An effective way to fish the Boundary Waters Canoe Area

When we are getting ready to route one of out outfitting parties, we ask what kind of trip it is that they want to take. Are they planning on doing a lot of fishing? A lot of our groups want to take a 5 day trip, camp on a different lake every day, AND do a lot of fishing. If this your way of thinking, you are not going to get a lot of quality fishing time in on this trip. The average party in the Boundary Waters travels about 6-8 miles per day. No matter what you're used to paddling at home, the Boundary Waters is way different! We hear over and over that people new to the BWCA usually paddle 20-30 miles a day (back home) and they are always shocked when we tell them that 6 to 8 miles will be what most people can expect in a normal days travel here in northern Minnesota. So, for the millionth time - ruddering a canoe down a slow moving river for 20 miles does not compare in the least with paddling the canoe on your own in the BWCA. The Boundary Waters is not a "float trip" and does require some physical and mental stamina. And it doesn't end with the paddling either. You have portages to cross, a camp to set up, wind (and other weather conditions) with which to contend, and meals to prepare. Not a lot of fishing time left in the day especially if you plan to move every day. Therein lies the rub.

Here's what I always propose. You need to decide if you want to do a lot fishing or a lot of sightseeing on your trip. Either one is fine because the Boundary Waters is a pretty spectacular place. But, if you like to fish and fishing is why you came here in the first place, you should consider maximizing your fishing time by setting up a base camp. Need a map of where to go? Get an Fisher F-31 to get started in the Ely area - it covers Lake One, Snowbank, Moose, Wood, Fall, and the North Kawishiwi River. Many great 3 to 7 day base camp fishing and loop possibilities are all on this one map. Order Here for only $6.75

At a base camp, we usually recommend that you paddle about one to two days distance beyond your entry point depending on the length of your trip. Obviously, if it's a three day trip you are not going to have a lot of other options. 5-7 days is optimal for a complete BWCA experience. Fortunately, you can make a lot of distance on some of our surrounding entry points because they have few and shorter portages during the initial phase of the trip. Traveling by water at about 4.5 MPH in a Souris River Quetico 17 will get you in far and fast on your first day. I always recommend that you get in as close to your destination as soon as possible. Don't even pull out a rod until you've set up camp at your destination.

Choose a base camp lake that either offers a lot of options on the lake itself (lots of islands, reefs, bays and points) or set up a base camp in a region where you have access to numerous lakes via shorter to medium length portages.

In either case, once you set up camp, you can take off fishing. The beauty of setting up a basecamp should be obvious but very few of our customers see the benefits.

Base-Camp Benefits

1. Time. It takes a lot of time out of your day to find the place to set the tent, put up the tent, get out your sleeping bags, self-inflating sleep pads, dig out the stove, go collect some fire wood, filter some water, put up a tarp, stash the food barrels and several other must-do's that you need to perform every time you move camp. Then, there's cooking, cleaning, breaking down the camp and re-packing which can sometimes take longer than unpacking, especially if it's raining. If you base-camp you only do this entire procedure once.

2. Weight and speed. Once the basecamp is set up, you'll be fishing with an empty canoe. You can also now cross portages with just a 43 lb. canoe and light fishing tackle which means that you get to where you want to be much quicker than the average dude on the trail with a huge, overstuffed packsack. Get in, fish, go home to camp. Tip: Because you will be fishing from a canoe with no load in it, you want to make sure that you have a canoe that is stable when empty unless you like to feel tippy everytime someone sets the hook or points at a duck. This canoe is the Souris River Quetico 17. There is no better lightweight fishing canoe for the BWCA.

Return home from your trip following the same route. Everybodey worries that they've already seen that country on the way in. Trust me, it will look very different on the way back and your knowledge of the portages will aid you in crossing them on the way back. Learning new portage locations on strange lakes takes more time than following the same route back.

Summary
If you want to spend a lot of time fishing, a base camp is the way to go in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. Choose a spot that either offers a lot of fishing opportunities on the lake itself or an area that has access to many other surrounding lakes via portages. Plan on paddiling in about 1-2 days and the same amount of time back out. Make sure you are in a decent canoe. Remember, when portaging a canoe, lighter is always better and well worth the investment. Stability for fishing with an empty canoe is imperative along with good speed so you an get where you need to go.

To reserve a Souris River Canoe for your next BWCA trip out of the Ely, MN area, call 1-800-280-1078. To read about more of our outfitting services visit our outfitting site redrockoutfitting.com

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