Evelyn-Smoothwater

[highdrifter]

G'day!

 

Gotta give a shout out to all the good folks out there in radio land! Been a pretty descent summer so far. That heat wave that we've been told would hit full swing during the month of August has finally arrived.. No surprises there, xept that the weekends have been better for wake boarding, rather than fishing...

 

Figured I'd hold off and save the reporting for something a tad more momentous. A couple of weekends back, my father, brother-in-law and I made a nice little fishing get-away to Lady Evelyn-Smoothwater Provincial Park, and I thought I'd take a little time to share some memories and scenery shots!

 

It all started with a phone call from my father about a month ago. He mentioned that we hadn't been on a fishing trip together in a long time and asked if I was interested. Of course I was down, but the invitation was kind of on the random side, as our trips in the bush together have been lately reserved more for the serious business of the moose hunt. Rged flags raised, my first impulse was to question his health, but he assured me that everything was kewl.

 

Right away, I thought back to a trip I had taken with our expedition class in high scholl. We were The Apollos haha. We had visited the park with the ultimate goal of making our way up Maple Mountain, on Ishpatina Ridge, which has an altitude 2,274f, which some may not know this, is the highest elevation in Ontario! It was quite a gruelling hike, but the view was incredible. It was here that I had my first glance of lake Evelyn. However, no matter how good the lake looked from up top, it was nothing compared to the sight of her from the water.

Hooked up with Sean and my sister (who was to spend the weekend with mom) after work on Friday and took a short touchdown at BPS for the essentials, including a bear bag and extra Deep Wood’s. What was supposed to be a cheap touchdown turned out to be a full-fledged 2 hour stop-over, because when we finally made our way out my wallet was severely dented and my bear bag was stocked full with new baits! Blame that on the foul temptress that is Lucky Craft and her cousin Sale..

 

A long late night drive on Hwy 11 usually involves keeping a sharp eye out for wildlife, especially moose. We didn’t see any this time, but after we left Temagami, just before entering Latchford, we caught sight of what must have been the largest Timber wolf I’ve ever seen. It crossed the street at a trot between us and some oncoming traffic, slowing before reaching the opposite side of the road. What a beast! It could have dwarfed a Great Dane. Not only was she (my guess was a she) of great size, she had a great big bushy tail and a reddish tinge to her coat. Unreal! I looked at my sister, dumbfounded. She swore she had imagined it. Shame the camera wasn’t within reach.

 

Home super late, and up at stupid o’clock. Still, it was good to bask in the familiar surroundings of home, even if it meant we’d be on the road again soon. Breakfast at this hour is usually spent outside on the deck, weather permitting.. Here’s the view from back yard and the lake that fuelled my fishing madness, Lake Timiskaming.

 

 

 

 

We were off after a quick au-revoir et bonne chance, the Chevy loaded with supplies and equipment. A half hour later and we reached Mowatt’s Landing, at the Montreal River, where we were to pick up our boat rental. I had made some inquiries about possible boat rentals with Red Pine Lodge and Island Ten and a few others, but we were quoted a pretty steep sum and it turned out that Island Ten only offered American packages.. Funny, their phone number had a 705 area code.. Jean-Marc did some shopping around of his own and found a reasonable rate for a new 16 footer with a 15 Horse ‘Rude. Total rental cost: 75 bones for 3 days! Here’s a shot of Jean-Marc and Sean with the better looking boat.

 

 

 

 

Here are some happy looking southerners coming home from Island Ten on the camp’s barge.

 

 

 

 

I saw some license plates from all over. Michigan, Minnesota, Detroit, North Dakota... What must have been somewhat of an exotic location for these gents was located right at our door step. We were told the fishing was pretty stellar that week with plenty of walleye boated over the 30in range. Can’t help but feel a bit special..

 

The entrance to Lake Lady-Evelyn is just two short miles up-river from the Montreal. The narrows from lady Evelyn empty through a small scale Hydro-Electric dam known as Mattawapika. Here, a short portage is required in order to reach the narrows. For $18 return, we were ferried gear and all past the dam.

 

 

 

 

What a sight huh? A coniferous forest, although coarse and scraggly, offers lush, intense greenery, no matter the season. It’s quite a back drop against our rugged Canadian shield.

