Heartbreak @ Tobin!

[pikester]

Don't know what to say; 8 fishermen/women, all seasoned & capable, 6 of those central Sask. walleye fishers, 2 & a half days of heavy fishing using every legal technique known- 0 FISH CAUGHT!!!! Easily one of the most dissapointing trips ever. Sorry, no pics, no good stories, nothing but dirty water & whitecaps & one lost anchor:sign0176:

Well, we must have marked a couple hundred fish on the sonar & seen lots of nice structure so I know they are there. Maybe next time?

[Graffy91]

Went there last year, never will go back in my life. Worst fishing ever. Caught 1 fish. And it was a 2 foot long jack in a 5 day trip.

[freeones]

I think a lot of people leave Tobin the same way, so don't be too hard on yourselves.

Tobin has this mythical reputation as a place where you can just go and catch 10lb+ walleyes all day long any time you want. Same goes for Last Mountain, just because Doug Stange films a few shows for a couple days at the perfect time of year, with a guide, everyone thinks the fishing is easy and every fish is a trophy. Nothing could be further from the truth, they can both be very tough lakes to fish most of the time, especially if the weather isn't cooperating.

[AbAngler]

I think a lot of people leave Tobin the same way, so don't be too hard on yourselves.

Yup. You have to know where to go. There are a couple obvious holes where you see 100 boats, and they do produce, but we have way better luck on more secluded holes we've found over the years.

The weather dictates where we go an any given day. All depends on which way the wind is blowing....

I don't mind sharing a couple spots through PM if anyone needs a hand.

[Fishin' Fool]

A large group of us were there for the last week of March this year. It was so disappointing. Hardly any fish caught, and none of any significant size. I kept thinking "Why am I here and not back home at Wabamun, catching monster pike?"

I'll think long and hard before ever making that trip again.

[hunted]

Same here. Last year my brother in law and I went for 2.5 days. Caught 3 pike and we just about lost an anchor asa well. We have fished it many times and have a very good idea of where to go but it has gone downhill the last few years. We use to go there and hammer monster pike all weekend.

[Safety D]

I had a similar experience with Sheridan Lake in BC. That lake was DEAD and what a waste of a 10 hour drive. Coulda went to Dolberg and did better !!!

[whitetail Junkie]

Don't know what to say; 8 fishermen/women, all seasoned & capable, 6 of those central Sask. walleye fishers, 2 & a half days of heavy fishing using every legal technique known- 0 FISH CAUGHT!!!! Easily one of the most dissapointing trips ever. Sorry, no pics, no good stories, nothing but dirty water & whitecaps & one lost anchor:sign0176:

Well, we must have marked a couple hundred fish on the sonar & seen lots of nice structure so I know they are there. Maybe next time?

Well you did better than me & my cousins 9 years ago!! we went there in july of 2001 and on the first day the boat moter blew up:mad0100::mad0100::mad0100:

Long Story Short we still enjoyed our holiday and Drank away the Pain:oregonian_winesmile

[Dr. Fish]

Tobin IMHO has moved past its peak. Our group used to make trips in the open water and frozen water periods and did so for years but this year we are trying out new waters cause Tobins showing the negative effects of massive excessive pressure, even if its mostly catch and release.

[Warren77]

This is one of the most frustrating lakes in the history of lakes. I have caught my biggest pike ever at this lake though ...

Trip number 1 (summer)-3 years ago. I went for a week with 2 other people and 4/7 days not a bite. The other 3 days were unreal and couldn't keep the walleye off the hook...My biggest Walleye was 8lb's and biggest pike was 15lb's.

Trip number 2 (winter)-3 years ago(March) I went with 8 other guys and the fishing was pretty decent as far as flags and fish. We ended up catching 2 pike in the 20+ range and lots of mid teen fish. Overall pretty good.

Trip number 3(winter)-2 years ago.(March) I went with 9 other guys and the fishing was an absolute disgrace(bad weather conditions). I think only 9 fish were caught in 4 days and the biggests was 23lb's(that is good) but the fishing was horrible.

