Moosebunk

Rain, rain, rain.... never ending rain Chris. Snow....... sure hope no time soon but, if it meant less rain I might accept it's coming early. Leaves are usually on this time of year.

Last minute hatched a plan. "Must get out camping this weekend." Had heard of good water levels on the Cheepas River. Hadn't been there since spring when a buddy and I made the rip and prop tear up through endless miles of shallows to fish the few deep eddies and pools the river offers. Who better to come with... Bren. My wife coming off the nightshift she had found a willing sitter the night before and, when she got home she dove into bed that morning for a 4 hour nap then woke at noon so we could hit the Moose and begin the 31km trek to the mouth of the Cheepas. Arriving it was obvious there was tonnes of water in the Cheep, but, the Moose was still so dry water only trickled through narrow channels, over debris, rock and sandbars at the mouth of this trib. I had to walk, wade and pull the full boat alone through and over some pretty skinny poop. At a point sometime between one temper tantrum and another bout of profanity I lost one paddle overboard. Eventually though, sweaty and tired, we got through it. Just inside Bren dropped the anchor long enough for me to jump back in the boat, start the motor in shallow drive and proceed to get the damn out of that mess. From there on it was the smoothest sailing I have ever experienced on ANY trib coming into the Moose at ANY season. Full out, hammer down, weaving through the turns and ripping up any swifts and rapids..... it was perfect. Never ever, even with that kind of water, did I stop checking depths in the areas I remembered to be shallower. Best be safe... especially with one paddle, a 20ft 300lb canoe, about a 500lb payload and home 30+km away. The Cheepas is a really scenic river. It's smaller than most others giving it a more intimate feel to travel upon. I've known a couple people to agree that there are those who think the river is haunted. With alot of poplar lining the banks when the winds blow the tree trunks creak alot when they sway and their leaves rustle, unlike the needles on the usually dominant black spruce stands. When it's calm... it's dead silent. Pike and eyes are at home on the lower reaches and it's said trout can be found waaaay up. My best walleye this soft water season of 5lb's came in the spring on the Cheepas. Hunters use the river more for Moose and grouse and it's nice that gill netters leave it alone. Could say, since first exploring the Cheepas in the spring of 06, I've grown to really like escaping there.... probably equal to the North French, but nothing as close to amazement found on the Missisicabi or Ekwan. We toured up about 3 to 4 km to our second spot. The first spot usually great, was not. The second spot usually poopty, was great. Bren got into a few surprises right off the start... walleye..? I picked a couple snakes too. Fall fishing for eyes usually sucks for me. Never really had much success on the Moose and French... but this wasn't either of those bigger rivers. We pushed up further and further on the river. From the time we got into the Cheepas around 4:30 I figured we had until around 7:00 to find a suitable spot and make camp. The fishing remained consistent along the way, we picked up mainly small pike during our brief stops. Bren did continue to find gold... and she'll need it to pay for the Abu reel she broke and yards of braid I had to cut from tangles. Ohhh well. We were fishing at the train bridge over the Cheepas at the exact time the train pulled up and stopped there on the tracks. After it pulled away we could see two people in the distance standing on the bridge and waving to us, so Bren and I went over to say hello. There are cabins at the train bridge and some weekenders catch the 5pm friday train out of Moosonee and get dropped off here. On Monday when the train rolls back on through around 1pm they flag the train down and jump back on to go home. It's an easy way I guess, but not really do-able for a lone angler out of Moose Factory with a boat that would need carrying to the riverside. Bren and I left the young family behind to find a spot private to us. Finally we found some good space with a nice view a few