It Begins: The Week 14 Blog and Fall Fishing

by | Aug 21, 2023 | 2023 Season, Arctic Grayling, Lake Trout, northern pike

IT BEGINS – FALL FISHING

Sometimes you know in an instant when something is about to change. It was on the last day of the Week 14 group: a flock of 50 or so geese in an almost perfect V (the right side just a little longer than the left) flew right over our 12-acre island on the 60th parallel. They weren’t the first of the season, but they were low and loud, a reminder that fall is knocking on our door. There have been plenty of other signals that the season is about to shift gears. We had our first vivid northern lights show just a few days ago; the number of bright yellow leaves on the birch trees are multiplying exponentially, and a humble little plant, improbably named the Bastard Toadflax (Comandra umbellata), has started its transformation to brilliant red, the start of creating the multi-colored fall carpet for our tundra landscape. It’s early fall here and for most of our guides it’s the start of their favorite fishing period, fall fishing.

Fall fishing is often fewer fish but bigger fish. For the Week 14 anglers, it seemed like they got the best of both worlds—the action of early season and the size of fall fish. When the water starts to cool our pike and trout put on the feedbag, getting much more aggressive. Flies and lures are often inhaled rather than just taken. And their fight is definitely more prolonged and spirited than the same fish might have offered two months earlier. Our thickest girths and heaviest fish always come in late August and September. Fishing now is not in our shallow bays as in June but in or off structure—any structure like weed beds, rocky points or drop-offs. Wind on deep shorelines is often the guide’s first line of attack. And it’s been working. Our group had just over 100 trophy fish but in that number were some monsters.

Lake trout again were the top billing, both on Scott Lake and our fly out lakes, notably Selwyn. The father/son team of Dave and Adam Schauer had a banner day on Selwyn, landing seven trophy lakers with six of them over 39”. Adam had already taken a 40” lake trout off Scott. John Duro had a big trout day on Scott getting dozens including a 39-incher. Carl Tanner, his fishing partner, caught a 41.5” and a 43” lake trout on Scott. Chris Ellis bagged a 39.5’, a 40” and a 41” on Selwyn. Shane Fifield was on Selwyn for a 40-incher and long time Scott regular Frank Saraka got his tank of a trout there as well—a girthy 44.5” monster. The biggest of the week though came right the lodge’s backyard and it was massive, a 45-incher pulled in my Linda Watt. Linda also landed a 45-inch pike. Not bad for her first trip to Scott.

Yes, there were plenty of pike, both in numbers and size. Pike at 44” made their appearance on the big TV screen, during the after-dinner fish show, accompanied by their angling friends—Cave Schauer, Cooper Allen and Johnny Davis. Pike of 45 were landed by Cooper Allen and Jim Loken. Bobby Regan tied Adam Schauer with the biggest pike of the week at 46.5 inches. There were a few Trophy Triple hats handed out as well this week. Graham Allen, Cooper Allen and Johnny Powers all pulled off the hat trick of getting all three of our species (northern pike, lake trout and arctic grayling) in trophy size. Cooper and Johnny had enough total inches of their three biggest to earn entry into the 100+Club. They will be wearing a custom jacket from this fall fishing.

It wasn’t a particularly sunny week and there were a few showers but the atmosphere in the lodge was always bright and sunny. We couldn’t help but notice how the dozen first-timers at the lodge arrived as strangers here but left with many new friends. Sharing the experiences of fall fishing in this remarkable wilderness surrounded by a team of customer-focused lodge staff creates just the right environment for friendships to develop. It happens all the time. It’s a Scott Lake Lodge tradition. It’s why we often use the slogan “World Class Fishing and More”. That’s the “More” and it’s the best part.

AUGUST 19

When flying from Stony Rapids over the northern tundra, you will be surprised as a small city on an island appears beneath your float plane. The unique experience is bound to be worth it.

AUGUST 18

Watching storm cells but still catching fish in the sun on the fly!

August 17

As summer starts its transition to fall, we are seeing these big pike carrying a lot more weight. This is bulking season

AUGUST 16

This massive trout gave a great fight for Frank Saraka today. All of its 44.5 inches was the first fish of the day! Catch and release will let this old girl grow.

