Ice is out!

Here in Indiana that is.... (gotcha) and actually has been for some time now! With open water calling, I did have the opportunity to squeeze in a couple of bluegill fishing trips. First one with limited success (half a dozen) and the next one much better with a total of 28 nice 'gills most around 8-9". Amazing how quickly fishing fortunes can change, sounds familiar even when you are up in camp. It's generally not a matter of IF you are gonna catch fish, it's more about am I in the right spot at the right time.

I'm not the only one getting in a little spring fishing.....


Ben and CJ Holbrook from a recent bass tournament.

CJ Holbrook with a big bass from the tournament. He and brother Ben finished 3rd. Can't wait to school you again this summer walleye fishing CJ! (got a feeling I'm gonna regret that)

Perry Tonn with a hawg walleye caught from a "secret" spot in Wisconsin.

Ok, so what about ice conditions for Wabaskang? Well we are hearing that there is still ice along the shores of the channel where the roadside landing is, so that certainly is not very encouraging. On the other hand, we have heard reports from Red Lake that there is "only" about 16" of GOOD ice there, which as contrary as it sounds, is actually good news as I would have expected there to be more to be honest.

We expect to be in Perrault Falls by mid-week next week and should be able to give you some first hand reports at that time. We certainly don't expect to be boating into camp next week, but we can get a few things accomplished roadside and try to get a report on ice conditions in Miller's Bay with hopes of chartering a flight CLOSE to camp.

Stay tuned and THINK SPRING!

One day at a time....

I guess that's how everyone with opening week bookings is taking it right now. For that matter so are we. Fortunately temperatures are trending upwards for the Perrault Falls area, but there is still a lot of work for mother nature to do as local reports still indicate over a foot of snow on the ground and LOTS of ice still on the lake. Still too early to hazard a guess as to the exact ice out date, but my gut tells me we are going to be pushing close to opening day (May 18).

We still have plenty to do here in our preparations for the move North, but I think I'm going to take advantage of some nicer weather here locally in the morning for some bluegill fishing. One good bluegill fry should get us through until we can get some walleye in camp! Sure wish I had time to find a few morels to fry up with some fish!

Stay tuned and we will try to get some more reports for everyone next week.

Rethinking last Blog title.....

Spring is almost here? Well the weather the last couple of weeks certainly has me rethinking that one! I guess you have to take the good with the bad. Although the crummy spring weather has significantly cut into some time on the water fishing salmon on Lake Michigan and chasing bluegills and crappies on local inland lakes, the good news is that this extra time at home has given me a jump start on some of the "move North" preparations.

Unfortunately, it appears that Spring is even slower arriving around Perrault Falls as local sources tell us that there is still A LOT of snow on the ground and ice on the lakes which already has me wondering/worrying about being able to get into camp this year hopefully around May 8. If my memory serves me correctly (feel free to insert joke here), it was our 2008 season that resulted in our flying out to camp and walking in the back way as a result of the late ice out. Here are a few pictures of that experience.

Looks like the "old" camp prior to new siding on all the cabins. Still way too much ice in 2008 to make it to camp by boat so...

We just hired a couple of planes to fly us out, land in Miller's Bay and hike the bush into camp the back way.
 

Regardless, we do what we have to and will certainly be in camp and ready to go come opening morning May 18th!

Despite the weather conditions, we have managed two trips onto Lake Michigan for a little spring salmon action. While much slower fishing than we are accustomed to during the Spring, primarily do to the water being "dirty" from all the wind we have had, it was still great to get some family members out on the water....

 



Nephew Chris with a nice 25" Brown Trout on his first Lake Michigan trip



Allison was pretty happy with her first Lake Michigan fishing trip with Dad

Don't hesitate to share some of your spring fishing photos with us! Feel free to post them on our Facebook page or group or email them to us and we will be happy to post them for you!






 

Almost Spring and Shows are Over!

Which is a great feeling on both accounts to be honest. Really looking forward to the arrival of Spring and some warmer temps and it's good to have the show season for another year behind us. We generated a little extra business from each show we attended this year so we are looking forward to hosting some more new faces in camp and hope they will soon discover why so many of our guests become regulars with us.

Hard to believe that the season opens in just two months from today! That certainly pulls a trigger in our minds in terms of starting to think about camp more and the logistics involved in moving back to paradise for the summer. Of course for me, it also gets me thinking about getting out and doing a little open water fishing here for some panfish and also chasing some salmon and trout on Lake Michigan. Hopefully my 18' Tracker Targa will find its way home from winter storage soon!

