Week 16: Party Time

During some weeks at Scott Lake Lodge, the fishing is serious, very serious. For many of our adventures in the far north, the anglers are intense, a bit predatory, focusing every ounce of their energy on their quest to get the biggest fish of their lifetime. That’s understandable. Many have dreamed about their Canadian expedition for weeks, months or even years. They want to squeeze every possible experience out every minute, every fish. They are right at home at Scott Lake Lodge where we celebrate the angling culture. But then some weeks there is a wonderfully different vibe—the “let’s just have a good time feel”. That was the tone during Week 16. Ron and Betsy Spork invited a couple dozen of their family, friends and business associates for a private week of fishing, feasting and fun at Scott. There were leisurely dinners, lots of card games, challenging cornhole games, raucous cheering when a big fish appeared on the TV screen during the nightly “fish of the day” programs, and relaxing moments in front of an after-dinner bonfire. It was a more casual, relaxed week. Not that there weren’t plenty of big fish landed.

On the first day of the four-day trip an impressive total of 49 trophy fish were landed. Leading the pike parade was the Leader of the Pack, Ron Spork, who contributed five trophy pike with a 43- and 45-incher. (Betsy Spork added three more trophy pike to the boat’s total.) Patty Thompson was right behind Ron with four trophy pike including another 45-inch beauty. Lonnie Thompson and Trevor Rusnak added 44s to the proceedings. Jake James had a big day on Scott Lake with a trophy pike and two big lake trout, one stretching the tape to 41-inches in length with a massive girth. On a flyout to Labyrinth Lake Jerry Kolek and Jim Ossner got into a mess of Arctic grayling and plenty of pike. At the far end of Wholdaia Lake, Patick Schatz and Matt Karras caught more grayling than they thought existed in all of Canada. Both landed 19-inchers in the fast waters of the Dubawnt River, no small accomplishment. Twenty of the group got trophy pins that evening after dinner. The good luck was well spread around on that memorable first day.

But weather is everything when fishing these parts. The big storm forecast for the second day did materialize. Even in the protected waters around our island, the wind and waves were just too much. Only a handful of guests went on the lake and none for very long. This was a day for the fish and the anglers to relax. It was a complete shutout for the anglers; no trophy pins were handed out that evening after a festive dinner of Smoked Salmon (or a Pork Schnitzel for those who loved the red cabbage side dish). But it wasn’t a lost day. The wood-fired sauna was cooking all day; the hot tub was busy as was the spa with a full day of massage. A few even ventured into the workout facility. Everyone had a relaxing day, catching up, renewing friendships and grabbing a nap.

Fully rested and raring to go, Team Spork hit the water hard on Day 3 of their trip. They were ready. Just like the first day, our fish were eager to dance. It was another great day with 27 trophy pike, eight trophy lake trout and a bunch of grayling. Ron Sport again led the way with another 5-trophy pike day, topping out at a 44-incher. Brothers Bill and Rick Spork each landed three trophy pike as did Rick’s wife, Brenda. Patty Thompson bagged a trio of nice lake trout with a 39-inch beauty as her top trophy. Jerry Kolek caught a 38.5” laker that gave him the coveted Trophy Triple hat. With a 35.5” laker Jim Ossner also did the Hat Trick. The trophy pins distributed that night were nothing though compared to the meal our chefs prepared for the final dinner of the trip.

The last half-day of fishing featured another culinary delight. This time it was served on a broad Scott Lake beach with fifteen guides preparing the shore lunch to end all shore lunches. It sunny day with waves to keep the pike in a feeding mood. Plenty of northern pike were caught that morning to provide the basic ingredient for a classic Canadian shore lunch. There were pike wraps, stir-fried pike, baked pike, “slobster pike” (pike tidbits slowly cooked in a lot of butter and garlic—deadly good), and fried pike with a variety of secret sauces. Put some corn and beans on the plates just for the color. Then add a big bowl of the Canadian cultural icon —Poutine, the unbelievably good mix of French fries with cheese and gravy. Top it all off with an over-the-fire apple crisp for desert and you have the elements of a meal no one will forget for some time.

The entire week was over-the-top fun and warm companionship. It was the kind of week that Scott Lake Lodge specializes in—making everyone feel like this place was built just for them. And everyone would be right.