In the process of planning a trip for 2011.
Looking for that fishing trip of a lifetime experience…
Been all over the net looking at different outfitters, and honestly - it's more overwhelming than I'd ever imagined.
There's hundreds of them… and they all promise the same thing. Like everyone, I want to get the most bang for my buck. Also don't want to spend a fortune and be disappointed.
So I'm asking you, the Fish Hawk community, If you could go anywhere, where would you go?
Specifically - looking for outfitters for a fly-in outpost fishing trip.
We're looking to catch some monster Northerns.
Not looking for fancy accommodations, or all inclusive American plans, or anything like that. A crusty old shanty would be more than adequate.
More concerned with the quality of the fishery. Also not looking to keep any fish, so catch and release only lakes would be ideal.
Oh - and in case #'s count - there's only two of us.
Any recommendations or info you can provide to help narrow the search, would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Monster pike - trip planning
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almontefisher
- Diamond Participant
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- Joined: Tue Oct 17, 2006 3:08 pm
- Location: Carleton Place
It might be pretty tough to get to a "GOOD" outpost camp with only 2 people.
The majority of the cost of a operator comes in the Flight in and out. So #'s usually have to be 6 or more for the "GOOD" outpost camps.
Ive been to a few in Northern Alberta, Saksatchewan and Ontario. I know of one in Ontario where you can catch 10 to 15 pound pike but its two hefty portages away and youd be fishing for these things out of canoe.
The camp does allow pairs to fly in though so it all depends on what youre considering "MONSTER" pike ... for me, anything over 20 pounds (40 inches) is a good fun pike to catch, but the ONLY garanteed place I know for those in Northern Saskatchewan and the cost would be ~$1100/person for a team of 5 or 6 for 5 nights in an outpost camp.
The majority of the cost of a operator comes in the Flight in and out. So #'s usually have to be 6 or more for the "GOOD" outpost camps.
Ive been to a few in Northern Alberta, Saksatchewan and Ontario. I know of one in Ontario where you can catch 10 to 15 pound pike but its two hefty portages away and youd be fishing for these things out of canoe.
The camp does allow pairs to fly in though so it all depends on what youre considering "MONSTER" pike ... for me, anything over 20 pounds (40 inches) is a good fun pike to catch, but the ONLY garanteed place I know for those in Northern Saskatchewan and the cost would be ~$1100/person for a team of 5 or 6 for 5 nights in an outpost camp.
You don't have to go too far - the Gouin Reservoir where I'm sitting looking out the window at a small part of right now has tons. Long considered a nuisance to the majority of walleye fishermen you have an absolute bonanza swimming around these waters.
Wherever there are walleye the Northerns are close by and 40+ers ARE VERY COMMON. The limit on pike is 10 - walleye 8, that number is evident of the population.
Over the years I have accidentally caught more than my share - PB came in at 37 lbs. and it's only in the last couple of years that I have taken a more serious approach to targeting them. Best day last year I had 4 in the boat from 40 - 43 "s.
I use walleye cranks, mainly #7 or #9 Shad Raps in natural colors for the bigger fish finding the bright baits attract too many hammer handles (30 - 37").
It's only a six hour drive to get here from Ottawa and well worth the trip.
McQ
Wherever there are walleye the Northerns are close by and 40+ers ARE VERY COMMON. The limit on pike is 10 - walleye 8, that number is evident of the population.
Over the years I have accidentally caught more than my share - PB came in at 37 lbs. and it's only in the last couple of years that I have taken a more serious approach to targeting them. Best day last year I had 4 in the boat from 40 - 43 "s.
I use walleye cranks, mainly #7 or #9 Shad Raps in natural colors for the bigger fish finding the bright baits attract too many hammer handles (30 - 37").
It's only a six hour drive to get here from Ottawa and well worth the trip.
McQ
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Trophymuskie
- Gold Participant
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- Contact:
If you can afford it the best place is Great Slave lake in early summer. Unbelivable numbers of big pike. This is a report for 1 boat 2 guys, the other boat had similar numbers.
594 fish.
34 trophies (Pike 41"+).
Our largest Inconnu was 41" / 18lbs.
Most walleyes were in the 22-28" range.
The trophy pike numbers for Boat #1 were:
41,43.5,42,41,41,42.5,46,
43.5,41,41,41,45,41,41,46,43,45,45,43,41,41,41,
41,41,41,41,42.5,43,45,42.5,42.5,45.
