baits anglers present them. Naturally, in July, the trout's hunger slows down: the water is warmer and less oxygenated—in the surface at the least—and the fish try to preserve their energy. They swim at a pace at which the oxygen is less likely to escape from the water or stay in hideouts where the water is stirred and oxygenated, and their preys within reach.

But even during heatwaves, a methodical and patient angler will be able to enjoy very satisfactory fishing excursions.

Fishing in the right places

The idea, when aiming for successful fishing during heatwaves, especially if you are not familiar with the lake—which is quite frequent for an increasingly urbanized population—is to look for areas on the water body that seem to be more oxygenated.

The first place to explore is where a river, stream or creek fills the lake. Then, you have to look for the most shaded and deepest places. That is because in areas protected from the burning rays of the sun—the shadow of a cliff or a mountain, for example—the oxygen contained in the water escapes less quickly.

To discover other good fishing spots, look for steep mountainsides that dive into the water: a steep drop suggests that submerged rocks could provide shade and cooler water for trout, as well as shelter from predators and lookout posts for preys.

Once you have spotted a place that looks productive, try trolling slowly at a moderate depth until a fish bites. As soon as you make a catch, anchor your boat in that very spot, where fish is more likely to be caught, and try all your other fishing techniques.

Also try fishing around islands and submerged rocky points, over rocky shoals and close to windblown felled trees near the shoreline. These natural obstacles provide shelter from predators, and since they act like "dust pans," accumulating aquatic insects drifting in the water or on its surface, they are a significant source of food for brook trouts.

The hours for best fishing

Morning and evening are generally known as the two best fishing periods of the day. Why? Brook trout start being more active after the sun sets, since the air gets cooler and oxygen is not released as quickly by the water.

It is also the time of day when aquatic insects start emerging to the surface: trouts rise from the depths, closer to the surface and the shore, in search for the food provided by the presence of aquatic insects. This activity continues throughout the night, and gradually slows down when the rays of the rising sun hit the water again.

Fish at night!

Most anglers do not fish during the night, which is actually legal except for Atlantic salmon. This explains why many think that fishing is better at dusk and dawn. If they fished at night, especially when a full moon shines in a starry, cloud-free sky, they would be surprised by their own success rate. The eye easily adapts to the light projected by the full moon.

No wonder fishing is so difficult on the days that precede or follow a full moon: fish feed heavily on emerging insects during those nights and once they are satiated, they become amorphous and very few bite during the day.

Fish after a storm

Before a storm, the weather is often very hot and humid. The air is then harder to breathe, as if it were lacking oxygen. Trouts, like humans, seem to feel when a storm is coming and try to save their energy.
But once the storm passes, the air is cooler and feels less heavy. It seems like trouts, just like humans, feel vigorous and get active. That is because the wind has stirred up the water, and oxygen was reintroduced by the waves. The water temperature has decreased and aquatic insects are emerging at the surface under atmospheric conditions that are more conducive to their extrusion from nymphal shells. Take advantage of the fact that the storm is over to start fishing.

Use the right lures

During heatwaves, use smaller spoons or spinners, which you slowly reel back with your monofilament fishing line. Try reeling slower than usual. Make sure to give your lure a few twitches to make it appear more "alive" and attractive to fish. Surely, baiting your hook with a nice, big, live and wiggly earthworm will be more attractive for trouts.

If you are fly fishing during the day, do not hesitate to use a sinking tip or sinking fly line, even if they are a bit harder to pull out of the water and to manipulate. Add a streamer, a bucktail or a nymph at the end of your line, and cast your line far away. Let it sink before you slowly reel it back. You can also troll slowly with this type of set-up.

It is only in the evening, at night and in the morning that you will need to use dry flies (use dark ones early in the season, then increasingly pale as the summer goes by).

Whatever your fishing technique, remember that fish only bite when you are . . . on the lake, not in the cabin!