The snow is flying, the airplanes are on dry ground, the water has been drained and the camps have been put to bed!  Another season is in the books.  It was a great year once again.  

Moose Hunting

2019 was pretty normal moose hunting.  Each group except one had some sort of excitement during the hunt each week.  The weather as always plays such a huge role in how each hunt will go.  During the first week we battled the wind and during the second week we battled snow, rain and wind.  We had a number of great hunting days also each week and that is when the moose moved.

We ended up with 2 moose for the season and one that got away.  

The moose that got away happened during the first week of the hunt.  I was guiding some guys that had hunted with us many times and have had great success almost every time they hunted with me.  After seeing some cows during the week and lots of wind, on day 5 Mike and I were just setting up in a spot on a perfect morning.  As we were walking up the hill I thought I heard a grunt.  After calling back and waiting awhile we didn’t hear anything.  I left Mike and went to call from the top of the hill.  When I got to the top I met up with a Monster Bull about 25 -30 yards away headed our way.  I scurried back over the hill and fetched Mike.  The moose had moved away slightly and I called him back.  He came right to us within 50 yards but the brush was thick and we couldn’t see him very well.  As he came into the open Mike had a shot.  I heard it hit and it turned and disappeared.  After it was behind some bushes for a few minutes, it started to move and it went through the bush and up over the ridge.  

Mike figures he shot him fairly square in the chest.  That isn’t a good shot on a large animal.  We waited for an hour to give him time to lay down and expire.  After finding the blood trail we began to follow.   It was hit but the blood was clear and only looked like a flesh wound and not through any vitals.  The bull never laid down until it was half a mile from the lake.  He was in the thickest stuff imaginable when I heard him get up.  And like a sheet of plywood being dragged through the willows, he got up and walked away, deeper into the burn.  I tracked him for another half mile over the next ridge but he never stopped.  Never ever struggled or fell once since being hit.   He was gone.  I hunted that area a number of times since then and never saw any birds or activity. This has only ever happened to me one other time but I hope that bull is healing up.

One of our unguided groups of hunters were successful in taking a bull as well.  I was a day late in picking them up as the weather was not very good.  As I was loading the moose I asked if I could get a picture for the website.  Where are the horns?  It was a spike bull and the guys had just cut off the spikes and were going to make a knife handle out of it.  He could put it in his pocket 🙂 We had a few other groups of hunters who had moose calling and wouldn’t quite come in, lots of encounters with cows. One cow was even dancing in the water!  It was a good hunt but the rut was late again this year as it was last year.

Aaron and I saw the forecast coming the day we brought out the last moose hunters and there was a couple of nice days followed by a Colorado low, heavy wet snow and lots of rain for 4 days.  We went back up north and worked as hard as we could to get most of the work done and camps closed before the storm.  We had hoped that we would be able to hunt for ourselves and leisurely close the camps.  Our last night up north with the Otter, we got to Loree after closing camps all day at 5 pm.  an hour and a half before dark, our only opportunity to get out hunting.  “Let’s just hunt right by the camp”

After a half hour of calling…….

He came right to the call but quietly.  He was still fat and not very beat up.  Aaron had not shot a moose before, so I gave him the first shot.  The moose came out across the narrows and turned perfectly.  Aaron hit solid on the first shot, the moose headed for the lake.  I shot and hit him and he kept going for the water, so I gave him one more and down he went….  in the water of course.

It is always so exciting to get a moose but to see someone’s first moose is awesome.  Aaron was so happy, I was happy and Dustee was happy.

Aaron’s bullet went right through the moose but my 338 Win mag was on the far side against the hide.  They both did their job.  

We were able to get all the camps closed but one and put the Otter away one day before the storm.

For some reason, the Ravens were always close to me this year.  One morning a raven sat next to me for 5 minutes, just shining his beak and staring at me from 3-4 feet  away.  Many others sat in trees next to me this year and made weird noises.  I don’t know if they were being friendly or what but it was always entertaining.  If you spend enough time in the bush you will see some interesting things.

We saw a lot of this……

But also some of this 🙂

Dustee as always loved her time in the bush and was very happy to see the snow.  We had 6 inches 2 separate times.

