2025 Fishing Season in SK and NWT with Scott Lake Lodge

Week 6 in Review: The Pike Parade Continues

by Jason | Jul 11, 2025 | 2025 Fishing Season, Website Fishing Blog

Week 6 in Review: The Pike Parade Continues

We kicked things off as we always do on the 4^th of July…with the whole group joining in to sing the Star-Spangled Banner, followed by a round of shots on the house to celebrate America’s birthday. It set the tone for the week; there were a ton of smiles and laughs the entire time. It seemed like the crew had a great time. The fishing was phenomenal, the big pike just kept coming as spring gave way to summer with some lovely weather.

When the fish are biting and the sun is shining, it’s a recipe for a great week. When the crowd is willing to embrace the whole experience, well, it’s just a little better. Happy Hour was raucous, and fish stories flowed among our anglers this week. Our chefs hit the ball out of the park with the food, and the photos each evening told the story of adventures across a beautiful northern wilderness.

The BIG pike have been on the feed this year, high water has them turned on it seems. Bill Ball led the pike parade this week with a massive 48.5” northern from some shallow weeds on Sandy Lake. His pal Rallis Pappas was hot on his heels with a 48” of his own. Nathan Bender, who didn’t know he was coming to Scott Lake until about 24 hours before the trip nailed a fat 47 on the fly rod, talk about a whirlwind! GM Jason Hamilton even got out of the office to find a 47.5” pike that was interested in chowing down on a fly. As with the previous weeks, the big pike seemed to be clumped up. When the guides found them, our anglers were able to get into some crazy numbers. Jason Sikkenga landed back-to-back 46” fish on his way to 6 pike over 40”, while Veronica Strobel and Mike Marco also added 46 “fish. The trout again took a back seat to the pike, fair enough with the days that our group had. Mike Marco got into a 40×25” jumbo laker and his wife Alison landed a 37.5” trout. This was important as they had planned a trip for Grayling later in the week, the feisty arctic sailfish cooperated, and both earned entrance to the 100+ Club. Josh and Larry Makal also had a great day in the rapids chasing those purple-finned grayling, finding willing biters.

Overall, 176 trophy-sized fish came to hand over these 5 days. Incredibly, 20 pike over 45” were landed…21 if we add Bruce Bennet’s 44 and 7/8” pike! The numbers tell just a part of the story, it was the laughs at the cornhole tournament, the early morning swims while loons chattered and the intangible feel of a tiny island on the 60^th Parallel that becomes a factory for memories for 100 days each summer. No wonder we had so many guests sign up to do it again this week.

July 8

The best memories are made when fishing is involved! #catchandrelease #pikefishing #thegreatoutdoors #fishinglodgecanada

July 7

Rallis’ first time fishing at Scott Lake and reeled in this absolute monster! Definitely one for the books! #pikefishing #fishinglife #scottlakelodge #catchandrelease

July 6

Jason came off the water after one of those incredibly memorable days. He caught some tanks, this being one of them! #pikefishing #catchandrelease #memoriesforlife #scottlakelodge

July 5

Having a great time, catching fish, and smiling while doing it! Jake reeled in this beauty with Nuggs! #catchandrelease #pikefishing #scottlakelodge #fishingtrip

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Week 5 In Review: A Tale of Two Weeks

by Jason | Jul 5, 2025 | 2025 Fishing Season, Website Fishing Blog

Week 5 in Review: A Tale of Two Weeks

Trophy Sized Pike

It was the best of weather, then it was the worst. During the weekly orientation speech, we always encourage our anglers to bring their rain suits and extra clothes. The weather on the 60^th Parallel can turn on a dime. The first three days of the fifth group were idyllic, sun light winds, fishing was out of this world. Then, on partway through day four, a front came roaring off the tundra, bringing heavy rains and wind to our lakes. Fishing didn’t stop its fast pace, just got more difficult to be out there. The final day was a time for packing, naps, hot tubs and some dice games…it was downright miserable. Winds gusting near 40 knots and sideways rain challenged even our guide team’s fishing ability to get enough pike for a lodge shore lunch; they came through nicely. With the changeover in peril, alternate plans were starting, then as if on cue, the winds dropped, and slowly the sun made an appearance. The departing guests, as well as those arriving, were treated to a perfect evening in the north.

