| Gulp Test Update
|
|
Nice walleye.
Yup, that's Bob Doolittle in the photo above, and that Walleye hit on the second cast on the first day of his first trip to Miminiska Lake. Bob has a great history with Wilderness North (2005 largest Pike in Ontario) and this year he brought his son Michael for the first time. Both are participating in the "Gulp VS Live" study.In fact Bob has made arrangements with the University of Wisconsin to tabulate the results of the field study so he has taken a peek at the current surveys each angler completes just to get a feeling for "How's it goin'?" Plus he has now fished six hours with the bait and has a personal feeling as well."It's funny," the University of Tulsa Professor comments," Some of our anglers have said the claim - good as live - is true. And a few have said "no way." His group, eleven strong, will have posted 99 hours of "in the field" testing or should we say "on the water" testing by the end of their trip on Friday. Bob was quite impressed. He had fished with Gulp Alive in Northern Wisconsin earlier in the spring with "so-so" results. But he told us, for him, it met his expectations these past few days with marked advantage over live bait, both in terms of staying on the hook, ease of handling and catching plenty of Miminiska Walleyes.The study is not based on feelings, since each participant fills out an actual log of their fishing results after three hours of angling with nothing but Gulp or live minnows. The log records the number of small, medium and large fish, the angler's experience level, and lake and weather conditions and the big UW computer crunches the numbers.If you are coming to Wilderness North this summer, and are fishing live bait, we will provide the log sheets and the Gulp so that you too can take part in the study. And even if you are not coming, we will post the general results of the "in the field face off" at our website this fall. A full report, available as a PDF file will be sent to those request it. In fact you may drop us an e-mail to request your copy by clicking here now.
|
Countdown to
Project Healing Waters
|
 |
The details are falling into place. On July 12th the U.S. and Canadian Soldiers who have been invited to be our guests for "Healing on The Albany" will be here. Contributions from individuals and companies keep coming in and though we are still shy of our goal, the event will take place for 8 days in about a month. Information about the event, and how you can still contribute is just click away.
|
|
|
Dad's Day Was Great !
...by Alan Cheeseman
As we all know, this past Sunday was Father's Day. And boy did we have a great Dad's Day at our Miminiska Lodge on the Albany River. In addition to quality family time together, our guests found the fishing for Walleye was spectacular. (Katelyn's report has the details.)
John Br aganini, of Kalamazoo, Michigan was here with his two sons Apollo and Dario. It was John who coordinated a Father's Day event in '02 for 36 dads, sons and daughters at our Makokibatan Lodge. And he's been back to the Albany River area every year since.
Robert Doolittle from Tulsa, Oklahoma, (yes the guy with the 50 inch biggest Pike caught and released in Ontario in 2005) was here with his son, Mike (his first trip). On Father's Day itself, Mike caught 22 consecutive Walleye from 22 casts from that famous "Honey Hole" just a mile from the lodge. Twenty-two fish and one first time angler all hooked at the same time!
John Doolittle from Grover, Missouri was in camp with his son, Tim, who lives in the greater St. Louis area. John and Tim (photo on right in header) have had Canadian fishing adventures together for over a decade, I guess that qualifies for a family tradition.
The US state of Nebraska was well represented by the Loofe family (photo on left in header) of Walthill, Nebraska with three generations of fathers and sons, and they brought moms and grandma along for the fun. And wouldn't you know, the youngest son (13), Ryan, caught the most and largest fish.
These photos and this week's "Meet The Guests" podcast (click here to listen) remind me of an important lesson: We are not in the fishing business, we are in the friends and family adventure business. Real people whether families, fellow workers, neighborhood associates or scouting organizations are all welcome - and the fishing is a bonus.
Like the Loofe Family who had never been our guests before, or the Doolittle's and Braganini's who return year after year, we would love to plan a wilderness adventure for you soon.
Along with Krista and everyone here at Wilderness North, we say thanks to those families and groups who allow us to play a role in creating wilderness memories and family traditions.
I welcome your e-mails to guide us in creating a report that works for you...you can send one now.
