The Family Fly In Chronicles - A Trip To Lodge Eighty Eight

[solopaddler]

Sometimes the very best trips happen unexpectedly. For almost a year I had a family trip planned to White River Air’s deluxe outpost on Shekak Lake. Just days before our departure Dan MacLachlan from WRA called to suggest a change. He was building a brand new camp on Garnham Lake and needed to switch that group to Shekak. His brother David along with Terry Politz operate Lodge Eighty Eight on Esnagi Lake and he asked me how I felt about that as a possible venue.
I’ve heard a lot of great things about Lodge Eighty Eight over the years so I was immediately intrigued. Dan told me a couple of times “it’s the best lodge in Ontario Mike”. Strong words. As I was told “before my dad passed away he wanted Lodge Eighty Eight rebuilt and refurbished so we did. It’s a pretty nice place, I’m sure you guys would love it!”
5 star accommodations, great food at the lodge, first class boats, and a lake over 27 miles long to explore and fish? I was sold. Being fed at the lodge was a huge bonus for everyone as well (especially the female members of my group) and we happily agreed to the switch.
Joining me on this very special trip was my wife Joanne, our two kids Brendan and Riley, my mom and dad, my sister in law Mary, my nephew Luke and our much loved dog Zoey. A 4 year old German Shorthair full of life and love, she’d always been left behind on the fly in trips, but not this time. The kids were thrilled.
This had the makings of a truly memorable family trip, and as it turns out it was…



Wet Feet And Frozen iPhone’s

Leaving town in the wee hours of the morning we had two vehicles loaded to the gills with gear, people, and dog. With young kids and especially the dog on board for the 11 hour drive it was a far more leisurely pace than my usual straight through marathon. We stopped a number of times to let the dog run and stretch her legs including one lengthy session at one of my favourite beaches north of the Soo. That drive, if you’ve never done it before is fantastic as the Trans Canada hugs the rugged Superior shoreline offering plenty of amazing vistas and a number of secluded private beaches if you know where to look.
We’d booked a cottage large enough for everyone at the Wawa Motor Inn the night before our flight and we arrived in town under clear blue skies at the civilized hour of 5pm. Settling in we relaxed over a few drinks, then eventually headed into town for dinner then a couple more drinks back at the cabin. Leading up to this trip I’d been working insane hours and had gone almost 5 days without sleep so by 10pm I was ready to crash and burn. We had a scheduled 7am flight with White River Air which meant another early wake up call.

Surprisingly everyone was up early without too many complaints, and after an extra large Timmies under my belt we hit the highway at 5:45 for White River. Wawa, as is often the case was blanketed with dense fog rolling in off Superior but 15 minutes up the road it cleared. I’ve been fortunate with the weather on most of my trips this year and as we cruised north on 17 we were treated to a spectacular sunrise under crystalline clear blue skies - a nice start to our trip.

Arriving at the airbase on Tukanee Lake right on time Dan was there to greet us and we immediately backed our vehicles up to the weigh scale to unload.










I wasn’t quite sure how Zoey would react to the plane, but it was no problem at all. She hopped right in along with the rest of us and in no time at all we were airborne and enroute to Lodge Eighty Eight. I shot this short video of the flight in. Happy times!





Arriving at the dock we were greeted warmly by Terry Politz one of the owners and we quickly had our gear unloaded and delivered to our cabin with a 4 wheeler and trailer. The cabin, located right on the water was really something. Easily the finest I’ve ever seen on any of my trips and an instant hit with my family. 4 bedrooms, two bathrooms with flush toilets, lots of space and absolutely gleamingly clean!



 



With eight people to outfit it took me some time to rig all of the rods, but I took my time outside by the picnic table while everyone else relaxed and eventually got it done. There were dedicated bottom bouncing rods, rods for jigging, heavier rods for pike, crank bait rods for walleye, plus tackle for three different boats…






Finally by 2pm I was ready to fish, and at least initially my fish-crazed son Brendan and I hit the lake by ourselves to suss things out. I was pleasantly surprised at the boat I was given to use as well, a brand new Lund Fury with a 25hp 4 stroke Merc, full floor, pedestal seats and livewell. Just like the cabin it was the newest and nicest I’ve ever seen on a remote lake! With Esnagi Lake being 27 miles long having a good boat is a huge plus.





