Happy New Year

Happy new year to everyone from Big Hook Camps.  We wish the best to everyone as 2015 has just begun.  January is a great month to finalize your fishing vacation plans for the spring/summer/fall. We have embarked on the 2015 sport show tour.  Last weekend the Pheasant Run All Canada show was a success and we now turn our sights to Green Bay. Stop by and pay us a visit at the Radisson Convention Center  at the Oneida casino Jan 15th-18th. I have a funny feeling the show may be a tad slow on Sunday, especially during a certain NFL matchup.

Bonus points if you can name that body of water.  Hint: it is one
of our outposts.

The Winter Road Looms

Dad and I have been following the weather closely in the north country.  Our winter road travels will begin soon after the shows.  As of right now our journey north will begin on February 9th. NW Ontario has had bitter cold for the past month or so and the winter road should be open for business shortly.  As usual, we will be transporting 13000-15000 pounds of materials.  A new screened porch for SW Lake, several new 16x8' floating docks, and 2 new boats are just some of the items we will be hauling.

Black eyed Susans are a common flower at Central in August

Nature Shots

The winter can be a deary time for most fisherman.  For me I enjoy several outings of ice fishing, however I truly enjoy the open water.  As a remedy to the cold, I would like to post some great nature shots we received this winter from a gentleman named Dan Probst. Mr. Probst traveled with Dan Gapen Sr this past August and was a member of the film crew. Enjoy the pictures and we hope to see you at the next sport show.

Ferns do not grow very tall at this latitude.

The northern boreal forest looks rather mysterious when
the right camera filter is applied

Cranberries are plentiful and rather small.
They are edible but extremely tart

It is amazing how many wild flowers exist so far north.  

Nothing beats fresh raspberries.  My favorite in cereal. 

The forest floor exhibits hundreds of types of fungus. 

Shadow "the wonder dog" strikes fear into the heart
of squirrels as she races up the trees after them. 

I just love seeing the sunrise and the stars in the same shot. 

Fall Fun

Fall is in fact my favourite time of year.  The temperatures are mild, Mother Natures colors are amazing, and fishing continues to be exciting.  In the fall, most people hang up their fishing poles for rifles and focus on hunting.  Since closing the camp, I was able to venture on several fishing excursions in the Dryden area this fall.  My primary objective was to seek out species that are not accessible at Big Hook Camps i.e. anything other than walleye or pike.

Chunky 41" Eagle Lake musky

I had the pleasure of fishing with several different people in my search for trophy trout, musky and smallmouth.  My wife Heidi and her father Martin drove up from Wisconsin were excited to see some of the Eagle Lake area.  Unfortunately, during their stay the weather had other plans and brought 5 days of bitter cool weather.  Nonetheless, it didn't stop us from hitting the water.  Attached right is plenty of proof of fish and the many many layers of clothes we had to wear.

Personal best 48" musky.  

The first species I searched out was Lake Trout. We quickly managed to locate plenty of trout before the season closed on the Sept 30th.  The prized trout was actually boated while fishing with my neighbor Eric for musky.  A hefty 13 pounder smashed his bait on a figure 8 boatside.  It was shocking to see such a large fish in that shallow of water.  However, we found most fish were much shallower than anticipated, roughly around 20-30 ft of water.

13 pd laker caught on a figure 8 boatside

After boating and releasing trout for two days we switched our focus to smallmouth and once again were promptly rewarded for our efforts.  The smallmouth were absolutely thick on 20 ft rock piles.  A simple 3/8 oz black or white tube jig boated just about every fish.  I can't even recall how many fish we boated over 18", I do remember the biggest was around 19.5".

Boated many 18+" smallies 

Heidi and Martin didn't exactly share the same enthusiasm for musky fishing as I.  So, I waited till they departed back to Wisconsin to focus my efforts on the fish of 10,000 casts.  I was ecstatic when my neighbor Eric invited me along to hunt the elusive muskellunge.  We managed to put several fish in the boat over a couple days.  I set a personal best with a 48" musky while fishing alone and without a net. Fortunately, I had the GOPRO with me but didn't get any decent shots. The hot lures for big fish were suspending jerk baits.

