For those of you who like Spring fishing, and who travel to Northern Ontario to do so, you’ll remember what it was like to watch the temperatures, wind and ice conditions as your trip departure got closer. It was not any different for my brother and I, who were on pins and needles as other groups began rescheduling trips, not wanting to risk the ice not coming off in time. And so began our 2019 trip, which will be remembered as much for its uncertainty as it was for its enjoyment.
When we arrived the morning of our trip, we were taken aback by the amount of ice that was still on the lake we fly off of. It seemed that all of the lake ice still remaining had been pushed by north winds right up against the docks the plane base uses. We were again flying with White River Air, and knew that if there was a will, there would be a way. We were told that the groups would be flying off a smaller nearby lake where they had a dock large enough for one plane at a time. Sure enough, in a couple short hours we were not only loaded, but flying, and on our way to Bulldozer Lake.
As we approached our lake, we were pleased to see no ice, but the amount of snow that was still in the woods was a testament to how late the ice out / arrival of spring had been. After a quick unpack and set up, we worked on our rods and were on the water. I’m always curious to see what the water temps are, having spent more time the last few years using that information to help guide fishing tactics. When I saw that the water was 44 degrees, I was taken aback. That’s cold by any standard, and is also prime temperature for Walleye to be spawning. Usually on spring trips the fish have finished the spawn, but are still in the shallows making it relatively easy fishing, this year would be different.
Having fished this lake the previous summer, in July, for a few days, I had some spots in mind to start us off. A couple things became clear right off the bat: first, was that the depth was about a foot higher; second, was that my summer spots were mostly based on drop offs with weed beds. There was no weed growth in site, so we course corrected pretty quickly.
We were able to figure out a few important items. First off, there were a TONNE of juvenile Northern Pike who were very active. If your goal was to catch 20-24 in Northern, in numbers, this was the trip to be one. Second, the Walleye were extremely lethargic (likely pre spawn or spawning), and our most repeatable success was fishing large feeding flats adjacent to deep drop offs.
Make no mistake, the fishing was very active, and we caught a lot of fish, but we would have like the ratio of Northern to Walleyes to be reversed. Any time you can go out and catch fish for a meal, guaranteed, you are in a good place. We enjoyed a couple of shore lunches over an open fire, and took the drone out for some distance selfies as well.
The weather for the week was fine by human standards, but it wasn’t exactly stellar for the fish. For four of the days we experienced winds from the north by east, and only enjoyed two days where the winds were from the south or west. We had a fair amount of rain, and evening temperatures most nights were near freezing. Part of each day was dedicated to wood collection and the stove in the cabin was put to good use.
A nice Walleye during our portage.
One of the interesting aspects of Bulldozer Lake is that it has a portage lake available. I’ll do a separate post about our portage experience, but if you are adventurous and don’t mind some tough sledding, it was a nice break in the routine to head up.
While none of the Pike we caught were giants (our largest was in the low 30s), I did lose what would have been my personal best mid week. I was casting back to a point we were targeting for Walleye when a much heavier fish took my line. I realized pretty early that it was a significant fish, and was pleased to a least get a look at the trophy as it cruised by the boat, before deciding it had had enough. My 10lbs fluorocarbon leader (and a slightly too tight drag) were no match when it decided to take a run. It was proof though that even the smaller northern lakes have huge Pike in them.
After seven days it was time for the plane to pick us up. While the weather was not in our favour, we had a great trip together, and are already looking at our next destinations. I’ve posted a video walk through that I did for this camp when I was here the year before. As always if you have any questions or comments, or want to talk about remote fishing, drop me a line a scott@canadianfisherman.ca.