First Planned Group
We’re back! It’s been rather quiet in this space over the past few weeks. What can we say: it’s been a little hectic of late. This has not been a storybook opening for Scott Lake Lodge. For the second time in the past ten years the ice was just stubborn. On May 20 General Manager John Gariepy and guide Paul Hamilton landed in front of the Lodge in a ski plane. Not a good sign. But the weather was hot, very hot for most of late May. We thought the early summer sun would open our lake by the June 6 planned opener. It wasn’t quite hot enough. We had to cancel the first group of anglers and it was a close call for the second. The 70 degree sunshine finally opened up a landing area for a float plane by June 6th. Unfortunately the landing zone did not reach to the shore of the island where Scott Lake Lodge rests. John and Paul spent two days ferrying most of the Lodges’ 30 staff members and thousands of pounds of groceries to the lodge by breaking a path through the ice. Where there is a will. . .
Week 2: June 10-15, 2008
The efforts were not in vain. The crew got the place ship shape for the gang that arrived on June 10th. They were welcomed not by just a smiling group of the traditionally red-shirted staff but with a perfectly beautiful early summer evening. And the hot weather of the previous four days finally liberated most of Scott Lake. While there was still plenty of floating ice, it did not block any of the navigation routes on the sprawling lake. There was plenty of water to fish and the early season pioneers were eager to test the waters.
The first day featured great weather and hot action. About a dozen trophy pike were taken but a tremendous number of fish were caught. After the first day the biggest fish of the season was a 43” pike caught by Connie Schmidt, but his wife, Judy, smashed the short lived record with a 46” girthy pike the very next day. The second day of the season was perfect: the bright sun warmed up the waters just enough to really turn on the fish. Shannon and Drew Bradford brought a counter, some days a device guides just hate. On this day though guide Curtis Woloshyn was delighted. At the end of the day the counter read 134 fish, not an estimate and not a bad day at all. And one of those digits was a 44.5” pike that found Drew’s spinner. Another was a trophy for Shannon. The best trophy day though was a close call. Mike Rogers had a big day with two trophy trout, including a massive 40” fish, and three big pike, one 43”. But not far behind was Brad Freking who, armed only with a fly rod, landed four trophy pike out of the same bay, the biggest 42.5”.Other big fish included a father/son special deal: Jodie Thompson caught a beautiful 44” pike but dad’s biggest pike of the day pushed the tape to 44.5”, apparently father knows best. Peter Townsend nailed a 44” pike and Carolyn Freking captured a beautiful 39” laker. Jim Klenk who has had over 20 trips to Scott went grayling fishing for the first time and he and his son Matt each got two trophy sized “ling” (our guide shorthand). He just had to do it—once. A total of 63 trophy fish were taken along with 100s, or maybe 1000s, of photographs.
As often happens a bear came to shore lunch one day but this was a big one, estimated by an avid bear hunter in the group to be a B&C candidate. (If you don’t know what B&C is you really don’t want to anyway—it was a very big bear.) Lots of great memories were captured which is the entire point of trips like this. It was a great week.
Great except for an incident on the very first day. Our flagship Beaver, GQD, went down on the rocks and will probably be out for the season. Only the pilot was aboard and he was not injured at all. It will be repaired on site at Gardiner Lake. We look forward to seeing the yellow and white symbol of the Lodge back in the air. A substitute Beaver, IFJ, was brought in the next day and is flying the routes to our eight destination lakes almost everyday. It is complemented mightily by our new Turbine Otter, a nine-passenger aircraft, which with two trips will take anglers to three lakes with speed and comfort. It is piloted by Luc Delhumeau, the Flying Frenchman. The weather was like most northern trips—a little of this and a little of that. The wind shifted to the north/north-east on the last two days and the fishing slowed as it always does when all pike want nothing but warm water. As the weather goes so goes the fishing. It’s the law. And it keeps us all humble.
Week 3: June 15-20, 2008
So you want a fish story? In the scales of truth (unlike many fish stories) this one balances perfectly. Scott Lake Lodge super chef, Shawn Ledoux, and his right hand man in the kitchen, Jeff Walker, went out within site of the lodge for a little trout trolling. Lots of fish. Jeff hooked a dandy and the fight was on. It looked like a clear cut victory for Jeff as Shawn started to slide the cradle, a specialized type of net, under the fat fish. As soon as the cradle touched the trout, it rolled and well, sort of coughed. The next thing Jeff knew he was hit flat in the face by a half digested whitefish with his spoon stuck firmly in the tail of the unfortunate prey species. The big trout of course simply “got away”. Somehow when the trout attacked the spoon (greedy little pig that he was) the spoon’s treble embedded in the tail of the whitefish which was just barely sticking out of the mouth. At that last second the force of the rod pulling on the whitefish pulled it straight back at Jeff and then he had sushi right in the face. Now that’s a one-of-a-kind tale of the tail.
There were many fish tales generated at Scott during the third week of operations. That’s the whole point of the place. Mary Daugherty caught a pair of nice trout on the first day of the session but one stretched the tape to 41”, her personal best. That fish put her on the path to earning her 100+Club vest, the top recognition here when an angler catches trophy trout, pike and grayling whose collective measurements reach or exceed 100 inches. Mary landed at 101.5”. Dave Lebovitz joined the 100+Club as well getting his big pike, a 43.5” fish, on the last afternoon. Joe Daugherty and Mike Griffin got to wear home the Trophy Triple hats as a reminder of their productive time on the water.
There were some huge fish caught. Both Connie and Judy Schmidt supersized their pike trophies with nearly identical 45 inchers. That’s the best way for any couple to end their trip, tied for the biggest fish. Andy Johnston captured a 45 on his fly rod. But for a big fish day no one could match the day Jeff Berg and John Behr had at a fly out lake. Getting six trophies wasn’t a bad day to begin with. But they had a double header for the books. At almost the same instant they each had a savage hit. After about fifteen minutes of chaos the guide somehow ended up with two monster pike in his cradle. John’s pulled the tape to 45” and Jeff’s reached 47”. That’s 92 inches of thrashing primitive energy, probably over 50 pounds, in the cradle. We think it’s the camp record for the biggest double. If it isn’t, it’s still a lifetime angling experience for Jeff and John. And the very next day they teamed up for five more trophies. They are definitely coming back.
There were lots of other big days. Dave Paulus landed four trophy pike in a single day, his best day ever at Scott. Everyone got into lots of fish whenever the sun came out. Sun and good fishing at Scott are linked at the hip. This time of year the fish want warm water. We had three perfect days and two not so perfect. That’s fishing. And no one leaving Scott on June 20th would have it any other way.
Week 4: June 20-25, 2008
This was the week of big fish in inches, not feet, of water. Most of the 55 trophy pike caught this week barely had water over their backs. After about a decade guiding at Scott, Ken Johnson thought this was the best shallow water pike fishing he had ever experienced. We didn’t think so on the first day. A serious cold front attacked the area on Day 1 (no one up here knows the actual day of the week—it’s simply Day 1, Day 2, etc.). The pike put on their long johns and headed for the deep water, even though this was the longest day of the year with a twilight so strong that you could read a book (with small type) at any hour of the day. The entire concept of night is meaningless this time of year. But the extra light did not help: it was cold. Only four trophy pike were caught on the first day and it was generally a slow day. But on Day 2 the sun came out, the temps shot up to the high 70s and the fish immediately came back to the shallows.
