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British Columbia Smallmouth Bass | Fish'n Canada
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Apr 15, 2025
Angelo Viola and Mike Miller travel to Shawnigan Lake on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. They fish for an untouched species on the island, Smallmouth Bass. CONNECT WITH US WEBSITE: http://fishncanada.com FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/FishnCanada/ INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/fishncanada... TWITTER: https://twitter.com/angeloviolafnc/ One of Canada's longest-running fishing shows, Fish'n Canada travels from coast to coast in search of trophy fishing opportunities. First started by brothers Angelo and Reno Viola in 1986, The Fish’n Canada Show has been on the air for over 30 years. Today, Angelo is joined by lifelong fishing buddy, Peter Bowman, and the pair continue to travel across Canada educating anglers using the experience they’ve gained over the years #Fishing
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0:00
[Music]
0:07
you
0:18
[Music]
0:29
position Canada brought you in part by
0:32
Coleman the outdoor company
0:36
mongaul repulsive since 1951 Racecraft
0:41
vote the more you know the better we
0:43
look and mercury out quarter number one
0:47
on the water three of you diehard
0:53
fishing Canada fans you may remember a
0:55
couple of years ago that Mike and I went
0:57
on a hunt for big bass in an area that
0:59
was and still is relatively unknown
1:02
Ford's bass fishing
1:03
we were nestled in the beautiful
1:04
mountains of British Columbia and we
1:07
were surrounded by hogs
1:08
luckily for NJ night we had yet another
1:11
opportunity to try our hand and what
1:13
could be Canada's best bath water our
1:16
adventure today takes place on Shawnigan
1:18
Lake a little jam stuck in the middle of
1:20
Vancouver Island now we first heard
1:22
about this unique fishery from Kenzie
1:25
Cuthbert of couch and River wilderness
1:27
resort we started out on an area of
1:29
shoreline strewn with all sorts of
1:31
boulders and with loaded with docks the
1:33
perfect cover for weary bass let me tell
1:37
you a little something right now if you
1:38
haven't a smallmouth bass around docks
1:40
and are about to try it well look out
1:42
small knees are one of the strongest
1:44
freshwater fish and they always seem to
1:46
know where the pilings and cribs and
1:48
ropes are if you know what that means
1:50
we've been around the dog oh my old nice
1:53
fish he's all wrapped around the piling
1:58
if you can get the back of the boat hang
2:01
on I'll get it he's free he's free here
2:05
yes here he is here is I guess if I
2:07
could get my hand out of it where is he
2:09
I got ahold of doc I know why you know
2:13
okay I'm away from the rope now right
2:14
yes know what you were in a very very
2:17
rope dry my nerves are shattered that
2:29
would be the partner you got one - oh
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nice one nice jump
2:39
nice jet look at that they go mad he's
2:42
insane
2:43
want to come over me he's insane that's
2:46
a good-looking fish oh I'll bring around
2:53
this side Mike stay where you at now a
3:01
couple year two who watch watch they
3:06
were little anything ribbit
3:12
you got above it
3:14
he even asked are they me they are all
3:18
over here what a great body of water and
3:20
the funny thing is it's not like a lake
3:22
at home in Ontario it's hundreds of feet
3:25
right out here well you know what that's
3:27
what I was thinking they'd be once we
3:28
finish mucking around with this shallow
3:30
water we should go out and try to find a
3:31
hump or something oh yeah I'll bet you
3:33
there's gonna be one I'll bet you
3:34
they're everywhere they're everywhere
3:37
nobody's fishing them ah got it
3:42
it's biggie good wood yeah big adder
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before I put my before all absolutely
3:50
special Emmy let me get this thing away
3:53
buddy okay you're gonna bring her over
3:55
here for me oh yeah it's going out there
3:57
look at my God look at this thing with
4:07
another large mouth all right we'll do
4:09
it here buddy
4:10
Wow all I keep seeing it this big mouth
4:13
open on your nice man slowly over here
4:20
Evie girl you know what you know what's
4:23
really bizarre their light color yeah
4:25
I'm visible big Smalley's like this that
4:28
are right yeah and everyone's why do you
4:29
catch them cruising along the edge of
4:32
this but they're virtually invisible
4:34
down there
4:34
no big black ones like were you some
4:37
wonder that's got something you with the
4:38
climate maybe sitting through my collar
4:42
it is almost you almost gave himself to
4:47
me
4:48
open up hook in the nose over here buddy
4:52
little fart little time we're going to
4:54
lose the Derby right here you're right
5:05
right in the dough I just packed it
5:08
now we smack you good what do you want
5:10
excited I didn't feel a bite
5:12
I saw him kind of cruise along and then
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I saw its white mouth flare open outside
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you set the hook
5:16
Wow got it yeah baby he'll play he'll
5:28
play I make it up buddy I'm good huh I'm
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good
5:36
talk to me I'm all good
5:38
you just get to work up there catch us
5:40
with Megan it's not a bad fish no he sat
5:45
beside my tube and stared at it for a
5:46
good three minutes he wasn't sure like
5:56
when they stare at it
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at least you're interested how your heat
6:03
I wasn't as big as I thought nice eh not
6:08
bad though I know now that the meeting
6:12
outside we've left right now these in
6:14
the boat yeah they're always good when
6:18
they come into boat mm-hmm he was hooked
6:22
quite well look at that you sound
6:26
surprised open were 7.000 guess what but
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my lines all hung up just play it in
6:38
I'll back out there it is I got it
6:41
whoa oh holy smokes I saw it don't let
6:46
it go to the weeds buddy thank you
6:48
don't let him break you that's that
6:51
Lateline yeah yeah oh yeah got that big
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he's not that big
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oh yeah lot of good things look at this
6:57
thing baby
7:00
[Laughter]
7:12
atta boy he wasn't going to he was
7:15
getting off in a month of Sundays they
7:20
are great look at that just just hung in
7:23
there another nice one we are such a
7:27
session they're all they're all like