To all of our guests who came out for a visit along the show circuit we wish to say "thank you" for stopping by the booth for a visit. We realize that it can be difficult to chat sometimes when the shows are real busy, but we always enjoy what time we do get to catch up with you and continue to be extremely appreciative for all the great things you share with other show guests about the camp. Thanks again!!

If you haven't already discovered our new page on Facebook, please check us out and give us a "Like" at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Peffleys-Canadian-Wilderness-Camp/518316711547563

Hope everyone has a great Spring. Until next time.....

March approaches....

I know. Hard to believe it's almost March already. Overall another very mild winter here in N. Indiana, and certainly spring is around the corner soon. Temps in Perrault Falls, on the other hand remain, shall we say: just a bit "cooler". Plenty of ice this year and more snow cover than in recent winters we are told.

Only one more road trip for the season, a trip to Cedar Falls, IA. Nice folks in Iowa, have many, many loyal campers from Iowa and we look forward to talking a little fishing/hunting with them when we make a visit.

In case you haven't seen our new YouTube videos, check them out on our YouTube channel called "Peffscamp". Excuse us for not having a lot of content out there right now, but we are only getting started and we hope to supplement our normal in-season photo gallery/blog/Facebook entries with an occasional video or two throughout the season. Hope it pumps you up and gets you ready to go fishing, as I have to admit just watching it fires me up and I'm in camp every day!! Check out the channel, subscribe to it, and you can fish vicariously through others when you are not in camp!!

Bookings look good, but as all camp owners would say "there's always room for a couple more"! Including what we would call some GREAT weeks of fishing, so if you are still looking for an excellent trip at a very affordable rate give us a look!

Until next time, take care and count down the days to the May 18th opener!

Winter returns

Wow! Starting to feel like NW Ontario around here lately....no, not that cold but crazy weather swings in very short time. Just a week ago, it was 60 degrees, raining hard, and all the ice and snow in the area was gone. Less than a week later we have more snow on the ground than at any point all winter and most (lucky) guys (not me) are out on the ice fishing.

Just wanted to get a quick blog out here to let everyone know that in addition to our Facebook Group that many of you are members of, we have also recently added a Facebook Page for the camp that we will also be administering to help deliver your stories, pictures, etc. of your trip to camp or other exciting news you might have. If you haven't had a chance to check it out be sure to do so at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Peffleys-Canadian-Wilderness-Camp/518316711547563 Hey, and while your there, be sure to "like" us! We have recently added some new You Tube videos to the website (cabins page) and also to our Facebook page so be sure to check them out too.

Show season still rolling on, off to Rockford, Illinois this coming weekend home for three days then off to Minneapolis for the All-Canada show. Stop in and see us if you are in the area!

MIA??

No. Not really missing in action, just taking some time off from blogging and focusing on matters here at home. We trust that everyone's new year is off to a great start, and with February right around the corner, some of you no doubt, will start thinking about your upcoming trip to camp. (like us diehards aren't always thinking about the trip to camp!)

To be perfectly honest, there just isn't a whole lot to blog about when camp is not in season. It was nice to get out on the road to the Chicago and Madison All-Canada shows earlier this month. Thank you to all of our guests who stopped in at the shows for a visit, and to our new guests who booked at the shows. We look forward to having you join the "family" and are excited about having you experience our camp and the great fishing we enjoy on Wabaskang Lake. We have a local show here in South Bend, In coming up over Super Bowl weekend and then a trip to Rockford, Il and Minneapolis, Mn yet this month. If you are a local, and can make it out to the show at the Century Center in South Bend, please do so and try to revive what used to be the old boat show. Our good friends at the Michiana Walleye Association have worked hard in developing this "new" show and we think it will be a hit.

Still no ice fishing for me yet this winter as I got home from the show circuit and promptly managed to catch the mother of all head colds. Guess I should feel fortunate at least it's not the flu, but sure has made life miserable anyway. With some luck, may still find my way onto the ice before seasons end.

I was fortunate enough to get in some fall deer hunting and take a 6 pt. buck the second day of the season. Unfortunately, our fall Lake Michigan fishing, was a "non-event" as several days of extremely high winds pretty much destroyed any near shore fishing opportunities for the entire season.

In Perrault Falls, we hear that the area is receiving some much needed snow which should help maintain our spring lake levels some. Speaking of lake water levels, I did talk to some guys at one of the shows, (don't remember which one), who were telling me that they heard that Wabaskang became very hard to navigate when the water is low. Not sure where this MYTH came from, all I know is we operate a 21' transport boat with a 150 h.p. Yamaha all season long and 95% of the time can do so at full throttle across the 12 miles out to camp. Doesn't sound too tough to navigate to me!

Only 16 short weeks until opening day 2013! See you in camp soon!