Around the Big Hook Region

There has been a mix of warm and cool weather up towards Big Hook.  Chatted with the boys at Sandy Lake and the float planes are coming out of the water in the next day or two.  Our next visit to Sandy Lake will be on the winter road. Dad and I have plenty of items purchased for the trek north.  A "new" shuttle van has been found for the drive from the runway to float base.  Now all we need is those lakes to freeze over.

Eric with a tanky 45.5" musky 

For those of you who haven't quite yet put their fishing gear away, get out there and enjoy the fall.  It looks like there is going to be several weeks left of great fishable weather.

Good luck on the water everyone,
Nathan
www.bighookcamps.com

Martin with football like smally. 

Year End 2014

The final picture of the 2014 season

Waiting on the fog to burn off...

Another season at Big Hook Wilderness Camps has come to a close.  First and foremost, I would like to thank all of our guests for your continued patronage and loyalty.  Without everyone supporting us, we would not be able to offer the true Canadian fly-in fishing experience. The past 30 years have provided us a novel of stories and experiences; no two seasons have been identical.  Once again, the Big Hook family (Dad, Mom and I) extend a BIG thank you to everyone who visited us at Big Hook Camps.

2014 was a blueberry bonanza 

Dad, myself and Shadow (the famous tree climbing dog) departed Central Lake on the 23rd of September.  We managed to complete several projects before our exit.  Just a few to note, West Lake received a new indoor shower, a new deck was built on Cabin #1 at Central and vinyl siding along with facia and soffits were placed on the main shed at Central. Several projects are already in the pipeline for the 2015 season and I'll keep you posted as they get completed.

The weather was an absolute roller coaster during closing weeks at Big Hook.  September began with mild temperatures (50's and 60's), which allowed for some great fishing and amazing blueberry picking.  2014 will go down as one of the best blueberry crops ever at Big Hook; in particular at Burnt, Central and South Lake.  Guests who were willing to climb some rock bluffs were rewarded with fields of blueberries.  The Burnt Lake crop was exceptional since the forest has been recently burned.  Mom and I explored the NE corner of lower Burnt near the trappers cabin and after a brief climb, we were just floored with blueberries as far as the eye could see.

A nice 38.5" late season pike. 

Mid September weather brought plenty of instability.  An ice storm on the 15th just pummeled Dad and I. Temperatures that day topped at 28 degrees and winds barrelled out of the NE at 30 mph.  Ice shards pelted my skin like stinging bees and accumulated over a half an inch in a two hour span. Let's just say there was no flying that day, considering all my flight controls were completely frozen.  Two days later temperatures rocketed into the 70's. The month of September at Big Hook has always been best explained by one word, unpredictable.  

For the first time, Dad and I witnessed hundreds of snow geese flying south across the Opasquia Provincial Park. The snow flocks normally migrate west of the park and later in the year. The Canada geese completed their migration surprisingly early, around the first two weeks of September.  We witnessed many geese flying southbound with Sandhill Cranes.  The early flocks departing the north can only mean one thing, an early winter. Let us hope the geese have been misinformed.

I recorded some great footage on my Go Pro this summer and will edit up some videos for the blog. Speaking of footage, we are redesigning our brochure for the 2015 season and would love to include many of our guests shots. Send us your photos from your last Big Hook trip, not only are we looking for fish pics but nature shots as well.

Good luck on the water this fall everyone! Time for me to sling for some musky.
Thanks again!
-Nathan
www.bighookcamps.com

Fishing With a Legend

Dan and Anne with mom and dad. 

