A WEEK AT THE LODGE....

Our week at Canada's Gods Lake Lodge
We like to travel throughout North America on fishing and hunting adventures. Our interest in Gods Lake was piqued by a fishing show taped at the lake. So we booked our trip and began buying all sorts of lures in anticipation of the multi-species fishing. Just prior to leaving we met someone who had been to the lodge in 2008 and the stories of the quantity and quality of the fish he caught in 2 ½ days added to our anticipation.

Perimeter Airlines flew us from Winnipeg into the Cree Village of God's River where we met the lodge manager, Lee Nolden, who drove us by boat back to the lodge. It took about 40 minutes. Canada's Gods Lake Lodge is located in the eastern arm of the lake, which is massive.

Our accommodations were clean and modern. The main lodge itself was much older…the history of the place as a Hudson Bay company outpost was very evident.

We fished for Walleye and Pike on our first day and were shown spots near the lodge for after dinner fishing. Our home waters are the famed Bay of Quinte so we have an appreciation for Walleye fishing. Gods Lake Walleyes blew us away…the average size and the numbers of fish were incredible. Most fish were in the 20 - 22" size class and we caught a lot of 25 - 26" fish. The largest Walleyes were 27 -28" and about 8lbs. If we wanted to focus just on Walleye we could have easily caught 100+ fish a day.

But we wanted to catch other kinds of fish as well. On the second day of our stay we took a trip to the world famous God's River. Gods Lake is the collection basin for the cold water that becomes the God's River...and the Brook Trout (we call them Speckles) thrive in these cold, clear waters. Helme landed 2 master angler sized fish of 20"+ using a small gold EGB spoon. Chris landed an 18" fish. It was a slow day by the lodge's standards. The trophy board at the lodge suggested that the typical day would yield several more master sized fish. Catching those 5lb specks was a lifetime fishing highlight for Helme. These fish are deep bodied bruisers that give a great fight. The river was beautiful and running the rapids was exciting for us.

We spent several afternoons hunting for trophy Pike. Fishing shorelines and rocky points produced more fish in the 20 - 30" class than we could count. But to hunt down the big girls we went with our guide to 'Weedy Bay' and 'No Name Bay.' Chris landed our biggest Pike of the trip 39', just 2 " short of a Manitoba Master Angler. The fish attacked a No. 5 Chartreuse Mepps Spinner with Red Bucktail and gave him a memorable fight. Sight fishing added to the excitement as we often saw the huge pike attack the lure.

The most exciting thing for Chris was the Lake Trout fishing. That's what was truly amazing about Gods Lake…we could go from world class Walleye and Pike to Brook Trout to Lake Trout depending on weather conditions. Having four species to fish for made our trip so enjoyable. We trolled for the Lake Trout using some of our favorite spoons. We also learned how to jig for them using smelt tipped jigs. Chris got the biggest trout on a West Coast anchovy/smelt rig, a 32" 13 ½ lb fish. It was a hard fighting brute that stayed deep and took line. Before we saw the fish we knew it was a dandy as our guide Ben dropped the net and went for the cradle. The typical fish was about 8lbs and we had good action all week. It seems that the lodge produces fish to about 30 or 40lbs every year.

The fishing was truly fantastic. Numbers, size and variety of fish made it interesting for us for the whole week. Species for species the fish fight harder than anywhere else we've fished. There was no need to do any fly outs…all the good fishing was close to the lodge. Gods Lake is so large that the fishing pressure is minimal and we rarely encountered another boat during our daily outings.

The lodge staff was really friendly and went out of their way to make sure we had a great trip. They took us out for after dinner fishing, showed us new fishing techniques and shared their passion for the sport of fishing with us. We spent five days with our Cree guide Ben, who capably netted and released our fish and acquainted us with Cree life at God's River. His knowledge of the lake was superb as he never relied on a graph to put us on the fish. Our meals were hearty, home cooked meals like steak, ribs and spaghetti. Each night featured a new, home made dessert….and the shore lunches? Fresh walleye with all the trimmings…delicious!!

If you are looking for the ultimate Canadian fishing experience in an intimate, family run setting, try Canada's Gods Lake Lodge. We know we'll be back.

Thank you again.
Sincerely yours,
Chris and Helme Good, June, 2009