Targeting the migratory fall walleye on the Bay of Quinte is one of my absolute favourite fishing experiences of all! Three years ago, in an effort to get more women out on the water to experience this amazing fall fishing opportunity, I created an event called Ladies Walleye Weekend. It has been so inspiring to meet a number of women over the years who share a love for fishing and are up for this cold-weather adventure. Now that the 3rd annual Ladies Walleye Weekend has come and gone, I wanted to share how our weekend went and of course include some photos of the walleye caught.
Location
This event took place once again on the Bay of Quinte out of Picton, Ontario. There were eight women in total (including myself) who travelled from throughout Ontario and even a returning guest from Texas. I rented a huge house through AirBNB that accommodated everyone and provided us with a huge kitchen to cook along with lots of space to lounge and visit. Over the years it has amazed me at how quickly friendships form through these trips and more fishing adventures take place as a result. I suppose that’s what happens when you get a group together who love to fish!
Our Guides
This year I partnered with Captain Greg Amiel of Fishing 4 Tails, who has been on board with this event since the first time around in 2016. New to the line-up this year was Shawn Banks of Homewrecker Charters. Both guides provided us all with a fantastic experience, a great learning opportunity, and put us onto some incredible fish! Thank you both!
Prizes
I’ve very grateful to Striker Ice for supporting Ladies Walleye Weekend this year! They provided a brand new women’s Prism jacket and Prism bibs for the angler that landed the largest fish. I’ve been wearing this model for a few years now for all my cold weather fishing whether on open water or the ice. I love this suit for a variety of reasons: it provides flotation, is made of high quality durable materials, and it’s designed for a women’s fit yet still includes all of the features included in the men’s suits. Thank you, Striker!
Mustang Survival, a company that has supported my fishing adventures for many years, also jumped on board with Ladies Walleye Weekend! They supplied us with an M.I.T 100 (automatic) Inflatable PFD that was a draw prize for the event. This Canadian company makes a wide variety of marine floatation and climate protective apparel. I especially love their inflatable PFD’s as they’re lightweight and comfortable. Thank you, Mustang!
Paula, our Texas gal, donated some of her beautiful pieces of artwork for draw prizes. I was very fortunate to win one for myself! You can check out Paula’s artwork here. Thank you, Paula!
A Slight Delay…
Our trip did not begin as planned as a significant drop in temperature locked up Picton Harbour with ice the night before our first day on the water. Some of the guides in the area broke up the ice throughout the day with their large boats and we were good to go for the following day as the temperatures warmed up. It has certainly been a much colder fall season this year.
Finally On The Water!
This group of gals sure were so anxious to finally get out on the water! We still had a lot of floating ice chunks to navigate through as we made our way out of the harbour on the second day, but Greg and Shawn took their time and got us all out safely. The guys got everyone set up for trolling for these walleye as it’s the best way to cover water while targeting these roaming big-water fish.
Memorable Catches
Our two days on the water were nothing short of epic with some amazing catches for all participants! Several personal bests were accomplished including a number of fish that reached or surpassed 10 pounds. All the big fish were released back into the Bay and a few smaller fish were kept for the table. These ladies brought so much enthusiasm to this adventure both on and off the water. Thank you all for being part of this memorable adventure!
The Big One
Megan ended up landing the largest walleye of the trip on the final day. A 13-pounder earned her a brand new Striker Prism suit! Congrats, Megan! It was quite a thrill to be there when she brought this fish in and thankfully I was able to capture the moment on video:
Ladies Walleye Weekend 2019
I can’t believe how quickly this adventure flew by but I know it’s because we had so much fun! I am so excited for what Ladies Walleye Weekend 2019 brings. Next year’s event dates are: November 22nd, 23rd and 24th, 2019. If you’d like to reserve your spot, please contact me here.
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Congrats Meghan! That was a beauty walleye!