Trip number 4. (winter) -this past winter. I went with 8 other guys and the fishing this time was the worst of all time. In 4 days with 8 people combined who are very experienced fishermen had a total of 1 flag and 1 fish...It was a disgrace....punching holes everywhere and had 4 camera's going under the water....didn't even see a fish on the camera in 4 days...seriously,how is that even possible when your punching 100+holes per day...I have no answer...simply brutal....Only saw one group of people catching fish the whole trip....Then the boys from alberta who were partying up there right beside our cabin finally found the perch on the last day....gave us a safeway bag full of jumbo perch...If your reading this which u probably are...thank u again.

I'm going to give this lake one more chance in October and do some fall fishing for 5 days. I'm even going with a guy who knows this lake very well,plus his buddy is a guide there...If i don't catch,I will never go back to this lake again.

Sorry for the rant everyone.Hope everyone has had a great summer.

[pikester]

Wow, I had no idea that there would be so many people who had similar experiences as mine! I think the strangest thing about this lake when it's "off" is that nothing is happening at all. At least when the fishing sucks at Gull or Newell, etc., you can still usually manage a couple hammerhandle pike & 1 or 2 smaller walleye to save a skunking.
I have trouble believing the whole "gotta hit the right holes" thing when the fishing is off at Tobin; we did hit many different structures & depths & found fish everywhere on the depthfinder they should have been. They just wouldn't eat!!! Even the guided boats from Tobin Lake Resort were coming back to the docks empty handed. I guess it just goes to show that the grass is NOT always greener on the other side:rolleye2:

The good part of the trip was that we all met at Tobin for a family reunion so it wasn't a complete waste; it's just that half the family are hardcore fishermen/women so that was supposed to be the focus of the reunion.

[Warren77]

I got so much heat when i said Tobin was overrated on iceshanty 2 years ago. All the locals chewed me out and stuff. Then i read stories such as these and it makes me feel better. When the fishing is off,it's like watching paint dry....it's to bad ...but i'll give it one more try. I have seen monsters come out of this lake....but it's been heavily pressured the last few years....

[Fishin' Fool]

I got so much heat when i said Tobin was overrated on iceshanty 2 years ago. All the locals chewed me out and stuff. Then i read stories such as these and it makes me feel better. When the fishing is off,it's like watching paint dry....it's to bad ...but i'll give it one more try. I have seen monsters come out of this lake....but it's been heavily pressured the last few years....

There is really no point in trying to change someone's opinion, especially online. As the quote goes:" No good deed goes unpunished"

FF

[Warren77]

There are some really nice fishing spots up there. I've seen some of the nicest fish come out of the tobin area....I'm just anxious to get back up there because i'm due for one of these 10+ walleyes...they are there...just gotta find them...Just because i can't find them doesn't mean ther not there...gotta keep trying.

[jiggin4eyes]

Tobin lake yes can be tough but i have had nothing but good luck there some trips better than others but never any days skunked ,ive been going there for four years now and now three trips a year, every one i have brought there has gotten there personal best walleye and pike. best lake and river i have ever fished 40 fish days on the big lake with 20 over 20 pounds. for the people who think they know how to fish mabe get a guide from twin marine or from the area, i did and it was a real eye opener now i can go there and find them it seems every time.thanks to expertise of the twin marine guides it was well worth the money

[Warren77]

I could use the help from twin marine guides. I heard there pretty darn good at what they do. Local knowledge is a huge bonus when fishing in that area.

[gunner72]

Wow I've never heard anyone bad mouth Tobin before. I think it's like war 77 said you just have to keep serching. Water temp, depth, time of year, presintation, i guess these are all gimme's but thats the fun part. Nothing good comes easy lol. The guys at Silver Tip are awesome if you need a hand. If the weathers bad though it's pretty tough to do any thing on that lake though. There is getting to be alot of preasure there though. When you get back to the boat launch in the evening there's a steady stream of guys cleaning fish for hours every night. There must be an auful lot of fish comin out of that lake in a year. :happy0180:

[pikester]

There are some really nice fishing spots up there. I've seen some of the nicest fish come out of the tobin area....I'm just anxious to get back up there because i'm due for one of these 10+ walleyes...they are there...just gotta find them...Just because i can't find them doesn't mean ther not there...gotta keep trying.


