July 1, 2014
Just back from my fourth Grand Slam Guide Service trip. Took 3 guys into Conmee area for the walleyes. They were above average paddlers and portagers so we moved along at a good clip. They had never fished topwater smallmouth but they were quick learners to my favorite style of canoe country fishing and we caught over 350 smallies on Crooked, William, Suzannette and Wicksteed. Lots of 18 and 19 inch fish with 10 trophies going over 20 inches. The smallmouth are still catchable on the shoreline cover but during the mid-day it is mostly smaller fish. Be sure to fish 6:30 to 9:30 p.m each evening for those bigger bass moving in onto the rocky structure to feed. We all picked up a couple trout trolling Dr. Spoons on Suzanette with the largest going 26 inches. We decided to camp for 4 nights on Suzanette which meant going over to Conmee for the evening walleye bite and portaging back in the dark. This actually worked out pretty well and is a strategy I will use again. I would love to get into Suzanette earlier next year and hit the peak of the bass spawn period. The habitat looks great in there. The problem is the bass fishing is great all over the place in early June. Wish I could be about ten places at once that week. We ended up netting 9 trophy walleyes on Conmee and 1 on Suzanette. These 27-28 ½ inch heavy, golden beauties have exceptional power and completely put to rest the reputation of walleyes can’t/don’t fight very hard. So we all were able to get the Canoe Country Grand Slam with some trophy bass and walleye included in that.
The weather continues to be very unsettled with lots of low pressure, cold fronts, east/south winds and rain. As most anglers know, high pressure and west wind is best for fishing. Still, when the wind has settled down, the fishing has been very good.
I can confirm that the blueberry plants EVERYWHERE are loaded with green berries so we are a lock to have a huge crop of blueberries this season. This will be a great treat for everyone in mid-July through August.
I am off on my Ely to Beaverhouse trip across Quetico this next week. This is more of a travel type trip with some fishing time in the evenings. I will check in with you all again after that trip in mid-July.
Be safe out there everyone and have a great trip.