594 fish.
34 trophies (Pike 41"+).
Our largest Inconnu was 41" / 18lbs.
Most walleyes were in the 22-28" range.
The trophy pike numbers for Boat #1 were:
41,43.5,42,41,41,42.5,46,
43.5,41,41,41,45,41,41,46,43,45,45,43,41,41,41,
41,41,41,41,42.5,43,45,42.5,42.5,45.
Catch and release them all
Richard Collin
Richard Collin
I'm planning a similar trip myself at some point - the following link is a good start:
http://www.spectacularnwt.com/whattodo/fishing
http://www.spectacularnwt.com/whattodo/fishing
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lapointeric
- Silver Participant
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- Joined: Mon Apr 27, 2009 4:23 pm
Thanks everyone for the input!
plncrzy - Thanks for the advise. While I don't think we'd have trouble finding guys that'd be interested, we're concerned about getting people who are SERIOUSLY interested. The fear is having to cancel because someone bails at the last minute.
But that's not to say that we're ruling out having a bigger party. Definitely some food for thought…
Great Slave lake sounds very promising - but it's a little bit further than we wanted to go. The size of the lake intimidates me a bit as well.
Again - not ruling out Sask, or NWT - but we were hoping to find somewhere between MB and PQ.
Another question - what are everyones thoughts on those private outpost cabins on little remote lakes?
Can the fishing really be as good as they say it is on such a small shallow lake?
I must say, having a lake all to yourself sounds quite appealing.
plncrzy - Thanks for the advise. While I don't think we'd have trouble finding guys that'd be interested, we're concerned about getting people who are SERIOUSLY interested. The fear is having to cancel because someone bails at the last minute.
But that's not to say that we're ruling out having a bigger party. Definitely some food for thought…
Great Slave lake sounds very promising - but it's a little bit further than we wanted to go. The size of the lake intimidates me a bit as well.
Again - not ruling out Sask, or NWT - but we were hoping to find somewhere between MB and PQ.
Another question - what are everyones thoughts on those private outpost cabins on little remote lakes?
Can the fishing really be as good as they say it is on such a small shallow lake?
I must say, having a lake all to yourself sounds quite appealing.
I have fished MANY of those small outpost lakes with only one cabin... thats the only type of outpost that I like...
They are great! ... but you have to worry about how many people go in there each year.
I know of a lake in Northern Alberta which was one of the best pike lakes in the province. I went there twice two years apart and my buddies went there a couple more times after that. the fishing quality has steadily declined due to the pressure put on the lake. The owners had built a new cabine so thew lake could accomodate up to 12 anglers at a time, So this lake had roughly say ~8 anglers steadily pulling out pike in the 20 pound range from mid June until September year after year after year.... the big pike population steadily declined to the point where its no longer what it used to be.
Having said that, I know there are some lakes that can and do withstand that kind of pressure due to its size/complexity/food source etc etc.. AND like a good trout lake... when one finds an outpost camp that is not well advertised/fished and produces very well, one usually does not devulge that information over the internet
They are great! ... but you have to worry about how many people go in there each year.
I know of a lake in Northern Alberta which was one of the best pike lakes in the province. I went there twice two years apart and my buddies went there a couple more times after that. the fishing quality has steadily declined due to the pressure put on the lake. The owners had built a new cabine so thew lake could accomodate up to 12 anglers at a time, So this lake had roughly say ~8 anglers steadily pulling out pike in the 20 pound range from mid June until September year after year after year.... the big pike population steadily declined to the point where its no longer what it used to be.
Having said that, I know there are some lakes that can and do withstand that kind of pressure due to its size/complexity/food source etc etc.. AND like a good trout lake... when one finds an outpost camp that is not well advertised/fished and produces very well, one usually does not devulge that information over the internet
Fishing trip
HI,
For Quebec outfitters, the outfitter show is on at Promenade de l'Outaouais on March 4th to 7th.
There are also many good fly-ins from Sudbury (Azilda Air) or from Wawa if you do not want to go too far.
Also if you end up with more than just your buddy going, get the money up front with a "no refunds" if someone drops out. Also have some rules.
We had 2 guys that joined up with us one year so we rented a bigger cabin. Fortunatley, we had "rules" and one of them dropped out 3 days before we were going, just because he thought it would be too long away from home. Then his buddy expected to come in our small boat because he could not afford to rent a boat on his own.
