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Luggage was packed floor to ceiling to knees and Scott's carry-on: coffee! |
After watching a guy getting arrested at the Holiday gas
station in International Falls, it finally hit me that vacation had begun! We
charmed our way through customs at International Falls on May 18, enjoyed a
Canadian favorite - butter tarts with ice cream - at a quirky restaurant
outside Dryden, and finished up with a pretty, but sadly bear-free, 2-hour
drive to Sioux Lookout where 8 of us would board the Sioux Falls Outposts'
Otter plane the next morning for our 6-day Lake Miniss pike-fishing trip in
Ontario, Canada.
This was supposed to be the third consecutive trip to
Lake St. Joe, but a late ice out meant we switched to Miniss since its waters
open a week earlier... otherwise we'd have had to cancel the trip.
Other than a very windy second day, the weather was
great. Fish were still sluggish and slower to bite due to late ice out, but it
got better as the days went on and as we learned this lake.
Ed was my same boat partner from 2 years ago. He powered
the motor, and I did the anchor, rock-sighting, and navigation with the map (I
did well for a self-titled Geographical Moron). He fished with fly and lure. He
got one wally and the rest were pike. I used a 10wt fly rod to do my hunting.
Our trip organizer, John, cooked breakfasts and suppers
(yum!). Final night was for ribs that were fantastic. We had a spontaneous
walleye supper the first night and I really liked my first taste of walleye!!
I had one day when I only caught 1 pike, but there were
gear and other issues. Otherwise, up to 6 pike/day for me, and I didn't let
some hammer handles hook up. Slowish fishing, but enough while motoring around.
Up until the final afternoon, the biggest pike we boated measured 31-32", and I had caught no walleye. John had boated a larger pike
while using a twister tail that was chomped while about 15' deep. He didn't measure it.
Scott and Ward had follows of 35"+ and 40"+
pike in a specific bay with current. No big-pike takes. Ed and I visited new
water for us on the final day, and we did well and had fun. Then, we visited
Scott/Ward in the bay of large pike follows. They'd had additional follows but
were readying to leave. They recommended we motor to the "tutu tree"
and try for where they had spotted the larger pike. We did. Ed had a decent
30"+ follow. I had nothing. I switched to a couple other flies, finally
deciding between a chartreuse fly and a walleye-colored fly I'd tied
specifically for the trip but had yet to fish. The fish had come most often to
smaller flies (including a 3.5-inch 4-minute tie of a silver minnow pattern I'd
used daily). But, I went with the larger walleye fly.
I made a few casts but knew Ed wanted to get going. We
needed to pack to fly out the next AM. With Ed being the responsible person in
our boat and nicknaming me "Last Cast Lisa," I made my last cast
toward deeper water, gave the fly time to sink and stripped the line.
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The 37-inch pike that wanted a walleye. |
My fly stopped hard but with that subtle difference that
tells you this is NOT a rock. I strip set hard once, twice, then stripped to
bring the fish toward me while yelling twice to Ed to "Get the net!"
The 2nd time I yelled was when the fish turned, I strip set hard the third
time, and then I saw her. Eternally calm Ed exclaimed that wow I really did
need the net. I don't usually want a green fish in the net, but we were looking
at likely the largest fish of our group's trip, so after she turned, Ed netted
her before she could get a good fight going. Of course, she was then very
active in the net.
Ed tried a few times to measure her while I readied tools
and got pictures of her in the net. She would thrash whenever he touched the
tail, and this would botch the measurement.
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The pike-slimed walleye fly. |
She overpowered the jaw spreaders x 3 and, luckily,
popped the snap (now in garbage) during the 3rd time, so I only had to deal
with the de-barbed fly, not leader and fly line. The 4th time, spreaders stayed
in place, and I freed the slimed walleye fly from inside her mouth.
Of course, we let her rest in the submerged net off and
on while I also calmed down. I appreciated Ed's patience just as much as I
appreciated this pike taking my fly. Managing a netted fish is not yet a huge
strength of mine, but you have to do it to get better, and I did it.
