Ultimate Northern Ontario Road Trip

The Ultimate Northern Ontario Road Trip is a 60 day voyage through the pristine and sometimes remote wilderness of Northern Ontario. The rag-tag band of correspondents have set out to explore every last corner of the province, using the internet to report back on our quest for the best time ever. Over the course of this epic road trip they’ll be bringing you the incredible tales of the the things they do and the people they meet with the power of photo, video and social media. Check back often for their progress, and don’t forget to add them on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube!

The journey started June 1st and they will venture into Sunset Country starting July 7, 2012. Here's an itinerary of where they will be headed and what they will be doing:

July 7, 2012, Thunder Bay to Devlin – They will leave the Thunder Bay to begin their adventures into the depths of Sunset Country, an area they've never explored before. They’ll be taking Highway 11 into Fort Frances and staying the night at Lake Despair Lodge. They have never been this excited about Despair!

July 8, 2012, Devlin to Caliper Lake – Travelling to Sioux Narrows and what purports to be an excellent motorcycling road via the town of Stratton, they’ll be taking in a tour of the unique Manitoba Mounds. They’ll also explore one of the few agricultural areas in the North, head into the Lake of the Woods area and bed down at Caliper Lake Provincial Park.

Kay-Nay-Chi-Wah-Nung Historical Centre (Manitou Mounds)

July 9, 2012, Caliper Lake to Kenora – Arriving in Kenora mid-morning, they will be heading up into the sky for a float plane trip (they’ll strap a camera to the bottom of the plane so they can share the whole experience), a kayak trip with Green Adventures and a cruise on the MS Kenora before hitting the hay at the Anicinabe RV Park.

July 10, 2012, Kenora – What voyage into Northern Ontario would be complete without a fishing trip to capture the elusive mystical Muskie! This should be good for a few laughs as the city slickers try their hand at angling.

July 11, 2012, Kenora to Wabigoon – After exploring the city and catching up on their posts, they’ll leave Kenora mid-afternoon. Mike and Bogdan will check out Highway 502 while Jessie and Alexe check out Minnitaki and Elgi before regrouping at night at the Polar Star Lodge, home of the world’s largest covered dock!

Oz Lake Lodge

July 12, 2012, Wabigoon to Pickle Lake – Fortified by wild blueberry pancakes in Ignace, they start a big driving day where we tackle the trip to the top of Ontario’s most northerly paved road. At night they’ll sleep at the Oz Lake Motel.

July 13, 2012, Pickle Lake to Sandbar Lake Provincial Park – After their adventure in the the deep north, they’ll take a leisurely stroll drive down the side roads to return to Sandbar Lake Provincial Park where they’ll take a nap on the beach, and keep lookout for Sandpipers and Lynx!

July 14, 2012, Sandbar Lake to Thunder Bay – Heading back to Thunder Bay via Highway 622, they’ll take in a longer sail with Capt. Greg and get some more history of Lake Superior. We’ll be staying at the KOA RV Park just outside of town.

To follow their adventure for the rest of the road trip read their itinerary  on their website. You can also see tons of photos of Northern Ontario on their website, almost as if you've done the trip as well. 

Kenora has Stanley Cup Fever

Let's make it 4 and 0 boys. 

If the LA Kings win tonight they will be the 2012 Stanley Cup Champions. Why would we, in Sunset Country, care if LA wins? Well, Mike Richards, #10 on the LA Kings is from Kenora are we are proud of our home town boy. Richards brought home the Olympic Gold Medal in 2010 and played in the Stanley Cup playoff finals that same year for the Philadelphia Flyers. Unfortunately the Flyers lost in 2010.

LA is leading the series 3-0 and if they win tonight, they will bring home the cup. The residents of Kenora are cheering him on in hopes that he will bring home the cup when he spends his time off at his cottage on Lake of the Woods. 

In the spirit of the Stanley Cup, Kenora businesses have been decorating their storefronts to cheer on the LA Kings and our hometown hero, Mike Richards. Here are some of the storefronts and signs in Kenora:

GO KINGS GO!

Verti-Shade on Main Street

Rednex Rebellion on Second Street

"Bring Home the Cup" - Wilson's Stationary

Chip & Pepper are getting in the mood!

Let's fill the cup with Ouzo at the Plaza

Mike makes Kenora proud 

Kantola Motors is getting in the action even if they are in construction mode.

Lake of the Woods Insurance "Kings"

Go LA Go!

Copperfin Credit Union is rooting for Mike too.

Citi Financial getting into the action.

Lot's of reflection in the window, but Weekend Adventure window is rockin'.

Jerseys of all sizes.

King Richard at the Standard! 

Another shot from the Lake of the Woods Insurance windows.

Johnson's Pharmacy has the fever!

Go Go Go!

All hail King Richards, our K-town king.

Will the Kings take it in 4 tonight? Kenora hopes so. The hockey game will be broadcast live in the Kenora Recreation Centre. View their Facebook page for more info on the live game tonight. 89.5 the Lake has more photos on their Facebook page. 

Go Mike Go, you'll make us proud either way.

Update: I guess we'll have to win in New Jersey :) The Kings lost tonight 3-1. As I was driving home tonight I noticed even more storefronts had decorated. The businesses that didn't get involved must be Devils fans. lol.  It's so nice to see everyone get pumped up. The Kenora Recreation Centre was packed tonight and will be again on Saturday night when the city gathers around again to cheer Mike and the Kings on.

The Lure of Muskie Fishing

There is a mystique that surrounds this fish that is really hard to explain. Growing to sizes in excess of 60 inches and weights over 60 pounds, their sheer size is enough to boggle the mind of any angler, whether you fish for them or not. The fact they grow big enough to eat ducks, loons and fish up to 10 pounds in size only makes it that much more interesting.

Muskie are often referred to as the "fish of 10,000 casts" which is really a lot of bull, up here in Sunset Country anyways. Saying that, these fish are much rarer than their close cousin the northern pike and unlike pike, they exist in only a limited number of lakes in the region. Some of the most famous muskie waters in Sunset Country are Lake of the Woods, Eagle Lake and the Indian Chain of Lakes but they only scratch the surface. Throughout the southern half of the region are other lesser known but still high quality muskie lakes. The east end of Lac Seul for example is the home to monster-sized fish, some of the biggest in the region in fact. Other well known muskie lakes are Cedar, the Wabigoon-Dinorwic chain as well as some well known trout lakes like Dryberry, Crow (Kakagi) and the Upper and Lower Manitou. A real treat for serious muskie anglers are some of the most remote muskies lakes in North America - fly-in only - where you can literally hook into a dozen or more fish in a day.

Muskie can be caught in a variety of ways with a variey of baits. The key thing to remember is that what works well at one time of the year doesn't necessarily work well at another time. Bucktails are a standard for many anglers as are several versions of top water baits - all used when you cast for these giants. For those whose arms tend to fall off casting these big baits all day, trolling is always an alternative. Here bigger is often better so don't be shy with your tackle. Make sure you have shallow and deep diving baits and try to find colors which resemble the bait fish that predominate in the lake you happen to be fishing. So something that looks like a cisco can work well trolling on a trout lake while baits that resemble whitefish or perch work well in stained water.

The muskie's mystique is enhanced by the fact moon phases - moonrise and set - can seriously turn these big fish on - or off. Look, it's not easy to catch these big girls but once you've caught your first one, fishing for other species will likely not compare, at least not from a sheer excitement perspective!

 

For more information on Ontario muskie fishing, see www.ontariomuskiefishing.ca