kilometers up from the train bridge. With all the rain the river's edge was pretty saturated but a spot within a spot proved flat, drier, devoid of rocks and the perfect size for our tent. Bren was quick to tend to getting the tent up, the air mattress inflated and all the sleeping bags and bedding out. The sun down and in the last bit of light, I was in the trees looking for dry tinder, then chopping the few pieces of the sadly wet wood I had brought. We're a good team. Bren had switched gears and got the Coleman going to heat up our Chili supper. The tinder took quickly. Redneck note to all campers out there, the lint and dryer sheets people normally throw into an empty soap box beside the dryer, well, this super dry waste compacts a tonne into a bag and weighs nothing. Helps make fire... yes it does. Building slowly wet onto dry in a pyramid, before long Bren and I had an awesome fire with a centre of glowing hot coals. I broke out my two faves... some Jelly Bellies and Single Malt. The night air dropped to near zero but we were good and warm in 3 sleeping bags. The patch job on the air mattress held up too. I had wizzed my couple beers all around the camp to ward off visitors, but a beaver coming by sea did happen on by in the darkness and give a couple startling tail slaps. No frost in the morning but stiffed boned anyways we were up about 8:00. Started with the essentials first....... ....... but afterwards got the much needed layer of fat on. The ham and egg muffin with cheese. GULP. It was a grey morning. Looking off to the west you could see a line of clouds that looked to be rolling over itself on route to us. The breeze was picking up but it was out of the east though. We ate and packed up camp. While loading the boat the strangest orchestra of honking erupted over the treeline above. Bren's like, "what's that?" "Geese of some sort," I asked back. "Bren the grand goose authoritarian master says "THOSE AREN'T GEESE!!!" Overhead a flock of cranes were circling around low like drunken vultures. I had never seen anything like it. I think they were calling out for other cranes to join them heading south. I snapped a pick of about 25 of them but all totalled there were likely around 40 birds. Never seen a flock of cranes myself. 9:00am we were back in the boat pushing up river again but, we didn't go too far. I had one spot in mind to go to, we fished it, yet wouldn't go any further because the next 6-7km or so was just straight away with few eddies and pools. Bren got back to business as usual, working hard got her tongue hanging out too. Turning around we toured back past the train bridge and when fishing a little incoming creek I got a SPANK... a good solid hit on the current seam. On a 4 1/2" WW 1/2&1/2 this good 22 1/2" walleye makes the net. On our way off the Cheepas we kept at the fish. Again, we had to leave some spots that were producing in order of staying on schedule. Figure Bren who caught the most walleye (but not the big one) should get the shot of her (our) catch. These were the first walleye we had kept for us since March on Kesagami, and they should make for a good and proper Thanksgiving meal. We were at the river mouth by 1:30 and after a feed of chowder we scraped through the mouth, knocked the motor a few times, then hit the chop of the mighty Moose. Last stop was a bay I had been to a few days earlier to troll for pike. Bren had never trolled before and within 1 minute she was saying it was stupid, and she was a caster and that's her thing, and yada yada yada. "I'm stuck" she then says. "Reel it in Bren it's a fish." "OHHHHH it's a FISHY, it's a FISH!!!" she shouts in between huffing and puffing to bring it in the boat. "Like trolling now?" I asked. We worked the Bay for an hour and got a couple double headers and about a dozen small pike. Bren got into it more with every fish. The Moose was windy getting home but suprisingly not kicking up as bad as I thought it would be. By 5:30 we were home and a half hour later into some PizzaHut. Total count Bren 7 eyes and 8 pike, me 4 eyes and 18 pike. One lost paddle, another 100km for the war canoe, one busted Abu, one lost spoon, 20-30 less yards of 30lb Stren, the beginning of throat infection, and wind burn. Awesome outing on the Cheepas yet again.

