Walleye Fishing on Douglas

Brad Blomquist and John Hunerberg fished for 5 days with their sons Ryan and Ben.  Of course the young guys didn't want to get up early.  However you will notice that they fished well after the sun went down.

Yes a good idea...  a few days fishing....

August Fishing is Great

I have been busy cooking, cleaning and doing the real work.....just no time for blogging.  My good staff have been needed at home, but all is fine again.  Doreen is cleaning the lodge and tidying this place.  While I have been absent from the net, the fishing has been fantastic despite the hot weather.  I have lots to put on line!!

Joel and John Diller and Jeff and Scott Calvin haven't been to Viking Island for about 5 years.  It is great to see them back here.  They have been off to Paige, Peterson, Hatchett and Caribou Lakes.  As I write this they are overnighting on Embryo Lake. 

Joel Diller and his northern from Douglas Lake

New Dock at Telescope

Hugh and Craig's Dad, Arthur, built a strong dock.  Using the trees from nearby and the largest rocks he could possibly move (with help from his sons), he built a very sturdy crib.  He didn't know to put a bottom in the crib to keep the rocks and crib moving together but it still remained for 6o years.  Over time the ice pushed it this way and that and finally it needed to be redone.  So Hugh built a new crib over the old rocks and we are good to go again.  Back in the day, Arthur would have used 3 or 4 inch wide poles cut from the surrounding bush to deck the dock, but Hugh flew in treated lumber... a modern luxury item.

Testing out our new GoPro camera!

Tim Kachur and Harriet are flying in C-FHVD, Viking Outposts' Cessna 180, west of Red Lake, Ontario. Here is the "tail cam"!
They leave from Domain Lake and then fly past Optic Cabin before landing at Optic Lake.

Oh, Yes We're Flying with Tim

Biologists on McInnes Lake

Lake trout netted on McInnes Lake at 66 to 115 feet

They caught 7 lake trout at 66 to 115 feet.

Four were sampled and three were released.

Top: common white sucker, Bottom: long nose sucker
There are lots of fish in the lake a fisherman seldom sees.
Suckers, White Fish, Cisco, Burbot, Perch and smaller Minnows

Reasearch by
the Cooperative Freshwater Ecology Unit
Laurentian University in Sudbury Ontario
Professor:  Tom Johnston

Nate Antoniolli and Andrew Corston were up at McInnes Lake this past week.  As they describe it, they were collectiong samples from netted fish.  These samples will be used in a food web and contaminent survey of Northwestern Ontario fish using stable isotope annalysis.  Data will indicate how the fish are feeding, where, what and depth.  If they can develop a baseline of data, it can be used throughout the area as a measuring tool when looking at other lakes. 

For more info go to this Uof M in Duluth site: Lake Zones

For example, it is interesting to know where McInnes lake trout feed. Lake trout are very temperature sensitive and prefer to hang out in the cold water 47 degrees F and below.  However they will go to the food.  Each lake offers different types of food for lake trout; cisco (lake herring) swimming in schools in colder midwater, suckers, white fish and burbot (ling or freshwater cod) on the bottom, minnows and walleye and perch in warmer water.  Lake trout will also resort to zooplankton and insects if need be, but the lake trout will not be as healthy on this diet.

Here is their list of sampled fish from the board at the cabin.
They caught 7 lake trout but couldn't resist throwing 3 huge healthy ones back in the lake

They had trouble catching northern in the nets but found angling for them to be easy.

I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW

• How old are these huge lake trout?
• Is there a chart of size versus age for walleye, northern and trout for our area?
• What is considered old age and extra large for the game fish around here?
• What are they eating, where are they hanging out?

Sure hope these guys get back to me

Moose hanging out near Viking Island

Our friend Tyler Murphy shot with with his iPhone on Douglas Lake.

C-GGMB and Tim off to save some canoers

Tim and Russ arrive on Bigshell Lake to find 5 young women ready for rescue

C-GEZW and Russ skirting the fire- Mission accomplished

We still have no fires near our camps, and guests are fishing and enjoying our great summer weather. 

