Today, the Mercury Marine Destination is Kesagami Lake in Northern Ontario. After a comfortable drive in the RAM to the Cochrane air base, it's time for the much-anticipated flight into Kesagami Wilderness Lodge www.kesagami.com The Kesagami Wilderness Lodge is without a doubt, one of the top Pike and Walleye destinations in Ontario, and for good reason. The Pike are numerous and aggressive, and the Walleye are here in abundance.
Large lures do not always equal larger fish, it does work that way much of the time, but on days when the giants are turned off, or in this case, early season, smaller lures can be deadly. Charlie has long been a fan of Rat-L-Trap lures. This lure has been around for a long, long time and is extremely popular across the USA, but has been forgotten in Canada. Well, it is back and for good reason, it absolutely works! It is very well made, comes with quality Mustad Triple Grip hooks, and more colours than you can imagine, including some very realistic finishes. But the main point, it simply works. Charlie noticed this from the first cast, it is well balanced, not overly noisy for a lipless rattle bait, but has the vibrations to attract and not scare game fish. The large Pike and countless amounts of smaller Pike were simply hammering the Rat-L-Trap.
Being so well balanced, there was no question that changing all hooks to only have one single barbless was no concern, it ran perfectly with a single on the belly ring, and continued to catch some of the largest Pike of the week! Charlie has used many lipless rattle baits over the years, but he was quickly reminded of why the Rat-L-Trap is so popular. Even after being hammered by dozens of toothy Pike, the quality of the lure never failed, punctured, or cracked, basically bullet proof.
Also taking into consideration that a thicker leader would impede the action of the Rat-L-Trap, it was time to put the Knot2Kinky leader material to work. This single strand wire is amazing, no matter how much it is bent or chewed on, twisted or kinked, this thin Nickel-Titanium leader wire remains straight! Make up your own leaders in whatever length you are comfortable with, and your choice of swivels and snaps. Charlie uses a small Mustad barrel swivel on one end and a Mustad Fastach Clip on the other.
The Fastach is a small wire clip that allows you to change lures quickly by simply rolling the clip like a small cork screw. Since it is a solid wire loop, there is no snap to accidentally open up or forget to close properly. One of the biggest problems with some clips and snaps, is when a Pike gets all those teeth locked into a snap and shakes its head, it can actually undo the snap itself. It only takes seeing one monster Pike shake its head at boat side, and watching it swim away with your lure from a snap opening up, to start using a connection that eliminates this problem. The Mustad Fastach is the perfect solution.
Kesagami Walleye love the rocky structure and often shallower than you first expect. While a wide selection of jigs and lure worked great, one small little lifelike presentation was next to impossible for the Walleye to ignore. The #2 sized Lucky Bug Bingo Bug. This lure looks like a fly, only with a small plastic lip that gives it wonderful crank bait action, and with only a pull-pause retrieve, the Lucky Bug Bingo Bug comes alive and looks like a real creature, just like a bug emerging out of the rocks. Only a small split shot was added for casting weight on the Knot2Kinky wire leader. The Knot2Kinky is so thin, it doesn't interfere with the Walleye hits, it protects from the sharp rocks, not to mention the occasion Pike that also wanted to engulf this offering.
This is Northern Ontario in the Spring time, it can be sunny one minute, and pouring rain or even snow the next, so be prepared. Charlie has been trusting and relying on Viking jackets, bibs and pants for years. Keeping warm and dry is extremely important for an even more enjoyable trip, not just on fly in trips, but anytime on the water enjoying your favorite sport. The new Evolution jackets and pants are not only 100% waterproof, but stretchable allowing for even greater comfort and mobility while casting. It sure takes a raincoat to a completely different level of comfort while fishing. They are also designed so you can add on, and zip in a fleece jacket for warmth. A perfect all-weather jacket.
Anytime Charlie is in a remote or small lake situation, he brings his trusty Humminbird Helix portable fish finder, not only does it have a long lasting rechargeable battery, but also features GPS for staying on hot locations and always having a trail from spot to spot. This time, guides have also learned the value of this feature package little unit, and already had their own in the boat. Charlie's remained on the shelf in the room awaiting the trip home. Anyone that experiences the quality of these Humminbird Helix portable fish finders, will surely not go anywhere without it.