We are always trapping mice while we are up there but this year was a first.  2 Mice, 1 Trap!!  It looked like they were 2 friends that said to each other “let’s do this together”  Both of their mouths were on the bait at the same time.  The ravens came each day and picked up the mice.  Maybe that is why they were so close to me all fall.

After the storm went by, we were able to get back up north and finish a few jobs that were left to do.  Winter was knocking on the door so we knew it was time to be done.

Since the storm we have had some phone issues and are having land line trouble.  If you are trying to reach us please email us at amikoutposts@gmail.com or click here to send us an info request form.  We are continuing to book dates for next year so please let us know if you are interested in specific dates or lakes in your email.

We are down to the last few groups of fall fishermen headed to the bush.  It is always bitter sweet to see the end of another season.  Lots of work to do and camps to close up before moose hunting.  We will see how Mother Nature treats us this fall.  We have gone from hot and dry to cool and damp.  We have had a fair bit of rain which has brought up the lake levels which is nice to see.  Fishing has been good, just deep, walleyes are down in 18-30 feet of water but the big pike have started to move into the bays and are feeding heavier as fall approaches.  The sizes have gotten bigger in the last week or two with many 26-28 inch walleyes being caught and released as well a more 40 plus inch pike.  Our guests continue to have a great time, no matter the weather or depth of the fish.  Just being in the bush away from the rest of the world should be your main reason for getting away, the great fishing is a bonus.  The silence and solitude are good for your soul and waking up with no alarm clock in such a place resets your mind.  I always look forward to fall.  It is my time of year……

Here are a few pictures from our last trip up north after getting some work done and closing the first couple of camps.

I had a ticket to the Packer game in Winnipeg but I had a bunch of flying to do that day.  Then was delayed by fog in the morning.  It wasn’t looking good to make it to the game.  Once we finally got going, there was just enough time.  We got the flying done and made the flight to Winnipeg.  Aaron and I were walking up to the stadium just as they were playing O’Canada.  Met up with my buddies who are also in the tourist business and had a great time. 🙂

The time of year where I disappear into the bush is upon us.  Working in the bush is nice.   You only have the task at hand to contend with and then move on to the next one.  We have accomplished a bunch of jobs already and have a couple of weeks to get some others done before we start our Moose hunt.

Lulu has become a good flying dog once she got used to it.  She jumps right in the Otter now and doesn’t mind it at all.  She is more needy than Dustee as you can see by this picture. Inside Aaron’s personal space….

You have never seen a dog as happy as Dustee when fall comes around.  It is nice and cool, she has mice to hunt and is always watching out for us.  She feels like she is our guardian I think. 

We work hard all day so that we can go fishing in the evening.  Always taking plenty of food but end up eating fish more times than not.  It is so good when it is fresh.

Dates for next year are booking up fast.  We seem to see a high demand for trips in 2020.  Please do not delay in getting your trip booked for next year.  You can inquire about dates for 2020 by clicking here.

We have been waiting for this time to come!  The ice is going and we are opening camps.  We will have just enough time.   Like always…… 🙂

We have been fairly cool at night so the ice has taken its time leaving.  Plenty of lakes are still iced over too much to get in but almost all of our lakes are open or will be shortly.  The ice has gone out up north before the lakes east of us.  A fairly common occurrence and ice out being May 9-10 is pretty normal.  Fishing should be awesome!!!

This was BlackBirch this morning on our way to Cherrington to drop of motors etc.  The ice will be gone from there in another day or so.    We will be busy for the next 2 weeks getting camps ready for the season.  Rena and Taina will be at the base getting the next load ready and the boys will be up north getting it done.  

From what I have seen so far, the water levels are perfect on the camps to the west and a bit lower over by Findlay and Loree.  I couldn’t get into Shearstone, Jeanette but DarkWater was perfect also, just up to the dock.

And I saw a few mosquitos today!!!! 

If you are still looking for a fishing vacation for this summer, please send us an email or call us.  Our schedule is ever changing and we can do our best to accommodate you.  Click here to inquire about a LAST MINUTE FISHING TRIP.

We have been booking people steadily lately and have filled all of the holes we had on our last blog.  Here are a few more dates that we have available for this season due to cancellations and health issues of some of our guests.