Hey Warren, not that I'm telling you not to go to Tobin but I can tell you for a fact because I have done it myself; if you put enough time in at Newell or Travers you will get a 10lb or bigger walleye without driving for 10 hours one way!! Think about it, 20hrs in a truck (which is what a round trip to Tobin is roughly) will get me a summers worth of trips to Travers.

[AbAngler]

one lost anchor:sign0176:

I lose an anchor every year. The weather can brew up pretty quick and the big lake gets rough!

As was stated, local knowledge helps alot. My wife's best friend is from Whitefox, so I have to give credit where credit is due. Without the help of her father and his buddies, we would never have known the good spots.

Some years have been better then others, but it seems to be fairly consistent for us. We have a mini tourney every year and the wife took home the trophy this year.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v243/HerbinatorX/IMG_1551.jpg

[bullpike]

We were at Tobin the last week of june. I had a buddy that was there the week before and said the fishing was very slow except for there last day there when he caught an 11 pounder. In two and a half days of fishing we caught eight..... 8-11 pound walleyes(two over ten). I dont know how many 15-20 pound jacks, unfortunately none over 20. Then on our last day, due to all the rain this year they opened the dam which muddied the water unbelievably and created one hell of a current. The fishing instantly got slow, thank god it was our last day. It can be tricky to get conditions right but the fishing I have had at tobin is pretty unreal!

[pikester]

I lose an anchor every year. The weather can brew up pretty quick and the big lake gets rough!

As was stated, local knowledge helps alot. My wife's best friend is from Whitefox, so I have to give credit where credit is due. Without the help of her father and his buddies, we would never have known the good spots.

Some years have been better then others, but it seems to be fairly consistent for us. We have a mini tourney every year and the wife took home the trophy this year.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v243/HerbinatorX/IMG_1551.jpg


That is a nice one for sure! The blue skies & calm water in the background of your pic would have been a Godsend for us; all we got was grey skies & 2-5 ft swells:( If I ever go back again I will definitely take 2 anchors cause they are not cheap to replace when your up there; cost me $50 for a 20lber at the resort store:sign0161:

[Warren77]

That is a nice one for sure! The blue skies & calm water in the background of your pic would have been a Godsend for us; all we got was grey skies & 2-5 ft swells:( If I ever go back again I will definitely take 2 anchors cause they are not cheap to replace when your up there; cost me $50 for a 20lber at the resort store:sign0161:

I think the best option when finding the fish is difficult is hiring people such as twin marine guides...How can u go wrong with local knowledge? I'm pretty sure every fishermen has been in a situation where finding fish is tough. Showing people knew spots aswell instead of the same ol spot 100 boats a day go to...I'm looking forward to my trip in October and i know with the help of the locals and a good friend,i will get my 10 pound walleye...

[Warren77]

ooops i hit the wrong button...I was replying to pikester

[pikester]

I think the best option when finding the fish is difficult is hiring people such as twin marine guides...How can u go wrong with local knowledge? I'm pretty sure every fishermen has been in a situation where finding fish is tough. Showing people knew spots aswell instead of the same ol spot 100 boats a day go to...I'm looking forward to my trip in October and i know with the help of the locals and a good friend,i will get my 10 pound walleye...


Ya I agree that local knowledge is going to help for sure but in my case finding fish was not an issue; like I said in th OP we found fish everywhere. I spent a full day mapping out some sections of the river channel that had no boats within a half mile of me & found some wicked structure; sunken logs, weed beds on the edge of the drop-off, rock humps, etc. They ALL held decent amounts of fish but not a single hit after blading, Lindy rigging, jigging, slip bobbing, & casting cranks. I even gave my almost no-fail plastic swimbaits a good workout- nadda.

Anyway, I truly hope you have a good trip in October & have lots of cool pics to share with us!

[Pikebreath]

Can someone please tell me again how much better the fishing is in Sask than here in Alberta?

[Unregistered user]

Fished out of Pruden point 4 years ago and caught lots.

