Week 19 Recap: A Perfect Ending

“A PERFECT ENDING”

Another Fishing Season in the Books

One would think, after 90 consecutive days of managing, guiding, cooking, serving, cleaning and fixing, that the Scott Lake team would be tired, listless and ready to call it a close to the fishing season. Not the case. Maybe it’s like the horse who smells the barn and races back to its stall after a long ride: it knows the end is near and gives it his all. Whatever the inspiration, the Scott crew doubled down on their service commitment for the final group of the fishing season, or maybe they were just playing off the high energy of this fun-loving group (you know who you are) who brought to our island an incredible level of enthusiasm and excitement for the closing session of the season. They came to have fun and to catch fish, in that order. They accomplished both magnificently. It was a lively bunch who traveled from many hot spots in the lower 48 to enjoy the cool temperatures of the 60th parallel in September. They were energized. The sauna, hot tub, spa and our two bars (especially the bars) were jumping all week. This group had it all: great fishing, northern lights viewing, impressive wildlife sightings and interesting dining. There was a strong “let’s have a party tonight” vibe for the entire week, even when on Day 4 vicious winds shut down fishing for the day. Few ventured out that day in some very heavy waves. If they did, they didn’t go far. No trophy fish were landed that day (lowering the week’s trophy total significantly), but a black bear did make an appearance so at least one pin was handed out after dinner that night. (The lodge recognizes some wildlife encounters by awarding “trophy” pins for spotting black bear, moose or muskox.)

And there were plenty of actual fish pins handed out too. The week ended with 130 trophy fish landed, heavily leaning toward northern pike and Arctic grayling. While the lake trout did start their annual migration upwards toward the shallow reefs, they were late this year, probably due to the still warm surface water temperatures. Hundreds of smaller lakers were in the shallows but the big ones were still in deep water. Only four trophy lake trout were landed for the week, the biggest a 37.5” laker off Scott Lake taken by James Abell who landed big trophy fish in all three of our species, earning the 100+Club jacket. The big trout were generally still deep and with great pike fishing on Scott and the fly out lakes not too many guests spent time doing the deep trolling needed to bring them up. The pike fishing was just too good. Our northern pike were feeding heavily on windy, rocky shorelines and in the remaining weed beds. There were many hundreds of pike caught with 77 hitting the 40-inch or over trophy category, not our best week of the season but not shabby either. Tom Granneman, Francis Sun and Dan Spielman caught pike of 44-inches. Dan also got a 45-incher along with Jim Ward. The biggest pike of the week was on the line of James Abell, a beautiful 46-incher. There were many of pike in the 40- to 43-inch range with Collen Clark, Tom Granneman, Clay McCain, Mark Graf and Frances Sun enjoying days with three-trophy pike in the boat. Mark and Frances along with Dave O’Donnell also had four-trophy pike days. As with the previous group, there were frequent comments about the weight and girth of the pike that came to the boats. The typical 40-inchers in September probably weighed three pounds more than the same fish weighed earlier in the season. And it was common to hear about 100 or more pike in the boat for a single day; the pike were in the attack mode all week.

For those that ventured into our rivers, our grayling with their trademark high, iridescent dorsal fin were very cooperative. Grayling of our “supersized” mark of 18 inches or better were taken by Mark and Rebecca Graf, Dan Spielman and Frances Sun. James Abell and Randy Grooms had a big grayling day on the outflow of Odin Lake with their biggest were just under that 18-inch mark. Dry flies and sub-surface nymphs were the winning tickets for grayling action.

There were trophy dinners all week. The culinary team ended the season strong, featuring dinners like beef bourguignon, seafood risotto, lamb loin, smoked brisket and lobster with a tenderloin to name just a few of the offerings. Between the over-the-top group shore lunches and the lavish dinners, no one lost any weight on this trip. Many may have gained a few pounds, but all gained indelible memories of fishing at its best. We had an almost even split this week between long time regulars and first-time guests. Based on bookings and comments, we gained a lot of new regulars. It was simply a wonderful week to spend in the far north and a perfect ending to another fishing season our guests and staff will always remember as one of the best. Stay tuned for a season summary: it will have a big number for our total trophy count.