The second and third days featured some great fishing. We had a contest going for the biggest double of the week (two fish caught on the same cast by two anglers). Terry Martzke and Frank Scott thought they had a done deal when they got 85 inches of pike, Frank with a 43 and Terry with a 42. No one was going to top that! They were already mentally casting the prize, a $400 St. Croix fly rod. No one except their buddies, Mike Borden and Dave Baum, who teamed up with a 47 and a 42 inch pike, an 89 inch mark that blew Terry and Frank out of the water. (Mike, who always seems to find the big fish, got the 47.) It almost hit the Lodge record for a double set the previous week of 92 inches. Doubles are fairly common in these parts. When pike are turned on doubles are often more common than singles. In far northern waters pike sometimes get into frenzies of activity. We saw a lot of that this week.
Sometimes a single fish can constitute a frenzy. How about the pike that Tyler and Thad Baird encountered? Tyler casts his #5 Mepps and hooks a nice fish. It breaks off, spinner hanging out of his mouth. A few minutes later brother Thad hooked the same fish, still with Mepps in mouth, and got it right to the boat before it “got off”. The guide Ken Johnson just could not leave that fish in the water with a lure in its mouth. Watching the pike slowly swim off, he quickly pulled out his fly rod equipped with the trusty early season black leech and promptly hooked the fish for the third time and last time. This time everything held: the spinner was returned to Tyler and the fish returned to the lake where we hope he (it had to be a male) was just a little bit smarter.
Brad Bandt, Little Dog as he’s known up here, had a huge week and pulled into the lead for our annual Triple Crown competition. Brad got huge fish in all species: a 45.5” pike, a fat 40” trout and a 17.5” grayling to hit the 103 inch mark and surge into the lead for the season. He will wear his 100+Club vest with pride. Lots of other big fish were taken. Tom Danis with his fly rod brought in not one but two 44 inch pike, one measuring 19 inches around the middle, a very girthy pike for this time of year. John Sanderson who always gets a lot of trophies had a 44.5” pike as did Bill Calabresa and Terry Martzke. Tyler Baird got a 45 pike. Biggest trout of the week was Dave Baum’s beautiful 42” monster with Jaymie Youngquist’s big trout just a half inch smaller, if one can use the word small as a modifier for a fish of that size. So another week in the books and another 24 anglers with another trip-of-a-lifetime in their memory chips, both on their shoulders and in their cameras. Early season in the north. It’s a special time. The memories of this transition between late spring and summer will be very sweet for all who spent the summer solstice at Scott Lake Lodge.
Week 5: June 25-30, 2008
Well, summer finally arrived in the far north. Both our anglers and their quarry also warmed up. With the late ice out this season everything has been a couple of weeks behind schedule. The typical frantic activity of early to mid-June was delayed just long enough for the group arriving on June 25th to enjoy some fantastic fishing action. The blazing sub-arctic sunshine fired up the pike and grayling and started to push the lake trout deeper where they can be more predictably found. In a word fishing was great.
This group broke the century mark with over a hundred trophy fish boated. More importantly lots of fish were caught everyday with guides reporting counts of well over one hundred fish per day. (That was the guide report. Many of our anglers reported daily catches of over 100 each. You know the old line: all anglers are born honest but they eventually get over it.) Everyone in camp got in on the action even the youngsters. We had some wonderful father/son teams in camp. Often it was junior who showed dad the way to big fish. It was eight year old Alex Halron who on his first day hooked, fought and landed pike of 40 and 43 inches. Dad, Jim Halron, got to take the pictures. What a father/son experience. Dad was even more proud of the success than his son although Alex did brag a bit at dinner about the size of those fish. The 43 incher was almost as long as Alex. Bob Wyers had two boys with him and both brought home the trophies. Twelve year old Ben did dad real proud while fishing with Ron Wyers, his grandpa. Ben brought in pike of 42 and 44 inches, not quite but almost as long as Ben. Bob’s best pike was, by the way, 42 inches but who’s counting. Tim and Matt Day also got into the father/son trophy sweepstakes catching several together but Tim’s huge 45 inch pike proved that father does know best when it comes to big fish. We’ll watch this ongoing contest again next year.
There were lots of really big fish this week. Rick McMillin continued his tradition of getting nice fish with a 44 and 46 inch pike. He also took a lot of photographs of his fishing partner, Paul Turner, who captured seven trophy pike. Russell LaFave had some big fish this trip, getting not one but two 45.5” pike. He and Darlene, starting a ten day trip, got five big pike in a single day. Bill Bain caught a 44” pike. Lloyd Smith lead the trout parade with a beautiful 40 inch fish. But the master of big fish for the week had to be Dan DeCaster who quickly became Dan DeCatcher. He landed not only the biggest pike of the week with a massive 47 inch pike and added trophy lake trout and grayling to grab a Trophy Triple hat and claim membership in the 100+Club with 102 total trophy inches.
This was a fun group. The bar stayed open quite late every night. And there were unconfirmed reports of a customer dancing on the bar and hanging out in Guideland, a highly restricted area of our island where most customers fear to venture at the risk of losing their sobriety. We're not sure just who he was but we know he was quite tall and had blond hair. We’ll look for pictures. Anyway, what happens at Scott stays at Scott. Our goal is to allow people to have fun whether it’s on water or land. It’s a policy that everyone can live with.
Week 6: June 30-July 5
This group had a late arrival to Scott Lake Lodge. Due to a serious fire near Stony Rapids, Saskatchewan, about 50 miles from Scott, nearly all the planes in the province were directed by the government to fly residents from the Stony area to safer locations. This “took” the chartered Saab 340 from the lodge’s service and forced our guests to spend their “first” night in Saskatoon. Lucky for the departing guests who had an extra night and wonderful dinner here. By the next day the planes were returned to regular schedules and the Scott guests could fly to an alternate airport at Points North, Saskatchewan. (Stony Rapids was still closed due to the fire.) It made the changeover float flight a bit longer but by early afternoon on the first of July the group arrived to sunshine and an exciting if late day of fishing. Mark Graf wasted no time getting two trophy pike including a 45 incher on that first afternoon. Bill and Evan Purmort, Ronnie Smith and Jerry Nye also trophied on that first afternoon.
By the next morning everything was back to normal with fly outs heading in all directions and plenty of cooperative fish. A total of 28 trophies came to the boat on the first full day of fishing, probably a week’s worth at more southern lodges. And some were monsters: a 45” pike for Ronnie Smith; a 44 and a 45” for Russell LaFave (yes he’s still catching those giant pike) and a 44” pike for Jerry Nye. Mark Graf got into some nice grayling with a 17.5” fish topping his day. Lisa and John Ripley took four trophy pike. But it was Terry Walker who owned the day. He pigged out on six trophy pike in a single day; one of them at 44” and two over 45”. That’s a day to remember.
