A Salmon and Trout Fishing Adventure on Georgian Bay

This blog was written by Ashley Rae of SheLovesToFish.com

From May to October, guests have the opportunity to jump aboard Collingwood Adventure Voyages by OSM Adventure Travel for salmon and trout fishing charters out of Collingwood Harbour located on the southern tip of Georgian Bay in Simcoe County. Captain Kevin Johnston has been operating OSM Adventure Travel for over 12 years and offers a variety of on-the-water experiences to his guests including: fishing charters, boat cruises, shipwreck snorkeling tours, and more. I recently had the opportunity to get out on the water with Kevin in pursuit of salmon and trout and had a great experience all around!

Joining me on this adventure was my partner, Eric, as well as my friend Maddi. We met up with Kevin at Collingwood Harbour at 5:30am to get out on the water bright and early. If you’re not a morning person, there’s no need to fret as Kevin also offers afternoon and evening fishing charters. As a group of avid anglers, we didn’t mind the early morning. It was a beautiful start to the day seeing the sun rise over picturesque Georgian Bay.

Accommodations & Dining

With an early morning start to our outing planned, we decided to book accommodations the night prior. Georgian Bay Hotel is conveniently located just over 5 kilometers from Collingwood Harbour where Kevin’s boat is moored. Eric and I enjoyed our stay here and also stopped in at the onsite restaurant, Gustav Chophouse & Bar, for a couple of meals during our visit to the area. For dinner I went with the Mushroom Chicken Penne, and Eric decided on the half rack of Baby Back Ribs. For breakfast I had Eggs Benedict (which was my favourite meal of the trip), and Eric went with the Gustav, which is a fully-loaded breakfast. Both of our meals here were delicious and the service was also great!

Captain Kevin’s Vessel

Kevin’s impressive vessel, named ‘Solidsteel’, is a 40-foot charter boat built by Wray Brown. This boat is equipped with an onboard washroom, fridge, stove, as well as a covered cabin which ensures that guests can fish comfortably even in the elements. Kevin mentioned to us that what drew him to this particular boat was the amount of space at the back of the boat, where all the fishing action takes place. It’s massive! All fishing gear and equipment is provided and you can even show up with little or no fishing experience as Kevin is more than happy to provide an educational experience for his guests. Charters can accommodate up to 8 guests.

Our Fishing Experience

Although some stormy weather was in the forecast for late morning/early afternoon, we were still able to get in a successful morning outing. The ride out to the fishing grounds took only about 20 minutes. Kevin opted to start the day in roughly 100 feet of water and had his trolling spread set up and fishing in short order. Our first fish of the day hit in no time and I got the chance to reel in a beautiful lake trout. Kevin ran a variety of spoons on downriggers at various depths in the water column. We were seeing plenty of fish on his electronics. Eric and Maddi also had the chance to each bring in a Chinook salmon. It has been a few years since I had been salmon fishing so I was excited to see these stunning fish! Kevin shared that his guests typically get into lake trout and Chinook salmon. Rainbow trout action is best during the early and late season, especially in September and October. He has also seen Coho and pink salmon, however these are more rare.

As dark storm clouds started to loom on the horizon, Kevin had a glance at his radar and we made the decision to pull lines and head back to shore a bit early in order to make it back to the docks before the line of storms rolled in. We arrived just in time before it began to pour rain but thankfully we were able to hang out and chat under the covered cabin on the boat while Kevin cleaned and packaged up our morning’s catch. Since Eric and I would be heading off on a kayak fishing adventure following this outing, we sent Maddi home with the fresh salmon and trout meat which she was excited to cook up on her smoker.

Thank you, Kevin, for a wonderful outing on Georgian Bay! I cannot wait for our next visit!