Manitoulin, Sault Ste Marie, Batchawana trip report

[huzzsaba]

Finally I got a chance to write a little something about my recent trip with the family and friends to a place I have gone in my chidlhood every year to visit my grand uncle, Sault Ste Marie. My memories were vague since I was very young when we made the yearly trek from Montreal, so I wanted to refresh them a little. This trip was overdue and I am happy to have done it this year finally. We made the trip at the end of July and the weather was perfect.

 

Day 1-2: We headed for tobermory in order to catch the ferry for Manitoulin. I have never been to Manitoulin so that was something I was really looking forward to and the perfect way to start the trip. The kids loved the ferry ride and the very knowledgeable guide on the ferry made the trip that much better with the his loads of knowledge about the georgian bay and surrounding areas. While on the ferry, I called my grand uncle who now lives in BC and told him that were going to visit Sault to refresh our childhood memories and he was the happiest person .

 

Once we arrived at Manitoulin, we headed to manitoulin Resort and checked in. I have never camped at a private campground so it was a unique feel having so many seasonals around with their decorated yards and trailers. The sky at night and stargazing was the best I have ever witnessed .

 

The highlight of our stay at Manitoulin was the fishing charter on georgian bay out of manitowaning bay. We found Luke from Wasse Tours, and he took us out for a good 3-4 hours. Luke is a amazing guy and we talked the whole time and even had a chance to navigate the boat while he setup the downriggers. Sadly we only caught one lake trout but all in all a charter that I would highly recommend and his rates are excellent.

 

Day 3-4: We headed out to Sault Ste Marie where we stayed 2 nights at the Sleep Inn which I highly recommend for their cleanliness and low rates. Plus they are right on the St Marys River which is a hot spot for trout, Salmon and Walleye. We checked out the Sault and refreshed my long lost memories of the place. It is obviously much bigger than what I remembered it to be and I must say the people are the friendlies I have ever met.

 

We ventured out towards Batchawana bay on the day 4 and spent the afternoon there like we use to back in the days.The water was way too cold to swim in. I don`t know how we used to do it back then, but then again my daughter doesnt seem to care whether the water is cold or very cold lol. I prefered to just do the picknicking part. The weather that day was on the cooler side so we actually had to move the picnic table across the road from the beach to the other side so that we were in the sun since the BBQ grill wouldnt heat up enough due to the wind blowing near the water. Fun times!

 

Earlier that day, I sent Tyler Dunn, a fishing guide from Sault and a member here on OFC a text asking him about spots to fish for trout. He mentiones the spots in a article published somewhere on the net and I could not figure out the directions to the spot. Anyways he was kind enough to text me back saying he was heading out to that spot that evening and that we could meet up with him. We were still at Batchawana when I got his text and he said he would meet me there in an hour! So we head back to Sault from Batchawa and go the the spot where the trail starts to the fishing spot and then we stood there confused. I am pretty good with directions but this was something that you would only know if you go there often. Anyways i call tyler and he tells me to go right, left, right, left etc etc and a few other turns lol. 30 mins and probably 2 kms later ( I may be exagerating lol) we find him. I must say what a wonderful and helpful person Tyler is. He advised me to use my little cleo spoon but it got snagged after a few attemps, so he rigged up my rod with a leader line, float and a worm. Unfortunately it was getting late already and having to walk back to the car in unfamiliar territory was not appealing in the dark, so we left early after having fed the trout my worm lol. Tyler meanwhile caught at least 3 fish during the hour we were there! As we were leaving, he also showed us the hotspot where we could catch walleye. I planned to get up early the next morning to go for the walleye but my eyes wouldnt open after 4 busy days of travelling. We checked out the boardalk along the St Marys river the next day before heading out of town. It was a memorable time in the Sault and Tyler promised to hook us up again when we return, hopefully soon!

 

Day 5: We left Sault Ste Marie and headed towards Algonquin PP. Having only been there briefly for a few hours a few years ago, we decided to explore it a little more. On our drive towards algonquin, we checked out the chutes Provincial Park and the beautiful falls. We also stopped for dinner briefly in Sudbury. The drive was beautiful as was the rest of the drive throughout the trip. However I must recommend not to drive at night as it can become dangerous and scary on some of the roads. On our way to algonquin, we had to take highway 3 which crosses over from 400 to 11, and the whole 30 or so kms, me and my wife sat quietly each knowing what the other was thinking but not uttering a word. The road was pitch dark, with no signs of any other cars, and the numerous inclines, declines, sharp curves etc made for a white knuckled drive . Not to mention the thoughts going through my mind, what if something happens to the car, or what if something jumps out onto the road including ghostly figures lol. My imagination was going all over the place during the drive. The only scarier drive we ever encountered was on the cabot trail in Nova Scotia which also we did at night unfortunately. We finally made it to the hotel in huntsville and I was never happier to make it to my destination . I make it a point of not driving at night unless I have to and that night was one to remember unfortunately for not being fun lol. I am pretty sure it is scenic during the day though!

 

Day 6: we head out to Algonquin and on the way there I convinced my wife to let us camp overnight. We found a nice site in Canisbay campground and must say the campground is very nice and the facilties very clean. We stayed the night and had one of the most peaceful sleeps while camping. We explored the park the following day and returned back home.

 

All in all, a very memorable trip and although we didn`t do much fishing, we enjoyed every moment of the trip and can`t wait to do it again. Perhaps the next time we do visit is when I do a longer trip cross Canada. Who knows, we may do it every year.

 

Thank you all for the advice and help in my previous threads on helping prepare for this trip . Thank you Tyler for your help in Sault . Look forward to meeting you again when we come back!

Edited September 8, 2015 by huzzsaba

[Old Ironmaker]

Thanks for sharing huzzaba. Sounds like you have the fish fever.

[BillM]

Good god man, TAKE SOME PICS! I hate reports with nothing but txt, lol.

[Rod Caster]

Meeting Tyler alone would have made the trip worthwhile haha.

 

That whole hwy 17-superior north corridor is an amazing spot to spend at least a few days and play.

[fishnsled]

No pics? It never happened, you'll have to plan to do it next year. Sounds like you had a great time and certainly a pleasure to meet Tyler. Some beautiful country up that way, thanks for the report.

[huzzsaba]

I have some pics but not many. and it's always a struggle posting photos on here due to the size restrictions. I will see if I can put some photos up.

[Gnote]

Try photobucket, i got the app just so i could post pics on this site.

Sounds like a good time!

[limeyangler]

Great report. I gotta say we have some talented writers here on OFC! Great read!

 

If you are heading all the way across Canada be sure to drop by, it gets lonely up here in the North….lol!

 

 

 

Try photobucket, i got the app just so i could post pics on this site.
Sounds like a good time!

 

 

 

Not sure if you need this or whether it helps but I agree with Galliie, photo bucket works great with large size pics, I did a little video ( I always do) a while back on how to use it.

 

 

 

[TDunn]

Huzzsaba, it was my pleasure buddy! Next time you are up in this area bring some waders! Ha!! Hopefully the rapids will be lower, so it's not so insane for wading.

Thanks guys for the kind words, always willing to help a board member out....

Hopefully get a report up soon full of some fish porn,

 

TDunn

Edited September 14, 2015 by TDunn