The Fish TV crew visited Ontario's Blue Heron Resort situated at an amazing location along the Spanish River, and the resort is very close to the town of Spanish itself. The lodging is exceptionally clean with a spacious kitchen, bathroom and common room with an additional screened-in porch that really gives you the true cottage experience! If you are travelling in an RV, premium site locations are available as well. There is a great central location, within the grounds, for hanging out with your family and friends, enjoying beach volleyball, horseshoes and a playground for the kids. There is also a slide and floating swim raft for the swimmers in the family.
You can expect to find a boat launch on-site, and plenty of docking room with power available to charge your batteries while leaving your boat in the water.
There is a fish cleaning and deep fry station on-site, with a bonus service available…the resort owners, Patti and Mike, will cook your catch with a side order of onion rings and french fries! But the “you catch and clean” policy is in effect lol. You can also enjoy eating in a screened-in dining site overlooking the river. All in all, an amazing location to hang out and enjoy your holiday!
Once you get out on the water, you are a short boat ride over to access the North Channel, if that’s your preferred destination. Our research told us that there was amazing walleye fishing to be had in the Spanish River/ North Channel area, but our mission was to unlock the seemingly forgotten or misunderstood smallmouth bass fishery that was available in the North Channel.
Being new to the area, we looked over lake maps with Patti and Mike, as well as speaking to some amazing locals in the area, to safely navigate the waters.
*A special note to mention here—this area borders 2 fishing zones so be sure to understand your fishing regulations in each zone (zone 10 and zone 14)!
We were quite confident to start our smallmouth quest fishing around the abundant islands in the North Channel. It didn’t take long at all to find aggressive smallmouth, exploding on top waters, and smashing jerk baits. We expanded our journey, targeting visible structure along the shoreline and bluff walls, which had visible chunk rock leading into the water. Although the North Channel is somewhat protected from the wind and elements, expect to be dealing with the wind at times. Don’t let the wind discourage you when fishing smallmouth bass, just pull out your spinner bait rods and keep the fish-catching bonanza going! We were amazed at both the number of sass available and the lack of fishing pressure from other anglers.
It truly was amazing, sharing space with otters, eagles and even a bear and her cub swimming across the Spanish River on our way back to Blue Heron Resort. Take it from me, you won’t be disappointed with the accommodations or the fishing when visiting Blue Heron Resort. It really is fun for the whole family!