AUGUST 15

Kimiwan Falls is always a beautiful spot to check out when you’re here fishing on Scott Lake. Lake trout love the outflow and the water levels always fluctuate. Johnny and Cintia Powers had a lovely time checking it out!

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The Heat is On: The Week 8 Update

The Heat is On: The Week 8 Update

by | Jul 20, 2023 | 2023 Season, Arctic Grayling, Lake Trout, northern pike

THE HEAT IS ON!

SUMMER FISHING AT IT’S BEST

This has been generally a very cool summer, but this week the heat was turned on for summer fishing at it’s best. Everyone loved it, including the fish. For this far north it’s been HOT. The week started just nicely warm, then the knob kept turning higher until we hit 90 on the last day, a rare number to see in these parts. Finally, it was summertime. What do people do in the summer? They go fishing, have fancy dinners and outdoor cookouts, drink a few (or more than a few) beverages and just have a great time. We checked all those boxes and more this week. Fortunately, we had a group who knew how to party. The atmosphere in Laker Lodge when the guests come together as one large group for dinner and the evening program was lively, to say the least. To say the most, it’s possible that our nearest neighbors, just over fifty miles away, might have heard the roar of the crowd as huge fish after huge fish was shown on the TV screens during the nightly “fish du jour” experience. There was some high-octane energy in the room every night. We had a five-day celebration of great fishing, good times and enduring friendships, new and old. There was even a Hawaiian Night (it’s too long a story).

In between the fabulous shore lunches, the cigar puffing, the card games and the wildly competitive corn hole games, there was some summer fishing. And lots of big fish were landed, 170 to be exact. As is typical this time of the season, most of the trophy fish were northern pike. 133 to be exact again, but the lake trout started to make some guest appearances and the arctic grayling, well they are always cooperative. With warm temperatures and just the right level of wind, there were some incredible days. Longtime guests, Dave Wallace and Joe Wright, had the trip of a lifetime. One day they landed nine trophy pike. The next day they had only eight. And the biggest, caught by Joe Wright, was only 47”. Slackers. Other regulars, Tom Matthew and Rusty Brown, had four pike-trophy days. Jessica Word-Booth had a four trophy pike day as well. When pike are on, they are ON. Lots of guests had three trophy days. In the very big fish department, Gordon Jumonville got a 44 on his first day at Scott Lake. Jessica Word-Booth landed a 44 and a 45-incher, but the spotlight was directly on her ten-year-old son, Cole. His picture was on that TV screen every night. Last season he got a 48” pike. This kid is hooked for life, and summer fishing in the far north.

This was finally the week where lake trout made their presence known. They had been in the nowhere zone for several weeks, between their shallow water (but could be anywhere) period and their deep-water summer homes in 60-100’ of water, a nice cool place for fish that don’t care for water temperatures over 50 degreees. Well, they are home now and our guides have their addresses. Mark and Rebecca Graf love catching the big lakers (they are actually a char not a trout but that’s semantics—they are an incredible game fish). On the last day of this group they found the key to unlock the trout door. The each landed a girthy 41-incher along with a few dozen smaller lakers. Mark had taken a 40-incher earlier in the week. Some other dandies were caught this week. Lakes of 38 inches were scored by 14-year-old Jayden Brown, Brad Barousse, Mike Johnson and our Assistant Manager Dani Grunberg who managed to sneak out for an afternoon troll. Another Scott team member, Jesse Sawchuck, got a 39-incher. As the big lakers continue their descent to the deeper water they will be even bigger targets for our guides. Stay tuned for the full lake trout story.

There was just enough grayling fishing to create some Trophy Triple and 100+Club activity. Mike Johnson and Trevor Meyers waded some rapids catch some grayling and earn their Trophy Triple hats. Rebecca and Mark Graf had a banner grayling day with over a dozen trophies each. Mark’s 18.5” and Rebecca’s 19.5” arctic sailfish put them into the 100+Club’s custom jacket.

It was a great week with a fun group: good summer fishing, good times, leisurely evenings on the big deck overlooking the lake made it a memorable week for our group. It’s what a vacation is all about.

JULY 20

Rusty and Jordan went and found some trout on the last day of the trip! 40 inches and a beautiful colour.

