Fly Fishing Adventure proves successful!
A lucky group of guests teamed up with our Fly Angling Resource group last week and flew out to Miminiska Lodge along the Albany River. The Goal: Find those legendary trophy Brook Trout while exploring the fast moving cold waters of the little “feeder” rivers that flow into the Albany. Oh, and catch Walleye and Pike as well.
Tom of Appleton Wisconsin, a guest who has worked the fly rod for four decades, told us he caught the brook trout of lifetime. Tom shares a bit more about his adventure in this week’s podcast. Together with Thunder Bay’s Scott Earl Smith and sportswriter and CBC broadcaster Gord Ellis, Tom took on the Keezhik River along with first nation guides to manage the canoes and point out casting targets. The photos tell the story. Both Smith and Ellis reported brook trout fishing a bit more challenging than they encountered earlier in the year. Stream levels were down and water temperatures were up.
Another Tom, this time Dr. Tom D from Charlotte, North Carolina took on the Albany itself. A new comer to fly angling, Dr. Tom got a lot of “one on one” coaching from Mark Snyder of www.NativeBrookTrout.com. Dr D also found time for a little big pike fishing…and, as they say: a picture’s worth a thousand words. Oh by the way…it was 41.5 incher earning him Wilderness North Master Angler status.
In General: We had a mix of summery weather with mostly very warm days and clear skies … to one day of early fall, overcast and windy conditions. Guess which day was the best for fishing? YUP…bright days seem to be better for good photos, while that overcast sky and “walleye” chop are great for fishing.
A special thanks to our resource team (pictured left to right) Bill Sherer, Mark Snyder, Peggy & Gary Kokaisel, Scott Earl Smith, and Gord Ellis for their willingness to teach others while learning more about this remarkable fishery. Over the next few months we will be developing a management plan that allows us to continue to introduce anglers to this world class fishing, while taking photographs and leaving only tiny footprints.