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Greetings
from the Wilderness!
You
know the saying: a bad day of fishing is better than a good
day at work. Well, this year, we didn't really have any
bad days of fishing, so what does that tell you about how
the summer went? Fantastic! Although we had fewer guests
than normal, those who did come up were really able to relax
and unwind. We all need that—especially these days.
Once
again, the season started earlier than in past years, with
the ice gone from the lake by May 6th when we arrived at
Camp Lochalsh. It didn't take long to get the boats varnished
and outfitted with our newly modified seating system developed
by our good friend Al York from Traverse City, MI.
Al came
up with a way to make our existing seats much more solid
in the way they attach to the boats, with a bit more height.
This really improved the comfort factor and made the seats
much stronger than before.
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All of our boats are now fitted with Al's seats,
and we had lots of positive comments throughout the season on the
improved seating arrangement. Not one of Al's seats broke on us
last year! We thank Al and his assistant Ferd Vetter for coming
up and helping us out with fitting the new seats to the boats. Great
job guys!
From the beginning of the season, the weather was
a repeat of 2008. It was cooler and wetter than normal the entire
summer. On a positive note, that made for some pretty good walleye
fishing.
The fishing was really good even though water levels
were higher than normal all season. Our fish board is filled with
nice catches from 2009, and you have to consider that our volume
was close to 30% down from last year! There is no question that
Wabatongushi Lake has become one of the best Walleye fisheries in
the north and is only getting better every year. Many fish, of all
sizes, were caught throughout the season.
 Several
noteworthy projects were started and finished last year, the most
important of these being our new cement block generator building
on Loch Island and a brand new 30kw Deutz generator to accompany
our old 30kw Deutz as a primary. The new unit, in the block building,
is 2/3 quieter than the old one! The project was completed in September.
In addition to the generator, we finished various
dock projects on Loch Island. The old "70" dock was completely
rebuilt, along with the walkway between the "U" dock.
Many other smaller jobs were completed during the course of the
year as well.
We
are well underway in our planning for the 2010 season. With lots
of projects in the works and what appears to be a brighter season
ahead for all of us, next summer looks better than ever. Thanks
to all that visited us in 2009, and we'll see you in 2010!
The
2009 Morel Mushroom Hunt!
Sometimes,
you can just feel that you're in morel country. Up here, in
the late part of May and first week or so of June, the elusive
Black Morel Mushrooms produce their highly sought after fruit.
It's during that time that morel fever strikes!
You can't compare any other kind
of Mushroom hunting with that of morels. The excitement builds
when you come across one, because you know that there are
more in the immediate area. We've been hunting black morel
mushrooms in our region for close to 15 years now, and every
season (thanks in part to our consistent sporing) it gets
better and better.
This year was no exception, with
bountiful harvests and good times experienced by all. The
season started a bit early and lasted close to three weeks
straight, which was long for this area.
A
Triple Play!
With
no shortage of hunters this year, we ran numerous hunts
for several weeks and had some really great late-night morel
snacks at the lodge!
The
Bashams with staff on a Morel Hunt
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Oh,
no! Not another Poe!
For
those of you who were around Loch Island back in the summer
of 2001, you'll know what we are talking about. Poe was
a baby Raven that fell out of a nest on Loch Island at a
very young age and was abandoned by its parents. We nursed
Poe back to life, and he lived with us for the season. He
would follow us around, land on our arms, eat out of our
hands and hide all kinds of shiny objects of ours!
Poe
2001
At
the end of the season, Poe did disappear on us near the
narrows of Wabatongushi while picking up a group of guests.
Yes, he even came with us when we made trips to the narrows.
It was for the best though when Poe finally "left the
nest." From time to time since then, people have commented
to us about a Raven near the narrows that appears to be
quite friendly and inquisitive. Could it be Poe?
This
year, when another nest on Loch Island appeared and a bird
fell out a bit pre-maturely we had images of Poe all over
again. It was different this time, with the baby much older
and the parents committed to raising him. It was not to
be another Poe story. This bird was only around for a few
days, then off to be with his family.
A Baby Raven just getting ready to
fly away!
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One
of our daily Shore Lunches at Tee Pee Island, springtime location.
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Thanks
to being inside the largest game preserve in the world,
pictures like this are possible!!! |
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We would like to thank Kyle
Borrowman, our good friend and longtime loyal summer co-worker
for all the great pictures you see on this newsletter.
Kyle is a Trent University Masters Candidate who has a
great camera and knows how to use it! Thanks Kyle!
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A
great Eagle photo by Kyle! |
Schaefer and Altes coming back from Shore
Lunch!!! |
Here
is a list of just some of the new items purchased in 2009!