July 19

Dave, Biff and BIG PIKE

JULY 18

Catch and Release is a priority. Let them go, let them grow!

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Some Hot Fishing & The Case of the Missing Terns: Week 7

Some Hot Fishing & The Case of the Missing Terns: Week 7

by | Jul 17, 2023 | 2023 Season, Arctic Grayling, Lake Trout, northern pike

WEEK 7 UPDATE

SUMMERTIME FISHING UPDATE AND THE CASE OF THE MISSING TERNS

First, the terns. The Common Tern is a striking beautiful and elegant bird: sleek in design, graceful in flight, wearing a smart black cap and sporting a very sharp red bill that leads the bird’s watery plunge to capture small fish. They are often seen flying with their small, silvery trophies. Just a very cool bird. We have been graced at Scott Lake Lodge with a colony of Common Terns within sight of our island. Every year they arrive and depart (early June and mid-August) on the same day. This has happened for the three decades of current ownership and probably for countless decades before. Except for this year. They arrived on time, and everything was normal with their excited vocalizations and aerial dances delighting our guests and staff. Then one day just over a week ago they were gone. All gone. Not a feather could be found on their breeding site, a non-descript exposed cobble reef perhaps sixty by ten feet and only a couple of feet above the water line. They had prospered there for years. Avian influenza? Their sworn enemy, the herring gulls? A parasitic jagger wandering by from it more northerly home? A mink, pine marten or wolverine that swam to their home? Only questions. No answers. A Scott Lake mystery. Our terns will be missed and remembered.

What’s not a mystery is why so many of the homo sapiens species return every year to their summertime fishing home. It’s obvious. They love the fishing, the food, the world class guiding and customer service, the serenity of our pristine wilderness backyard and of course the warm companionship of like-minded people. Our Week 7 guests had all of the above. The summertime fishing was wonderful. The catching wasn’t the best of the year, but it wasn’t the worst either. Sometimes good is simply good enough and it was. There were 99 trophy fish brought to the boats with plenty of heavyweights led by Nick Manship’s 46” pike. His dad, Mike Manship, on the last day weighed in with a fat 45. Other 45s were taken by Don Mewhort, Russ Gesme and, of course, Peter Myhre who continued his torrid run through the Scott Lake Lodge fly out lakes. Peter loves climbing into our vintage (but trusty) De Havilland Beaver, GQD, and exploring some of the nine million acres of northern Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories that we call home. What a week he had. On his first and second days of fishing he landed seven trophy pike (yes each day). On his third he got six. Then he had to rest on the fourth due to the wild storm that shut down for a day not only our fly outs but nearly all of the fishing on our main lake. Over his three five-days trips to Scott this season Peter has landed 47 trophy pike, an astonishing number. And he is coming back for more later this season. Tom Granneman and Russ Gesme were also into the multiple trophy game, getting nine trophy pike on a single day. Ron Donnall and Alan Carney had plenty of big pike also, each landing a 44-incher.

The lake trout summertime fishing action picked up considerably this week. It helped Tom Kehoe with his quest to join the 100+Club. Tom landed a 39” laker that with a big pike and grayling gave him 100 total inches from those three fish. His fishing buddy, Mike Sackash, had trophies of all three species and got the Trophy Triple hat but just missed the 100” mark. Other big trout were taken by Mickey and Randy Moret. The Kings of the Trout for the week though were two first-timers, the father/son team of Mike and Nick Hylant. They really got into vertical jigging for lake trout, a technique preferred by some guides. It worked. On a single day they landed 101 lake trout. Mike ended up with two trout trophies at 36 and 37 inches. Both anglers enjoyed a trophy experience with almost constant bent rods. They also had plenty of pike action.

The summertime fishing excitement wasn’t limited to fish. On a fly out to Smalltree Lake, all four of the visiting anglers—Tom Kehoe, Mike Sackash, Tom Granneman and Russ Gesme—watched a lone bull muskox swim across the Dubwant river. When the huge animal hit shallow enough water to walk he was a raging bull throwing a “bow wake” comparable to their boats. Check out this National Geographic quality video .

