RJMJR

I did not have the chance to fish the river’s tributaries in May, but will the first of July when I’m back for the summer.

Yes a very long and winding river, with lots of rapids and dams separating different sections. I mainly go for bass, walleye, pike, and pickerel. Musky are not normally found in the section of the upper Ottawa that I fish.

Thanks for the reply. Water is murky, but I wouldn’t say muddy. My first thought was also that the fish would be up in the shallow areas normally not accessible to them, but heard and saw nothing, and got zero strikes (wt spinner, chartreuse sq bill). Normally there are regular fish feeding on the surface both mornings and evenings, but in my three weeks there I heard and saw just one. These factors then had me thinking (tho little fishing experience to base it on) the fish were possibly still holding in deep water due to the flooding, and possibly had not spawned yet. Just before I left, I heard the water temperature was approaching 44-45 degrees, which the same person said was the critical temperature for pickerel’s spawning. Not sure what the temperature for the ‘smallies’ are up there. Again thanks..

I fish the upper Ottawa river in Canada, and every few years the spring water levels (late March thru May) are up as much as 4-7 feet above normal. For several weeks I may not hear a single fish strike the surface, nor can I seem to elicit a strike. I am curious how these excessively high river levels affect spawning and feeding patterns, and what others might recommend trying.