While the sun shone, fishing was superb. 162 total trophy sized pike, lakers and grayling were landed by our anglers. Only 4 trout in the super-sized category were found, Gerry O’Brien was top trout angler with a 41”er on his way to the season-leading tally in our 100+ Club at 104.5” His fishing partner, Andrew Troop also earned a Trophy Triple cap, catching trout, pike and grayling trophies. The pike stole the show this week again, with a jawdropping 18 fish over 45” coming to the big catch and release nets. Jim Kusar led the way with a massive 48” fish, as part of his 10 (yes 10) trophy pike day! Darin Williamson and Mike Wiebolt Jr. both landed 47” northerns, while Jim Kusar and Jim Kloote added some 46” ers…that is incredible fishing. It seemed once the guides found the fish, the big ones were concentrated, allowing for many quotes of “best day fishing…ever” to be overheard at dinner. Jim Kloote, Ron Juergens, along with Bruce and Steve Kozlowski all had days with 6 fish over 40”. Seeing these big predators in shallow water creating wakes as they chase down that fly or spinner never gets old. Set the hook and hold on!

The weather will always be a tough one for us to control, fishing also, we can do our best to control the level of service our guests receive, and the staff showed up this week again in an amazing way. This is where Scott Lake shines, a culture of customer service and community in the wild north of Canada. This is why so many of our guests want to come fishing with us again. For this, we are truly thankful.

July 3

Veronica sure knows how to make the best of some rainy weather, just keep fishing and keep smiling! #fishinglodgecanada #pikefishing #catchandrelease #explore #womenwhofish

July 1

Celebrating Canada here at Scott Lake! Happy Canada Day to all our Canadians! #canadaday #scottlakelodge #proudcanadian #truenorthstrongandfree #fishinglodgecanada

July 2

Sometimes they win, sometimes you win. Darin won today. #scottlakelodge #pikefishing #catchandrelease #thegreatoutdoors

JUNE 30

Jim isn’t new to Scott Lake but the fishing never gets old! #catchandrelease #pikefishing #memoriesforlife #scottlakelodge

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Week 4 in Review: What a Ride

by Jason | Jul 3, 2025 | 2025 Fishing Season, Website Fishing Blog

Week 4: What a Ride!

Stories of Incredible Fishing

You never know when it will happen in a season, some weeks the weather and the fish line up and things turn on. The 4^th week seems like it could be an early leader in the productivity department. Wildlife sightings graced the photo essay each evening, the crew enjoyed the lodge, played games, raced Kart and the fishing…was on fire!

The smiles and stories of the anglers coming back to the docks each day told of incredible fishing. Shallow pike, lots of them and big ones at that! This week offered our anglers many chances at the spot-and-stalk fishing that we all dream of. The guides, so adept at discerning these shadowy shapes from the dark bottom, direct traffic from their perch in the splash wells. “…there 30ft, 3 o’clock…cast.” Out flies a lucky lure, and what looks like a log, certainly too big to be a fish, turns and engulfs it. The fight is on! Our anglers fought and landed an astounding 227 trophy fish. 202 pike, 4 trout and 21 grayling.

Our youngest angler led the pike parade, Coyen Kristo hauled in a giant 4-foot Northern Pike. Coyen’s fish set a high bar; close on his heels was Rory Wright with a 46.5” last day beauty, to add to his 46 from earlier in the week. Joe Novicki and Andrew Godden took 46’s, as did Andre Lechowicz, who tagged a pair on an incredible day with wife Mira…they had a day that will be a lifelong memory. Our anglers landed two dozen fish in the 44-45” range, which is exceptional fishing anywhere! Grayling started making their way onto anglers’ agendas also, as the spring runoffs recede, the chance to tangle with the arctic sailfish becomes more viable. John and Matt Kracum scored on big Grayling to help them into some Trophy Triple caps, while Joe Novicki and Loki Johnson joined the 100+ Club. There seemed to be no end to the incredible fishing.

The revelry and camaraderie each evening were special, no competition (…well, some friendly wagers), just enthusiasm for anglers, young and old. The guests and staff had a multi-evening Mario Kart tournament in the Last Cast, skidding and laughing, but most importantly, making memories in this unique northern wilderness.