 

 

 

 

I put the camera away after a quick lunch and made our way across the lake, full tilt. Interestingly enough, the lake itself is half crown land, half Provincial park. The provincial park itself is where we were headed. Again, there were short narrows into the main body of water that where we started our search for a campsite alled the Obisaga narrows. From there, we decided to make our way into Sucker gut Lake where our topo had marked campsites.

 

 

 

 

I expressed some concern about black bears camping on the mainland, but I was pretty much waved off and we continued scoping the scene for campsites. I remembered my mom mentioning that it had been a particularly bad year for blueberries due in part to a late frost in May. Sean and I actually did see one in some tall grasses, a tiny spec of black in the distance, she was long gone by the time we reached her shore. This time the thought came into consideration and we motored on to the nearest Island.

Sensing Jean-Marc’s need to do some serious fishing, we hurried unloading the boat and promptly set up camp. Wait, I’m fibbing here hahah. It was I who was a bit ansy to get back out on the water again. I’m sure he noticed my impatience, because we set up camp pronto, had a quick bite to eat and we were off again!

Our topo had a depth chart, but it was only when we started fishing that we had realised that we had left our sonar in Toronto. We didn’t really know the water, but we had a pretty good idea of the incline in the water due to the surrounding terrain. We chose to start casting not far from camp where we knew the depth of the water was going to hit the 30f range. After about an hour of casting into oblivion, I suggested we try a different area. To make a long story short, we ended up at the only spot where I had a hunch the fish would gather. It turns out that my fishy senses were keen enough, as we did manage to get into a few fish. Here’s a shot of the falls, and what turned out to be our money hole for pretty much the rest of the weekend.

 

 

 

 

Casting my new Lucky Craft pointer into the fast water, I was rewarded with the first decent smallies of the weekend.

 

 

 

 

I even caught a few pan sized walleye on this bait. All fish were super dark from the water being tea colored..

 

 

 

 

Other than a coupla fish here and there, hook ups were few and far between. I don't think we picked the best time of year to fish this lake. I have a feeling that the fish were holding in deep water and were pretty sluggish... Eventually, boredom set in and we wanted to see the other side of the falls...

 

 

 

 

Hunger eventually took its toll, and we motored in before it got too dark. Being true to form, I headed out again for a chance at some top water action while the boys helped themselves to diner. Not much action, but I managed to snap some great shots of the sunset...

 

 

 

 

Mom had prepared for us a nice batch of moose stew and the boys had dug in by the time I got back. In there haste to get diner ready, they had spilt some of it on the floor. I was amazed to see that the spot had attracted several rather bold deer mice. I thought back to what mom had said about it being a bad year for blueberries and it made sence. They looked absolutely famished.. They were actually bold enough to climb up our pant legs following their noses hahah! Here's one of them. A vole I think. Even they were hungry enough to show themselves.

 

 

 

 

I had the grand intention of sleeping à la belle étoile that night, but decided against it...

 

 

Day 2

 

 

Bright and early the next morning... Decided to go off again for a little sunrise photo op. Inspiration is never far off with such eye candy..

 

 

The south side of the island.

 

 

 

 

The north side..

 

 

 

 

 

 

The tip..

 

 

 

 

mmmmm Gear..

 

 

 

 

Here's the south side after the fog had lifted.

 

 

 

 

Anywho, to make a long story short.. The fishing pretty much sucked that day to say the least. We worked deep, we worked shallow, we motored around into the main lake thinking we would spot boats working the water off shore. Nothing! We did see boats working the deep edges in the narrows. We inquired with them and we're told the fishing was pretty slow also.. We finished by making our way back to the falls and my heart sank when we saw that another boat had had the same idea!! Did manage to pull the first northern that we had seen all weekend just a little ways from the campsite.

 

 

Day 3

 

 

We had a couple hours to kill before we had to make it back to New Liskeard and the long drive back to Toronto.. I'll save the text and just give up the goods for this one.

 

 

One last shot of the falls..

 

 

 

 

No walleye this time, but I pulled another northern and Sean got his PB smallie!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Had time for the shore lunch of course. This time we had to make due with what we had, which wasnt much. A little Hawaiian rice salad and some cucumber from the garden... Voilà!!

 

 

 

 

All you need is a little butter and some seasoning..

 

 

 

 

A fitting end to a shweet weekend. Not much to report from here.. Plenty of sunshine and scenery on this outting to last us for another week!

 

 

Anyone looking for specifics about names and numbers need not hesitate to PM me..

 

 

tight loops everybody

 

 

HD

Edited August 23, 2007 by Highdrifter

[highdrifter]

Oh and any help on how to get the layout a little neater would be greatly appreciated!!

[FishHeadRic]

Nice report Fidel. Look at unkle Merddy with the collars up! Fishing fashons at their finest! Jean-Marc looks good! Tell him and your mum I said Hi!

As for the layout, try to start a full line under the pic line... so after the last [/img] hit enter before typing for every pic.

 

 

Cheers Bud,

Ric

Edited August 21, 2007 by FishHeadRic

[solopaddler]

Great read really enjoyed that, sounds like you guys had a great trip!

And 75$ for a 3 day rental?, that's a price from 25 years ago, heckuva deal.

It is a pretty area, a few years back I flew into Florence lake and paddled the

river down into Lady Evelyn lake, awesome trip.

I pass Mowatts Landing on the way to my cabin on a regular basis and have

often thought of a trip just like yours....thanks again for posting.

[Rich Clemens]

That's a beauty of a report HD and some fantastic pics as well. Thanks for takinmg the time to put up this great report. Vice nice place.

[fatherof3]

great report, thanks for sharing

[dustink]

Great read! Thanks for sharing...even if I don't know what "à la belle étoile" means....

 

dk

[Golfisher]

Man, it's when I read reports like this that I hate myself for getting married. LOL. Great report; thanks for sharing!

[snag]

Man, it's when I read reports like this that I hate myself for getting married. LOL. Great report; thanks for sharing!

 

Agreed,

 

Awesome Fidel!

 

Spending time with family in such an awesome place rules.

Great story telling; you have the gift of the gab!

[Roy]

Great report and pics Fidel. Thanks for sharing.

 

Dustin, "à la belle étoile" means "under an open sky".

[TJQ]

Nice Report... I love that place!!

[tbayboy]

Great report, those are some beautiful pics that really bring the story to life. Thanks

[highdrifter]

Nice report Fidel. Look at unkle Merddy with the collars up! Fishing fashons at their finest! Jean-Marc looks good! Tell him and your mum I said Hi!

As for the layout, try to start a full line under the pic line... so after the last [/img] hit enter before typing for every pic.

Cheers Bud,

Ric

 

Uncle Merddy.. hahah

 

Would ya believe he caught that smallie on an Erie Dearie?! I tried to get to him to change that dang lure all weekend.. lol

 

Thanx for the tip. I'm not sure what happened.. It's probably due to the fact that I had worked on it in Word and copied it over to OFC..

 

I'll have a look when I get around to it..

 

tight loops

 

HD

[highdrifter]

Agreed,

 

Awesome Fidel!

 

Spending time with family in such an awesome place rules.

Great story telling; you have the gift of the gab!

 

Aww Grant.. You don't know how long I've waited for you to say that.. (sniffles)

 

You love me! You really really love me! Oscar clip..

 

cheers

 

HD

[Tarzan's Jane]

What a great read, and pics too. Will be on Lady Evelyn myself in September, so looking forward to it.

[ehg]

Great pictures and report! Very picturesque part of the world.

 

ehg

[Guest Johnny Bass]

I have to agree. That lake looks like great fishin water and a fishin paradise. Great report and thanks for the pics!

[huntervasili]

Thanks for sharing your trip with us looks like you did have a good time and even got a couple of fish for the pan...

[MJL]

That was a great read. I loved the pics especially the last one...Yummmm.

 

The scenery looks amazing up there...Unfortunately finding places like that close to home is next near impossible without a homeless guy popping out of the bushes.

 

WTG

[fishindevil]

Amazing fishing trip/report !!!!!! well you sure took some real nice scenery shots,it looks so nice and pristine up there,you guys had great fishing as well and a few shore lunches,who could ask for more.. .thanks for sharing....cheers