Lot of fish. Lots of fun. Wonderful memories were made. We expect most of our guests will return to our island next summertime fishing season, just as we hope our terns will come back to their rocky home.

JULY 15

Mike, along with his son Nick and Poacher, had quite a week. They always look to explore the north and catch some fish doing it. This 45 incher was an awesome catch.

JULY 14

Here we have some folks enjoying The Tundra Trail with Tom Klein. It is an incredible hiking loop in the Northwest Territories.

July 13

Can you even imagine this 46″ GIANT eating a topwater bait in 12″ of water?? Chaos!!!

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The Momentum Continues: Week 5 Update

The Momentum Continues: Week 5 Update

by | Jul 6, 2023 | 2023 Season, Arctic Grayling, Lake Trout, northern pike

THE BIG MO

Trophy Fish Excellence

Momentum is a wonderful thing. We had big time momentum coming out of Week 4 when a season high (and one of our all-time highs) of 195 trophy fish were landed. The first day of fishing Week 5 picked right up where fishing Week 4 left off: it was gangbusters. The new group put 53 trophies in the boats on the first day, a top daily number for the season, and 44 on the second. The big pike were ravenous. Over those two days of warm weather four 44s, three 45s, four 46s and a 47 appeared on our nightly big fish of the day screening. That’s a season’s worth of big pike at most lodges. Then the temperatures dropped and so did our trophy fish totals, but we still managed to hit 131 for the group, not shabby at all. We did have some smoke in the air over the first three days which compromised the sight-fishing, but it didn’t seem to bother the pike. As long as the temperatures stay up so do the pike totals. And this was an almost all pike week. There were only a handful of lake trout and grayling (a dozen to be exact) landed.

Two of that dozen deserve a special mention. On the fourth day of our five-day “weeks” we had a Big Blow. The wind was ripping at over 40 miles and hour and the waves were a bit daunting. Most of our anglers liked the comforts of the lodge for that day with some card games at Laker Lodge, hikes on our Tundra Trail or just relaxing with a sauna or a book. But some did go out. Two of those brave guests were Julianne Harris and Chris Cervantes. They didn’t go far from the lodge. They didn’t have two. About two hundred yards from our main dock, they were trolling for lake trout in about 30 feet of water. Both got the lake trout of their lives, a supersized 40 and three-quarters for Julie and a 41 for Chris. Those were the only fish trophies of the day.

Our guests will probably remember those early days of the week when big fish seemed to be everywhere. It was a remarkable surge of wild action with so many quality fish. The big pike were the story. So many! Trophy northern pike of 44” were landed by Jim Kloote, Chris Cervantes, Adam Garvanian and Dave Morales II; 45s by Donna Quincey, Julianne Harris, and Susan Edwards; 46s by Dale and Jordan Pryor (same day), Jim Kusar and Steve Kozlowski. The best big fish story of the week though had to be Donna Quincy’s. On her first ever northern fishing trip she made her first ever pike catch quite memorable—a 47” monster. Yes, her first pike ever. She asked politely when it was in the net if it was a “big one”. Yes, Donna it was. Many hard-core pike anglers have fished for decades without getting one that big. She added a 45.5” trophy fish on the same day. Way to go Donna!

As it happens often, the big fish turn on at the same time. We had many examples of multiple trophies on the same day. Julianne Harris and Chris Cervantes really like Wignes Lake, a big lake connected to Scott and fished right from our dock. On two days they took the boat ride with wonderful results: nine pike trophies on one day and five on the other. A relatively new addition to our fishing empire, Wignes has become a popular destination for our guides. Our fly out lakes continue to pop out a lot of big fish. On Selwyn Lake the father/son team of Dale and Jordan Pryor landed eight northern pike trophies in a single day with two 46s. Another father/son team of Bruce and Steve Kozlowski got a cool dozen on the same lake with Steve getting a 46. (They also got five together on Sandy Lake.) Adam Garvanian and Andy Nardo picked up eight on Selwyn. Kevin and Susan Edwards got a mixed bag of six pike and grayling on Smalltree Lake. On the far east end of huge Wholdaia Lake, Gerry O’Brien and Andrew Troop got their mixed bag of nine trophies with all three of our species represented. Gerry earned his Trophy Triple hat there. Lots of big trophy fish. Lots of great memories, both on and off the water. It’s what we do at Scott Lake Lodge.