JUNE 29

Four foot club!! Needless to say Coyen was pretty ecstatic on his way back to the island after reeling in this hog. Thumbs up all around! #pikefishing #scottlakelodge #catchandrelease #pikespeak #canada

JUNE 28

Last full day of fishing for Andre and he absolutely crushed it. The perfect day to end off a great week of fishing. #scottlakelodge #pikefishing #catchandrelease #canada

JUNE 27

Letty’s first time fishing with us at Scott Lake with Lulu! She’s a natural #catchandrelease #pikefishing #memoriesforlife #scottlakelodge

JUNE 26

Another day, another fish! Andrew caught this tank with Josh out on the lake, what a beauty! #catchandrelease #fishinglodgecanada #pikefishing #scottlakelodge

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Week 3 In Review: Play the Cards You’re Were Dealt

by Jason | Jun 26, 2025 | 2025 Fishing Season

Week 3: Playing the cards you were dealt

Fun and Fishing

The third week is home to perhaps the most tight-knit group of guests of the season. Many have been coming for years, and seeing so many familiar faces step off the float planes is always a treat. We also made a great first impression on a couple of new anglers. Simply put, the Week 3 crowd has fun; the energy in camp is amazing, and every evening, smiles and laughter lift from the Hearts or Euchre tables. In between some amazing meals (our kitchen team is killing it!), cards and saunas, the group caught some fish…darn nice ones in fact.

The weather was a real mixed bag this week, starting cool and breezy and ending off with some sun and shallow pike. Fishing overall was superb with 147 total trophy-sized pike, trout and grayling caught. The announcements each evening, MC’d by Nuggs and Sierra, were impressive to witness; one happy angler after another stood for accolades from the group. Big Dog (Steve Bandt) held top pike honours for the week with a massive 48” specimen. That wasn’t all for giant pike, both Debbie Creigh and Jeremy Manus took a pair of 47s apiece. 46”ers came from Rory Wright, Lonnie Thompson and David Thome, we are amazed at the numbers of big fish we have seen come to the big catch and release nets this year. High water on some of the systems seems to have the big girls hungry!

The top trout came on the first day from Greg Larson, winning the tug of war with a girthy 39” fish. Bryan Kaminski and Bill Calabresa were hot on Greg’s heels with a 38 and 37.5, respectively. Bill and his fishing partner, Joe Novicki became the first two holders of the Trophy Triple this season, with Bill being our first inductee into the 100+ Club. We know many more will follow this year.

The Annual Ken Thome Memorial Euchre Tournament played out on the third evening with 8 teams vying for the title and a coveted bottle of Jim Beam, Pat Lynch and John Kroner took the cup this year. I think everyone had a blast and most everyone had already made plans to return to do it all over next year for another week of fun and fishing. We can’t wait!

JUNE 23

Amy and Nuggs have had a blast on the water! Look at those smiles, that sky, and that Pike. #catchandrelease #luxurylodgescanada #memoriesforlife #fishinglodgecanada #pikefishing #scottlakelodge

JUNE 22

John makes fishing on the fly look easy with this catch! #catchandrelease #orvisflyfishing #flyfishingcanada #pikefishing #scottlakelodge

JUNE 21

Big Dog hauled in this monster Pike out with J5 on the lake, what a tank! #pikefishing #scottlakelodge #catchandrelease #fishingcanada #canadianfishinglodge

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Week Two in Review: The Sun is Shining

by Jason | Jun 21, 2025 | 2025 Fishing Season

Week 2 Blog: The Sun is Shining

Fishing in the Sun

“…and the weather is sweet, yeah”. The second week of the season was summed up nicely by this Bob Marley line; it was downright beautiful. Our Week Two anglers were blessed with summer in this beautiful northern wilderness. Fishing was superb, wildlife sightings abounded, and the mood was jovial around camp. Mid-June is still what we consider spring at this latitude and our guides and guests found both pike and trout up shallow and ready to chow down on just about anything put in front of them. Guests landed an astonishing 206 trophy-sized fish this week. These are just the pike over 40” and lakers larger than 35”…not to mention the hundreds of mid to high 30s pike that almost wore some of our anglers out!

Vinny Purpura held top honours this week, landing a giant 48” pike on the first day. 47’s were caught by Peggy Light and Eric Luke. Ross Purpura added a pair of 46.5 jumbo pike and Peter Myhre on an incredible run of luck, found three 46” pike this week. 20 pike over 45” were caught this week, one of the higher all time totals. It didn’t seem to matter, hardware or flies, these predators were hungry. Our trout tally was a little lower only a half dozen big ones were caught Dennis Macko on his first trip to Scott led with a 39” laker and Barry Parry added another tub with a 38”er. Who can blame the crew for focusing on pike this these results??

