Now that the season has begun, it is time for my favorite newsletters where I can share the latest fishing reports and wildlife stories.

June has been a busy month and the fishing has been great. At times, the top water action was phenomenal. The lures of the month are a 1/8 ounce jig w/white twister tail, POP’r and  j-11 Rapala w/ Firetiger finish.

This month's newsletter will feature two trips.  To read other newsletters, check out our website at: www.gowildernessjourney.com  Everybody should checkout our new rates: Click here.

Fireman in the Boundary Waters

The first one was with Kevin who is a Fireman from Las Vegas. Kevin has been to the area multiple times and since he is expecting his first baby boy in September, he saw this as his last trip for a while... at least until his boy is able to carry a canoe. I am looking forward to seeing him and his son in the future.

This trip started on a great note.  We were on the Little Indian Sioux river for 5 minutes when we saw a moose enjoying breakfast in the river.

Then we checked out Devils Cascade falls.  This location is a must-see.

We made our way over to Lynx Lake where we made camp at a 4 star campsite. The fishing was a little slow here but we did manage to catch walleyes for lunch right off shore.   We didn’t mind too much because our target lake in the area was Heritage Lake. On the second day we made a day trip over to Heritage and the fishing was pretty good.  Although we didn’t get the big Northerns we wanted, we did have some great top water action. This is where Kevin caught this 19 ½ inch smallie.

On the 3rd day we made our way over to Hustler where we had some more great top water action.  I caught a 32” Northern on a Pop’r and we caught 40 quality Smallies. The forth day we were getting into the Northerns, Kevin lost one at the canoe that was between 35 and 40 inches. We were catching these Northerns in small back bays on minnow type lures. As we sat around the campfire we heard a lone wolf howling in the distance. This is always a thrill.  The wolf made himself known again just before we fell into a deep sleep.  It was a great way to fall asleep to the sound of a lone wolf howling and loons singing all around us. On the 5th day we headed for Agnes Lake where we spent our last night but not before running into an obstacle. Usually when you see water at the end of a portage it means the portage is over but in this case we had to wade through waist deep water for about a hundred yards.  After we made our way across I made the comment that we needed taller boots.

Once we were on Agnes we caught some Walleyes and my first Boundary Waters Sauger. Tired from the last few days we headed to the tents for our final night but not before hearing Wolves howling again.  It was as if they were saying good bye.  It was a great trip full of wildlife encounters as we saw a moose, loons, waterfowl, otters, beavers and heard wolves 3 times

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WJ is Challenged to Impress

Our second feature was a trip with Don.  Don is a very accomplished man.  He recently retired and has always wanted to do a trip in the Boundary Waters.  Don is a hardcore fisherman as he has fished all over the world in both salt and fresh water. After meeting him in Ely, I realized the pressure was on to make his trip great!   This is a man who is used to great fishing and expected nothing less. I loved it…a challenge.

Don’s trip was a 7 day trip.  It was the perfect amount of time to do the Picto loop.

Our Destination was Crooked Lake with our first stop at Gun Lake.  Even with Don’s small arsenal of lures, fishing was still a little slow.  We caught about 15 Smallies that we worked entirely too hard for. The second day we did a day trip over to Gull Lake where we were treated to some pretty good top water action. We had a mixed bag of Northerns and some good quality Smallies.  We caught about 40 fish altogether. When we fished Gun Lake that evening we found the fishing was even worse than the first day, and Don jokingly let me know that he wasn’t impressed with my fishing spot.  However, I knew that once we hit our destination he would quickly retract that statement and I couldn’t wait for that moment.

We are packing up on the third day when we saw an Eagle fly by taunting us with a nice size Smallie in his talons. He had obviously caught it at another lake. We were blessed with wonderful weather, as we made our way over to Crooked Lake, where the water was flat and it was in the 80’s.

Once we arrived on Thursday Bay, we set up camp at a beautiful 4 star campsite that was centrally located in my fishing area.  After we set up camp we decided to head around the peninsula to escape the winds that were picking up. We were fishing along the shoreline, pitching lures when we entered the first small bay. We were catching Smallies at a pretty good clip. Every boulder and downfall tree held fish that were more than eager to smash our lures. We were fishing for less than one hour when we had our first trophy Northern.  It was near 40 inches but it cut the line right at the canoe.  Don is one tough SOB but I respect the way he feels about fish. He treats them with respect and he was really bothered that the fish had his lure stuck in his mouth.  I assured him that the lure would corrode and fall out but I know deep down he felt bad about it.

