Our Gourlay Lake trip started out with our usual drive north, including a stop in Barrie for breakfast, a stop in Blind River for lunch, and a stop at the Sand River to stretch our legs and admire the rapids. A few folks were fishing, but we didn’t see any success. From there we headed to Wawa, to find dinner our motel.
The next morning we hit the Tim Hortons for a coffee and a breakfast sandwich, and then it was off to White River, and White River Air, to get loaded on a plane and into the bush.
We flew into camp by ten, swapped some motors and gear, and got on the water. It was a slow morning for me, but good for Chris. BBQ for lunch. The afternoon bite was strong in many areas, and we made up for the slow morning in a hurry. That evening, we realized the hot water tank wasn’t on – something to deal with tomorrow. One thing we’ve gotten much better at over the years is just figuring out how to make stuff work, without having to trouble the outfitter or suffer:) We had steak for dinner and played some cards. All in all, a pretty good evening!
Pancakes and sausage got us going, along with some strong coffee. The weather opened as sunny and calm, and we expected it to stay that way. After a strong start in the morning, the fishing success died off just before lunch. We had to grind out two fish for lunch, and at one point we were considering abandoning fish for lunch altogether. This happens from time to time on even remote lakes. When the weather transitions, you get a pause in the bite. We were not overly worried as we had a good look at the forecast and we knew we were moving from high sun and flat calm to a very windy day.
We did camp chores in the afternoon, moved the boat motors, cleaned the freezer, and mopped the shower room floor. We also fired up the hot water tank, a first for us. The evening bite started off slow as the heat was peaking and we needed the sun to go down. Thankfully it did, and we boated about 30 fish in 90 minutes, fishing right to the last minute. Other than the day we flew in, this would be our slowest day, and 60 was the total for the day. We took our time with dinner, and had a mess of spaghetti and meatballs which was a great way to wrap up the day.
Wind was on the agenda today. Eggs and bacon to get us started. A nice breeze gave us great temps. Today our plan was to secure all our take home fish. The day started slow, picking away at a handful of fish, only one in the stringer. The weather was still in transition, we were confident the fish would turn on, we just needed to finesse a few in the meantime. We moved to trolling a worm harness and got four fish but nothing to keep. Decided to head to Big Island and the wind ramped up, and with it the bite. Fished till two and then came in with a full stringer. Chris cleaned the fish while I did dishes, generator and boat gas, and unpackaged fish. Huge burgers for lunch. We’d been on the water for six hours straight so we took our time before going out. At 4:00pm the wind was intimidating, but we are experienced in small boats, and wear our PFDs at all times.
The wind was wicked but we roughed it out for a few more hours and got more fish. With the wind making it feel much colder, we both had a chill, so put on a fire. We passed on the big chicken and pasta meal and went simple with Kraft Dinner. Learned that the shower is completely controlled by the valves themselves, so it was fun getting the temp right. This late in the season the sun is down early, so it was some chatting / cards and then bed.
Woke up to cloud, wind and rain. I had a rough sleep which is odd for me at an outpost camp. Normally the combination of activity (fishing / chopping wood, etc.), no light pollution, and quiet means I have great sleeps. Unfortunately I had a bit of a flu, but if you are going to be sick, it might as well be while having a great time. Checked the updated forecast and not only was the wind still around today, but now it was windy for much of tomorrow as well. Welcome to fall fishing! Wind is great for getting the fish active, but after a while, in small tin boats, big waves and big wind become less enjoyable.
Morning fishing was pretty solid. Started around camp and snagged a few, then took advantage of lower wind to start the day, and went to the main island zone. We put up some ok numbers there, and it was nice to have some wind and chop but not getting blown around as much as we had been and would be. We were enjoying our perfect scenario: we’d snap troll 1/4 jigs with an assortment of paddle tails or twister tails, and whenever we got a fish we’d cast around and usually catch another. It’s a nice treat not to have to worry about live bait, and trolling is a great way to cover some of the vast flats we were working.
Came back for an early lunch because things slowed. The new plan was a shorter afternoon fish of a couple hours, then a short break for cards and a snack before hitting the evening bite. The afternoon session was slower but we still caught about a dozen or more fish. We had 47 fish by dinner and wanted to beat 60.
Took a few passes around our normal zones and then decided to head down the west shore in search of a marked creek. Managed quite a few fish in spots we had not caught fish before, which was nice. We had a couple of beaver sightings and then got to the area we thought might be the creek. Caught a couple fish and then casted and smoked a few more in a tight trench / hole not far from the island run as well as the creek. Chris broke out the jigging rap and got a couple, and then I put mine on. That’s when all fishing hell broke loose.
Probably 90 minutes of one of the better bites we have been on, and by far our best vertical / jigging rap. Bigger walleye as well, the largest being 23.5 inches. Fished that one spot till it was time to go home for burgers and poutine. Total fish for the day was 100, so that’s a fun milestone for the trip.
I woke up with the full version of the flu / head cold I’d been fighting. Pancakes, sausage and coffee were excellent medicine though. We headed out and the bite was overall slow. A big weather change with wind from the north west vs the previous several days of southwest. Much cooler as well, and we banged out 25 fish before coming in for lunch. Fish and fries, and they were underwhelming. I’m usually the cook on the trip, and normally like to do a shore lunch. There wasn’t a lot of great spots available, so we just used the stove in the cabin, but we couldn’t get the oil as hot as I’d like. There was a full fish fryer on site, but I didn’t have enough oil to use it. Such is life 🙂
Afternoon fishing was maybe ten fish and I only caught two, as we covered some territory. We didn’t mind the slower afternoon because it was a short window, and we were confident we’d run up some good numbers in our evening fish. Also, as this was our last day, we were already sliding into “go home” mode.
That evening we did our milk run of our spots ending up down at the south shore of the main island and we did have some luck, but interestingly nothing like earlier in the week. We then moved over to the new spot with the creek / hole and started to get more action, but equal parts pike and walleye. As time progressed the walleye bite came on for both jigging raps and casting jigs on a slow retrieve. We did just as well as the night before, though a touch smaller. We ended with 88 fish for the day, and given the morning and afternoon were slower, that meant close to a 59 fish night.
Back to the cabin for some pizza and wrap-up talk, and then we started packing. Tomorrow we’d have the close-out chores to do and then we get picked up by 10:30.
Morning came early but my cold felt better. Fire and coffee are perhaps one of the best ways you can start a day. The whirlwind of packing was soon to commence. To help out with camp shut down, we had a list of close-out chores provided by the outfitter, so it was kind of fun to contribute to the camp shut down. It did add some extra to-dos to go along with our packing, but we had time. The plane came a bit later, as one of the hunter groups had secured a moose that needed to be flown out. When the plane did arrive, it was a seamless pick up and departure, and then the long drive home.
Another great week in the bush with good fishing, good food, and good company. If you have any questions about Gourlay Lake or any other camps, shoot me a message at scott@canadianfisherman.ca, or give the folks at White River Air a call. I’m always happy to chat about lakes I’ve fished. Tight lines, and be sure to watch the video below.