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Dayohessarah Lake With White River Air - A Lake Trout Bonanza!


solopaddler

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Normally all of my major trips are planned many months in advance and that was the case once again with this particular trip. Originally we were slated to fly into a pike/walleye lake the last week of May but the late spring threw us a curveball and our week was cancelled. With less than a month to go I called Dan MacLachlan of White River Air to see what he had available. White River Air operates 21 remote outpost camps, some more deluxe with running water and showers, some a bit more basic.

Most of their camps have pike and walleye but some have brook trout and lake trout. In years past I’ve flown with White River into several of their brook trout lakes but had never sampled the lake trout fishing. Dayohessarah lake in particular intrigued me. At over 8km long it’s one of the larger lakes in the region and it’s well known for producing numbers of fish as well as trophy sized specimens.

Dan confirmed that an early June date was available and I quickly booked. Joining me on this adventure was my longtime friend Joe as well as BillM and Doug (Skud), both great friends and well known to the readers of my reports. Nothing makes a good trip great more than the people you’re sharing it with and I knew this would be a special one.

We had a seamless drive to White River and checked into the motel on Thursday June 5th the night before our scheduled fly in. Two nice surprises awaited us. First the owner of the motel asked us if we’d mind staying in a cottage rather than two motel rooms. It turned out to be an amazing place, far nicer than two separate rooms and she didn’t charge us a dime extra. Second, checking in with Dan we were informed that our flight in was scheduled for 6am the next morning! Having had to wait countless times at various air bases over the years we were tickled pink.

The day dawned bright and clear as we arrived early at White River Air’s base on Tukanee Lake just outside town.

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Dan showed up shortly afterwards and we wasted no time loading our gear onto the weigh scale then into the plane. Flying in an otter with only 4 guys there were zero issues with weight.


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The terrain surrounding White River is spectacular. Heavily forested with high rolling hills, sparkling lakes and very little signs of logging. With perfect conditions the flight into camp was awe inspiring.


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As we circled to land the camp was clearly visible on a small point jutting out on the west side of the lake.


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The camp was a beauty. The boat dock on the back side was totally protected from the wind. The picture window and deck at the front of the cabin overlooked a broad expanse of water and was perhaps the nicest view I’ve ever enjoyed on a fly in trip. A log structure with 3 bedrooms (2 large, one small), wired for electricity with a small generator, and the aforementioned view, the cabin was basic but incredibly nice.


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It didn’t take us long to settle in and ready our tackle. With brilliant sunshine and warm temperatures we suspected the fish might be deep, but we were prepared for that. Leadcore trolling rods, a variety of heavy jigs to be used with our lighter tackle and a couple of other rods for casting and flatline trolling.

Rigged and ready Joe and I headed out making a beeline for a cluster of small islands directly across from camp. The very first pass trolling a Live Target smelt in 15’ of water I nailed this beauty. Great way to start the trip!


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That was a sign of things to come and the first couple of days all 4 of us caught countless lake trout mostly trolling and casting 15-20’ depths adjacent to structure. It didn’t really seem to matter what we used, but several standouts were large floating Rapalas, Husky Jerks, Williams HQ spoons, gold and red Cleos, Mann’s Stretch 20’s and #9 Shad Raps.


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There are billions of whitefish in Dayohessarah and occasionally we’d catch one.



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The trout liked them as well. Jigging off an island with a 4” white X Zone Swammer Joe nailed this decent fish with a gigantic whitefish sticking out of its mouth. I honestly can’t believe this fish felt the need to eat more.



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With temperatures soaring into the mid to high 20’s every day and very little wind most of the time the latter half of our trip was mostly spent targeting trout in deeper water. We were typically running anywhere from 6-9 colours out on our leadcore reels. With roughly 7’ of depth for each colour that meant we were running our lures in anywhere from 42-60’ and sometimes deeper. Jigging was also highly productive and just an absolute blast. Joe and I mostly used the Swammers rigged on 11/2-2ozheads, but I know the other guys used Hopkins jigging spoons with equal success. The hits were quite savage and almost always on the upswing. Even though it was deep water the stiff graphite rods and light braid transmitted everything.


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These are wild lakers and many of them were sporting reddish fins and vermiculations very much like brook trout. Check this out, very pretty fish!!


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As I said initially the lake is a known producer of trophy sized fish and we did have our chances. I hooked one jigging in 50’ of water that I could do virtually nothing with. I fought it for maybe 5 minutes and was starting to gain ground when of all things my snap opened up. It wasn’t a cheap snap either, I couldn’t believe it. I hate to guess at size without even getting a glimpse but my best estimate was mid teens.

The real heartbreaker was an absolute behemoth that Joe hooked trolling a pink/purple stick bait with 5 colours of leadcore out. He fought that fish for at least 15 minutes which felt like an enternity. At one point he handed the rod to me so I could feel it myself and it felt like a cannonball was tied to the end. Just unbelievable weight and power. We had the fish within 20’ of the boat when sickeningly his leader parted. If anyone’s interested that particular battle was captured on a lengthy video which I posted separately.

We had no complaints though, we caught hundreds of fish during our week long stay and even the smaller fish fought like crazy. It was a really nice change from the usual pike and walleye fly ins I do.


I’ve said the lake was as pretty as a postcard, here’s a few shots of the terrain.


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All in all it was a fantastic trip and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this lake and outpost camp to anyone! On my end I’d love to go back again either in late May or perhaps late September.


Big thanks to my crew of friends, Joe, Doug and Bill. You guys were a blast to fish with and I can’t wait to do it again!

An obvious thank you also goes out to Dan MacLachlan of White River Air. I deal with numerous outfitters and you guys are one of the best, can’t wait to return.

For more info on White River Air and their operation check out northtoadventure.com

If anyone’s interested I filmed a short video tour of the Dayohessarah camp. In my experience they’re pretty valuable for anyone who might be considering a trip to this lake.




I also made a full length video which I posted elsewhere which includes lots of underwater footage as well as some nice fish. Just in case anyone misses it, here it is:





Hope you guys enjoyed!


Cheers, Mike Edited by Mike Borger
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Another 'Great' report Mike

 

The pattern on their back is neat for sure!! Is that typical for Northern Lakers? Never seen it on a Simcoe Laker.

 

Nice Video also, I guess I will hafta improve my 'puter skills!! LOL

 

Thanks for posting

Rick

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Thanks guys!

 

 

 

Just awesome! Absolutely my favourite area in the province...you must have kept a few smaller fish for the table?

 

Yep we ate a few, they were delicious! Except for Bill, he's allergic to fish. :)

Well done Mike. I will post some of my panoramics later. It was such a beautiful lake. I look forward to taking some of my friends back there in the coming years.

 

Thanks bud, would love to see some of your panoramics!

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