What I haven’t mentioned yet was the heat, it was crushing! We had virtually no wind and a humidex pushing into the mid to high 30’s - not exactly great conditions for fishing and more than a little uncomfortable. Still, we were anxious to get on the water and wet a line.

Skimming up the lake we were averaging 38 kilometres an hour on the gps which was pretty incredible I thought. Already pleased with the boat I was now ecstatic.

On the fishing end of things I went about 10 kilometres up the lake watching my graph for humps and stopping to fish at a few obvious points and neck down areas. Being hot and sunny I knew the fish would be deep so we mostly trolled bottom bouncers and worm harnesses, my preferred tactic when prospecting for fish.

Our first afternoon was honestly pretty tough. We caught a pile of hammer handle pike as well as a couple of small walleyes, but it wasn’t anything to write home about. Typically it takes a day or two to figure things out, especially on such a large body of water so I wasn’t too concerned…






Eventually the heat became unbearable. At one point we were slowly trolling with Bren sitting listlessly in the bow when it felt as though my head was about to burst into flames. Not saying a word I slipped the boat into neutral, reeled in my line and dove overboard in the middle of the lake. Surprised Brendan more than little and when he asked what I was doing I told him I was diving down to try and spot the fish with my eyes. Had him going for a minute or two.

At that point swimming seemed like the best option and after hauling my carcass back into the boat we sped across the lake and found a beauty rock we could dive from…














Back at camp in the early evening Brendan refused to quit as usual and came racing over to the deck to show everyone the nice walleye he’d just caught off the dock (go figure).






That was a prelude of things to come as the dock was a consistent hotspot all week long especially in the evenings! The kids loved it and it was one of the reasons this trip was extra special.

With some time before dinner the kids and dog swam in the lake while the adults relaxed on the deck with cold drinks…















This entire facility is in a class by itself. Around about 6pm the entire lot of us ambled over to the main lodge for dinner and were amazed how nice it was!

 

After an incredible dinner of lemon chicken, veggies, salad, homemade bread and banana cream pie for dessert my parents and I lingered to watch a football game on the satellite television, a perfect way to end our first day!
 

Back at the cabin Joanne had started a bonfire earlier and the kids had fun roasting marshmallows while we’d watched the game. By this point I was beyond tired. I’d been running on virtually no sleep for some time now and it had been a long first day. I was pretty much delirious from exhaustion.

Entering the cabin Joanne watched as I shed my sweater, kicked off my shoes then in a trance opened the fridge and put my iPhone in the freezer. At that point I shuffled over to the couch where I collapsed in a heap before everyone burst into laughter.




Small Humps And Little Bumps


The next day was spent searching for structure with Brendan and my nephew Luke, trying to figure out a pattern and experimenting until one was established.
The heat and sun was stifling and relentless, not the greatest conditions to find and catch lots of walleye, but then I always love a challenge.
Mid summer I’m usually focussing on mid lake humps and small rock piles surrounded by deeper water for walleye. Wind is usually always a key factor but there was virtually none. I worked my way up the lake methodically stopping at every likely spot. We caught fish, but no huge numbers and a couple of things quickly became apparent. The obvious spots, ones that perhaps see more fishing pressure than most, weren’t producing real well. The fish, when I did find them were clustered up tight on extremely subtle spots, always in deeper water and directly adjacent to even deeper water. Small pieces of structure the size of my front lawn that topped out at 20’ surrounded by 30 to 40’. Easy spots to miss. Sand points that deop quickly into deeper water are another feature I look for in the summer and a couple of those spots produced well too. There’s usually plenty of weeds in spots like that which attracts the young of the year perch and the walleyes that feed on them.

For the most part jigging wasn’t working real well, although we did catch fish (and some nice ones) fishing that way. By far and away the most productive tactic was bottom bouncing with worm harnesses and 2-3 ounce weights. Any blade with purple in it was lethal. Not surprising as for whatever reason I’ve seen this time and again in the summer.

Our boat had a larger 25hp 4 stroke Merc on it which made slow trolling a bit of a challenge but not impossible. With the shifter located in the twist grip of the tiller handle it was a simple matter to pop it in and out of gear as needed to keep the speed down.