Mark Graf on the third day landed a 40 inch laker to complete his Trophy Triple and land himself in the 100+Club with 102.5 trophy inches. Paul Granneman got a very hefty 44” pike. Lynn Rice who consistently outfishes her husband Art (does she actually listen to her guide?) did it again catching a perfect 45 inch pike along with another nice trophy pike. That helped the battle of the sexes. The group this session was split evenly between six couples (obviously 12 anglers) and 12 solo guys. It was a perfect match. The contest went for four days and the couples routed the singles: it was 35 trophies to 26. Each of the 12 winners received not only bragging rights and a standing ovation but a $50 credit at the bar. The singles cried foul because there was still a day of fishing left but rules are rules. And the winners needed a full day to gloat which they indeed did. The final day was windy but sunny and lots of fish were taken. The group ended with almost a hundred trophies and thousands of memories. Suffice to say the week ended better than it started with all the planes available and changeover through the regular airport at Stony Rapids which is still standing proudly despite some black edges to the south of town. What will happen next? Stay tuned.
Week 7: July 5-9, 2008
Scott Lake Lodge is a place that a lot of high energy fishing fanatics call home. It is always a relief to have a group that enjoys the whole experience of the far north where fishing is just one element of a wide range of enjoyments. There certainly were plenty of people with a focus tightly on fishing but there were also quite a few anglers in camp this week who enjoyed much longer shore lunches, more time looking at the osprey, eagles and loons, more pre-dinner time on the expansive lodge deck and later morning departures. In a word, it was relaxed. And it was enjoyable for the 24 anglers who spent four quality days on the water. We had a mix of sun and clouds with much cooler temperatures than one would expect for the first week of July. For two days we could have easily invoked the dreaded words “cold front” to describe the conditions. Fishing (but not the fun) was slower than usual.
Don Hansen did not allow the less than ideal conditions to stop his trophy quest. He landed a pike of 44”, a lake trout of 40” and a grayling of 17.5” to get his Trophy Triple hat and 100+Club vest. Ester Hansen didn’t let her husband’s success intimidate her. She got her own trophy trout. There were some very nice fish caught. Jim Harding got to watch the guide slide the cradle under a perfectly beautiful 41” lake trout from the big hole just south of the lodge. Ruth Hollenbeck got a 44” pike and Hank Grootendorst landed a girthy 45” pike. Kyle Van Vooren also nailed a 45 and while his son Greg landed two 43” pike on a memorable day on Scott lake. Joe Gallo Sr. took off time from watching his grapes grow to come to Scott and catch a trophy pike and lake trout and enjoy a true wilderness experience in one of the last wild places on the planet. Kathy Harding had a five trophy day on a flyout lake while husband Jim had to settle for two, a common story here at Scott. It seems like wives perhaps listen a bit better to their guide and typically bring more big fish to the boat. What, men don’t listen well? We would never suggest that. We would only say that over the years of watching this scenario it is pretty clear that wives outfish their husbands. We just report the facts. And enjoy watching the fishing show here at Scott Lake Lodge.
Week 8: July 9-14
The week started as most any week here at Scott Lake. Our eighth group at Scott arrived with great anticipation for the week, the majority of whom were Scott Lake veterans with a handful of new faces eagerly awaiting their first test of the waters. Yes, it started out as any other week, but with over 100 trophies caught this week was truly extraordinary. Almost every guest found themselves reeling in big fish, some huge, and two anglers – Rich Kracum and Dick Hutson – found themselves in a friendly showdown for the top position in our 100+ Club (a trophy in each of the 3 species with their total lenght in inches exceeding 100.)
The first day on teh water produced some fine fish. The biggest pike of the day went to Tom Wigglesworth with a 45 inch beauty. Dick Hutson’s long time fishing partner, Don Hunt, hooked up with a fine 44” pike. Rich Kracum started his trophy quest off with a monster 42.5” trout as his brother Dave got himself on the board with a 41” pike. John Forrester and Kyle Martin each got a 43 and 41 inch pike. Woody Reichert rounded out a good first day with his 42”. Not a bad start for our intrepid trophy hunters.
The good fishing continued through Day 2 as big fish were landed with aplomb. Dick Hutson picked up where his fishing partner left off, enjoying an outstanding day with five trophy pike ranging from 41 inches to a girthy 44.5 inch pike. To his remarkable trophy trout on Day 1, Rich Kracum added a huge 46” pike, putting himself in a very comfortable position to break the 100 inch mark and earn his vest. Shawn Martin landed an outstanding 43” trout while his partner, Kyle Martin, got himself a nice 35.5 incher. Ken Williamsen Jr picked up a pair of trophy pike, 40 and 42 inches with guide T-bag. All in all, 22 trophy pike were caught that beautiful day with a handful of trophy trout.
With the 100+ in reach, Rich Kracum decided to hunt some grayling on the third day with a flyout to the tree line on our furthest flyout destination. The trip did not disappoint as the 7 anglers caught loads of trophy grayling, with fish up to 19” as well as some musk oxen sightings and spectacular scenery. Rich Kracum finished the day with a total of 107.5 inches for his vest. However, nearly 130 miles south Dick Hutson was having a monster of a day, catching three trophy trout with the largest being a 45” x 25” giant. It was a fish of a lifetime that brought him within striking distance of a very large 100+ total. On the other side of the boat, Don Hunt caught himself a 37” trout. Father and son team Joel and Ian Tune each landed trophy pike with Joel picking up a 40, 40.5, and a 43 while Ian hooked himself into a 42. Ken Williamsen Sr. rounded the day off with a 40”.
A 107.5” trophy count is tough to beat, very tough. But with a large pike and huge trout under his belt, Dick Hutson was feeling very confident. He went out fishing Day 4 on a mission. That mission was an absolute success. His 19” grayling brought him to a total of 108.5 inches for his vest, and the trip of a lifetime. And the trophy count kept on piling up – 32 trophies caught that day. Tom Wigglesworth and Teddy Barkwill landed into some big trout as did Joel and Ian Tune. A truly extraordinary week in anyone's book.
Week 9: July 14-19
Coming off a red-hot fishing week one could understand if things slowed down, but it didn’t. Week 9 saw 95 trophies caught, 12 trophy triple hats walk off the island, and 4 vests on order. Blake and Patrick McGhee had yet another outstanding trip with 107 total inches for Blake and another hat for Patrick. Mike Borden’s diehard group of Scott Laker’s had plenty of big fish and Joe Jannach’s crew all had matching trophy triple hats when they left the island with Nick Molino earning his vest for 100.5” of trophy fish.
The trophies started coming early on Day 1 as Bob Rini hauled in a 45.5” beautiful pike, a rare silver variant colour that was girthy from head to tail. John Borden landed a huge 19.5” grayling and brother Jim caught both a trophy grayling and trophy pike on day 1. Blake and Patrick McGhee had 7 trophy pike in the boat, with the largest being a whopping 46 incher. All totalled, 14 anglers had their first taste of big fish on that sunny day, serving only to whet their appetite for more.
They followed up admirably as the trophy list continued to mount under excellent conditions. For the rest of the week large pike, grayling, and trout were caught and posed for the camara next to huge grins. Blake McGhee improved on an already impressive trophy total with a 48” pike. The Borden crew kept on rolling, landing remarkable fish in every category with John Borden leading the group with a total of 102.5” of outstanding fish. Ginger Hopson found herself on both trophy trout and pike. And Ray Rausch with fishing partner Frank Wolfinger hooked into some very nice trophy pike.