[Big Schnizz]

I've just recently started fishing Tobin and have some of the same struggles. I think you just hear a lot more about the good stories than the bad. Ice fishing there last year, we had one good day and one bad day in basically the same spot. I've been out twice this summer. Once was right after they opened the dam and the river was basically unfishable as the water was so dirty and fast. We managed to find a few in the lake close to the resort. I think that when they are off in the river, you at least have a better chance of finding some further down into the lake.

I was there again mid august after I had heard some decent reports and it was super slow. We managed to find a few fish (all small). It didn't look like many of the other boats were catching much either. I think when you are there and the fish are on, it can be one of the best experiences.

I wouldn't recommend a major trip to Tobin if you live out of province unless you were going for an extended period of time and had time to endure the struggles. SK has a ton of lakes with a heck of a lot less pressure and better consistent action than Tobin. You just have to keep heading north.

[WalleyeDeitz]

I went there 3 years ago and each of us caught in the area of 80 per day. We landed a few in the 8 pound range and one that was 10.5 lbs. Also got a 25 lb pike in our boat. Everything must have been right when we were there - 5 days, was the same every day. Was thinking it would be nice if they diddnt bite so often so we could do some fihsing instead of just catching.

[eyehunter]

i love tobin.U just have to know where to go and when.... Thats the key

[Dr. Fish]

Can someone please tell me again how much better the fishing is in Sask than here in Alberta?

It used to be. However it seems to be equalizing rapidly.

[Warren77]

Alberta has great walleye fishing. The thing we don't have is monster pike...unless u go north pretty far. Not familar with down south alberta.

[bardfromedson]

its a trophy lake.. some days you will catch nothing and others you will catch the fish of a lifetime..... i would rather fish lakes like that every day than catch 200 little ones a day at a place like slave lake. if your not willing to put the time in don't go out there.:sHa_shakeshout: it will just leave more big eyes for me. i was out there when the water looked like mud and was moving at 3mph this june. i put the time and effort in and managed to land a 12 pounder. fished hard for 4 days for this one big fish and it was worth it.

[pikester]

its a trophy lake.. some days you will catch nothing and others you will catch the fish of a lifetime..... i would rather fish lakes like that every day than catch 200 little ones a day at a place like slave lake. if your not willing to put the time in don't go out there.:sHa_shakeshout: it will just leave more big eyes for me. i was out there when the water looked like mud and was moving at 3mph this june. i put the time and effort in and managed to land a 12 pounder. fished hard for 4 days for this one big fish and it was worth it.

You're probably right about having success at Tobin if you go often enough & put your time in; for me it's just not worth it. Between the food, gas, out of province license, camping fees, lost anchor, 2 days of lost wages (time off), etc., that trip cost me @ $800 & 20hrs stuck in a truck seat. If I have to go through that 3 or 4 times a year just to have a crack at some real good fishing then absolutely; the lake & all it's 10-16lb walleyes are all yours:bad_boys_20:

I think I'll stick to Newell. Less than 3 hrs return trip & in the last 4 yrs I have managed 2-8lb, 1-9.25, 1- 10, & 1- 11 lb walleyes & I know there are some 12-14lbers in there. In my books those are plenty big enough for fish of a lifetime for me!

[Freedom55]

It has been my experience that successive low barometric pressure ridges spoil any chances of a successful trip. My believe is that the best fishing occurs as a low pressure front moves off and is replaced with a high pressure area. As in: if it rains all day Saturday and you wake up early Sunday with a clear sky and a light breeze, load the boat and get on the water!
Having said all that, I noticed (and it has affected my excursions this summer), that the weather in the north of Saskatchewan has been a long series of low pressure and lousy, windy weather on the water. The fish are noticeably off their feed and boat handling has been very tough.
Sorry that you are a little dismayed that the world famous fishery has let you down but don't stop trying. Keep those tourist dollars coming and make sure that every time you come to SK you tell everyone how well the capitalist system works at keeping your family fed and the wolves away from your door. If the Luddites (and not everyone here is that) had their way, the NDP would rule forever and everybody could go back to sleep. That's just my little editorial;)

[Winch101]

F55 ..xcellent :scared0015: