Musky fishing experience of a lifetime

Nestled in the heart of Ontario’s northland is a hidden gem, an incredible fishing lodge that offers the eager angler the golden opportunity to catch and release a heavyweight champion of all Canadian freshwater game fish, the musky.

Manitou Weather Station Lodge is a premier wilderness lodge, boasting world class musky fishing. "Musky" is short for muskellunge, and Manitou Lake has everything I could want to chase on the fly, particularly the largest member of the pike family, the mighty musky.

The crystal clear waters, the ancient pictographs, and legendary stories of history that envelope this lake and the lodgeembody everything I love about fishing lodges. Manitou Weather Station Lodge is a second-to-none boating and fishing retreat located a little over 3 hours west of Thunder Bay. Guests have the option of being picked up at the main public launch or bringing their own boat. I chose to haul my boat up for this trip.

The lake itself is massive and offers seven species of fish to challenge yourself with: walleye, large and smallmouth bass, lake trout, northern pike, and musky.

This is a return trip for me, and a welcome one post-covid lockdown.

The perpetual summer sun shines upon the gin-clear Lake Manitou, and I am gearing up my fly and gear rods. My boat is fully stocked with everything I need, I launch my 22-foot Alumacraft boat, and Aiden (my guide for this trip) meets me at the lake public launch.

We stopped for large and smallmouth bass in a bay on the way to the lodge. Within 10 minutes of being at that one spot, Ipulled a whopper of a largemouth within 10 minutes of being there. Aside from bass, we also tried for laker trout, and I had a behemoth laker on from jigging a white tube jig at 60 ft, but it came unbuttoned at the surface. Evening came quickly, and we decided to rest up for the remainder of the day and prep for the challenge of endless musky casting in the days to come.

Upon our arrival at MWS lodge, I’m greeted with genuine warmth and excitement from the crew (Kerrilyn, Kris, Bram, and Bob). The main log home style lodge is filled with the aroma of fresh coffee and breakfast in the morning, and by dinner, it’s the ever so anticipated 5 star meals that would make the pickiest of pallets want seconds.

The guys helped carry my gear up to my stunning and modern cabin. I was spoiled to get a cabin with picture windows for a full-surround view of the lake, 2 bedrooms, a full kitchen, bathroom, porch, and a two-level deck (with BBQ) that connected to the dock where my boat was parked. After a hot shower and getting into a cozy bed, it was lights out and up at 5 am.

The following morning came quickly, and the coffee aroma was lingering in the air from the main lodge. I headed down the walkway for some caffeine, wifi, and breakfast. Everything was perfect. Aiden (guide and family member of the lodge owners) was all set with the day's plan, lunches packed, and we would not return till dinner time as we were off and gone in search of monsters.

That day, we caught and released some hefty walleye, more large mouth/smalliest the rest of the time casting for musky. I had numerous follow-ups to the boat, and each time I was in awe of this magnificent species.

In between the endless casting days was my all-time favourite meal to have at MWS: their legendary shore lunch, with fresh fish and all the trimmings! MWS shore lunches will leave you dreaming about them till your next visit!

On the 3rd day, my "musky mojo" (some karma if you will) finally came together, and I honestly earned every follow and every take.

My heart fluttered as a massive, shimmering emerald and silver dragon followed to the boat. I did the figure 8, but she made no commitment. However, that was enough to make me smile, and I was content with another intense follow-up. Then I cast again, but this time she took my fluff of marabou and hooked boat side on the figure 8! The elation and fear hit me all at once, and I exclaimed to Aiden, "get the net." Of course, he was ready to net and that he did. The sheer thrill of landing a big musky is like winning the lottery; you just never know if it’ll happen, and you have to really celebrate the wins when they do! This was a win and then some! We snapped some pics and videos and released her. Hi-fives and big breathy sighs of relief! That was the musky I came for! When I was visiting MWS last year, I mostly enjoyed the bass fishing and lightly fished for musky. My intention was to land a big musky on this trip, and I’m thankful to say it happened.

My last evening was spent sitting in the wood-fired hot tub while sipping a glass of wine. That was a welcome respite! This angler's paradise is the ideal balance of authentic Canadian fishing and retreat-style comfort.

At MWS they have unique offerings over other lodges: wood-fired hot tub, sauna, paddle boarding, kayaks, privacy, remote wilderness, and other locations on the lake to stay at, including a private island, exceptional service, 5 star food, genuine warmth and friendly atmosphere, and most of all, unspoiled waters to fish, with no competing lodges.

MWS has recently acquired 2 new locations that will soon be ready. One is Barker Bay Resort, and the other is a beautiful private island with new lodge style accommodations, a covered deck over looking the water, and an outdoor amethyst stone fireplace.

This will fully accommodate a wedding party, big family events, and more.

As usual, my stay at MWS was second to none, and I went home with a new personal best summer musky and large mouth bass, both of which made it to the lodge leader score board.

Fish, relax, get away from it all in the unspoiled north.

For more information on this lodge and to book, visit: manitouweatherstation.com

Till next time,

Tight Lines, Big Fish!