Fireside Lodge Fishing News/Photo Report 7/4 to 7/11 2009 Part 2

This week temperatures were very pleasant staying between 65 to 70 degrees for highs with a mix of sun and cloud, lows in the mid 40’s and brief rain showers appeared towards the end of the week. You could almost mistake it for fall weather, but the Mayfly hatch, which happened this week is a dead give away it was early summer.

Nick Thomas from Salem, VA for the second year in a row had his group fishing at Fireside Lodge. They included Marvin Carter also from Salem, David Plunkett from New Castle, Gary Hudson from Pembroke, John Edmonson from Cloverdale, and Ron Henley from Radford, VA. First day on the water Ron and David caught a good number of Smallmouth Bass and Northern Pike plus landed three Muskie, Nick and Marvin had three hours of very fast action on Smallmouth Bass, and John and Greg did very well on Smallmouth Bass. Second day had Ron and Marvin teaming up for a super day of Smallmouth Bass fishing catching them all day long. For John and David it was not quantity but quality as all the fish they caught were big, both Smallmouth Bass and Northern Pike. It was a slower day for Nick and Greg still catching some fish. Third day was a super day for all as every boat caught many Smallmouth Bass, too many to count. With the mayflies hatching, this great day was accomplished by fishing a sinking worm very slowly, and sometimes letting the worm just sit for a moment. This group by far did the best because of their technique and patient method of fishing. Fourth day they were dodging thunderstorms and were wind blown like everyone else, but they all still caught some fish and enjoyed the day for what it was. Fifth and final day had these fellows fishing in very windy conditions again, but they caught fish anyway. All week they got on to a method of using sinking worms, fished slowly, and they never stopped catching Smallmouth. They by far did the best all week with Smallmouth Bass fishing right in the mayflies with their sinking worms and a do nothing presentation. Nick ended with an 18.5-inch Master Anglers Award Smallmouth, which was a great way to finish. Upon checking out, all said they would see us next year.

Tom and Patti Cleary from Copley, OH found themselves fishing at Fireside Lodge for their first time. This couple had a fabulous first day catching a dozen nice Smallmouth Bass and enjoying a wonderful shore lunch at a beautiful location on the lake. Patti is fairly new to fishing and having never caught a Smallmouth Bass before she got started right by her very first Smallmouth Bass ever being an 18-inch Master Anglers Award Smallie. Second day they took a short paddle into Cedarbough Lake and were in awe of nature at it’s best providing the natural beauty found in Cedarbough creek. They had a very fun day catching some nice size Smallmouth Bass and exploring different waters. Third day Tom and Patti were off to another lake and a longer creek ride. This will be their third lake in three days. Well they had fabulous fishing, as the thunderstorms missed them, and they caught 35 Northern Pike. These two enjoyed fourth and final day, and despite the very windy conditions they caught 3 Smallmouth Bass and 4 Northern Pike as they soaked up their last moments being in the great northern wilderness of the Canadian Boreal Forest. Patti left having a wonderful experience for her first Canadian fishing trip, and Tom’s continuous smile told the whole story. Upon departure Tom informed me that he plans on getting a group of 4 people for 2010.

Good friends and fly fishing partners Steve Jensen Springfield, MO and Jon Harrison from Georgetown, TX were back fly fishing at Fireside Lodge for their sixth consecutive year. Steve and Jon decided to fish for Northern Pike in their first full day and it turned out to be a good decision as they had their best day ever fly fishing for Pike. They did not count every fish but a conservative estimate is over 40, all caught while fly-fishing. Second day was off to a portage Muskie Lake where both Jon and Steve had hopes of landing their first Muskie on a fly rod. Steve came very close as he had a Muskie hooked briefly but could not land it, and they had several other follows. Third day they were chased off the water early with high winds and thunderstorm activity, which made fly-fishing nearly impossible. Fourth day these two had a fabulous time catching many Northern Pike on the fly. Fly-fishing for Northern Pike does not get much better than catching 7 Northern Pike on 7 consecutive casts (Steve), or having 3 or 4 doubles, which Jon and Steve accomplished. They had no idea how many they caught and did not even attempt to count. Fifth day had them portaging to catch Muskie and Smallmouth, and that is just what they did with Jon landing his first Muskie ever while fly fishing, and Steve caught two Master Anglers Award Smallmouth on back to back casts, one 18.5-inches and a MONSTER 19.25-inch Smallmouth. Just one word described this day “Fabulous”. Sixth and final day they had another terrific day fly fishing, catching Northern Pike at numbers they believed to be their best day of the week, and Steven caught his third Master Angler Award Smallmouth measuring 18.5-inches, making this their best ever fly fishing trip. Before leaving they secured their reservations for 2010.