Alan
Alan@wildernessnorth.com 1-888-465-FISH (3474)
|
|
Here Comes the Sun & Summer in Canada !
...Dr. Graham Saunders 
Spring? I think this is it.
Those cold, windy, downright nasty days with showers and days of rain may finally be over. A giant, stationary LOW that has been spinning off Hudson Bay, will likely move out by the weekend opening the door to sunny and warm conditions, the kind of weather that is truly seasonal. Highs at or near 70 degrees. Some light and occasional showers may hang around until Friday, but the first part of next week should finally allow everyone to put away (but not too far away) those heavy coats and umbrellas. Listen Now to my podcast.
Graham Saunders, is professor of meteorology at Lakehead University here in Thunder Bay, and weather commentator for the Thunder Bay Chronicle Journal and for Wilderness North.
|
|
Water Levels Wild - Trophies Even More So
...Mark Prokopchuk
 Our ZigZag Lake is 8 feet below normal. Ogoki Lake 8 feet above. Go figure. Water temps are at best in the low 50's just barely post spawn. We're guessing there are still some Walleye yet to spawn. And the weather? As our guests from New Jersey would say: "Fogettaboutit." Cold. Rainy. Windy. Well you might think, "There goes the fishing." Think again. With 18 Pike over 40 inches, and 3 Walleye over 26 inches, it's clear the fish don't care. The Walleye are biting with big numbers, however the really big ones have been a bit shy. So, if you dress in layers and get out there, you're more likely than not to score big.
I have updated the Master Angler report at the download section of the website for you to read, and prepared a podcast with details for you to hear. (Listen Now to the podcast.) But to summarize: Weather this past week: Stinks. Fishing this past week: Everything is coming up roses.
|
|
 It's a Wild Walleye Fest at Mim !
...Katelyn Johnson
Hi, it's Katelyn at Miminiska Lodge with the fishing report. You can listen to report as well. Click here to listen. A little sun, lots of clouds, and scattered rain showers best describe our weather this past week. And cool? - Yes, we never broke 70 degrees. Rain suits and layers were the dress code of the day most days, but the winds were very moderate, (better rain than wind eh?) while the fishing for Walleye was sensational.
As Alan mentioned in his column, lots of fathers and sons were in camp and they all experienced exceptional success in 4-14 feet of water, and the Walleyes were big and fat.
The Honey Hole right near the lodge with lots of current and about 10 feet of water produced without break night and day with 20 inch plus fish at least 50% of the time. The outflow of the Keezhik River, with its swirling eddies was another hot spot with a good mix of Pike and Walleye. And the Ferguson River proved to be a spot where back-to-back cast to catch results often reached twenty. With Graham's improving forecast, and warmer temps on the way (it did not break 50 yesterday) the layers will come off as the sun comes out, however guests could not have caught more fish.
|
Lunker Time at Whitewater !
...Tyler Lancaster
The second week of June started off with lousy weather but an abundance of fish. The lads from Scotland, Mel, Craig, Peter, and John found a hotspot a short distance away from their cabin at Striker's Point, right off the dock. With two nights of cold, windy weather, they stationed themselves on the pier and offered the Walleye live presentations of sucker minnows under floats. To everyone's disbelief, they slaughtered the fish. Their second night they landed 60 or more Walleye.
This week also saw the arrival of the Starmach gang from the Chicago area. Kurt Andersen from Waukesha, Wisconsin ventured into the Bay of Pigs on his second morning and found himself in an intense battle with a huge Pike. The fish measured in at 44 inches, and was quite a "heffer" as well. He was tossing a Johnson Silver Minnow equipped with a white grub, right at the mouth of the bay in about two feet of water.
Not two days later and Dan Starmach also boasted a trophy from the same location. His monster measured in at 41 inches, and struck on a Mepps Timber Doodle. The big Pike keep coming, and the Walleye action is fast and furious.
John Morgan and Scott Hoffman, both from the Ohio area made their first trip to northern Ontario and had a great time catching numerous Walleye and enjoyed it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Also to be noted is Brady Andersen's 20 inch Whitefish, which was the first of it's kind seen here on Whitewater Lake.
|
|
|
|
|
|