BUT elsewhere fires are raging.  Russ and Tim were off today to rescue a group of 5 canoers.  They needed to be moved from Bigshell Lake across the fire zone to Artery Lake on the Bloddvein where they could resume their trip.  Tim and Russ flew together past the fire boiling up between Murdock and Larus Lakes.  They wondered how much gear a group planning to be out in the bush until August 18 would have and if it would fit in the planes.  When they arrived they were happy to find 5 petite girls, enjoying their trip and ready to hop over the danger zone.....no problem....no big guys with cases of beer on this trip!

The fire known as Red 124 began on July 25 (11 days ago. Hugh noticed it burning by our old wild rice camp along the creek near Ben's Lake.  The location is in Woodland Caribou Wilderness Park. Here forest fires are supposed to be left alone to burn naturally EXCEPT for value protection.  That means the MNR can use fire fighters, sprinkler systems and water bombers only to protect camps and such.  Our boreal forest is meant to burn. Without a fire every 100 years or so, the bush turns into garbagey balsam and a miss match of species. Jackpine cones only open with the heat of a fire.  Plenty of plants like blueberries and fireweed are waiting in the wings to flourish in the new acidic soil. 

During the last 100 years, we have developed fire protection and loggers have tried to imitate the fire environment when they cut.  People have spread themselves through the bush building cabins, small towns, logging operations and mine sites.  We have grown accustomed to the MNR sweeping in and saving the day.  Now they must let a fire burn and just protect small sites.  There may be problems if cabins need to be left with limited gas, if the fire breaches the border of the park.  Short term problems are just smoke smoke smoke.  The planes need to see the ground to fly, and land safely. 

Hmmm, If this gets worse, we'll turn around and head home

Forest Fires flare up again but not near us

In 1981, Jeff Ciesar and Larry the Legend were the first guys to fly into Telescope after the fire swept past the cabin. The fire crew on site kept the fire at bay with sprinklers, so the cabin was safe. Behind the cabin though the fire had burned even the moss and duff, leaving lots of bare rock. The MNR said they needed a caretaker and so they were lucky to have John Blaszczyk (JB) join them for a week of fishing.
This year, when they saw smoke in the air, they knew it was a long ways away. They also knew they would be fine on the lake. This week a few fires have started up again and there is smoke in the air again.

Our cabins are safe.  Fishing is Grand

Ashley & Harriet's Canoe Trip: DAY 3

We woke up on Glenn Lake to another beautiful day. We both slept poorly, each with one eye open, waiting to defend our food supply when Mr. Bear returned. But surprisingly he never came back.

We tried to start the campstove again, but no luck. We took out the bottle of purifying tablets we bought before we left. Upon reading their instructions, I learned that these tablets were actually only neutralizing tablets, to remove the iodine taste from our water AFTER it had been purified by other tablets. So, we did our best to ward off Beaver Fever by going out into the middle of the lake to scoop water.

After a "breakfast" of sunflower seeds, we headed out. The first portage was 275 metres, which with all our gear, along with little energy from food, we struggled! I carried the canoe for 1/3 of the way before giving up and sharing the task with Ashley. There was a storm moving in. Between the end of this portage and the start of the next one of the same length, there was a small stretch of creek. So even though we could see the next portage, we had to load up the canoe and paddle across. As soon as we climbed in, the rain and lightning came.

We walked the next portage while the rain poured hard. When we arrived at the end of this portage, on our last trip across, the rain pretty much stopped. We were soaked.

Now we were on Optic Lake, and lucky for us, my family has an outpost on the lake. It was empty this week, and my dad had given us the heads up that we could use it if need be. Well, "need be" was the case. We canoed across the lake to what we now considered "paradise". There was ice in the freezer, propane hooked up to the stove, and even warm water in the tank for a nice shower! As soon as we arrived, so did more rain and wind, so we hurried inside. We put on dry clothes and made ourselves hot coffee, cold sodas (left by the last party), and a spaghetti feast! Meanwhile, the storm raged outside.