Keith Markowski from Foristell. MO returned to Fireside Lodge for his third trip with his dad Donald from Ferguson, MO and brother Danny from Troy, MO. First day on the water these three had fabulous fishing catching well over 50 Northern Pike and 10 Smallmouth Bass of which six were Master Anglers Award Smallmouth 18 to 18.5-inches. The others were 16.5 to 17.5 inches and all had very large girth. Second day was again well over 50 Northern Pike landed, and Keith caught another monster 18-inch very wide Smallmouth Bass. Third day was very windy with thunderstorms moving in and out of the area, which limited fishing time and ability to control the boat. Still they caught some fish for the short time spent on the water, and the good news is they had one day left. Fourth and final day was another tremendous day catching Northern Pike, Keith telling me they easily caught over 70 Northern Pike before suppertime. Also, Don caught an 18.5-inch Master Anglers Award Smallmouth Bass, which means all three accomplished this fishing feat. This made for a great finish to a fabulous fishing trip for Don, Keith, and Dan.

Back for their second consecutive year were brothers three, Doug, John, and David Sowatsky from Sullivan, WI, Clyde Hill, WA, and
Foothill Ranch, CA. This year David was introducing his twelve-year-old son Kyle to the great Canadian Wilderness fishing experience. Lucky of Kyle to have such an opportunity. Day of arrival they fished for a short time and all caught a fish or two. First day was a fabulous day as they caught over 50 fish per boat, combination of Pike and Smallmouth, and what a way for Kyle to experience fishing in Canada for his first time. He not only caught a lot of Northern Pike but he came up with the catch of the day landing a HUGE 18-inch Master Anglers Award Smallmouth Bass. Way to go Kyle! Second day was also very good fishing as they were one of the few groups which braved the wind and thunderstorms, and were rewarded catching some big fish with Klye landing a HUGE 36-inch Northern Pike, which was so fat and heavy it looked like the body of a 40-incher. Also, Doug landed a very big 42-inch Muskie, and John caught a big Smallie just missing the Master Anglers Award. Third day was a very tough day on the water with high winds however this group stuck with it and caught some nice Smallmouth Bass and Northern Pike. Fourth and fifth days were the same with high winds and rough water, but these four were amazing in their fishing efforts, and it paid off as they caught a lot of Northern Pike 28 to 33-inches and many Smallmouth Bass up to 17.5-inches. Also Muskie man Doug caught two more Muskie 0ver 35-inches. All left having a great time making family memories, and Kyle went out as the sole Master Angler Award recipient.


Please Read Part 1 of this Fishing Report

Make sure to go to our website listed below to see the 2009 Photos

Hot Lures of The Week: Sinking Worm, Tube Jig, Mepps Spinner, Blue Fox Spinner, Tubes,

Hot Flies of the week: Chartreuse Surface Popper, Streamers, Hexaginia Nymph, Crayfish Pattern

Catches of the Week: 20.5-inch Smallmouth, 45 and 42-inch Muskie, Over 75 Northern Pike caught in one day by two people.

Please note that we have a “NEW” email address below.

Well, that's it for this weeks Fireside Lodge Fishing News Report, Please stay tuned for next weeks report. Until then "Keep On Fish'n" Alan
http://www.firesidelodgefishing.com
http://www.firesidelodge.com
800-545-0815
mailto:fireside@xplornet.com