Congrats on your big fat hog Brian.

Sooooo Mike, that's it eh??? That's all? Primetime piking is ahead and you're bailing. It was a good summer for ya up at the cabin. Enjoyed all the reports. Pike.... Mmmmmm. For awhile I've been walleye'd out. Pike has become the new fish of choice for me. Favorite way is to cook a medium to bigger pike (30-35") BBQ'd smoked on the cedar plank and just before it's done pour some melted garlic butter to it. Looking ahead to good stuff in 08.

Holy doods, that one blew my head off. Yes, Wayne and Dan, good Karma... and it couldn't have happened to two nicer gents. Great, great fish and report.

Didn't know you played football.... ohh, they're carp.

http://www.temagami.net/temagami-lodges.html Here's a number of lodges for the Temagami area an hour north of North Bay. Tonnes of places to explore in this region, with all the fish species you're looking for. Unlike Simcoe and Nippissing, this lake is so oddly shaped with numerous backbays that wind would never be a problem "everywhere" on the lake.

Sorry to hear of your loss. My sympathies.

My sympathies HH.

Again all, thanks. Was the perfect trip home to the valley.

Nahhhh, she's in the livewell just in case I have to throw her back. j/k Glen, didn't hurt the back but maybe compressed a few ribs. Thanks ya'll.

Someone's got a horseshoe. lol. You're killing the waterways this fall dood. Nice PB.

Crikey Lew. That's putting the fish on the pattern eh??? Good shhhtuff indeed.

Good job pops. Two thumbs up.

Thanks gang. Mike, would have been cool had ya joined us. Maybe next time if there is one???

I left off from "Part 1" somewhere around here I think.......... http://www.ofncommunity.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=11695 Yeah, could say I like this fish photo. September 1st rode an Air Canada pterodactyl back through Toronto and onward to my ole' hometown of Perth in the Ottawa Valley. It was sunday when I finally arrived. Having been away the timing was perfect when I saw the kids because, the Perth Fair was in town and that meant overpriced rides, horse manure, screaming chickens, pie prizes, Carnie's, cotton "sugar crack" candy, and all those other Fair gems that create quality family outings. The kids of course had fun and got high. Through the week we got in a few more outings too. Conlon Farms in Perth is a great spot to take the kids to in the mornings while you have a cup of Joe and wake up. But seriously, I was in town for about two days when I needed a fishing fix, and so the first outing I hit my little honey hole in the float tube for about 4 1/2 hours and no shiznitin' yas pounded about 25 largemouth, 10 smallies or so, 3 pike, a perch, a sunfish and a rocky. Ahh, just as I remembered it. Nothing of real size as the lake is pretty much a numbers game. Two days passed by and I was just ripped about getting out with Capn' RJ for a shot at a muskie. In the past our luck has been a little hit and miss, but thinking about it now, fishing gar in nearly freezing rain wasn't really primetime, and, we got some lakers one other day. A full day of trolling proved tough for fishing but in my opinion was a totally worth every minute. Don't think there were too many moments of silence at all as we caught up on just about everything. During the day we sort of ended up shallow; I think accidentally, in about 4 feet of water. The boat skimmed a weedbed when the reel peeled on the troll. We thought for a second we were bottom snagged when a muskie boiled behind the boat. A nice sized fish it was. Setting the hook the fish came unpegged... and that was that. The consolation prize for the day ended up being a sweet, healthy pike. RJ and I made plans then and there... (or, he might have demanded it) that we fish together the following week. Not the dumb-donkey sort, I smartly jump at any chance to fish with my bud. The weekend of the 8th was quickly approaching. I had a big date so-to-speak. My oldest friends had hatched a plan to get my butt out of town for some sport, dining and debauchery. That saturday the first beer got cracked around noon and I kept pouring them along with a few single malts past the lips until sometime around 3:00am. Ended up in Hull. Anyone who knows Hull knows exactly where we went after crossing at the King Edward. G-DARN I had great time.... and that's all I have to say about that. Here's all I can and will show of the day. Soooo, I got my party but my littlest one was pushing the big four years. At some point we had to give her some more "sugar crack" so we figured why not do that over at my Grandmother's place. My G-Ma had a wee birthday cake of her own over at our place earlier in the vacation, so, parties were all even in the end. Later in the week I got royally scarewdeded. Budget Rent-A-Car at the Vancouver Airport charged nearly a couple grand to my Visa for damages the BC gang and myself know we did not do. I was so immensely Pd-off it was hard to concentrate on other important things. I will warn all people now, leave nothing behind, read every fine print, and never trust these criminals. To soothe my achy soul RJ came to the rescue that same week. The plan was froggin' in the slop for some largies and I thought... right on! In the float tube I don't usually get too deep into the real thick stuff, my vantage point that low on the water kind of sucks for site fishing, hook setting and draggin' fish out, so I figured this would be kind of a new experience. The Capn' knows his bass too. Birdee came along for the adventure as well and I must say, it's great fishing times when this gal is around. She could have been the luck charm we needed to step up to the next level. Who knows..? This fish was a first cast fish. Loved it. RJ laughed as I huffed and puffed to keep the fishes head up. I was like... this is fun bass fishing. As the evening went on Birdee pulls this saweet hog from the pads.... .... but in the witching hour, casting a magical long bomb, the broom swept this fat toad out of it's hole. Muhahahahaha!!! Found a new appreciation for bass fishing, that's for sure. Thanks team. Finally, my big day came. Long time in the making this one. My marriage to Brenda. This catch surpasses all others by a KAZILLION light years. One of the greatest days of my life our wedding day was perfect. Soooo perfect it was honestly like a dream. The ceremony, the dinner, the family and friends who attended, for us it blew away even our highest expectations. An awesome event. So amazing to me that come the end of the night I wished it had been a 3 day wedding, as, it was over in a flash. Brenda and my girls were the most stunning people on the planet that day. I'll share some pics if ya don't mind seeing something other than fish. Brilliant. Stunningly sexy. Haha. Adorable. True. Complete. Bren and I. What would have been a Moosebunk wedding without some fish... here's a little something called our seating chart. A special and unforgettable day. The vacation rolled on. All the stress of getting married I need a fix, ASAP. Figured I get the girls into some "sugar crack" and take them along for some "fish heroin." Happily found a nice smallie while "tripping out." The girls... well Summer the pannie princess bagged her limit while Leah the newbie caught her first fish... a perch it was, followed up with her second fish, this smallmouth. We ended up staying out a Dalhousie Lake Lodge in one of their cabins come one night. After fishing and exploring some backroads the girls stayed up late to burn some whats his name "sugar crack" mallows. The next day we dropped the girls off back at my folks place so to attend my good friends Craig and Mel's wedding. Craig and I had actually a dual bachelor party two weeks earlier... that was the night of the unspeakables, and I've got nothing more to say about that. It was a breakdown of a week of sturgeon in BC, to the bachelor party weekend, to our wedding weekend, to Craig's wedding weekend. Man, party, party, party... and fish. Perrrrrrrrrfect says the Chronz. More Newlyweds and family coming together. Congrats. Bren was "smoking" for a second weekend in a row. And a "stunningly sexy" flower child was found frolicing amongst the daisies... or sunflowers or whatever. Getting malted, hopped and barley right out I'd bet. We shut the place down... late. It was around this time in the holiday the Capn' and I set out on one more voyage. Taking to the troll with just over 2 hours time to fish we were optimistic. RJ picked his route for awhile but with the sun beginning to set we changed things up and I took the Capn's chair for a turn. No sooner did we make the switch that we picked up a small pike. Capn' says, "you're sticking to driving now." Minutes passed when the sonar first lit up with baitfish then we got a long period of solid marks on bottom. BZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzz. The reel peeled and a muskie jetted straight back ripping off a good length of line. The hook was set, the fight was on and before to long I was nearly tearfully overjoyed like on my wedding day. The Capn' RJ and I found my first muskie. The experience, unfreakingforgettable. What a first!!! Marriage, family, sturgeon, muskie, bass, salmon... memories to last a lifetime.

Nuthin' brings in fish like live bait. Minnows mostly, sometimes worms, rarely leeches and frogs. Sheer numbers baby. I'm a fan of these most tried, tested and true lures of all time.

