Hard to believe, but it was Sunday morning and not a soul was around. I got up early, packed all my gear, laid out game plans, sat there and waited. Those Vets of Pasha Lake Cabins know Sunday usually brings anxious fisherman, eagerly lined up waiting for their marching orders. But this day, you could hear crickets chirp for miles. It was eerily quiet. What happened next was straight out of the movie Jaws, where the relentless shark pursued his quarry until ultimately meeting his demise. (I can just picture Chief Broody’s face as his sinking boat was circled by the surfacing Jaws time and time again! Da, Dump… Da, Dump… Da, Dump!!!)
Well maybe we weren’t pursuing salt water sharks, but our guests sure had their run with Jaws like pike and walleye in the fish infested waters of the Pasha Lake Region of Ontario. In fact, this week smashed a previously held record of the most inductees into the Pasha Lake Trophy Club; 7 new members. The old record officially stood at 4. What a week!
Big time In Depth Outdoor fans and hard core anglers, Darwin V and his crew made their debut at PLC this week. Traditionally this group of 8 guys has spent their time camping in another province twice as far and 10x infested with bugs. But this year, they sought the comfort and warmth of a bed and dry cabin, they did not, however, sacrifice fishing. From what I could gather, their fishing here far surpassed previous trips. Not only in quantity of fish, but also in quality. Onaman, no surprise, was their biggest producing lake of the week and left them with dreams about next year. Some made the trek 3 times, while others enjoyed good fishing on the smaller inland lakes. They’ve all ready booked and started formulating a game plan for next year. Trophy Hats – 1 (Onaman Walleye!!!)
Then there is Mike E… hard to speak about Mike and his crew, other than the fact they are trolling gods! Let’s see if I can count high enough… 4 fish 30lbs or better from lake Nipigon, enough walleyes from area lakes to feed a small army and to cap the week off, trophy Splake. If I’m doing my math right, they landed in access of 200lbs of fish in just under a week of fishing. Hmmmm, that sounds like A LOT of fun. Trophy Club Hats – 4 (Lake Nipigion 3 Hats, Splake – 1 Hat).
38” Musky. That was Bob’s biggest as he reminisced about fishing trips of years gone by. Jim then piped in with this biggest fish, a 38” PLC area pike, from a few years back. Then, both their memories slammed head-on into the Walleye Dream Trip. Their personal bests were smashed as Jim landed a 40” pike not a half hour into the trip, topped only by Bob’s 42” pike less than 5 minutes later. These guys have been coming here collectively for over 20 years and, not only have they landed tons of fish, now they can pound their chest over new personal bests! Trophy Club Hats – 2 (both Nipigon Pike)
State of the fishing – Water temps have climbed to almost their annual max, with the surface being seen as high as plus 70. Walleyes, depending on the lake, appear to be relating to 10 – 15fow, of course near structure such as connected points and now, detached humps and sunken islands. Weeds are still producing active fish, with wind direction playing a key role in any daily outings; the stronger the wind, the tighter to shore active fish will be. Interestingly, we were crushing 24”+ walleyes over shallow weeds while fishing for trophy pike. We had on Johnson Silver Minnows (of all things) tipped with plastics, such as BFish’s 4” Moxi. On one occasion, a beefy 25”er completely inhaled the spoon, I’ve never seen anything like it in all my years of fishing. Very cool!
Also, we’ve completely transitioned off Brook Trout , local guides and guests are now targeting big water Lakers. One only needs to look at catches from this week to understand how special a fishery Lake Nipigon really is. Finally, big pike are everywhere AND nowhere. Inland lakes are producing spotty results, but Nipigon is still very good.
Side Note – On my bucket list, when I get a chance, ya right, is to find a jigging bite for big lakers on Nipigon. I played with it a little the last few weeks with no luck, but have committed to doing it on my days off and when good weather permits.
Wrap Up – Walleye fishing, Onaman Lake, Lake Nipigion and local lakes are as good now as they’ve ever been. The Walleye Dream Trip is in full swing. Our kids are swimming daily, shore lunches are filled with plenty of fish, good times and great people. Things are pretty special in our little corner of the world, anyone who visits us knows exactly what I’m talking about.
Weather is shaping up to be warm again, and the bugs, well, the bugs still suck! Warm weather, dedication to our guests, OUTSTANDING fishing and a whole whack of fun! That’s what we are all about at Pasha Lake Cabins.
Until next time…