The weather eventually lifted and the sun came out. We decided to stay put for the night instead of carrying on by canoe. All the luxury got to us I guess. My dad flew in and found us lounging on the dock, fishing and soaking up the sun. He said he was surprised that we even got this far, with all the gear we brought. He said he didn't have time to look at our broken campstove. He was only dropping in to bring us a cooler full of beer and ice, and he expected us to still be on Glenn Lake. Thanks for the confidence, Dad!

posted by Harriet

West Red Lake Mining Museum

Last week, Enid & I got the opportunity to check out the mining museum at the west end of Red Lake. The building is a historical log cabin that was taken apart at Bow Narrows Camp, moved log by log to this spot, and then rebuilt. All by local volunteers.

As the sign says, "In the 1920's and 1930's, West Red Lake was a thriving community with no less than eight gold mines. There was a post office, a physician, supply stores, laundry and everything else needed to keep a population of about 200 outfitted." There was a historical gold rush in the area. During this time, my grandfather, Art Carlson, moved here from Sweden in order to get in on the action. He spent a lot of time on the west end of Red Lake, living and working. His photo is hanging up in the mining museum.

posted by Harriet Carlson

Ashley & Harriet's Canoe Trip: DAY 2

Well, we woke up Tuesday morning to a clearer sky. The smoke had shifted, and I guess it was hanging out elsewhere. Hugh called us from Viking Island to say he was leaving immediately. We threw all our cooler food back into our food pack, buckled up our personal packs, and collected all our gear in the front yard. If there is one thing I've learned about my Dad (Hugh), it is to not keep him waiting. Haha.

So the Cessna 185 arrived and we loaded up, and the three of us took off, flying west.

We left the canoe behind in Red Lake, planning to pick up a different one from Viking Island. I learned that the only difference between the one we picked, and the one my Dad gave us, is that my Dad's canoe doesn't have comfy, rounded shoulder pads attached to the yoke. Instead, it is just a hard piece of wood across the middle. Carrying this canoe solo, I guess, was to strengthen my character or something?


Hugh dropped us off on Mexican Hat Lake, on a sand beach. This is my one of my favourite lakes. I've been canoeing here on three other occasions. The walleye fishing is awesome. And there is a great set of falls which I like to camp near. We had planned to stay here the first night of our trip, but since we were off schedule by a day, we only visited the falls, ate lunch, and then carried on towards Beck's Lake.


It was a perfect day outside! The sun was shining, it was hot out, and there was a gentle breeze to cool us down. Even that breeze was in our favour, giving us a gentle tailwind to move us ahead with less paddling. There was a small set of falls between Mexican Hat Lake and Beck's Lake.


We portaged to Glenn Lake. It is quite large, and of course, full of walleye. This is one of my grandfather's favourite lakes, and part of his ashes are actually on the campsite we use there. Also, our good friend and employee at Viking Island, Jimmy Strang had a trapper's cabin on Glenn Lake for years. So needless to say, when I'm on this lake, I feel pretty much at home.


We arrived at our camp site on Upper Glenn Lake. It is a great spot with a long, clean rock out front. Ashley struggled to set up my tent, while I struggled to start her camp stove. The tent went up successfully, while the campstove didn't. Ashley and I fiddled with it for a while, until we decided it was broken. Leaking or clogged, or broken in some way we couldn't pinpoint. We were disheartened to say the least. All the food, with exception to our sandwich lunch supplies, were to-be-cooked.


To add to our stress, a black bear arrived on the scene. We were fiddling with the stove, when heard the breaking of branches and the rustling in the bushes. Then a black bear poked his head up from behind a shrub. I was already frustrated with the stove, so when our furry friend arrived, I yelled at it that we had no food for ourselves, nevermind him. He got spooked and ran up a tree, then made huffing sounds at us. We left him alone. He didn't come back to our site during the night, which led us to believe that he wasn't a problem bear, but rather just a traveling bear who popped by only for a visit (and not to rip apart our food kit).
posted by Harriet