Home Again Home Again Jiggity Jig
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Tulsa Oklahoma's Bob Doolittle, winner of the 2005 Ontario Pike Angler of the year award from Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters OFAH, dropped us a note this week about a new relatively inexpensive GPS system. Bob wrote:
"Just a quick note. Bushnell makes a gadget called "Backtrack"
that retails for $69 but is $52 at Amazon.com. It lets you set home base and up to three other locations and then shows
the way back to home base with compass directions and distance in miles and feet. Just
follow the direction indicated until the distance reads zero or you bump into the dock. It's
good on land or water. It'll locate your car in a large parking lot, lead you back to your hotel in a big city, OR lead you back to the dock of a Canadian lodge from anywhere on a large lake. Might be of interest to guests or readers of your newsletter."
You can revisit Bob's big catch by clicking here.
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Healing on the Albany
We are counting down to July 11th and are very excited that our plans are taking shape for our second Healing On The Albany Event at our own Miminiska Lodge. At this time a dozen Canadian and US soldiers have confirmed their presence at our event.
As you may recall, the event is fully authorized by Project Healing Waters. We continue to welcome monetary gifts that will enable us to transport these worthy men and women of the US and Canadian military service to our Albany River Lodge. There is more information here at the website:
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Healing on the Albany
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Come Fly
With Me!
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Yes, it was big hit for Frank Sinatra. It is also an invitation from Tyler Lancaster to guests at our Striker's Point Lodge. If you ever had the desire to learn more about fly angling, but did NOT want to invest in the equipment before you really determined your true ability and passion for the art, Tyler has the plan. Tyler will personally take a couple hours with you and provide all the equipment and teach you the beginning steps in fly angling so you can truly "try before you buy." On that same note, Scott Earl Smith, Canadian Editor for Fly Fishing America, has posted a great article "Fly Fishing for Dummies" at the download page about taking that first step into fly angling. You can click here to read or download the article.
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Yes, that is Ice -
and those are Ear Covers !
...by Alan Cheeseman
We are now officially open for the 2009 season - but not too fast there my friend!
We are still having challenges convincing Mother Nature that it is Spring here in Ontario's Boreal Forest.
Yes, that is ice around the plane. (Header photo on the right.) We thought the ice was out here at Armstrong base camp, and then it blew right back in from a bay across the lake. Fortunately, it was not that thick and it melted away quickly and in time to get our first official guest group on their way to D'Alton Lake.
They are the Haverkost family from New Jersey and New York (upper left hand photo). You'll learn more about their cold adventure in the story below.
With rain and snow mixed, we were delayed in getting out to many of our camps for opening clean up and there is still ice at our Albany River destinations.
Fishing has generally been slow. Slow presentation and light bites. The pike are still not warm enough to live up to their reputation as aggressive monsters. The D'Alton group caught only a few fish in the 38 degree water, and the groups at Ogoki Lake are doing "okay" but not hitting the numbers or the sizes they had hoped for. Tyler's report on Whitewater Lake is more upbeat. 
Now Zig Zag is another story. This little lake is producing hundreds of very respectable walleye, including our first official Master Angler, Larry Madden of Fort Wayne, Indiana. Larry is a veteran to Ontario angling, and describes his luck and and his lure selection in this very comprehensive podcast. So get a paper and pencil ready to learn from this Master Angler. Click here to listen to the podcast.
We Can Do It! Your Ontario Outdoor Card and your fishing license are both available from our trip planners. You will need both items starting this year.
BTW - a Walleye Study is being done on Zig Zag, and a few other lakes where we have cabins, all in preparation for the potential construction of a power dam on the Jackfish River. We'll tell you more in next week's report.
Anyway, for now, I'm pulling down my ear flaps and heading out to the dock to meet the Otter, just back from Ogoki Lake.
Talk to you next week - and as always feel free to drop me an e-mail by clicking here or by phone at 888-465-3474.
Alan
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 Spring is late - but finally here
...by Graham Saunders
Yes, it is spring. No it doesn't feel like it. Temperatures and green up are at least a week late. Water temps are very low and lake levels very high. However, most of the ice has now melted or the wind has worn it out. With Tuesday's rain behind us, we are expecting seasonal temps (66 for highs 43 for lows) and sunny skies for the rest of the week. However, we are nervous of clear skies at night, creating frost at our low-lying base camp in Armstrong. My podcast - click here - has more details and a peek at June.
Our gardening project, (see photo of Robb Martin and Julia  Wdowiak - Lakehead University students) gets underway officially later this week, when we do the actual planting. Julia was an editor on my new book "Gardening with a Short Growing Season" and she and Robb describe their roles in the project in a podcast. Listen in by clicking here. |
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Beaver Flicks at the Beaver House
...by Joe Pichey
It's on the corner of Broadway and Wisconsin Avenue. 
In the town of Grand Marais, Minnesota that is. It is the last town before you encounter Pigeon River Border Crossing and Customs on the scenic drive east on highway 61 - as it hugs the Lake Superior shore between Duluth and Thunder Bay. It would be easy to just breeze right though this quaint midwestern town of about 3500 full time residents. But hold on.
That corner - Broadway and Wisconsin - is home to an angler's  dream come true starting with the fifteen foot walleye over the door. Inside the shop there's even more excitement. The place is called The Beaver House and represents a couple of generations of devoted fisherman who back in the 60's converted a clothing store to this land of lures.
The podcast will introduce you to a father (Bill Cronbergh) and son (Tyson) story, and a lure - The Beaver Flick - that claims to "catch 'em all or your money back."
Click here to listen to my podcast.
Next week I will tell you more about my first trip to Musgrave Lake and the portage to Kilberry - - - AND about one more stop on your road trip at the famous SPAM Museum in Austin, Minnesota.
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My Whitewater Lake Report
...by Tyler Lancaster
The ice has only been off the lake for a week and a half and eager Striker's Point anglers are already making the most of the young season.
Our first group, the Kalgrens, party of eight, from Minnesota are Striker's regulars, and masters of early season walleye fishing. They arrived in camp on May 22nd late in the evening and did not get out until the morning of May 23rd.
I was anxious for their return to the dock at dinner-time to see and hear about the results of their first day. They did not let me down. Each boat landed around 50-70 walleye. Almost every fish came from deep water (20-30 ft), with flow. Salted minnows were the ticket to entice, and Jim Kalgren and his fellow fishermen also noted that most of the walleye were extracting eggs or milk.
No trophies yet but a solid average size of about 16-22 inches.
The weather has been excellent with two straight days of sunshine and calm waters. We are headed for more rain according to the weather experts and that is not good for our dock situation. The lake level is up about 4-5 feet this year and our dock here at Striker's Point Lodge is submerged.
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