The Winnipeg River holds a wide variety of fish
Sturgeon
If you like your fish with a fight, we can arrange a Manitoba lake sturgeon fishing trip during your stay at Pine Island Lodge.
In the Winnipeg River sturgeon average 10 to 80lbs., but sturgeon have been caught weighing over 100lbs.
Fishing for lake sturgeon is similar to that of catfish, as both fish are bottom-feeders. Our guides have a few secret tricks up their sleeves as well.
If you hook into one, HOLD ON! You're in for a fight, and lake sturgeon will launch themselves out of the water–jumping and twisting–when hooked.
All sturgeon fishing is catch and release.
Perch
Some people think perch is even better in the pan that walleye. Catching a few to add to shore lunch can be a lot of fun!
Perch are the smaller cousin of the walleye and sauger. They are day-feeding school fish and are active throughout the season.
If you've ever fished for walleye and felt a bite only to retrieve half your minnow, chances are that was a perch. They're great at stealing bait. So small is the way to go.
For a good fight, our guides recommend ultra-light gear, small jigs and only small sections of minnows and worms.
Perch can also be caught on the fly during insect hatches that bring them to the surface for a feast of buggy protein.
Sauger
Angling for sauger is similar to walleye fishing. In fact, most sauger are caught while bait fishing for walleye and wrongly identified as small walleye because the two appear almost identical. Here's how you tell them apart:
- Sauger are smaller than walleye and have distinct dark spots on the dorsal fin that are absent on walleye.
- Walleye have one large dark blotch at the base of the last few spines of the dorsal fin, which is not present in sauger.
- Sauger have 17 to 20 soft rays in the second dorsal fin versus 19 to 22 in the walleye.
Live or dead minnows are used as bait in still fishing. Like walleye, sauger will mouth the bait very lightly, so be alert to slight movements.