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just perfect fish there's no mark a
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blemish they're all the same color no
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dark backs like we used to see nice and
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the day went on Angie and I decided to
7:39
move away from the shallow dog and try
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some rocky reef areas that's all well
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typically frequent BC lakes are no
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different than any other smaller lakes
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by rocks and you'll probably find fish
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God I'll saddle what's a good one he
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wasn't sitting on a boat watching her
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shadow I think yeah I think he was just
8:01
real look at that wallowing it is
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another lazy one yeah he doesn't want to
8:06
jump buddy that's good that's good good
8:09
[Laughter]
8:11
look at this that's good well the off no
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uh-oh
8:19
you do oh yeah there you go
8:21
it tastes work that's like a coal such a
8:25
three and changing they're all a lot of
8:28
three pounders from around times man
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turned out to be their big one somewhere
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fine bye baby good work come on be a big
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one you see a fish no got him that's
8:44
where he is nice nice oh look at this
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fish there you go there you go he would
8:52
just stop coming up and down off the
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edge
8:54
nice fish whoo
8:59
he has got no fight in him he what do
9:03
you see me walking oh oh come on God
9:09
must use a deal that's not a close to
9:12
four pounder hey it's a good fish yeah
9:15
well I don't you're saying no I don't
9:16
mean by that that could be a fish it's
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not quite formula okay that's all right
9:22
one of the main reasons the bass fishing
9:24
is so good in BC is the favorably one
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whether they get year round
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this increases the growing season which
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it's a perfect recipe for giant bass
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[Music]
9:35
what book
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yeah I got one good one yeah yeah he's
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decent oh nice nice oh that's right
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that's what I know I thought swim up a
9:49
miss Shelley went around like that and
9:50
came back nice fish buddy oh oh that's
9:53
nice Wow look how deep that is swim them
9:56
into my hands Oh
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would you please give up so huh yeah
10:01
weird I don't know it's good that's a
10:04
chunker so that's a nice fish man I
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think big tail on it yeah awesome Wow
10:10
nice man
10:18
areas oh yeah yeah yeah baby oh yeah
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baby
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hey this guy's not coming up now huh not
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jumping like the other guys he's strong
10:31
Oh big Bubba just a shakin away where is
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she oh ye oh nice fish yours like gadem
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pump it no longer thing is oh you are
10:52
they gonna get off ever Oh Mike he
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sucked it in good didn't ya as soon as I
10:56
dragged it right in front of him he was
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swimming one way I dragged him over I
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saw him turn and just BAM he just sucked
11:02
it down Wow got it
11:07
look at that your little to drink tube
11:09
trick on it on again didn't you ah did
11:13
you know nice fish no measure how long's
11:17
that thing 20 inch or 20 inch and I what
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would that way it's gonna be she's gonna
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be over 4 pounds
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good work wow that's a pretty fish not a
11:31
mark on them - I might
11:34
[Music]
11:37
here's what I was doing something little
11:39
different all day I've been throwing a
11:40
shad shade worm by Yamamoto and it's
11:43
great for drop-shotting it's I think
11:45
it's probably the best lure you could
11:47
use for it but Mike's been spanking them
11:49
on just a tube jig dragging the tube jig
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on the bottom right but you know what
11:54
let me change them up a bit and I use a
11:56
little tiny Yamamoto - and just hooked
12:00
it up the same way I would this shad
12:01
sheet worm on a drop shot exact same
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presentation same hook and everything
12:06
else and just started dragging that log
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bottom and white line let me this little
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spacer coming in on six pound test light
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fantastic there's one Mikey I'm gonna go
12:22
really one beside it Mike look at that
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right there right there look we didn't
12:26
even see that
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wow I suck your Burson across that flat
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oh yeah baby there he is
12:38
I guess the little one I can do we don't
12:43
believe we got time for that one all
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right sorry
12:46
oh it's thick nice thanks for pointing
12:53
this one out
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you're quite I saw the two of them
12:55
cruising by that's a baby he just fit
12:59
something big crayfish heavy crayfish
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weird applause look at that
13:03
hello bring them buddy here no quit in
