My favorite time at Big Hook...

    People often as what is my favorite time to be at Big Hook. While each month has its charm, the simple answer for me is late August / early September.

    The weather the past few weeks has been ideal. Comfortably warm days with just the slightest nip in the air at night that makes pulling over a blanket feel oh’ so good. The mosquitos have gone from the worst I ever remember in June to practically nonexistent. The longer nights often lead to some fantastic northern lights displays (as captured by last week’s guests at Burnt Lake). And, the fishing is outstanding!

Northern Lights at Burnt Lake

    Walleyes seem to be everywhere with several camps reporting numerous trophy catches. West lake’s largest for the week topped out at 28” and their catch count was in the “hundreds”. Interestingly West was finding them shallower than other reports, in about 8 feet of water. They hauled in several big pike too with 45 breaching the 30” mark and 3 north of 40”.

    South had a remarkable week also. Strict walleye fishermen, focused on big fish, they found them - with 31 fish over 25”! Pictures are suspiciously absent, but I do believe them. They know the lake well and were fishing hard. Checking out the brag sheet at South there have been a

Central Lake 42.5"

few other 28-29” fish caught and released since my last report. The reputation there for BIG walleye is well deserved.

    Most reports, save last week’s at West, has the walleye in the 15-20’ depths. I verified this myself yesterday, sneaking in a few hours on the water at Central before our fish fry. 18’ was the magic depth for me. Most folks are employing the standard jigs and crank baits, although a few fisherfolk did very well using crawler harnesses also.

    Some BIG pike are being caught too with top water action still in full swing. This dandy 42” was caught and released at Central Lake by a first-time visitor. Her dad claims some credit, though, “guiding” her to it.

  There’s another new employee at Big Hook. “Ripp” has gotten his sea legs under him and should prove to be an excellent fishing companion for years to come. He is training to be an avalanche rescue dog in the wintertime and will be on bear and swim patrol at Big Hook all summer. Lucky dog. Lucky Ryan.

"Ripp"

   It’s hard to believe there’s only a few more weeks left in our season up here. Late season guests should continue to enjoy great weather and great fishing. We have a good number of openings for August 2023. Give us a call or email if you’d like to do the same next year! In the meantime, we’ll savor this magical time of year up here. Fall will be here before we know it.

Happy fishing everyone,

Ryan

Opasquia Alligators...

Greetings all, 

 A rainy day in Opasquia Provincial Park has left me with a few minutes to post an update on all things Big Hook. 

There has certainly been a hint of fall in the air with some cool temps, darker nights, and a few yellow leaves starting to appear. Football on TV last night added to the aura. 

The fish seem to still be all about summer, however. Northern Pike action has been fast and furious with LOTS of trophy pike being boated – occasionally at the same time! 

The pair below was caught by a father / son duo at Central Lake. Apparently, there was some discussion about who needed the net more urgently. Both fish were boated, photo’d, and released to be caught again. 

Various top-water presentations continue to be favored although many lunkers are also being picked up trolling for walleye. Big fish seem to be everywhere. 

The walleye bite has been great too. Reportedly the fish have been a bit scattered but very willing biters. I expect they will school up soon and continue to dive a little deeper as it seems one more bout of summer is inevitable (and welcome) before fall really takes root. 

The Big Hook team has been busy with projects, the water has finally receded enough for us to make some dock crib repairs from damage leftover from ice out. Dan and Maria have also perfected their outhouse hole technique – churning out excavations in record time. 

We added one more employee in July. Maria’s dog Luna came in with her father for a visit and is taking to her summer home quite well. We’ve got to do something about her sleeping on the job, however. 

For those who have never been to Big Hook in the late summer, it’s a must do at some point. We’re really looking forward to those deep, schooled walleye feeding heavily before the turnover and ravenous pike who’s metabolism is at its peak. Add to it some crackling woodstoves, star gazing, and maybe even a glimpse of the northern lights, it is a magical time to be up here. 

Happy August everyone, Ryan