Super
For Quebec outfitters, the outfitter show is on at Promenade de l'Outaouais on March 4th to 7th.
There are also many good fly-ins from Sudbury (Azilda Air) or from Wawa if you do not want to go too far.
Also if you end up with more than just your buddy going, get the money up front with a "no refunds" if someone drops out. Also have some rules.
We had 2 guys that joined up with us one year so we rented a bigger cabin. Fortunatley, we had "rules" and one of them dropped out 3 days before we were going, just because he thought it would be too long away from home. Then his buddy expected to come in our small boat because he could not afford to rent a boat on his own.
Super
I have some experience with this (since I own a private cabin on a small fly-in lake in SK). If it's a true "trip of a lifetime" to catch big pike stay away from them.Big-Ty wrote:Another question - what are everyones thoughts on those private outpost cabins on little remote lakes?
Can the fishing really be as good as they say it is on such a small shallow lake?
I must say, having a lake all to yourself sounds quite appealing.
Yes - they can and often do have big fish; they often don't. My lake doesn't, in fact I think there is some natural law at work which limits the size of fish to 27" and 3-4lbs because all the fish in it: walleye, whities and pike are that size. All three surrounding lakes (connected by river) have big pike. It's hit or miss and website photos can give false impressions.
SK has some incredible pike action - Wollaston, Cree, Reindeer, Atha-B any of the lakes of the Churchill River...
Unless you're specifically looking for fly-in action also consider Tobin. In fact your odds of a really big pike are probably just as good there as anywhere up north. Ironically pike have now become second-fiddle to the big walleye there and aren't as pressured as they were 20years ago.
Frankly though, with the extra cost in time and money to go to Sk in my opinion you'd be better served to translate that into more time on the water closer to home at Kesagami or NW Ontario.
There are few problems in life which can not be solved with a well-placed, high-explosive projectile.
I enjoy big pike fishing. After doing lots of research I'm taking my wife out to Dunlops in Manitoba this summer. http://www.dunlopfishing.com/
When I look for a spot I'm looking for big water, one outfit only, no road access, and no other parties with rights to the water. Then I look for reports.
Closer to home I've fished Kesagami which is north of Cochrane. You can get there in a day's drive. That lake has loads of big pike. Problem is that I can never fish until the last week of June and that is the busiest time up there. I also want a lake that doesn't allow reams of other boaters in the week I am fishing. Dunlops is max 16 on any week. It's a 25 mile lake by 10 miles with other opportunities beyond the main lake.
If you can choose your week try Kesagami. If you want to save a few bucks try the outpost on Partridge lake. $1300 for the week. It has access to Kesagami. You do have to walk 10 minutes through the bush to get to the boats on Kesagami lake.
http://www.truenorthairservice.com/More ... ishing.htm
When I look for a spot I'm looking for big water, one outfit only, no road access, and no other parties with rights to the water. Then I look for reports.
Closer to home I've fished Kesagami which is north of Cochrane. You can get there in a day's drive. That lake has loads of big pike. Problem is that I can never fish until the last week of June and that is the busiest time up there. I also want a lake that doesn't allow reams of other boaters in the week I am fishing. Dunlops is max 16 on any week. It's a 25 mile lake by 10 miles with other opportunities beyond the main lake.
If you can choose your week try Kesagami. If you want to save a few bucks try the outpost on Partridge lake. $1300 for the week. It has access to Kesagami. You do have to walk 10 minutes through the bush to get to the boats on Kesagami lake.
http://www.truenorthairservice.com/More ... ishing.htm
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slop
- Gold Participant
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If you don't mind a challenge and having to tour up to 70 klicks a day, the Attiwaspikat River will not...I repeat...will not disappoint.
Sure there are tons of fly-in lakes where you can catch lots of Pike and Walleye. If you really want to catch better than average fish in Ontario, try this river.
The Decelles Resevoir, in Quebec holds giant Pike as well. Again, a huge body of water that takes time to explore. I barely scratched the surface area on this 'body of water' during the week that I was there.
Best of luck on your search for Pike fishing of a lifetime!
Sure there are tons of fly-in lakes where you can catch lots of Pike and Walleye. If you really want to catch better than average fish in Ontario, try this river.
The Decelles Resevoir, in Quebec holds giant Pike as well. Again, a huge body of water that takes time to explore. I barely scratched the surface area on this 'body of water' during the week that I was there.
Best of luck on your search for Pike fishing of a lifetime!