The week was again outstanding in the fishing department and the whole lot of 24 guests left the island with wide smiles and great memories. As the planes departed small plumes of smoke from forest fires could be seen rising from the horizon. What would next week bring?
Week 10, July 19-24
Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. We had a lot of smoke around our island this week in late July, but the fires were comfortably distant. Fire is a simple fact of life around here since there is no fire suppression in the Northwest Territories except for protection of the handful of settled communities. Lightening-caused fires (99.9% of all fires in this part of the world) just burn until they hit a big lake or until a lot of rain falls. There has been almost no rain this summer. Just a lot of hot, dry weather. One gets used to seeing new fires on the horizon after a summer thunderstorm. And the fish certainly ignore fires.
For four days starting July 19th our group of anglers focused intently on the fish below not the smoke above. The system worked just fine. A lot of fish were caught. And plenty of big fish. In the four days a total of 80 trophy-sized fish were landed. Everyone got into big fish but the Oats family was really feeling theirs. Craig, Conner and Scott Oats all left the island with their Triple Trophy hats. In just a single day Craig caught four trophy pike. But he did this not once but twice during the trip, ending up with ten trophies. We almost charged him a “trophy surcharge”. Luck was riding with a few other anglers as well. Jeremy Stanford has been to Scott more than a few times but this was his trip to remember. He got the biggest trout of the week, a spectacularly colored 41 incher and added an impressive 45” pike and a fat 16.5” grayling. He will get the customized 100+Club vest and have a few great photos for his wall.
Ken Wollin, a long time Scott friend and guest, had his best trip ever. He was as hot as the fires, catching nearly a ton of fish (literally). In his pile was a 46” and a 45” pike. He also landed a big trout and grayling as well so he will wear the 100+ Club vest too. Ken came as a solo angler and graciously shared his boat one day with Scott’s bartender, Sarah Clark. Sarah is more familiar with martinis than Vibrax spinners and wasn’t fully aware of the aggressive nature of the tundra shark, so she was a bit startled when a massive white mouth came out of nowhere and tried to engulf her lure. Of course she pulled it out of the fish’s mouth and promptly screamed. Both the fish and Sarah settled down but the next time it hit the person on the other end was Ken and that’s how he got his 46er, a second hand fish.
Every big fish has a story and with so many big fish many stories were etched in the minds of our anglers. Fred Darling is probably still telling the stories about his two 44” pike. Craig Oats has his own 44 story as does Jeremy Stanford, Connor Oats and Doc Holladay. (It was a big week for 44” pike, a huge fish in any neighborhood, but an almost unheard of size in the upper Midwest where most of our clients hail from.) Some very nice lakers were taken too. In addition to Jeremy Stanford’s 41 and Ken Wollin’s 39, Doc Holladay, Conner Oats, Scott Oats, and Craig Oats all got trout over 37”. Lots of stories and great memories left the island. What smoke?
Week 11: July 24-28
It was a smooth hand off from the previous group. It was still smoky but more importantly the fish were still turned on. This group averaged 18 trophies per day and kept their eye on their flies or lures, ignoring the fires that came a bit too close during these four days in late July. The management and staff at Scott did not have the luxury of ignoring these fires—they were just too close. A huge east wind pushed a fire, near what’s called here the “north cut”, to within two miles of our Lodge, at times dropping ash right on our island. This was too much. The staff set up a sprinkler system and doused the island with water, keeping a 24 hour fire watch. Many also went into fire fighting mode and attacked the blaze with portable pumps and hoses about 200 feet long, creating a fire line with saturation hosing at a critical spot where, if the fire jumped a narrow channel, it could have come within a mile of the Lodge and certainly would have forced an evacuation, ending a great fishing trip for everyone. Guides came off the water after a long day and then manned the fire line for another five or six hours, protecting both a beautiful old growth area and the safety of the Lodge. General Manager, John Gariepy, led the charge. The heroic effort paid off. With the help of a backfire, the line did hold and while Scott burned, our clients kept fishing. Hey, it’s their job. Our sincere thanks is offered to these guests for tolerating so well the smoke and the “edge” of staying so close to something as powerful as a full blown forest fire, even if our forests are rather modest compared to the forests of the American and Canadian west. Even short trees burn hot.
The relentless east wind that drove the fire also turned on the area’s big fish. Many memorable days were enjoyed. Mike Scheidt, who has been coming to Scott for over a decade, teamed up with fishing partner Tony Trusso to slide seven trophy trout into their guide’s cradle in a single day with three of them exceeding 40”, the measure of a real supersized trout. They got the Scott Lake Lodge “I Supersized at Scott” t-shirt that all anglers who get a trout over 40, a pike over 45 or a grayling over 18 receive. They just loved their shirts and their sore arms. Tony added a 44 and a 45.5” pike to his trophy count for a real trophy saturated trip. The Lobaugh clan was not sitting on their hands. Russ got a 41.5” trout; Stacey a 44” pike; Nathan a 45” pike and Ed a 38, 40 and 41” laker, a reel haul. Top trout of the week was a very heavy 42 incher caught by Richard Macsinka, out of one of Scott’s most productive trout holes. Beth Hendrix got a 40 incher as did Dave Huntley. A great week for supersized trout, 10 of those monsters in just four days of fishing.
The big fish were nicely spread out. Sally Uhlmann, Carol Russell, Don Pyatt, Fred Oss and Chris Ferraro all caught 44” pike. Chris added a trophy trout and grayling to proudly wear the Trophy Triple hat. Some nice grayling were taken by Jeff Haung, Rocky Santulli, Stacey Lobaugh and Nathan Lobaugh. Lots of fish, lots of excitement, lots of fun: a high energy week with a happy ending. Who could ask for more?
Week 12: July 28-31
This season the Lodge continued it's long tradition of bringing in family and friends of staff for a short visit. It provides a beak from the pressure of BIG FISH and gives parents, aunts/uncles, other relatives, boyfriends, girlfriends, and just plain regular friends an opportunity to see if all the stories about Scott Lake Lodge are true. It’s always a wonderful time. And it helps the staff recharge their batteries to keep a sharp customer service focus for the remainder of our 100 day season. All of that happened and quite a few fish were caught along the way. It was a blissful, low to no pressure three day break.
With the wind down, the big fire to the east settled down to a slow burn and the island came off the 24 hour fire watch. Then at the very end the rains came, at last.
Week 13-: July 31-August 3
It had to happen eventually, the first really rotten weather of the season. For three straight days the wind blew hard, driving a sharp rain. The fires to the east and south, some of which had been burning since the staff arrived in early June, were stopped in their tracks. The fire fighting era was over. Now the staff’s attention could go back to what it does best—offering their total focus on customer service. Everything went back to normal. The arriving corporate group, two dozen engineers, sales people and managers from the CES Group, refused to let the rough weather dampen their enthusiasm. They were ready for a good time and they got it. They fished and partied hard. It was a fun loving, high energy group. Due to the cold temperatures the trophy count was lower than typical for this time of year but the good time count was way above average. And that’s what really counts.