Last week I had the privilege to guide and film with a fishing legend, Dan Gapen Sr.  Those of you not familiar with Dan, he is a writer (currently published in over 100 circulated sites and magazines), TV-host and hall of fame fisherman.  He has spent a lifetime of filming, educating and just simply enjoying the outdoors.  A quick search through www.gapen.com, you can read some of his famous stories and check out plenty of their great and effective lures they have to offer.  Now 82, Dan and his company partner "Bobber" Anne have spent the majority of their travels throughout the America's all the while journaling and filming their endeavours.

Filming during a sunset

We were honored when Dan and Anne first approached months ago us about visiting us at Central Lake to do some filming on the unique Opasquia Provincial Park.  This was one area of Ontario that they wanted to cross off their bucket list for filming. The remoteness and geology of the area intrigued him the most.

Overall, the weather cooperated enough and we were fortunate to capture some great moments on film.  Dan liked to focus on the outdoor experience as a whole, not on just the biggest and most fish we could put in the boat, which really impressed me. So many times people lose perspective on where they are and get tunnel visioned on that 40" pike or 27" walleye. Yes, we fished plenty however, we also focused on some things nature had to offer.  For example, an afternoon of blueberry picking.  Let me tell you, nothing is better than fresh blueberry muffins or pancakes.  We enjoyed plenty.

I'll keep everyone posted about our episode/videos when the editing and post production is finished.  I am especially excited to see some of our underwater footage of walleye stalking our baits on the TV.  We were fortunate enough to capture several hookups and numerous strikes in 10-20 ft of water.

Throughout the week with Dan I experimented around with his line of fishing tackle.  Three lures in particular, which I'll admit I never heard of, really produced well.  First, the Flub Dub. This unique crankbait pictured right, caught several pike over 33" and plenty of walleye.  I was a sceptic at first noticing the lone rear hook, however we never missed a single hit. Trolling this lure along 12' flats or breaklines is where it really produced.

The second lure, the Ugly Bug, looks like the name sounds.  It is a jig setup with a rubber tail that has multiple flanges darting every which way.  I had my best luck with this lure jigging along weed beds.  I had my fair share of bite offs from pike but I was out fishing everyone.

The Ugly Bug

The final lure I enjoyed for the week was the Spin-Bee.  The 1/4 oz or 3/8 oz was a blast to vertical jig on deep reefs.  Armed with a spinner instead of a twister tail, fishermen never have to worry about the rubber tail getting bit off from short striking fish.

Every year I try to find effective alternatives for walleye fishermen to try other than the straight lead head and 3" tail.  These lures previously mentioned are quality lures worth a try.  I now have several of each in my tackle box for my next outing.  Another lure that has been shining that I also blogged about is the Echo Tail.  This lure started the year sluggish however now that the walleyes are settling in deeper water it has been an absolute beast.  

The Spin-Bee

Fishing 

The walleye are well....going deeper, however to add some confusion, we found plenty in the weeds last week.  One day we would nail the fish in 12-20 ft of water on reefs and windblown points.  Only to return the next day and find nothing.  After some looking around we eventually found lots of fish hanging near the weeds.  The fish are obviously moving around so do not get discouraged if you strike out on a spot, try it again the next day and you could be rewarded.

Pike are starting to pack on the pounds for fall.  Most are hanging in foliage but I like to throw my big baits (depth raiders and bull dawgs) this time of year on deep reefs.  You just know they are hanging around stalking a lazy walleye. The topwater bite has been very discouraging this year, I have spent several evenings tossing with minimal action.  I would suggest focusing on bucktails or spoons during what I call the "magic hour" of 7-8 pm.  I have boated more big fish this year during that time frame.

Water levels have been falling due to lack of rain.  The surface temperatures are hovering around 67-69 degrees on most lakes. The nights have been fairly cool, dipping into the lower 40's.  This cold has had an effect on the weed beds over the last several days.  They are beginning to lose their bright green color, which means they are on the verge of dying.  Once the weeds start to fall pike will move to other areas to ambush prey.

Good luck on the water everyone,
Nathan
www.bighookcamps.com