- New "70" dock on Loch Island
- New walkway on "U" dock - Loch
Island
- New roof on Sandy Bay- right cabin
- New 30KW Deutz generator - Loch Island
- New block generator building - Loch Island
- New boat seating system for our entire
fleet!
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Here's
a look at two of our portage lakes as seen from the air:
Glasgow
Lake Just
south of Wabatongushi Lake, below the spillway and a short
quarter-mile portage, is Glasgow Lake. At first, the lake
seems pretty small, but when you venture out in our aluminum
boat and traverse through the narrows, it opens up into
a larger body of water. The narrows, with their swirling
eddies and turbulent water flow, offer a perfect environment
for Smallmouth Bass. The lake is filled with monster Pike,
feisty Walleye, and hyperactive Smallmouth Bass.
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Loch
Katrine
A
large lake accessible via a one-mile portage behind Kathleen
Bay, Loch Katrine's hike is not for people with heart
conditions! The long trek is definitely worth it, though.
Connected to Meath Lake via a short portage, Loch Katrine
is shallow for the most part but does have an occasional
"hole" that drops off to 30 feet. It contains
great Walleye and Northern Pike fishing! |
With
up to 10 different lakes to fish in addition to Wabatongushi,
the angling and exploring opportunities are limitless! These lakes
and streams are all in close proximity to Wabatongushi Lake, require
no flying to get to, and have no accommodations on them. Each
lake has a small aluminum boat or canoe, equipped with either
an outboard motor or—in the case of Andy lake—oars.
All
of our portage lakes are strictly catch and release!
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No
new changes in fishing regulations for 2010
For
2010, the possession limits in our area have remained
unchanged and are as listed below:
| Species |
Regular
License |
Conservation
License |
| Walleye |
4
fish, not more than 1 greater than 46 cm. (18.1 in.) |
2
fish, not more than 1 greater than 46 cm. (18.1 in.) |
| Northern
Pike |
6
fish, not more than 2 greater than 61 cm. (24 in.),
of which not more than 1 greater than 86 cm. (33.9
in.) |
2
fish, not more than 1 greater than 61 cm. (24 in.),
and none greater than 86 cm. (33.9 in.) |
| Perch |
50
fish |
25
fish |
| Brook
Trout |
5
fish, not more than 2 greater than 30 cm. (11.8 in.),
of which not more than 1 greater than 40 cm. (15.8
in.) |
2
fish, not more than 1 greater than 30 cm. (11.8 in.),
none greater than 40 cm. (15.8 in.) |
Please
note that the Brook Trout (Speckled Trout) season now
ends on Labor Day instead of September 15.
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Ray Stauder
with a nice August Walleye
Lisa
Chappell with a nice Walleye caught from shore! (released)
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Congratulations to all those who made the board in 2009!
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ATTENTION!
The
US Department of Homeland Security is requiring
all US citizens re-entering the US from Canada
at land crossings to present a passport or passport
card as of June 1, 2009. To get a passport card,
click
here to visit the Department of Homeland
Security's passport card website.
Also,
for those of you flying your own aircraft into
Canada, be aware that the Department of Homeland
Security (US) is requiring all private flights
to notify DHS 2 hours prior to departure from
the US via eAPIS for permission to leave the country.
You will still need to contact CanPass for clearing
Canadian Customs.
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A
September Walleye caught and released!
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Little
Tony, the Pigeon?
Not
exactly what you would expect to find in the bush of Northern
Ontario, eh? How this Racing Pigeon ever found his way
to us is unknown, but his two-week stay was memorable
for sure.
He
just appeared one day, out of nowhere. We noticed that
a Pigeon, all alone, was begging for food, coming right
up to people. He looked to be in good shape and had bands
on his legs with numbers. We looked up the numbers on
Google and found that he was from New York! A little off
course, I'd say!
 We
tried to contact his owner by e-mail, but got no answer.
The owner's name was Tony, so we started calling him Little
Tony. He loved to eat Red River Cereal, and lots of it!
After a couple of weeks, Tony must have got his energy
back and flew the coop—hopefully back to where he
came from! Maybe he'll return for a visit in 2010!
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What a way to celebrate Amy's B-Day!
Just off the Water!
A Mother Loon on her nest
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2009
Hawk Air Rates
Cessna
180 (2 people) $504.00
Beaver
(3-4 people) $756.00
Otter
(5-8 people) $1260.00
Please
note that these rates are round-trip, for the entire airplane,
including GST in Canadian funds.
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Name
the Spot!
Can
you name this spot on Wabatongushi Lake?
If
you think you know where this is, e-mail us at NorPike22@aol.com
and let us know. The first three correct answers get a
free Camp Lochalsh or Loch Island T-shirt!
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