Wife’s first time fishing up North. Need Help

Hi everyone,
I am a lurker here and find the site great. Now I need help. My wife said she would be willing to go fishing with me on a vacation . I have typically gone fishing with my buddies up to canada,northern mn etc all of my life w/o my wife. i take my wife fishing locally mostly on the St. croix. She doesnt like to fish. She likes to Catch. I would like to take her up to northern MN or even Canada to go fishing. I want it to be a great experience, shore lunch etc. I treasure every trip I take up there and want her to experience it. My question is this… What would be a good resort to take her to and have a guide for a day or two half days that would provide her a experience with quality fishing. I do not think she could do a whole day guided trip. She has pain issues from cancer that has been cured so no big water waves. We went up to Voyagers nation park about 6 years ago and caught a lot of walleyes but they were all in the slot. SHe was extremly frustrated. She like to eat em!! 4-5 hours from the twin cities would be the best. I usuallly go to Lac Seul but that is too far for her to travel by car. If their are guides reading this post please respond! I want Northern MN/Canada lakes just because of the trees, islands, rocks etc. Thanks everyone!

Sounds like Rainy Lake has everything you are looking for.

Chris Granrud guides up there and is a frequent poster here. Everybody seems to slay fish with him and he seems to have a pile of repeat clientele which is a great indicator. Rainy Daze guide service. He’ll take good care of you.

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Voyageurs National Park offers numbers of both pan sized fish as well as big lunkers. My vote would either be the Rainy Lake area, Kab, or the Crane Lake Area. There are a lot of area resorts on all of the lakes and also some very good guides. For fishing Rainy, I would definitely go ahead and contact Mr. Granrud. Not so certain about guides on Kab, but on Crane Lake my personal favorite is Dave Beckman. He is an excellent guide and he is also someone who is fun to spend a day on the water with.

The VNP is a great area for all ages and there are plenty of fish to be caught (big and small)

We have gone to Totem Lodge in Sioux Narrows Canada. Experienced guides and they take care of everything. It is a little pricey though but worth checking out.

You say you normally go to Lac Seul. You want your wife to catch and eat fish and share the amazing experience you cherish. Drive to Orr and stay at the AmericaInn (aka. break up the drive for her) and then make your way to Silver Water Wheel resort on Lac Seul. If I wanted to get pampered and truely be in God’s Country catching more fish then anyone could want, that is where I would take my wife. IMHO.

i have gone to Lac Seul many times and it is an awesome experince every time. My wife likes to fish and we don’t do pampered trips and she still loves it. So I can imagine how much she would like to go to a place like that.

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If the weather goes south with rain or maybe worse a bunch of wind will she have a good time?

I just got married and am trying to break in the new wife to fishing. So far she’s done a little bit of ice fishing and even likes it I make damn sure she’s good and comfortable though and if the fish aren’t biting we don’t make a marathon out of it. We’ve done a little canoe fishing up north and as long as the weather is good, she catches a couple, and gets hammock time with her book she likes that too!

I would like to do the same idea you have. Canadian side of Rainy is my favorite place. That said there’s been many days that have not been for fair weather. Even I get tired of getting bounced around in the waves.

When I convince her to go north of the border I might choose a smaller lake. Pasha would be good but doesn’t suit your drive time requirements. Not a bad suggestion above to break up the drive wiht an overnight in Orr.

Good luck!

If you don’t want to travel that far, check out Leech Lake. If you talk to the people at Reed’s Sporting Goods, they can probably set you up pretty nicely.

Fortune Bay Casino on Vermilion. If the fishing is slow Ely is just up the road. Casino will provide entertainment, food, drinks in the evenings. Grab a local guide for a day.

Treat this trip just like you would a fishing trip with a kid. If the wife gets bored, cold, wet on this trip she will never want to go again. Make it fun and stress free for her.