There were some nice fish taken despite the weather. Chris Williemssen, Ken Dusko and Rich Brown all landed pike over 43 inches. Steve Murphy caught three trophy pike in one day. Dave Huntley pulled in a supersized 41 inch lake trout on the first day. Bob Frick hit the same number on the second day and Rich Brown got an identical trout on the third day. Wes White and Travis Martin landed trout over 38”. Arthur Borland, Ron Fleishman, Jeff Wheler, Jeff Thomsen, Jim Thornton, Kevin McNiff and Dan Walters all added to the trophy total. More importantly everyone had a trophy experience and learned to appreciate the raw power and solitude of the far north. None of them minded the fine dining or the spa treatments either. It sure beat a day at the office.
Week 14: August 3-7
Some groups get all the luck or at least more than their share. The group from Delta and Pine, the world’s largest producer of cotton seed, had cotton candy skies for just about the entire four day trip. And the big rains put an end to the smoky conditions. They had just two things to think about: having fun and catching fish. They accomplished both objectives superbly. Right out of the gate they showed they were serious about catching fish: 24 trophies were caught on the first day. Some were seriously big: Barry Knight’s 44.5” pike; Jim Willike’s ridiculously fat 44” lake trout and the biggest pike for the week, a girthy 46.5” monster caught by Chris Weed. And that was just the first day. The fun and fish just kept rolling through the trip. Three more perfect days followed. Randy Dismuke and Sam Pace got into a mess of nice grayling on the second day. Both caught dozens with Randy topping out with a whopper of 19 inches and Sam with a beauty of 18.5 inches. Both enjoyed the bright sunshine and the acrobatic antics of this colorful northern fish.
On the third day Freddie Miller had a day he will never forget. He caught both a 44” pike and a 44” laker. Producing trophies of that size for these two species is rare on any lake in the world. On the same day Rad Page landed a 39.5” laker; Jon Nienas got a 45” pike and Jim Willike (yes, him again) netted a beautiful 17.5” grayling. It was a 27 trophy day with probably several hundred fish caught, producing a raucous evening as everyone cheered or booed (Jim was catching too many big fish to be popular) the photos on the big screen during the nightly “fish du jour” show. The camp fire burned late into the night and on cue the northern lights made a short appearance. On the final day there was a festive group shore lunch with six different fish dishes. Some anglers saved their best for last. Mike Lacombe used his fly rod to entice a 44 AND a 45 inch pike in the final hours. Mark Eisenhart ended his trip with a 40” laker. After all the trophies were counted (83 in all) there were hats, vests and honors: the Trophy Triple hat was worn home by Phong Tang. Tim Marks, Chris Weed, Freddie Miller, Mark Eisenhart and Jim Willike all got the hat plus membership in the 100+ Club and will have their custom vest under their Christmas tree. All were winners. All had a great time. All will be back next season.
Week 15: August 7-10
The second half of the CES army arrived to clear skies. Unlike their counterparts, they enjoyed great weather for every minute of their three day trip. Like the first CES group, they came to have a good time. Since the Scott Lake Lodge experience can be captured in a single word—FUN—this was a marriage made in heaven. At the dinners each night the decibel level was just below a roar. This excitement went from shore to water seamlessly. This group loved every aspect of their trip. At the “fish du jour” photo show after dinner every fish, large and not so large alike, were cheered vigorously. And there were plenty of fish to cheer about it, 42 trophies in three days, not bad at all. On the first day John Gill, Matt Dellpozzo, Luc Fortin and Ray Coley each landed a pair of trophy pike. Luc and Ray added trophy grayling to their first day’s bag. Going to deeper water, John Kreiling landed two beautiful lake trout trophies, one a supersized 40 incher that turned out to be the biggest laker of the trip. Eric Roberts caught a fat 45” pike on Day 1 and a fish of that size could well have been #1 for the trip but the very next day Owen Golhke beat that mark by a full inch. Since there was an informal contest for this group, size did matter.
Also on the second day John Kreiling got a pair of trophy pike. On the trout side Maury Warwyk and Brian Motland teamed up and put lots of lakers in the boat including five trophies. The grayling were not ignored either. Mark Schriever and Wayne Nenniger were quite busy catching dozens of arctic grayling with seven of them exceeding the trophy size. Lots of anglers—Eric Van Uytfank, Peter Fung, Philip McNamara, Andre Pare, Wayne Nenninger, Doug Branger, Steve Wilson and Glen Collins—added to the trophy count. On the last day of the outing 24 anglers, 12 guides and a few extra staff members assembled on the big beach just north of the lodge to enjoy what the guides call a “gong show” shore lunch. (It’s a good thing, really.) There was just about every type of shore lunch fish you can imagine—baked, chowder, stir fried, buffalo jack, the famous KFP (Kentucky Fried Pike) and good ole beer batter. There was very little of anything left for the sea gulls. A white wolf with her pup made a dramatic guest appearance to help clean up any left overs. Peter Fung and Jim Hoffman each got a trophy trout to end their trip with a shout not a whisper. It was three days in paradise with no phone ringing, no pagers going off and for most no emails (the island is wireless and a few guests did cave and check their emails). It was everything a fishing adventure should be.
Week 16: August 10-15
The fantastic summer weather just kept rolling along for the next group in. For five days starting August 10th our guests looked at blue skies and enjoyed the occasional swim in Scott lake, where the beaches held 70 degree water, quite warm for these parts. The nights were clear as well with shots of northern lights for the folks who stayed at the bar past midnight, not a small number. These warm, sunny days made everyone happy, especially the pike. Like most cold blooded species, pike love to move into warm waters and do a bit of sun bathing. Lots of nice fish were caught shallow this week. But there was a perfect mixed bag of species. Of the 80 trophy sized fish exactly half were pike and the balance evenly divided between grayling and trout. Three anglers—Brooke Norris, Richard Wilheim and Andy Perrotto—caught trophy sized fish in all three species, earning the Trophy Triple hat. Andy Perrotto went one better with his three trophies exceeding 100 inches, giving him the 100+ Club vest.
The fishing wealth was well spread around. All 24 anglers caught at least one trophy. Some hogged a few extra. Like the group of “almost” professionals—Jeff Crockett and Dave Colley from the St. Croix sales office and Ken Sarber and Andy Perrotto from Dick’s Sporting Goods—sent by the St. Croix Rod Company to field test some of the latest models and prototypes. They did test the tackle. Andy’s 45” pike put a real bend in his rod as did the dozens of other fish the group caught in all three species. And they rather liked Scott Lake Lodge as a testing center for the company’s products. Beats a back room in the factory. Scott Lake Lodge has used St. Croix exclusively for seven years and knows just how tough their tackle is.
While most anglers targeted pike as their prime species, Nick Rassas wanted only trout. A long time friend and regular guest he values this trip so much he kisses the pier when he arrives on the island. Nick and son Sean caught lots and lots of trout, mainly jigging. That technique usually produces good numbers but typically not many trout of bragging size. Not this time. On his second day at Scott Nick caught the usual large number of trout but also three trophies, including a 40 incher. Imagine hooking a trout of that size on a light rod at 90 feet. Ask Nick. It’s a thrill. Richard Wilhelm caught an even bigger trout, a very fat 42 incher and Larry Olson landed one at 41.5”. All magnificent fish.