What I found interesting was the way these fish were hitting - they were definitely neutral, not aggressive in the slightest. You’d feel a little bump then a bit of weight, then until I clued in - nothing. The first few bites resulted in missed fish and stolen worms. You had to drop your rod instantly and give the fish total slack before they’d be hooked, sometimes popping the motor into neutral as well to induce a strike.

Watching my graph like a hawk I’d creep slowly around the edges of those subtle humps always keeping contact with the bottom and we began to catch a LOT of walleye once the nuances were figured out!






















By midday we were broiling so I stopped at a mid lake island to clean some fish and let the boys swim. I’d promised everyone bacon wrapped walleye hors d’oeuvres and was bound and determined to deliver.

What a great spot!






Back at camp shortly afterwards I dropped off the boys so they could swim and fish off the dock and took my daughter Riley and our pooch out for a spin.










Before dinner I whipped up a batch of bacony goodness on the barbecue (always a big hit!) then we headed to the lodge for another marvellous dinner.








Now I’ve already mentioned how amazing the fishing off the dock was, and this evening after dinner was incredible. At any given time there were at least two fish on, sometimes three. No giants, but all respectable fish. The kids (and the adults) loved it!






















Another campfire, a cocktail or two and it was time to hit the sack. This time I didn’t freeze my phone - I was starting to catch up on my sleep.



 

 

 

 

Good Eats

The lodge experience is nice - actually in many ways it’s great and my family was loving it. In general though I’m not used to being catered to, usually it’s the other way around, and I wanted to give something back. The lodge wasn’t busy that week so I suggested doing a shore lunch for the entire staff as well as my family on this day. The day before I’d found what may be the nicest shore lunch spot I’ve ever seen in my life - a gorgeous rocky point overlooking a particularly scenic part of the lake. Everyone agreed and we made plans to meet there at 12:30. Loading the boat will all the required provisions Joanne, myself and the two kids headed up the lake in search of fish. With a large number of people to feed at midday we needed to put some fish in the boat!

By this time I was starting to get pretty dialed in, and at the very first spot I stopped at Brendan caught a beauty 28” walleye moments after he dropped his bouncer and worm harness to the bottom. There was a large shoal marked with jugs that topped out at 11’ then dropped quickly into 30. Right on the edge of the break his rod slammed down hard - this particular fish wasn’t hesitant at all!

I shot this short video of the fight and as you’ll see he was a wee bit excited…






The fish were not only becoming easier to catch, they were getting larger as well. A surprising number of thick backed girthy fish in the 25 to 27” range hit the mesh which frankly was a bit of a surprise. I expected Esnagi would have great walleye fishing but had no idea there were this many big fish! Fact is I’ve fished a lot of northern lakes and in all my years the only other body of water where I’ve caught walleyes equal to this was on the Attawapiskat River with Hearst Air.

We made another pass over the same shoal this time jigging and this time I hooked into a 26” beauty of my own.







Continuing to work our way up the lake we also caught the usual array of hammer handle pike. With a large shore lunch planned I threw a few of those into the livewell while enroute. Cleaned properly I defy anyone to tell the difference between walleye!







Arriving at our chosen spot I began cleaning fish while Joanne set up the buffet table. Not long afterwards the rest of my family and the lodge staff arrived in three other boats and the fun began. We got a fire going and in short order I had fillets sizzling in hot oil.















Terry Politz of Lodge 88 shot this great little video of the festivities:







It was blistering hot that day once again and after lunch we all headed back to camp to swim and relax. Normally I’d be on the water fishing hard all day, but this trip was evolving into a far more leisurely experience and it was kind of nice.

[solopaddler]

A Perfect Spot And A Back Lake Shot

The next morning the weather finally broke and we had more reasonable temperatures and even a few showers in the forecast. With the weather looking a bit sketchy my daughter Riley asked if she could help in the kitchen with chef Maureen (she loves that kind of stuff). She helped make a bunch of things including some pretty awesome banana nut muffins and a dessert far for our dinner that night.
On the other hand Brendan and I were eager to fish. With the rest of my clan making plans of their own my son and I put on our rain gear and sped up the lake.

Fishing had been good to this point, but today it was incredible. The first spot we tried we put well over 30 fish in the boat, many of them really nice sized fish!





With a big change in the weather, the wind not surprisingly was fierce. The main body of the lake was a sea of whitecaps so I was concentrating my efforts in more sheltered areas.  Initially we’d been fishing a neckdown area successfully but after we’d caught a bunch I was in the mood to explore.

Poking my way in behind an island to escape the gale I stumbled across something amazing. There was a deep trough close to the island which rose to a boulder studded shoal topping out at 15’ about 100 yards away. On the other side of the shoal it slipped quickly into very deep water. It was almost a perfect spot.

We quickly dropped jigs and hit well over a dozen fish, many of them on the larger side before we packed things in. I marked the spot with a waypoint on my gps then headed back towards camp. I’d promised everyone another fish fry for lunch back at the camp and the time was fast approaching.

I stopped along the way to clean some fish that I’d kept then zoomed back to prepare the feast.







After lunch Bren and I headed out again to explore, this time with our dog Zoey along. We were severely restricted as to where we could go because of the wind so we poked our nose into some creek mouths and calm backwaters and had a blast…












Back at the lodge we had yet another amazing dinner of steak, homemade fries and gravy, caesar salad, homemade bread and the dessert squares that Riley made. One thing’s for sure about Lodge 88, you won’t be losing any weight here!!






The next day was a carbon copy weather-wise and after giving it a bit of thought decided to try something different. With the big lake still being whipped into a frenzy I made plans to fish adjacent Rock Lake with Brendan. Just a short portage away from Esnagi, Rock is known to hold good numbers of nice sized brook trout. Being a die hard trout angler this was something I’d wanted to try while we were there and this was the perfect time to do it.

Problem was it was the middle of summer with 73 degree surface temps. I had zero expectations and as it turns out I was bang on.














Try as we might we didn’t catch a darn thing, but we had a whole lot of fun trying!

With the day still early we beat it back to the main lake and made a beeline for the “perfect” spot I’d found the day before. The wind, while still strong, was a little less severe and knew the walleyes would be on fire.

I was right.






















Back to camp for another great dinner then the kids decided to fish off the dock while my mom and dad supervised.

Sensing a perfect opportunity Joanne and her sister Mary joined me in the boat for a little cruise and fish sans kids…







Woman's Intuition

The next morning we awoke to an absolute monsoon. Heavy, drenching rain fell in sheets making it more or less impossible to fish comfortably.

The kids were unfazed and spent the entire morning having an impromptu pool tournament at the lodge with their aunt Mary. The rest of us lounged around watching a movie, drinking coffee and relaxing.

Finally around 1pm the rain and wind began to ebb and after a brief conference over who wanted to fish my wife and I hit the water for the first time by ourselves.

We don’t often get the chance to do that anymore so it was kind of nice. The gods were smiling on us as well. The moment we reached my chosen spot the skies cleared and the sun began to shine.

I’d returned to our killer spot from the day before and began a slow troll with Joanne almost immediately hooking a small pike. Good start I thought. I was readying the rods for another pass when Joanne said “I want to go fish over by that island over there!” “Okay…why?” I asked with a bit of surprise. My wife is actually quite a good angler but normally she follows my lead - this was a first. “I’m not sure exactly…I just have a feeling!”

I’ve learned a long time ago to never question her hunches so off we went to her island. I’d fished the spot before but only briefly and there was nothing that really jumped out at me about it. A more or less featureless bottom I figured we wouldn’t be there very long…

I was wrong.

For whatever unearthly mystical female mojo reason the fish were stacked up there like cordwood.  














We caught well over two dozen fish in this small spot almost every one 23-25”. I was flabbergasted. Finally Jo says we should get going soon and on our last pass before heading back she nails this beautiful 28 inch fish! Never argue when a woman has a hunch…






Back at camp the kids had been catching smaller fish like crazy right off the dock and were quite happy with themselves. I’m honestly not sure if I could envision a better venue for a family fishing vacation!

There was a buffet set up in the lodge for us that evening and after yet another incredible meal we all relaxed by the campfire including the dog…



















Fish Of A Lifetime And A Fine Finale!

The next day was our last of the trip. It had already been an overwhelmingly great time with the consensus being it was the best trip ever. Good times with family, lots of laughs, great food and even better fishing. I didn’t think it was possible things could get any better but they did.  

Blessed with perfect weather Brendan and I zoomed up the lake to see if we could catch some bigger fish. I’ve already said this lake surprised me with the size of its walleyes and we’d caught plenty of dandies. Still, 30 inches is the magic benchmark for a trophy sized fish and I said as much to my son. Depending on where you’re fishing a 30 inch walleye is not all that uncommon. The Bay of Quinte on Lake Ontario is renowned for trophy sized fish, but deep clear shield lakes way up north are another story. Many anglers have fished their entire lives without catching a fish that big.

We’d caught a number of fish in the 26 to 28 inch range, solid 6-8 pound fish, but we hadn’t broken 30 inches. Until today.

Sliding up to my favourite hump (I figured we’d try it first before we hit “mom’s spot”), we lowered our worm harnesses and began to troll. Right away we began to catch fish, especially Brendan. Not long into things we switched tacks and picked up the jigging rods. As always I much prefer jigging with light tackle and we had a perfect wind this day.

Bren’s rod was rigged with a really light jig - too light for the deeper water we were fishing, or so I thought. Once again I was wrong. The kid has a surprisingly good touch for an 8 year old and he began to spank fish left and right with the lighter jig while I watched on with pride.






This small hump we were drifting across was just LOADED with fish! Finally after 20 or more fish were landed it happened.

“Dad” Bren muttered under his breathe, “get the net!”

I believe that’s the first time he’s ever said that so I knew something was up. Turning to look at him his rod was bent double and looked as though he was attached to a finned bowling ball.

Needless to say I did grab the net and managed to shoot this short video of the fight. Needless to say I was awfully proud of my boy! 30.5 inches on the tape and 10.5 pounds on the scale! It’s entirely possible he may never catch one bigger…







That’s my boy!






After catching that fish Bren actually wanted to head back to the lodge. He was bubbling over with excitement and wanted to tell everyone all about his huge fish. I figured there’s no way we’re going to top this anyway so back we went.

After the furor at camp died down I asked Joanne if she and Mary wanted to go and try her spot from the day before. They were all for it with Brendan joining us so he could “guide” his mom and aunt…






We actually all caught fish, although once again the kid put on a show.













With dinner at the lodge scheduled for 6pm we weren’t out late, and this being our last night chef Maureen had pulled out all the stops. We had a full turkey dinner with all the trimmings and a fabulous apple crumble with ice cream for dessert. Just unreal!!

After a meal like that it takes a bit of time to digest and start moving again, but move we did - eventually. All of the kids wanted one last crack at some fish so in a festive mood Joanne and I loaded them all in the boat along with the dog and puttered over to the small point directly across from the lodge.

Like the dock itself this was a killer evening hotspot and the kids had a riot!














 








A perfect finale to what had been a perfect family fishing trip!



A Closer Look And A Heart Felt Thanks!

The staff at Lodge 88 isn’t huge, but each and every one of them is fantastic. A special thanks to Terry Politz and David MacLachlan for hosting us - you guys have a remarkable facility and should be very proud!

Chef Maureen was amazing, feeding us well and often catering to the picky tastes of the kids and going way above and beyond the call of duty. You are a true gem!

Finally Susan Weigel. It’s hard to describe Susan unless you actually meet her, but suffice it to say she’s a very special person. Susan works in guest services at the lodge and is one of warmest most genuinely nice human beings I’ve ever met. Thank you for making everyone’s trip extra special!

I shot this short clip of Susan discussing Lodge 88 and giving some insight into the operation:







Dan MacLachlan told me before the trip that this was the best lodge in Ontario and based on my experience to date he is probably correct.

I shot a video tour of both the cabin we stayed in as well as the spectacular main lodge, have a look!





Once again the lights go out on yet another incredible trip. This one was extra special though for obvious reasons and the memories will endure for a long long time…






Hope you enjoyed the story!

[HTHM]

Excellent trip! Thanks for sharing.

[mitch seguin]

Enjoyed it very much. Nice write up of a great trip!

[mr blizzard]

Beautiful trip for sure,felt like I was there, some of the best fishing is in Ontario

[Bondar]

WOW!! Amazing post Mike thanks for that

[Jds63]

Wow , what a great lodge! So awesome to be able to do that with the whole family including your parents.

Congrats to Brendan on the trophy walleye , angling like a pro !!!!

[TennesseeGuy]

Really nice.

 

Super report.

 

Good to see everybody catching fish and eating fish.