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them Oh easy loose nut I'm not even that
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big oh yeah that's good yep big ol
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crayfish he said yeah engorge claws yeah
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huh hey what do you think that's a hatch
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what do you think I'm talking about look
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at you
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I mean sea bass er British Columbia can
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you believe this massive one Zambia
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nothing bad on the island on the island
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Vancouver I'm how they get out here
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crossly almost moving out here that's it
13:41
that's it that's enough of that hey
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there's my tube can you get it no no
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one distinct advantage we had as
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travelers through the in man lakes of
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Vancouver Island is the hot match chart
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in our GPS unit every year more and more
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lakes across the country are being
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meticulously charted giving anglers
14:00
contours and brake lines and bottom
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features that were unheard of only a few
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short years ago oh there's what I'm
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looking for yeah cooling me we're not a
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bit of a clínica see how'd you see that
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like x-ray goggles on or something come
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on baby whoo look at you look at you
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look at you
14:34
whoo there he goes that's we let him go
14:37
that's the way you do it to learn
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anything there yeah Oh see that nice job
14:50
oh what a jump I can cast in two MIDI
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events while you work that talk they're
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everywhere man
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here comes up oh it's big is there a
15:00
good size yeah it's gonna be gonna be a
15:04
four pounder anyway it was another four
15:09
Wow what a strong handshake the fishes
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got oh yeah it's nice buddy oh yeah you
15:16
got him are you want a hand I think I
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can handle it yeah that's another nice
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fish huh I got him I got nice ha just
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hooked him in front of the lip - he's a
15:35
dark one now huh that's more like it
15:37
that's more like her at home
15:40
yeah it's that's definitely more like oh
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that's fantastic
15:48
those are gorgeous show any good leak
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doesn't sound like a bassy name may be
15:57
some kind of trout or something there
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you go
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oh yeah nice mm-hmm right where you
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should have been a bigot I'll make an
16:15
inch
16:15
yeah Oh big fat big fat svali I'm going
16:22
to reel in give you some assistance
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we'll bring them up the side here the
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old mark well there's another one behind
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the mic really yeah throw in throwing
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thread big whoa Wow
16:36
drawing fish coming up coming up period
16:38
Oh Oh too bad the job yeah that's a
16:43
school and good looking fish oh that's
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pretty
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oh look at that whew
16:52
coming your way buddy coming your way
17:02
whoa look at that
17:10
it caught him in the corner edge yeah
17:13
there was another one right right
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underneath them
17:15
that was cool I think we can catch that
17:19
other guy
17:20
nice right on cheering and Smalley you
17:23
believe that Vancouver Island baby
17:26
Vancouver is fantastic how many boats we
17:30
seen over here today fishing not a
17:32
single one none
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[Music]
17:42
this is a year-round small the area on
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Shawnigan but it really excels in late
17:47
summer and into fall look for upright
17:49
logs in the water now early in the
17:51
season cast topwater baits tubes and
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cinco's towards the shore as the season
17:56
progresses use spinner baits and your
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face for those aggressive feeders to get
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the shot again late take the bc ferry as
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its waffle location to dew point on
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Vancouver Island travel south on highway
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1 to Cobble Hill Road and then turn
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right on Shawnigan Lake Road next turn
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right on Shawnigan Mill Bay Road then go
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south on Harrow Road and finally turn
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right on thrush Road to the boat launch
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fish in Canada brought to you in part by
18:27
turn from lifejackets expert Ram trucks
18:33
nothing worked harder than a rail
18:35
Castrol more than just oil skin to
18:38
liquid engineering and us real when
18:41
performance means everything
18:44
[Music]
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