Lake trout success.........

Susanne and I thought it might be fun to fish a lake we have never tried before. From Eagle we were able to scout out the trail (no we weren't the first ones there) into several other lakes before arriving at this "hidden lake".

Another view of coming off a portage trail onto yet another lake.

The first trout caught on a tip-up using one of Perchmaster's ice fishing rigs. These fish are some of the darkest lake trout I have ever caught.......almost a copper colour.

The biggest fish of the day caught by Susanne on a Williams spoon. Note the careful use of the hat to hide the dreaded "hat-head".........

After about an hour and a half we ended up with our limit of nice eaters. Perhaps we will keep this lake's location a secret!

Ramblings on a -27C morning........

On a cold morning such as this it is hard to imagine that the lake will ever thaw and open water fishing begin. While I wait for the sun to thaw out my truck, here's a few musings on warmer weather.........
Some of the fun aspects of the season are the Walleye Madness Week (July 24-31) and the Muskie Madness Week (September 11-18) where a week of friendly competition culminates in the awarding of one of these fine trophies! Hand carved by artist Charles Weiss, these are the 2010 versions up for grabs. Now wouldn't those look nice on your wall! Give me a call, I'll squeeze you in!

My other thoughts turn to this old classic......the Zebco Cardinal 3. This is the ultra-light version made by Abu-Garcia back in the 70's and was given to me by long time guide and "Eagle-Laker" Gord Euler. This seems to be the reincarnation of the "Ol Greenie" I owned for decades. The sad but true tale of losing Ol Greenie is burnt into my brain. Several years ago we had two couples stop off the highway for an overnight cabin. These people were from Italy (only one spoke English) and were on their way to Churchill, Manitoba to see polar bears. One thing lead to another and they decided that they should go fishing on the way back, and that I should guide them. Now, these were not our typical fisher people. The women were somewhat older, but were dressed like Italian models. Particularly intriguing was the hair color of one lady.....sort of a burnt red, fluorescent orange combo.......very distracting. Of course no one has equipment, or likely has even fished before.......never mind the language barrier. Well, I set them up with my stuff, including the classic Zebco on a lovely St. Croix ultra-light rod which I "lent" to the Italian lady in my boat. I even conscripted my son Mike into guiding and running the other boat........he had the couple who spoke no English, which was perfect for Mike who isn't much for small talk. We did the adventure trip of going up the creek into Clearwater Lake, which seemed to impress the Italians greatly. The fishing was absolutely "stupid".....you couldn't help but catch trout or whitefish.......and we often had 2 on at the same time. Mike even landed a 40 inch pike out of 60 feet of water......it was nuts. It was so nuts in fact that when the lady in the boat set down "my" rod and reel to take a picture of her husband's fish it was like the time-space continuum suddenly slowed to a crawl. From the corner of my eye I thought I saw the rod tip go down......at about the same time the butt of the rod went way up. I had time to think "What the hell, she left her lure in the water......." and perhaps started a futile grab maneuver. The rod vaulted over the side and entered the nether regions of deep water. I could only smile and control the urge to strangle someone....it was my beloved "Ol Greenie".

I'm over the trauma now, and actually have fond memories of that day. We had a great shore lunch of fried trout, and even saw a 12 point buck. The "rod loser" woman was very gracious in her broken English in offering to pay for my rod......but I chose to just chock it up to experience. Well, now a new "Ol Greenie" has surfaced. Time to grease it up and get it ready for the summer of 2010!

More ice fishing.........

Here's a high tech homemade Canadian ice-fishing rig. Basically a stick of wood, a door stop spring, a wooden dowel and a few cup hooks. I added a bell on the end to wake me up on those drowsy afternoons.

Mike discovers how smokies got their name. Ice fishing isn't always just fishing. This lunch break was on Clearwater Lake.

Perchmaster asked about Teggau Lake. Here Susanne is coming off the portage trail and along the creek edge.......some current so the ice is thin! Note the result of the forest fire in the background. Teggau Lake is accessed off of Eagle way down by Buzzard Falls. The lake is probably the deepest in the NW region.......over 500 feet!

