It felt more like October than July this past week here at Miminiska Lodge – but conditions were ideal for fishing! Despite constant rain and cool wind, guests caught plenty of Walleye and Pike. Fly-fishing anglers found success in the shallow waters at the bottom of Miminiska Falls, especially using white or olive-green coloured flies. Watch out for the strong current though – we recommend a strong fishing line! Even the soldiers of Project Healing Waters expressed thanks that they had their warm clothing and rain suits, and they too really hammered them, under low clouds, spitting showers, and ceilings so low we could not fly the planes.

Jim Gray from ON has some interesting advice for anglers:  DO NOT TRY this at home, it should only be done by trained professionals…Using a piece of chocolate chip cookie Jim managed to reel in a 36 inch Pike. The secret to his success? He cast into the pencil weeds, counted to twelve, and then hit his friend Harold in the face. It was around this time that he realized he had hooked the big one. He instantly thought of his wife – and he wondered what she would do in this situation. He figured she would say ‘drag it in’ – and the rest is history, so they say. This story has not been confirmed by SNOPES or any other source – we only report what guests tell us. And we did NOT see any photos…HMMM?

Speaking of interesting events, Zach Huffman had a unique catch one afternoon while fishing off the rocks on shore lunch island – he caught a Rock Bass! Rock Bass are not indigenous to the Albany River, and are usually not found this far north.

In the end, it was thirteen year-old AnnaMay from Illinois who had the biggest catch of the week with a 40 inch Pike. She is now a Master Angler. Congratulations AnnaMay!
…Katelyn Johnson