What was truly amazing were the days of multiple big fish for some of our anglers. There were some lifetime fishing memories made. Peter Myhre had a jaw-dropping 12 pike over 40 “, David Florsheim and Eric Luke both tallied 7 “overs” while Conrad Schmidt and KC Walsh brought 6 each to the nets. Mike “Nuggets” Demyen was caught needing to pause for breath during his evening trophy announcements! Wolves and bears graced the daily photo journals of our anglers. They ate amazing food, swam and hit the sauna, hiked, played dice and darts, it was everything a week at Scott Lake should be. For the second time this year, each one of our guests chose to book for next year. We can’t wait to do it all over again…maybe this time with the Oilers winning the Stanley Cup.

June 18

Those smiles say it all! This laker was caught nearing the end of Bill’s trip, making for yet another great day on the water and more unforgettable memories. #troutfishing #scottlakelodge #canadianfishinglodge #explore #memoriesforlife #luxurylodgescanada

June 17

The fish have been biting from Connie’s first trip to Scott Lake, all the way to his 39th! #canadianfishinglodge #pikefishing #memories #scottlakelodge #luxurylodgescanada #setthehook

June 19

The sound of the loons never gets old. They are most vocal from mid-May to mid-June, adding to the long list of beautiful creatures found on the 60th parallel. #luxurylodgescanada #explore #loons #scottlakelodge #thegreatoutdoors

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Week One in Review: The Kickoff Party

by Jason | Jun 20, 2025 | 2025 Fishing Season, Website Fishing Blog

Week One Blog: Kickoff party!

The First Fishermen of the Year

The spring construction crew stepped off the helicopter mid-May onto an island still in the grip of winter. There was ice and a lot of snow…unusually late, even for the 60^th Parallel. As they got to work, the weather showed signs of improvement, then all of a sudden it got downright hot, in the mid 80’s, another unusual twist that melted the snow and ice and let the Week Oners trip come to fruition. After the heat came some much-needed rain and a few days of cold and snow, this weather pattern settled in for the first 10 days of June and greeted our first anglers when they stepped off the float planes. The good news, after about a day and a half the sun peeked out…once it started, the fish started coming shallow and were hungry! It was one heck of a kick-off to the fishing season. All the dreams of the shallow bays and sight fishing that keep our anglers charged up in the winter came to fruition.

There is something about the anticipation of the first week that brings anglers back often. The first cast to fish after a long winter, the first fishermen to fly into a lake for the season…it’s exciting stuff! A total of 136 trophies hit the nets over the first five days, a lofty bar so shortly following ice out. Pike action dominated the photos each night during the aptly named Fish Porn, which highlights the big fish and wild adventures of the day. While only 10 big trout of trophy status were landed, these were some beauties. Top trout honours went to Jim Stickley with a jumbo 42”er, followed closely by David Klein at 41”. Next came Harry Moulopoulos with a 40” specimen, and Mikey Betz added a 39.5. Those big trout on casting gear will plumb wear you out.

Pike began to move shallow and soak up the sun, offering the truly unique experience to stalk and sight cast to them in crystal clear shallow water. Derek Shelt led the way with a giant 46.5” northern, Peter Myhre, Chase Masuga, Benny Russert and Rob Shaffalo were hot on his heels, all setting the hook into 46”ers. As they often do, the big pike came in bunches; water temperature dictates where they will be holding. When our anglers found the warm water, they found the big pike! Peter Myhre had some incredible days of multiple trophy pike. Paul Hanna ended the week with seven over 40 on the last day. What started out with wind and rain ended in a pleasant summer evening. Week One was in the books, it was a good one, and each guest chose to book again for next year.

June 12

The sun is shining and the fish are biting! Paul spent the day fishing on the fly, catching massive Pikes and enjoying the beautiful northern Canadian scenery. #pikefishing #canadianfishinglodge #luxurylodgescanada #fishingcanada #orvisflyfishing #flyfishingcanada

June 11

Look at that! Derek reeled in this monster Pike with Poacher on Scott Lake. Woooo!! #pikefishing #canadianfishinglodge #luxurylodgescanada #fishingcanada

June 10

After many years of fishing at Scott Lake, the feeling of reeling in a massive Laker like this one just doesn’t get old. Harry and Biff kicked off the season in style! #fishinglodgecanada #troutfishing #catchandrelease #FishingCanada #scottlakelodge #laketrout