REELING IN THE SILVER BASS
Anglers invade Windsor riverfront
Scores of out-of-town anglers from the Toronto area and as far away as Ottawa were crowding the Detroit River Friday fishing for silver bass, and they ’re expected to be “elbow to elbow, pulling fish out two at a time” throughout the long weekend. “It’s going to be mayhem,” said Tyrone Woon, 74, who made the long drive from Markham with his family early Friday to beat the weekend crowds.
“We didn’t want to come Saturday or Sunday. If we did, we’d be asking for trouble.”
Woon, who travelled to Windsor with his wife, Connie, said anglers will be fighting for space on the shoreline this weekend and struggling to prevent their fishing lines from becoming entangled.
“I love the view,” said Connie, 67, who caught several silver bass she threw in a bucket and also a smaller bass she tossed back in the river. “I love the fresh air. I love walking up and down the river.” Mitch Clermont of Wally’s Bait and Tackle in Sandwich said the shop does about a third of its annual business in the four to five weeks the silver bass run between Lake St. Clair and Lake Erie. The shop brings in extra staffers to sell minnows and pickerel rigs to the tourists.
“This is, by far, our busiest time. Every year it gets a little bit bigger,” said Clermont. “They are down there elbow to elbow, pulling out fish two at a time. It’s crazy.” He said silver bass “wasn’t a bad-eating fish” though some find it a little “greasy.” Every year, he sees dozens of anglers, mostly from the Greater Toronto Area, loading vans with coolers stuffed with 40 to 50 fish. Clermont said it’s a great time to take kids fishing because they can land a fish just by dropping a baited hook into the water.
“When the silver bass run, you can pull out two at a time,” he said. “It gets pretty nuts.” Marco Chung also made the drive from Markham and said he enjoys eating in local restaurants and reflecting on life with his line in the water and his eyes on the Ambassador Bridge and Detroit’s signature skyline.
“Half of the fun isn’t the fishing,” he said. “It’s the trip.”
Peter Morles and his fishing buddy Angelito Bernardo left their home in Milton at about 2 a.m. and were preparing to drive back home in the early afternoon with coolers chock full of silver bass. Even if they would have caught nothing but a few rays, the trip would have still been worth it. “If I don’t catch fish, at least I can take a picture,” said Morles, motioning to the buildings across the river. “You won’t go home emptyhanded. You’ll have a picture of the view.”