The real trout story played out on the fourth day of the trip. With lots of luck on their side, Jim Hoffman and Dan Hunt found themselves in the right place at just the right time. They hit a frenzy of big trout on the feed. They caught fish after fish, all sizes. They figured around a hundred fish, but who’s counting when you’re landing one after another. When the tally was done for the big fish, the two had eight trophy trout; one was 41” and the biggest a giant of a fish at 44”. A day to remember forever. Damian Carroll and Richard Wilhelm had a similar experience with grayling. They hit it just right on a perfect river on a perfect sunny day. Damian landed an 18.5 incher, one of the biggest of the season.
Nancy Benzinger and Rob Tallon really got into their first big pike experience. Both caught trophy pike even though they were being guided by owner Tom Klein. They overcame this obstacle and landed pike of 41.5 and 42”. Everyone had a good time for these five blissful days. It was the glory of summer, a time when everything stands still long enough to really soak it in. It was a time to be at Scott Lake Lodge.
Week 17: August 15-20
Here’s a recipe for a perfect adventure in the north: take 24 good friends from all over the U.S., put them in a remote wilderness lodge, add some great guides and big fish, mix in fine dining and inspiring spa treatments, garnish with late night campfires and a few displays of northern lights and bake this concoction for five days. Watch the good times roll. That is exactly what played out at Scott during our August 15-20 slot. Of course a group of 24 people need a role model. That would be organizer and group leader Joe Ricketts, a veritable force of nature, who daily helped everyone create a unique group chemistry. This was not your typical week of fishing. Evening discussions at dinner ranged from philosophy to politics to, what else, fishing. The mood was always positive and the camaraderie remarkable: they had a good vibe.
Apparently that vibe ran all the way down their fishing lines. It was a great week of fishing. Lots of fish and plenty of big fish. On the first day Mike Bradley brought in a 46.5” pike. His guide was positive this was the big fish of the week. (There were some friendly wagers going on.) The fish and angler survived a few challenges: a 43 incher by Steve Maurstad, a 44 by Don Pleiss and a 43.5 by Mary Daugherty. Mike was looking good for major bragging rights right up to the third day when Mary Daugherty laid down a new marker, a massive 47” pike. To top it off, it was a very rare silver pike, by far the largest of this type ever caught at Scott. It’s an unusual color phase not a subspecies but anyway you define it this was a remarkably striking fish. And Mary proved it wasn’t all luck by getting a 44” pike the next day. She was on a roll. Adding her 17” grayling and an earlier big trout, she had 106.5” in the Triple Crown contest, standing in third place for the season. An aside about contests and trophies: while the Lodge offers a variety of recognition programs, everyone associated with Scott, including nearly all our guests, know that luck is the major factor in angling success. The point of fishing is a connection with the natural world on a very visceral basis. All the pins, plaques, hats and vests are just frosting on the cake. The cake is enjoying this sport for its inherent values and sharing this experiences with good friends. The trophies are just footnotes.
This week had a lot of footnotes and big fish are more fun. It was another week when every angler caught at least one trophy fish. We watched them all on the after dinner “fish du jour” show, showing monster trout like Chad Bulling’s 41” laker, Don Pleiss’ 40” laker or the gorgeous big grayling caught by a group that flew out to find this icon of the north. This group—Jerry Gress, Bill Loughman, Paul Wittenberg, Joe Ricketts, Pete Ricketts, and Tom Ricketts—really got into a mess of fine fish, catching trophy after trophy with Tom Ricketts getting the top fish at 18”. They also saw three herds of musk oxen, one within a mile of their fishing spot. It was a memorable day.
This group enjoyed the final days of summer here in the north. It’s not often that seasons can be defined so clearly, but during this trip the line between summer and fall was as sharp as a fillet knife. It had been windy for a couple of days but it was a warm, south wind. On the afternoon of the fourth day the geese started to fly (they knew something) in big groups and the temperature started to drop. The change was in the air. That night a whopper of a northern storm hit: huge winds and really cold temperatures. By morning it was a different world. Some intelligent anglers just sat out the final day of fishing. Others went out in the morning but no guide strayed too far from the Lodge. Scott is not a huge lake by Canadian standards and we don’t get many six foot waves. But these waves were big enough and it was cold. By lunch time the day featured a driving, merciless rain. All 24 were back at the Lodge for hot soup and an indoor lunch. There were some fish cooked in the kitchen but the planned shore lunch was cancelled without discussion. Only a few hard core anglers went out on the lake after lunch. A warm room, some cards, a movie or just reading a book were all too tempting. Only one trophy was caught that day, a 41 inch pike by Mark Roberts, but for all it was a memorable day, a reminder of just how far up north they were. Weather this far north is powerful, totally unpredictable and never boring. Just like the total Scott Lake Lodge experience they all enjoyed. In the closing hours all discussion was focused on next year’s trip. This part of the world gets in your blood. The recipe turned out just fine.
Week 18: August 20-25
The good times continued to roll at Scott Lake Lodge in late August. Opening day of this five act play was cold and windy but overnight the wind changed to a warm south wind and the summer weather picked up again. It’s just too good: shorts, t-shirts, no bugs and fast paced fishing to boot. On the first day with its cold north wind only a handful of trophy lakers were caught, including a pair by Rick Giesen. But by the second day with its warm winds the fishing really heated up. Fishing was great all around Scott and the fly out lakes. The numbers were there and so were the trophies. Zach Caldwell got one of his biggest fish ever, a 43.5” pike and dad, Dennis, landed a 43 and a 45” beauty. Betty Chadwill, who heard her name often during the nightly trophy announcements, watched her guide cradle an impressive 38.5” lake trout. Jeff Siebert landed a 39”, the first of two he caught on the trip. But the most dramatic fish of the day was Reggie Giesen’s grayling, a thick, jet black fish that was just shy of 20 inches, a huge “ling” in these parts. It was his only grayling from that pool but it was one he will never forget. And all of this was just one day.
The third act featured another 17 trophy fish with sensational late summer weather. Stuart Sauser got his biggest pike ever, a very fat 44” pike that just wore him out. Stuart and his guide insist that the fight lasted 15 minutes (a very long time for any freshwater fish to hang in there) and the only other witness was Stuart’s brother Mike. So we will record that this particular pike put up one hell of a battle and not worry about the time keeping. And there was one other 44” pike caught that day. Fifteen year veteran guide Cory Craig had his son Tosh up for a visit and they didn’t go far from the lodge before Tosh with no help from his dad, or mom Cara, hooked and landed a 44 incher. Cory even got it all on video. Well, Tosh, a four year old, measures from toes to top of his head 41 inches. We think this is the first time that any angler ever caught a pike longer than themselves. We’ll have to check the Guinness Book of Records or the Freshwater Hall of Fame but we think this is a first. One thing we don’t have to check on: there was no prouder dad anywhere in the world on this day. We expect big things from Tosh as an angler.
