I have been to Lac Kikwissi four or five times in the past 10-or-so years. The owner is Serge Gaudet and he is a class act in every respect. One year I left something behind and he dropped it off to me in Petawawa a few months later on his way to Ottawa.
We have never gone in prime season, usually defined as close to opening weekend in May and again in early Fall. We have always gone mid-summer, usually July to August, and the fishing is still absolutely amazing. We do this because the kids are in school.
There are great opportunities to catch many and large walleye and northern pike. My personal best is an 11-pound walleye (photo attached) caught right after sunset, but to give you some idea how good the fishing really is my brother and my then 10-year-old son went trolling with floating Rapalas mid-afternoon in July. The temperature and sun were way too much for this softie, so they went out by themselves and came back an hour later having caught and released 13 walleye in a shallow bay behind the cabin. Apparently the deep part of the lake also has some lakers, but I was there for the walleye and jack fish.
Best time for walleye is of course is sunset to sunrise. If you find a decent spot (ask Serge), you can expect 20 walleye per boat per launch from the dock (20 in the morning, 20 in the evening, etc.). I have heard that this can be 100+ in May and September, but I’m more than happy to have good weather, lots of quality fishing and some really nice time with the family.
There are several cabins near the main lodge, but I suggest one of the three outpost cabins for peace and quiet. S1 and S2 are close to the great fishing spots and part of the main lake, and S3 is in Little Kikwissi (accessible by boat through a shallow channel) and all are well-equipped with bunk beds, kitchen with hot and cold water, stove, oven, and 2 propane fridges as well as showers and an outhouse.
You can access Kikwissi by car or truck and no problem bringing a boat and trailer. I brought mine from Petawawa last year. You can also rent the boats and motors from Serge and they are nice 16’ fibreglass deals with 15 hp 2-stroke engines - perfect for the size of the lake. Bring a portable fish finder, landing nets and life jackets. There are fish cleaning stations beside the docks at the cabins. They are screened in but the mosquitoes have never been bad at S1 or S2 because of the breeze from the lake. The mosquitoes at the main cabin have been unbearable when we arrived, but we were pleasantly surprised at how sparse they became once we got to the outpost cabins. I can’t speak to S3 because we never stayed there overnight. The swimming is great mid-summer. You won’t find a cleaner lake anywhere. Last year we had 8 in total – Dad, brother, me, 2 nephews, daughter, son and step-son and no one complained once about being bored – not even the 6-year-old. The stars are magnificent if the sky is clear. Cabins, boats and equipment are all well-maintained and Serge will come and drop in to see how you are doing if you want. All-in-all the first outpost cabin is about a 30 minute boat ride from the main lodge with one of Serge’s boats loaded with two people and our gear. It’s another 15 minutes to S2 and another twenty or so to S3. Incredible scenery, wilderness and peacefulness.