Cobham Daniel May 26-31, 2019

Cobham River June 1-5, 2019

Shearstone Lake June 26- July 1, 2019

BlackBirch Lake June 29- July 6, 2019

Vee Lake July 10-16, 2019

Jeanette Lake June 25-30, 2019

Please let us know if you would like to book any one of these trips.  We are looking forward to seeing everyone this summer.

A project we have been working on for awhile now is complete!  We have made a new brochure for this season and will have a PDF version of it on our website soon for our guests to download.  Here is the front page.

This year we will be attending the Northwest Sportshow at the Minneapolis Convention Center on March 21-24.

In the past 8 years we have not been attending any of the Sportshows.  Our faithful guests, good word of mouth and our website have kept our numbers great over this period of time.  We can always use more and new guests but this is more of a working vacation.  A time to get away from home, see what is happening in the industry, visit some of our guests and competitors, and have the opportunity to talk fishing with some new people.  It will be good to be back.

If you would like to get your hands on the new brochure come down to the show, Booth 1111.  We are looking forward to seeing everyone.

Looking at the long term forecast it looks like it is going to start warming up.  We have lots of snow and when it melts it will take the ice out pretty quick.  Hopefully we have a nice slow warm up. I can feel the longer days giving me more energy already 🙂

25 years ago Rena and I began working with my parents at Amik Lodge and Outposts.  Since then we have grown into a great team who have tons of experience in the outfitting business and know how to keep our guests happy and coming back year after year.  Pictured below is the first Cessna 185 that I used to camp check in.

The Outfitting business has seen a major turn over in the past year or two.  Many outfitters are getting to the age where they are ready to hang it up and sell to a new owner.  The flyin outfitting business is a small community and in our time with Amik Outposts there has not been many changes.  There will be many new faces at the Sporthows this winter behind some well established companies booths.  Amik Outposts on the other hand has not been doing many Sportshows in the past 8 years, we have been putting our dollars towards improving our cabins and equipment.  Our philosophy is that it is easier to keep our guests happy so that they want to come back, not find new ones.  We want to be your only Outfitter. 

Whether you are a first time flyin fisherman or an experienced group of fishermen looking for a better outfitter, you can not go wrong with choosing Amik Outposts.

Here are a few things to consider when you are booking your Fishing Vacation to Canada.

Experience in the business.  We have operated on the same lakes for our entire career.  We have started at the bottom and worked our way through every job that needed to be done and have learned to be efficient and provide a First Class Experience to our guests. 

Organization.  Rena and I have taken pride in our work and want to make sure you have a great time.  We look after the smallest details in all aspects of your trip right from the planning, having a well outfitted camp, the flight and the fishing.  We offer assistance with many factors of your trip planning , Groceries, Bait, Beverages.  Many outfitters have stopped doing these extra items, we have not.

Your Pilot.  With Amik Outposts, the pilot flying you to your camp is the owner.  I have been flying this area of Canada since I was 19 years old and strive to make every flight the smoothest flying experience  of your life.

The Fishing.  Having been in the business for a long time we know how our fishing compares to the rest of Canada.  We can honestly say that our fishing is World Class.  We have had fishermen who have fished all over the World and Canada, after fishing with us, their search for the best is over.  Our Conservation policy, a healthy gene pool and a pristine environment ensures that our fishing will stay great forever.  We are fortunate to be able to share this awesome renewable resource with our guests.

Comfortable Cabins.  Our cabins are not fancy.  They are functional and comfortable.  Breathtaking views of the lake, screened in decks, new mattresses, a Sat phone for emergency use, dry boats with good solid seats and reliable motors.  We do our best to ensure the small details are looked after also such as a new grill every 2 seasons, having 2 refrigerators at each camp and many other small items to make sure your trip is uneventful and enjoyable.

When you are researching outfitters for your next Fishing Vacation look at the map of Ontario and have a look where the outfitters are located.  If you look up into the far Northwest corner of Ontario away from everyone else.  That is where you will find us.

Please click here to enquire about fishing with Amik Outposts in 2019!

The Clark/Herrington boys have been fishing with us for many years and look forward to their fishing trip more than Christmas.  Fishing the same lake for this many years, they started out pretty green and have seen their size and quantity of fish increase immensely since they fell in love with the North.  Here is their fishing report for 2018 Cobham Daniel.