Perchmaster also asked about those secret ice fishing rigs he sent me. That reminded me to give them a try and hey they seem to work. A pike near the lodge was intent on eating it.....tipped with a minnow.

Some of the "less than jumbo" perch that just won't leave my jigging spoon alone.

This green and silver Little Cleo seems to work on those "long nosed brown trout". Good catch Gord!

Ice fishing update........

Here's a few shots of some of the ice fishing activity going on........

Susanne holding a small trout (can you see it?) on Clearwater Lake.

I thought this was an "artistic" shot of a tip-up and auger on Teggau Lake.

This look at ice fishing fashion is interesting, or is it? The walleye and whitefish are nice though.

Susanne and a good eater lake trout. Nice hat-head !

Fishing Derby...Conclusion...........

The cold north winds did not bode well for those on the ice. Here Susanne smiles in anticipation, shortly before she loses a good fish with her famous "I'll just remove my gloves before I battle the fish" maneuver. This was a disappointment since only a few other bites occurred with one "fish catching" exception. That was my encounter with the mighty stickleback!! Using a Salmo Chubbydarter I managed to snag one of these denizens of the depths, a finned fury of prehistoric proportions. Since it was a catch and release tourney, I carefully transported my "catch" to the weigh in station. There I was mocked by a small child who kept babbling annoyingly "you cheated...you cheated"! Even the adults looked a little suspicious. In my opinion, a one inch long stickleback that was snagged should count for something.......apparently I was wrong!

Well, the conclusion of this event took place at the Lions Hall in Vermilion Bay where, mysteriously, it is the only Lions Hall in Canada with an actual lion head on the wall. Not a stickleback in sight, or trophies for such a catch. What a rip-off.

All was not lost. After a few refreshments, an amazing attitude adjustment occurred. All thoughts of my stickleback receded. Since no fish where caught (I may have tried to dispute that claim) all prizes were raffled off. I ended up with a $50 gift certificate from the C0-0p! We can at least eat for another week!

Fishing derby, part one...........

The fishing derby was held on the ice just off the government dock. Here is the outdoor firepit made out of a fuel oil tank. Hot dogs, and weigh-in station in the background.

A few of the folk braving the howling north winds for 3 hours of intense competition.

I was most interested in some of the non-fishermen......such as this dog who spent most of the 3 hours jumping in the air for balls of snow thrown by some of the kids.

Here he / she is seemingly hovering in the air. Nice vest!

Wolfie, who is part wolf and husky, spent his time hanging out by the hot dog grill and smokies.

I will post some of the fishing related news regarding this competition tomorrow. Let it be known that I was the only competitor to actually catch something..........but due to some controversy, the title was "ripped" from my grasp..... Details to follow.............

Vermilion Bay Kin Karnival.....

This weekend is a winter carnival put on by local service clubs such as the Kinsmen and Lions clubs. We entered the snowmobile poker derby (see map) which had 5 checkpoints where you picked a card to complete a poker hand. Best hands win prizes, which I have had no experience with. Again this year Susanne and I had garbage hands. The ride was nice. If you can read the map the trail headed south through Canoe Narrows and along the Back Channel to Detour Point.

Here is the 1st checkpoint at the Detour Point access road.

Off the access road and onto Bottle Bay Lake............Perchmaster's secret perch hole!

Another checkpoint and more lousy cards.

Here we are in the village of Waldhof and some derailed grain cars which are still laying about after several weeks since the derailment. I think the deer will appreciate the spillage.

Day 2 of the carnival on Sunday features a fishing derby just off the government dock. I will report back on this tomorrow........hopefully my fishing luck is better than my poker hand!

A few more winter pics.......

There's been a new addition to the neighbour folk at the point (John & LeeAnn)......here's John Jr. Just can't seem to keep his eyes open!

Cloudy day in the back forty.........

Hey, what's that in the tree?

A ruffed grouse, of course..........