I took a nice fishing trip last week with some family and friends. The gang (Tangerine Boy, Wacky Worm, and Trail Mix) arrived on Wednesday night and we finished packing. On Thursday morning we headed up the North Shore and to the Gunflint Trail. We caught a tow boat ride across the first lake and paddled and portaged our way into an area that was burned in the Ham Lake fire. We were able to find an adequate campsite in a small area that hadn't burned and set up camp on a slightly warm, but overall pleasant afternoon. The fellas set up their rods and started catching some decent smallmouth bass after a bit. I cooked up a supper of brats and a vegetable medley. It was a nice evening with no bugs.
On Friday we had breakfast burritos and hit the lake. It was sunny and in the mid-70's. It was a bit breezy, but manageable. Tangerine Boy and Trail Mix hit a steep shoreline and caught a nice walleye right away. Wacky Worm and I found a familiar mid-lake reef, caught a few bass off the top of it, and then did some trolling around the edge. We were rewarded with several nice eating sized walleye that we invited for supper. Wacky Worm had a larger fish on that felt like a large walleye, but it spit the hook after a bit. We then joined the others in bass fishing the shoreline out of the wind. It was fun to watch Wacky Worm slowly work his artificial baits on the steep edges of the lake. He caught many nice bass. I trolled behind and caught a few bass and got bit off by a couple northerns that felt decent. One took my green artificial worm. Tangerine Boy and Trail Mix had equal if not better fishing for the smallies working the same shoreline, and later they spotted a bear eating blueberries on a burned hill next to the water. They got some good video of it. That night the shorefishing never turned on, but we enjoyed red beans and rice with andouille sausage and fried walleye for supper. It was another pleasant evening.
On Saturday we switched partners and I went out with Trail Mix to the "Grocery Store" walleye reef after an early morning rain shower and breakfast. The fish were still there, but this morning they were bigger. Trail Mix caught an eater walleye and a bigger bass and I had my best fishing of the trip, getting a 19" smallie, an 18" smallie, a 21.5" walleye, and a 26" walleye, all released. It was lots of fun but the fishing slowed quickly, and remained slow the rest of the day. Another walleye was added to the stringer at some point, and the bass bit a little, but overall it was slower. Trail Mix did pick up two decent pike on one pass over a reef. Trail Mix's pike had a green artificial worm hanging from its mouth-the same one I lost the day before. He caught the pike about 1/2 a mile from where I lost it. We had walleye with mashed potatoes that night. It did rain a bit that evening.
On Sunday morning it was a pleasant day as Wacky Worm and I hit the "Grocery Store" again, but only picked up one eater walleye. We switched to bass fishing the cliffs and were rewarded with several nice bass and a couple decent northern pike (28" to 30"). We checked out some other campsites on the lake, and most were made unusable by the burn. After a bit we headed to a smooth rock hill, intending to climb it and take some photos of the lake. As we waited for Tangerine Boy and Trail Mix to meet us there, we found a nice blueberry patch to snack on. The others arrived and informed us they had enjoyed fantastic fishing for smallmouth bass, including some larger ones. They had found a bay off the main lake and the fish were stacked in there. We climbed up the hill and took some photos of the view. Rain showers were just missing us to the north as we then hiked further into the burned woods to an even higher promontory. The view from there was spectacular as was the highest spot around in every direction except west. It was well worth the break in fishing to see the sights. After our hike and photo session, we hit the water again, determined to catch enough walleyes for supper. Wacky Worm and I hit searched the grocery store again, but didn't find the fish. We expanded our search around the reef and we found a secondary reef to the north that held the walleyes. We caught several, keeping a few for supper. It felt good to persevere. In the middle of our search we were caught by a surprise rain shower that came of the hill to our west. The other guys rode it out under the tarp in camp, but we never saw it coming. We weren't too wet, though, as we paddled back to camp and made a supper of pesto noodles and walleye.
On Monday it was calm as we quickly packed (Trail Mix and I had slept in a bit longer than anticipated) and paddled back down the lake to the portages and the tow boat pick up. For good measure, Wacky Worm caught a 19" smallmouth bass from shore as we waited for the tow to show. The tow ride was slow as the motor was running poorly and the operator had some issues with the route through the shallow rock section. We got the truck loaded up, made it back down the Trail, had some lunch in Grand Marais, made it back to Duluth, got the gear sorted out, and sent everyone on their way. It was good trip. We got to say hi to all of Trail Mix's family-they had come up to visit My Wonderful Bride and Super Kid while us guys were out fishing. Sounds like they had a fun Duluth weekend.
My next trip will be to the Ely area, as the MIL has rented a cabin there and asked my family to join her for a long weekend in mid-September.
Nature Moment: When paddling up the lake on our first day, we spotted movement along shoreline and were surprised to see three Great Horned Owls hanging on a tree along shore in the middle of the day. It seemed to be an unusual sight...three owls in one spot, but we surmised that they were this year's nearly fully grown owlets, waiting for mom to bring a meal.