The fourth act continued the same themes—great weather and wonderful fishing. A foursome of Bill and Betty Chadwill and Joe and Jackie Fahrion flew to Lefty Falls to see the largest falls in Saskatchewan and sample the grayling fishing. They all caught lots of these beautifully colored “sailfish of the north” (well, miniature sailfish) and enjoyed the spectacular setting. Kathy Riss who with husband Al love to troll the deep waters of Scott got her first really big one--41 inches--of their 10 day trip (stay tuned for more on Al and Kathy later—they always get big trout). This day though belonged to Howard Weiss, a veteran of many Scott Lake Lodge trips, who landed his biggest pike ever, a magnificent 46” fish that almost brought Howard to tears. Probably no one loves this north country more or appreciates big fish as much. Congrats to “Harley”. Rick Giesen picked up four more trophies on the fourth day and earned his Triple Trophy hat as did Bob Chadwill. On the final day of fishing many customers opted for a leisurely shore lunch. The group earned this relaxing day after catching over 70 trophies during the middle three days of the trip. Unlike the fifth act in most plays, all the actors were left standing when the Otter came to pick everyone up. They all played their parts well: having a good time at Scott is an act that’s easy to pick up.
Week 19: August 25-30
After 77 days of cooking, fixing, cleaning, managing and guiding the Scott Lake Lodge crew was still in high energy form, ready to take on another 24 guests. From the opening evening orientation program, it was clear this was no ordinary group of anglers. They were wound up tight and ready for action. Mainly long time regulars with a few first timers thrown in, this group wanted to have fun. And they did. Let’s start with the best fish story of the week.
Susan Cutter just loves her 4 weight Winston rod. And she and her husband, Ed, love just as much the grayling fishing in this part of the world. They also wanted to try the close relative of the grayling, the lake whitefish. Whitefish on Scott and the fly out lakes in the area are known mainly as a food source for the pike and lake trout. But lake whitefish (a very distinct species from the Rocky Mountain whitefish that many trout anglers distain) are very strong fighters and quite selective in their feeding. They eat almost entirely bugs, in all their underwater and on top of water forms. So tiny beadhead nymphs or other small wet flies are the way to catch these tasty fish. On Scott there is one place that whitefish congregate in the fall, an inflow river also choked with small lake trout this time of year. We think the whitefish are there to grab trout eggs. Anyway there were Ed and Susan fishing for whitefish with light fly rods and size 14 flies, a small wooly bugger in this case. Susan had a hit and it was clear from the start that this was no whitefish. With a very light tippet, Susan had no choice but to be very careful with this obviously large fish. Just shy of one hour later the guide put the cradle under a 42” pike with an enormous gut, full no doubt of, what else, whitefish. So she did catch a white fish, sort of. It was the fish story of the week. Ed and Susan actually caught lots of whitefish, dozens of grayling up to 19” and more trout than they wanted to count. They did it all on fly rods, their way.
That was just one trophy story. There were 59 more, each with a little drama and always excitement. Bob Krause got plenty excited on his first day when he caught a 44.5” pike and his son, Jeff, landed a 45” monster. They also picked up big grayling the same day. Bob ended his trip with a Trophy Triple hat and 103 total inches for his vest. There were lots of grayling caught this week. Late in the season these sleek, beautiful fish are looking for every scrap of protein they can find. Mike Weiss, Junior and Senior, had a huge day catching dozens of grayling with the top end at 19 and 17 inches. Doug Roche comes every fall to find the lakers on top and this year did not disappoint. He caught trout after trout on his fly rod, including a 36” fat fish. Getting a trophy trout on conventional tackle is always a good fight but getting one on a fly rod is a true angling moment. Bob Krause has also caught a trophy trout on his fly rod. It was a very good week in early fall. Who could ask for more.
Week 20: August 30-September 4
Someone always has to pay the piper. After an extended late summer season with mild temps and generally sunny weather, the hammer came down on our 20th group of the 2008 season. The first day featured a driving rain and winds not quite at hurricane strength but enough to make the day challenging for anything but trolling in protected areas. It was awful. Not too many shore lunches were attempted in these conditions and many boats were parked at the dock at noon as guests retreated to the warm lodge for lunch. Only three trophy fish were boated that day: Les Walker got a 38” trout; Blake Walker a 39” trout and David Meyer a 38” trout. The standard trophy announcements at dinner didn’t strain the voice of Biff Piston who often reads off a couple of dozen trophies each day. He actually went through them twice to see if anyone was noticing. Hardy anglers all though and they all understood the connection between weather and fishing. They knew the cold front would pass. The second day saw some improvement in the weather but it was still windy and cold and the big fish had lockjaw. There was a lot of coffee and hot chocolate consumed on the water. But Blake Walker got another 39” trout; Ward Paxton got a 37” and finally a trophy pike was boated by Rebecca Graf. Things were starting to get better.
Day 3 dawned with brighter, sunnier skies. It was a better day. As usual the fish responded to the warmer weather. The dreaded cold front was over. Twenty-three trophies were landed that day. The grayling were active on the rivers and the trout were on top on the reefs. Witty Taylor got a 38” laker in shallow water and Margie Taylor hit the trophy mark with a 35” fish. Mark and Rebecca Graf had what they called their “best day of fishing ever” catching grayling after grayling in a perfect northern river. They both had fish just under 19 inches grab their dry flies. It was a day to remember. Andy Johnston and son Neil were on the same river and had steady action with Andy getting a 19 inch grayling and Neil getting an 18 incher. The group had a magnificent caribou wander by their fishing hole and a group of musk oxen were seen on the flight. It was a very good day.
And a very good week. Over 50 trophies were caught, 46 over the last three days. The northern lights blazed overhead on two of the five nights; lots of bear, moose and wolves were sighted; thousands of geese passed over and the loons did incredible concerts as they did their pre-migration flocking. Some huge pike were caught at the end of the week. On the final day Margie Taylor fly fished to the biggest pike of the week, a beautiful 46 incher. Mark Cross got a 44 and a 45 on his last day. Blake Walker caught yet another (his third) 39” lake trout within sight of the Lodge, near where his first two came from. He had a wonderful last day. A lot of the staff found themselves thinking about last days as the Twin Otter arrived with the season’s final group of guests. The end is near but life in the north is still good.
Week 21: September 4-9
It happens every year. One day in early June you’re circling the twelve acre island on Scott Lake hoping that the pilot can land the plane in that impossibly small patch of water that always opens earlier than the rest of the 100,000 plus acres of this remote lake. The next time you look up the final floatplane of the season is landing with the last guests of 2008. It’s now September and you wonder how the season could have slipped by. That’s how it felt for the staff on that fourth day of September but for the arriving guests it was opening day, full of hope and expectation, not a trace of nostalgia for the season almost spent. This group was pumped. And they stepped off the plane into much warmer air than any of them expected. It was September but it was mild, just a very pleasant fall day. Even though fall came later than normal up here (it was a very hot summer), there were splotches of yellow in the birch trees and the tamarack trees were turning their smoky gold. Before this gang left they would experience some dramatic northern lights, see and hear thousands of migrating geese; watch flocks of loons as they gather before making their trip to the south; see black bears as they gobbled up the abundant berries in the area, and of course, catch lots of fish.