JULY 5

On his last day, Jordan reeled in this 40 inch fatty,

JULY 4

Sometimes you catch em’ right beside the lodge! Chris got this 41.5″ trout without going too far.

JULY 3

Andy and Paulie had a great time on a flyout lake today. Andy caught this beautiful pike and many more to go with it.

JULY 2

Steve and J5 found this 46.5″ Trophy Pike today on a flyout. Wow.

JULY 1

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The Goretex Gang: Week 2 Update

The Goretex Gang: Week 2 Update

by | Jun 23, 2023 | 2023 Season, Arctic Grayling, Lake Trout, northern pike, Website Fishing Blog

If only . . . If only the entire week could have been like the fourth day of our Week 2 adventure. On that day we were gifted the most precious far-north commodity—bright sunshine. The sun on the water woke up the big pike and brought them scattered from deep water to bask in the shallows. Amazingly, it only took one day. And with sunlight, you could see the big pike in the shallows! For our anglers, it was a glorious day. For the after-dinner trophy announcements at the main lodge, the stack of trophy slips filled out by the guides was thick, 38 slips thick. That’s a lot of big fish for a single day (for some lodges further south of here that could be a week’s, a month’s or even a season’s total). And they came in bunches. There were four-packs of trophy pike for Rory Wright who landed a 44” and 45.5-incher, and Jeff Berg, who landed the biggest pike of this young season at 47.5”. There were three-packs of pike for Abe Martinez, Vinnie Purpura, Don Luke and Erik Luke. There was even Julie Heinmiller’s 40-inch trout thrown in for good measure. It was a hell of a day, but historically not an unusual day for the spring fishing at Scott.

Unfortunately, it was our only day in the sun. The other days, well to put it in a single phase—they sucked. It was cold, rainy or windy or all three simultaneously. Our anglers often had to work hard and fly far to find fish. Despite the tough conditions, there were fish landed on other days. We had a total of 115 trophy fish, not bad. Don and Eric Luke each landed four big pike trophies on Day 3, Don with a 44” and Eric with a 45.75” pike (now that’s a tight tape). On the same day, Jeff Quick landed three pike trophies including a 45-incher. Jeff Berg got a 47 (yes, he got two monsters on his trip). On Day 2 Conrad Schmidt caught four trophy pike. Notable fish were scattered throughout the week. One of our rare “first timers” at Scott, Al Malinowski, got his first ever big pike on his second day here and it was a dandy at 45-inches. There were 44-inchers taken by John Heinmiller, Abe Martinez, Peggy Light, Chris Luke and Jeff Quick. On the last day Ross Purpura Jr, not far from the lodge, brought a fat 47-incher into his guide’s net.

Given the high winds and limited sight conditions a lot of guides and anglers opted to troll for lake trout. There were many hundreds landed. Among those trout were some good ones. Ross Purpura Jr got a 38” laker; Ross Sr got a 37.5” lake trout; Peter Schmidt got in the trout game with a 37; Connie Schmidt landed a pair of 36.5-inchers; Judy Schmidt scored a 36-incher. The big 40-inch trout for Julie Heinmiller, along with a big 18.5” grayling and a nice 43.5” pike, gave her the first 100+Club membership of the season at 101.5 total inches for her trophy trout, grayling and big pike. Congrats to Julie.
So, despite having to bundle up against the wind, rain and cold our group did great in the fish department. And they all were determined to make the best out of some tough conditions. Our hats are off to them. Next time we hope they get only one day of rain instead of one day of sun. Then they can enjoy our marvelous shore lunch experiences and the sight-fishing we’re famous for. Of course, as all anglers know you fish what you get and our gang did just that, quite successfully.

June 19

Abe and Poach were found some in the bays today

June 17

Jeff and J5 worked with the elements to get this big ol’ 46 inch Northern.

June 17

Julie got into some shiny arctic grayling today. Her biggest being an 18.5″ beauty.

June 15

Judy and Jan found a rainy day pike on beautiful Ingalls Lake

JUNE 19

Casey Johnston found this awesome pike in the sun!