August 24th my much needed 5 week holiday began. First stop Fraser River Fishing Lodge in Agassiz BC to test the biceps tuggin' and warin' with some white sturgeon. This was a different kind of trip. Back in 2004 after returning from FRFL I posted the report back at Fish-Hawk to online friends. Before I knew it, there was interest from a few to plan a new trip. Speaking with FRFL's owner and operator Frank Staiger the man was all too accommodating of my requests for a 2007 group to fish the Fraser. Nearly 3 years had to go by in the meantime. The process of organizing and promoting was... needless to say... interesting. It didn't come without a few road bumps, but in the end worked out perfectly for a group of seven committed and eager anglers. I will be sure right now to thank Simon, Dean, Chris, Diane, Hoss and Scotty for taking the chance by trusting my word, standing by and sticking with the plan, and finally joining me on what was a truly remarkable experience for us all. Thanks guys and Di. Anyway, getting to BC was getting to BC and come sunday evening August 26th the seven of us rested our feet under the majestic views of mountains bordering the Fraser River valley. The lucky gang of seven easily moulded into a solid and respectful group. It was quickly realized that all of us were in for a great time. The lodge is a stunning world class facility, the beers on tap are mint, the food... as I remembered... amazing, the staff all smiles, the atmosphere rich. Fishing being the only uncontrollable variable, without it, everything makes the grade the minute you arrive. Simon, Dean, Chris, Me, Hoss, Diane and Scotty. After a dinner of corn & potato chowder, skewered bison with breaded carmalized onions, a cucumber-tomato-strawberry-feta-shrimp salad, the best ribs and double baked potatoes ever, and finally chocolate volcano cake with the fullest of bellies we retired for the night. Wiping the cobwebs from our eyes next morning, bison and anglers grazed before at least the anglers made out to fish our first day for sturgeon. The launch a 5 minute walk from our rooms we were in the jetboats in no time. Didn't take too long at all really, only 30+ months. Feeeeeeesh ON!!! There is no fresh water fish by comparison. Anyone who has fished sturgeon can attest to their unparalleled strength. These fish can dog like lakers, peel like salmon, headshake like steroidal eyes but best of all leap like... like sturgeon. A number of first and great fish were caught on day one by the group. My order in this report may get a little mixed but the jist of it is, they were caught. Chris with his first... a 48 incher. Dean with 69 inches of great white. Monster tugger. Dean had lost a fish of 8+ feet early one morning after a long and tiring battle. Fish jumped and spit the single barbless hook right at him. Scotty with a runt... his long lost brother. Haha... dig. Hossticle finds a nut bigger than his own. Diane gives hugs to her second fish. She caught the smallest sturgeon ever day one then makes up for it with this 6 footer. My first fish ties my personal best at 6 feet. Had to be the hulk and pick this bratty b-terd up for the ensuing body slam back into the depths from which it came. End of day one back at the lodge we all had a bite to eat. The bison had grass while we enjoyed a buffet of traditional open smoked salmon, bear kabobs, jumbo garlic shrimp, ribeye steaks, corn on the cob and peach cobbler. After that it was into the chairs to digest what an amazing day it had all been. Next morning our friends were up and out of bed. We found them through the fog to say "see ya" before heading back out for more sturgeonionees. When the fog cleared the sturgeonionees found us too. Tap, tap, tap on the tip. ALL HE!! BROKE LOOSE. (actually, it broke loose for some of us for the next two days. I'll keep this report rolling with the pics in fast forward) Simon with a seasoned trigger finger perfected the sturgeon jump shots. They were easily the best action shots of the trip. Kudos dood. This time, fish jumping and thrashing were not so easily lost. Our Super 7 won the lotto. Here's some of the winnings. The Scotty Rocket. Simon with a phat 81" Cadillac. Simon launches this torpedo back into reproduction anutha day. Picked up a PB 73" of my own. Then, Diane unleashes her beast(s) charming all onlookers and from the back of the jet passionately drives 130 pound test of fury into the shallow runway. A 90" beautiful beeyotch of a lady white sturg taps that tar mat exhausted from it's day in the ring with Diane. Our lady takes top honors and wins the championship belt with this victory. But it wasn't over yet. We had some eating to do back at the lodge......... garlic scallops wrapped in smoked sockeye with maple nut sauce, skewered shrimp caesar salad, baked halibut, shrimp and scallop crab cakes, oysters, salmon chowder and a few other delectables, it wasn't MacDonalds that's for sure. A wilderness fishing trip deep into the mountains up the Pitt River was in the plans. Our herd was ready, as per usual. A jet boat up the Pitt wasn't in the cards as the water's were just too low. Our guide Harry had a back up plan though, and so once crossing Pitt Lake we took to his vehicle and made our way up the areas logging roads. The Pitt River area was breathtaking. Dolly varden, bull and cutthroat trout and sockeye were up in the pools eating and mating. Scotty and I ended up walking about 6km of the river just because. Everyone caught some smaller fish but the season was just not ripe for the Pitt. We were between runs of salmon with the exception of the non-biting sockeye. Well, non-biting except for one Chris tempted. Even though the fishing proved tough, I don't think there could be any worse places on earth to deal with that. Later, back at the lodge it was steaks and spuds... but I think you can imagine how perfect those steaks and spuds were done. To sleep under the setting sun. Our last day of fishing was our fun day of fishing. The salmon on the Fraser had acutally been closed to angling all week but finally opened on our last day. So, as a complete group we together took to some bar fishing for chinooks. The fishing didn't disappoint, and neither did the company. In fact, we all nailed a salmon of our own with Scotty getting his in the final minutes to fully and completely finish the day. Lost my shoe, then this fish too. Haha. A great day. Back at the lodge the chef had prepared lamb for us. I had made the request a few days earlier and was sure glad I did. Another great meal by our gracious hosts at FRFL. The following morning early, we said our goodbye. There are some things in life if you don't do you will regret it later on, and so for many a diehard anglers, not catching a sturgeon will certainly be one of those things. Thanks to the 2007 BC Gang, Frank and Fraser River Lodge for our great experience. Here's the link to Part 2. http://www.ofncommunity.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=11733