Many of our late season anglers are intrigued with the notion of catching lake trout in just feet or even inches of water. Reefer Madness is an annual ritual at Scott. Starting in the last few days of August and peaking usually in the first week of September, lake trout move into shallow rocky areas of the lake, especially where there is some moving water. While the previous group did well on big lakers trolling flies or spoons over ten foot depths, this group was able to see the lakers in very shallow water. There is one spot on the northwest arm of the lake where a small river enters (cleverly named the northwest river by some forgotten Scott guide). Every September this river mouth chokes up with hundreds of lake trout, mostly small fish in the 24-28” size. These fish ascend this river, climbing some small rapids, just like salmon, to spawn in a lake upstream. With dozens of shallow reefs on Scott it is a mystery why these fish don’t just spawn on Scott like the trout do in all the other areas of the lake. Only the trout know and they’re not talking. It is an incredible viewing and catching experience. The pools below the rapids fill up dozens of trout in an area about the size of an SUV. Most anglers catch a few just to make sure they are real and then just watch. Some braver ones hike up the stream to view pools with hundreds of fish but there are a lot of black bears that attempt (usually unsuccessfully) to have a trout dinner and this can be an edgy experience. Hookups are, well, constant. Rarely a bigger trout of say 33 or 34” will turn up but again for reasons beyond our understanding the big spawning trout stay in the lake. As one customer put it this season, this is a “National Geographic” experience.
This season a new element was added. Some of the guides over the past few years have noticed a lot of big lake whitefish mixed in with the trout. Whitefish are difficult to catch but with some experimenting it was discovered that whitefish on 4 weight fly rods armed with small beadhead nymphs could be an outstanding gamefish. So the whitefish run became a big hit with our fly fishing clients. These are hard fighting, big fish (4 to 8 pounds) and are not to be confused with their weaker cousins, the Rocky Mountain whitefish. Lake whitefish are a broad tailed, powerful fish and certainly the most tasty of all the fish in our lake. Many a whitefish shore lunch was enjoyed this week.
The whitefish dance was a riot but there were still a lot of BIG fish caught during these last five days of fishing. Terry Dukes landed a 38” trout that could have had most of the northwest river trout for lunch. And lots of big pike were taken. Clint Lohman caught four trophies on one fly out day and did the Trophy Triple hat deal on another, getting a trophy grayling, lake trout and pike all on the same day. His fly rod has a permanent bend now. His top pike of the trip was a very fat 44 and a half incher. Two other pike hit the 44 mark on the tape. Bob Johnson, father of guide/sales manager Ken Manager, watched his son slide the cradle under a 44 with a girth of 20”, his personal best. Ken, who by the way was off duty this week, made dad proud, catching a 43”X21” pike from the back of the boat. Gaylord Simons caught the other 44 of the week, his biggest pike ever. Mark Baker caught some trophy trout on his fly rod and Jim Klos caught some heavy trophy sized pike but none to equal the 48 inch fish he got last season on the same week. (He really expected to catch that fish again, going to the exact same spot. Next year Jim.) Everyone got a trophy or two. It was a week of solid fishing.
And it was a bittersweet feeling when the two Otters left the Scott dock for the last time of the season. The pull of the north is so strong for the staff and the guests that no one wants it to end. But the dropping temperatures and angry skies were a reminder that the season here on the 60th is blissful but short. It was time to pull in the floating dock, drain the water system and board up the buildings. It was time to go home.
The Season After the Season
The season wasn’t quite over. Every year owner Tom Klein stays on for a week or so to close down the flyout lakes, make a few last casts and do the final island shut down. This year Paul Hamilton as guide and Steve Woloshyn as fearless pilot joined Tom in the fall finish. As usual there was too much work and too little fishing but some memorable days were experienced. Tom and Paul experienced an incredible pike feeding frenzy on Odin Lake. They fished a rocky point right by the boat that looked like any other rocky point. This one, though, was stacked full of hard hitting, hard fighting pike. In a one hour stretch sixty pike (yes, that is one per minute) were landed, including a couple of trophies. Both Paul and Tom had nine fish in nine consecutive casts but could not hook up on the ten for ten. There must have been hundreds of fish in that area. Unfortunately a big storm with nasty winds, some snow and a low ceiling moved in and forced a retreat back to the Lodge. Next year.
Another similar blitz occurred on a test lake about 60 miles north of the Lodge (maybe next year it will be in the program). It was pike after pike in the cabbage with one piggy fat 41”X19” fish and trout after trout in a river segment of the lake system. So much water . . . never enough time. The trout were still up on Scott as well. Within sight of the main lodge, Steve and Tom had the unique privilege of watching for about an hour a massive laker cruise up and off a shallow reef. This was a fish in the 35-40 pound range accompanied by seven or eight males, all over the 35” trophy size. This must have been so close to the actual spawning time that absolutely nothing else mattered. Every variety of fly, spoon, spinner and plug was put in front of this trout train. A few curious follows but no hits. It was fascinating just to watch as the fish circled directly under the boat not spooking in the least. There was nothing to do but watch.
There was more than watching on Wignes Lake, the large lake connected with Scott by a narrow channel. Wignes has always been a top trout lake for years but no one had at least in the past ten years had fished Wignes this late in the season. There were trout all over. And they were hitting. Tom got lakers of 33,34,35 and 38 in addition to a few dozen smaller fish. All in water a foot or two deep and all on flies, mainly the orange Whistler. But the real exciting day was the shut down of Dunvagen Lake. It has always been the Number 1 late season big trout lake and on the last days of the season after the season it came through again. There were not the typical number of trout on the reefs. Most of the under 30” fish had completed the spawn and were back in deeper water. But a cast to the edge of a reef brought a violent hit, right on the surface. The open mouth of the fish sucking in the fly was shocking. The fish bored down into deep water bending the nine weight fly rod almost to the cork. It was a tug of war with some dramatic runs but mainly sheer power. Eventually the fish came to the surface and Paul Hamilton did a smooth tail grab. There it was. After 12 seasons gunning for a 40” laker on the fly, the huge male rested quietly for a photo and a quick measurement. It was just over 40 and was in all respects a spectacular fish, still brightly colored though it was probably spawned out. The quest was over but not the action. The second cast after landing the 40 another huge trout clobbered the Whistler. This one was a 38 and half, also full of fight. Two lifetime fish on the fly in just a few minutes. Nothing could top this: it was time to call it a season.
When the single Otter left the dock at Scott for the very last time everyone knew it was a good call to leave. The fall colors were at their peak but September weather at the 60th parallel is intimidating. The ceiling was low and some snow was in the air. Flocks of migrating geese made the three hour flight to LaRonge nerve racking. Three times evasive action was needed as geese just materialized out of the snowy skies. With a low ceiling the flight path was just a few hundred feet over the deck: there wasn’t much room to maneuver. Steve earned his pay on this flight. Amazingly the drive from LaRonge to Saskatoon took us all to a different world. It was warm. For the first time in a few weeks coats were optional. It’s amazing a difference 550 miles makes. The fall was exciting but it was good to be headed home. The far north likes its privacy. The lakes will freeze up soon with no one watching. The north will wait patiently for the ice to give way sometime in early June. So will we.