Few activities epitomise summer like bass fishing, which brings to mind scorching heat, swatting horseflies while retying your go-to jig, navigating boat traffic, pulling weeds from your trolling motor, and hearing your cottage neighbour blare his favourite Nickelback song for the fifth time. Life is good. We’re lucky to live in a province with such varied bass fishing, from Great Lakes big water, to flooded farmland waterways, and seemingly endless Canadian Shield lake hotspots. These also include some of the best locations in the world for trophy fish: the St. Lawrence River, Lake Simcoe, Lake of the Woods, lakes Erie, Huron, and Georgian Bay, to name a few. As a kid, I fished for bass on the weed-choked bays of the Kawarthas and the big water of Parry Sound. I’ve also quested abroad to chase other species, like peacock bass in Florida, and spotted bass, and Guadalupe bass on the Colorado River in Texas. I’m more than content, however, to fish here at home. Like many anglers, I’ve gone through phases, such as only wanting to catch bass on topwater, finesse jigs, or spinnerbaits. I’ve been caught up in technique and bait trends. How did we catch a bass before fluorocarbon line and a wacky worm? It seems hard to imagine a world without Ned baits, spybaits, swimbaits, dicebaits, punch jigs, and umbrella rigs. But it existed and we caught fish. Deep-diving crankbaits remain my favourite. Sure, they don’t work everywhere, and there are more productive techniques, but it’s what I enjoy. And that is a key component for time on the water to me. In this Bass issue, read more about seasoned Ontario bass pros like Mike Miller and Jeff Gustafson and insights from bass writers Tim Allard and Luigi De Rose. Your thoughts Email me your favourite bass-fishing tips, techniques, or stories in 150 words or less, include an image, and we’ll run some responses in the next issue. Originally published in the Summer Bassin' 2026 issue of Ontario Out of Doors For more bass click here Click here for more outdoors news Watch on-demand videos anytime on OFAH Stream
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