[2 tone z71]

Absolutely amazing ....some big smiles and beauty walleyes...looks like a great family trip

[4x4bassin]

Beauty report Mike , that place looks amazing . The video of Brendan catching that big walleye is great .

I actually could feel the excitement/nervousness in your voices when that fish came to the surface and

then into the net .

[Sinker]

Great report! Thanks for

Sharing!

[solopaddler]

Thanks guys, glad you enjoyed it and I truly appreciate the kind words!

 

 

 

The video of Brendan catching that big walleye is great .

I actually could feel the excitement/nervousness in your voices when that fish came to the surface and

then into the net .

 

You're right, when I saw that fish I lost it a bit LOL!

[bobowski]

Great report that place looks amazing.

[Moosebunk]

Bren is a chip off the old block eh!?!

 

Just awesome to pull a family trip like that together to such a place... Made for quite a report.

 

Congrats on that eye to the little big guy.

[can u fish]

Thanks for another great report Mike Lodge 88 looks like an amazing place and best of all you got to enjoy it with your family and congrats to Brendan on catching that 30.5 inch Trophy walleye as I have said in some of your previous reports he Is becoming quite the seasoned angler and the way he handled that walleye just proved it you have taught your boy well.

 

Cheers Mitch

[Crackerjack]

Looks great Mike, getting me charged for the trip in September. Looks like everone had a blast and congrats to Bren and good luck trying to top that one!

[Joeytier]

What an amazing time that must have been. Thanks for the great read yet again, Mike. I'm White River-bound tomorrow, so that got me more than a little excited lol!

[solopaddler]

Once again, thanks fellas!

 

 

What an amazing time that must have been. Thanks for the great read yet again, Mike. I'm White River-bound tomorrow, so that got me more than a little excited lol!

 

 

Good luck on your trip, will be looking forward to hearing back from you on how it went! Say hi to Dan for me if he's at the airbase.

 

I'm bound for Sioux Lookout myself tomorrow, hopefully your weather forecast looks better than mine!

[manitoubass2]

Once again, thanks fellas!

 

 

 

 

Good luck on your trip, will be looking forward to hearing back from you on how it went! Say hi to Dan for me if he's at the airbase.

 

I'm bound for Sioux Lookout myself tomorrow, hopefully your weather forecast looks better than mine!

Pack your long johns. The whole area is getting purdy chilly at night/mornings

[FLEX ROD]

Mike you are a lucky man, o be able to share precious vacation time with the whole family and to have a trip like this wow.

This will be something that all of you will remember for a very long time.

 

I think its time that you stop teaching Brendan your tricks, because with fish like that I think he has really been listening and is ready to start his own school!

 

Brendan, beautiful fish.

 

FLEX - John

[blaque]

My favorite pic of the bunch. A man and his pooch relaxed at the campfire after what im sure was an exhausting day of activities. It dont get much better than that

 

 

[AKRISONER]

love photos where the fish is as big as the kid...thanks for the awesomely written report.

[misfish]

I truely enjoyed the read during my lunch break Mike. To see Zoey making the trip just added to it. Looks like she wants to do more.

 

Have to say though,when I seen the title of your post, it brought a shivering fealing . When I got home, I looked for a picture.

 

Not sure you remember when I posted this pic of my late grandfather, whom spent a week up there with his brother in 1976 on Esnagi. They took the rail road up back then from Toronto.

 

 

Thanks Mike for the report and bringing back that picture.

[solopaddler]

Thanks for the kind words guys!!

 

 

 

My favorite pic of the bunch. A man and his pooch relaxed at the campfire after what im sure was an exhausting day of activities. It dont get much better than that

 

 

Yeah, I kinda like that pic too. The dog was great, even on the long drive. Will definitely be bringing her again.

 

I truely enjoyed the read during my lunch break Mike. To see Zoey making the trip just added to it. Looks like she wants to do more.

 

Have to say though,when I seen the title of your post, it brought a shivering fealing . When I got home, I looked for a picture.

 

Not sure you remember when I posted this pic of my late grandfather, whom spent a week up there with his brother in 1976 on Esnagi. They took the rail road up back then from Toronto.

 

 

Thanks Mike for the report and bringing back that picture.

 

Great pic!!! You can still take a train into the lodge, that's what most people do.

[davey buoy]

As many have said Mike ,thanks for sharing your family adventure.Another great fishing report !!!!