Ed and John both have tooth-resistant gloves. I was able
to use Ed's glove this trip for larger pike. After 2 efforts with the glove,
she was secured, and I slowly lifted her into a classic hold that I was unable
to manage two years ago during our first pike trip. My finger had been in a splint
that trip. After boating the pike fondly christened "42," for
pictures I could only hold that largest pike from our first trip in the net on
my lap, and later hold her tail with my intact hand while helping her recover
in the water. This year I got to manage the netted fish, pose nicely with her,
then do a hand release while appreciating life's small accomplishments.
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A beautifully-patterned 37-inch pike. |
While I held her for pictures, Ed measured her again. We
knew this pike wasn't 40 inches. She was 37".
Back at the cabin, Ed spread the good news. Our group was
very pleased as was I. Jeff asked if I knew the Fishermen's Handshake. I said
no. He said he hadn't used it on the trip because no one had gotten a fish
large enough. We did the Fishermen's Handshake to honor the pike that came to
the last cast. I gave kudos to Ed, Scott, and Ward, because without them, that
fish would not have connected with my last cast.
It wasn't actually the last cast of the trip though.
While packing after supper, I went to the porch to look for any missing gear
and realized I had missed something more important than that. I took in a
breath and smelled ... pike. At that moment I realized that I hadn't really
taken the time to truly experience as fully as I could where I was. I smelled
the air around me, went to the sandy beach to pick up a chair, and I plopped it
on the edge of the dock.
I sat and enjoyed the evening sounds, the myriad of tree
frogs, the birds, a couple fish splashes, eventually the wolves, and I looked
at a bright half-moon. I realized I hadn't once looked for the
light-pollution-free Canadian stars. I am almost embarrassed to write that.
But darkness comes late to the cabin and all of my
Northern Midwestern friends go to bed early. Just what was I to do until it got
dark? I remembered the fish splashes. I also remembered that the shore in front
of the cabin isn't a hot spot for fishing but there were those splashes, and
maybe night brings better fishing?
So, I went back to the cabin and unpacked headlamp, rod,
reel, and a couple flies. I was targeting walleye.
I got a net from the fish cleaning house. My first walleye
was foul-hooked. But during the hour, I netted 4 wallys, the largest 19 inches.
I cheered them all (and they also wanted that crazily simple-to-tie minnow
pattern!). I used the headlamp to see to remove the fly from each fish.
It was good to know I wouldn't leave Canada empty-handed
of walleye. Afterward, I scanned the water with the headlamp on. Wow! What fun
to see glowing walleye eyes moving around on the water bottom! Then, I saw
small glowing eyes on the water's surface and what appeared to be wings. A
swimming bat!? No, it was the water-pushing rear legs of a frog or toad. I kept
my lamp on it, hoping it would not become a walleye or pike meal but wanting to
watch if it should. The toad swam next to the dock and luckily, no splashes
were heard, but I know they don't taste good.
The next morn we flew home, and I could keep my eyes open
the entire time, unlike the bumpy flight in, where keeping my eyes closed and
imagining fish being caught while singing "Thunderstruck" in my head
kept the nausea away. Those Canadian lakes are also beautiful seen from the
air.
It was a pleasure to spend another memorable pike-fishing trip with great people on beautiful water.
(Trip dates: 5/18-24/2018) Written 5/27-28/2018
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Lisa, John, Scott, Ward, Jeff & sons Tom and John, and my patient boat partner Ed |
Trip Photos
(Click on any picture to view it larger)
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Vacation begins!! |
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At the mouth of a finger bay. |
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Even the pit stops offer beautiful views! |
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Cautiously motoring through the cut rock bank of a finger bay. |
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Beaver lodges are plentiful here. We saw one otter and one beaver. |
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Six of us motored to the Miniss River on the 2nd to last day of fishing. |
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The Miniss River. |
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Near the short walking trail to a little boat on another section of Lk Miniss. |
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A little boat and motor for anyone wanting to fish more water. Don't forget to put in the plug! |
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Shiprock Island |
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Pike can't resist a chartreuse fly! |
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Relaxing at the cabin before supper. |
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Ed and Scott at the dock. |
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Ribfest! And who ate the most? Your's truly-- just to compliment the cook! |
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The Otter's arrival on Lake Miniss to fly us back to Sioux Lookout. |
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The view from Canadian skies as we leave all that fishing goodness. |