Shortly after our trophy Northern, we had our first HAWG Smallie: a 20 incher.  Before the evening was over we would catch 40 high quality Smallies.  We were also catching Walleyes on top water- which is unheard of!  I am confident about our fishing abilities but I don’t mind disclosing that it was at that point, I let out a big sigh of relief knowing I had once again delivered for our client.  When we arrived at camp this night Don got out of the canoe and thanked me and shook my hand. After a long day and a campfire we retired to the tents.

I was waiting for the 4^th day of this trip.  You see, even though we were catching some great Smallies, Don had his heart set on a large Northern and luckily, I knew the spot.  First I wanted to hit a little set of rapids, and when we arrived I caught 2 Northerns in the first 2 cast’s then we caught a couple of 3 pound Walleyes.  We let them go since it was still early. We decided to move around and pitch the shoreline.  As we caught fish the sky darkened and the rain fell hard.  We made our way to camp and took a nap hoping the rain would disappear before we woke.  Sure enough, we woke to no rain but the sky was still ominous.  We decided to fish the same area we hit the day before but the fishing was slow.  The sky was clearing up so we went to the area where I thought we could get Don a large Northern.  As we paddled over we saw an Eagle go down and try to grab what was a very large fish but she missed. We were disappointed to see another canoe in the hole so we headed above the current.  My first cast caught a 5 + pound Smallie. This was a thrill!  We were in a heavy current and I had an ultralite w/4# test and a trophy fish on.   We laughed and got back to work.  A few casts later Don said he had a snag so I maneuvered the canoe in the heavy current.  We moved above the snag when it peeled off line and headed for the rapids.  I started back peddling the canoe when all of a sudden the fish jumps clear out of the water. Dons says, “It’s a really big Northern!” and I make our way to shore when I jumped out of the canoe in waist high water to grab the Northern.  We both started to congratulate each other as Don told me that this catch made his trip.  He had never seen a Northern jump like that.  He said it was like a Salmon.

Around the corner I put a Pop’r on in hopes of catching some Smallies.  I threw it near the shore where I could see a Northern attack it like a crazed alligator from 5 feet away.  It was another big one but with a pop’r and no leader it cut my line…still very exciting. We made our way around catching fish after fish we had to work for them but they were all really good size. We headed to camp and after a satisfying day of fishing we fell asleep with a pack of wolves howling off in the distance.

On the 5th day we made our way over to the Lower Basswood Falls area in hopes for one of the great campsites in the area where with some luck we will catch some fish.  We were not disappointed. When we got to one of my favorite campsites with a view of two waterfalls dropping into Crooked Lake, Don says that it is hard not to appreciate the beauty of this area and that he now wished he had brought a camera.

We set up camp and hit an area where I did well before.  With water 3 feet higher, the landscape had changed a lot.  We caught numerous Northerns but were not satisfied.  We headed back to camp but not before we fished below the falls.  We caught a few more and head back to camp. We have a big meal and hit the sack to the sound of the waterfalls pouring into the lake.

On our 6th and last day of fishing before we made the trek out, I wanted to make sure we caught some fish. We talked strategy and decided to hit the shoreline just as we did before.  It didn’t take long before we realized that we are in for a very special day of fishing by the time the day was over, we will have caught between 70 - 80 high quality fish all on top water.  When we were down to the last bay, the last piece of structure, the last cast… Don threw a pop’r and caught a 19” Smallie.  That is how we wanted to finish our trip so we put the rods away and paddle back to camp. Don is now convinced that this is the best fishery in the U.S. and the best Smallie fishery in the world-  and of course I agree.  As we sit around the campfire we go over the events of the past week and Don tells me that he is completely satisfied and that he is impressed with the quality of the fish and the voracity of their bite.

On our 7^th and last day of travel, we are on the water by 6:30 AM. We made it out in 5 ½ hours.  When we make it to the final portage we meet a group of women that are impressed with our portaging efficiency. We were portage machines.  As we arrive in Ely we had lunch and Don said something that got me a little choked up.  He told me that he has lead a very full life but that in his later years his adventuring style has waned. He said that this trip to the Boundary Waters had awakened something in him that he needed.  Then he tells me he is surprised to admit that I am as good or better fishermen than he is…I thought that was funny because I was thinking the same about him. Don taught me lot… some things about fishing and some things about life. Thank you Don.

We are already talking about a trip next year and I can’t wait.

 

On this trip we caught over 10 smallies that were better than 19”

Most smallies were between 15” and 19”

One Northern over 38”

A few Northerns over 30”

Saw Eagles fishing, Loons, Otters, Beavers countless waterfowl and heard wolves howling.

And once again memories that will last a lifetime.

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Ramsey Dowgiallo