Only Ontario salmon I've ever caught were in the Bronte and Ganny Rivers in the fall. Man, it was fun... such a change of pace from dink eye after dink eye all summer long. Get'em on the fly and float gear, good times. This pier chucking I've tried once but never got a fish... imagined it would be more fun being that the fish could really have space to tour around and fight. Nice feesh CCM. Got'em from Gumbleberry didn't ya??? hehe

http://www.panasonic.ca/English/audiovideo...ill/DMCTZ2.asp# Gone through a few in recent years. Fuji...... OK but sharpening pics lead to striations in skylines worse than any other. Weird. Canon....... OK but crappy image viewer. More expensive models take nice shots as I'm learning, and have better veiwers. Pentax Optio....... garbage. 9-12 shots per 2 AA's. Sony... think it was, maybe it was a Kodak. DanC has/had something like it. 3MP and one of the older digi models. Anyway, always liked that camera. I now have my second Lumix. This one is $349 at Futureshop Buck and so far is mint. A must have now for me is the Lithium rechargeables that last waaaaaay longer than any AA's and charge quick. I also need batteries that work in the cold and AA's are totally unreliable once the camera comes out of the pocket for any length of time. My Lumix on many days I just leave wrapped in a towel in the fishing box when on the ice. Leica lenses rule too IMO. My older 4MP Lumix has never steered me wrong, so far I'm liking the model above as well. Will be posting big reports soon with some pics from both Lumix cameras.

Great fireplace and stone work Wayne. Will have to hunt down the other reports, been away awhile and trying to catch.

Super report Wayne. Awesome laker fishing and an 81 year old tubing is one heckuva feat.

Great ski Tbaydood.

Wilson. hehehehe. Great shots, nice smallies and pike too.

Enjoyed this one Jen. Great pics to help tell the story. Plenty hunting here at home but I just can't bring myself to stop fishing to try it. Everyone turns to their guns for moose in the fall and that's usually when pike fishing turns on too and you have no one competing for the fish. Birds, hmmmm........... do ya really like the taste anyways???