“Rena,

Our 20th anniversary of staying with Amik did not disappoint!  In fact, our group set a number of new records.  We caught 4 pike over 40 inches, including a couple of 43 and 42 inch monsters.  We have 2 new members of our famed “40 Inch Club”:  Scott T. from St. Louis and Dan R. from Minneapolis. 

The number of pike over 35 inches was simply amazing.    Some of the photos are attached. 

The walleye fishing also set new records for our group.   The big walleye was 27 inches closely followed by a number of walleye 25 inches and over.   In only his second year Dan R. took home both the big walleye plaque and the big pike plaque. 

My son James once again reclaimed the Undisputed Angler of the Year belt with a consistent 6 day performance of catching the most walleye over 20”, the most pike over 27”, catching the most “monster” fish and winning nearly every daily fishing contest.   

It was another great fishing trip and everyone is already looking forward to getting back next year.   Thanks again to you and John for providing such a great experience. 

We had a number of other firsts this year.   Perhaps the most unusual was fighting a forest fire down toward the trapper cabin north of the Daniels Cabin.   Not long after a number of lightning strikes we noticed fire on the shore that was rapidly expanding.   We used the bottom of our leech tote to put out the various fires which started at a tree struck by lightning.  We had to kick fallen trees and burning branches into the lake and eventually Dan R. joined in with his boat cooler.   After a lot smoke and steam we got everything out!  See the picture with me standing next to the burned tree.  

We also had one pike who tried to steal one of the walleye on our stringer tied to the boat while we were casting in a back bay.   The 35” plus monster just didn’t want to let go and I had wrestle the stringer away from him.   But then he refused to hit any of our spoons!   We also caught one pike that had both the lure in his mouth, but also another 18” pike.   Apparently he attacked both the lure and the smaller pike at the same time!  

More pics to come.  

Brent”

The Undisputed Angler of 2018!!!  On the right……

The Maranville Party fished Jeanette Lake and had a blast with their family.  Fishing was awesome and they caught some big ones!  Here are some pictures from their fishing vacation with us.

Our season continues to roll on and we have seen many happy fishermen come through our doors.  The weather is quite hot, upper 80’s and even warmer for most of the forecast.  Fishing has been as awesome as ever with walleyes and pike moving slowly into deeper water, around 10 feet from what I have been told by the outgoing fishermen.  Once the cabbage weed grows a bit more the fish should come back into the shallows before heading to their mid-summer areas.

There has been some big fish caught lately on all of the lakes with big numbers of fish everywhere as well.  Tons of walleyes between 24-28 inches with a few 29 plus as the largest so far.  The largest pike so far is 44.5 inches and plenty of 40 plus trophies were caught and released last week as well.  Fishing continues to be great!

Here is a picture from Loree Lake of a beautiful 29.5 inch walleye caught and released by Bruce E. recently.

The Big Pike have been on and off, one week every lake catches many 40 plus inch fish and then they kind of turn off for a few days.  It is hard to predict anything in nature.  We have a great gene pool and the fish are very healthy.  This year in particular we have had some monster fish caught and they seem to be very thick across the back. Here is some pictures from Vee Lake This thick monster was caught by Garrett B. on a gold Doctor Spoon.

The Miller boys took their first flyin trip with us to Loree Lake recently and are seriously hooked!  They had so much fun and caught so many fish that they will be back!  I shared their video on my last post but here are a few pictures from their fishing vacation on Loree Lake.

Just a reminder to anyone who is yet to come fishing with us to bring a good water filter for drinking water.  With hot weather on the horizon it is important that you have plenty of water with you in the bush but it is heavy and we will want everyone to be on their weight limit.  We have lots of guests who use these types of filters and are very happy with the quality. 

Here is a link I found in my first search but it will give you an idea of what you should have.  They weigh one pound.  A case of 24 water bottles is 30 pounds.

Cabela’s water filters

We have been busy!  Winter seemed as though it would never end and then all of a sudden it got warm and stayed that way.  The ice is gone on everything we have except Cherrington out on the big lake.  We have been hauling supplies into the camps and are opening up camps in preparation for the season.  

We are starting the season sort of dry with normal to low water levels.  We could use a good rain to bring out the leaves and slow down the forest fire risk.  Until we get some rain we are going to have to be very careful.   Hopefully we get some rain before our guests start to show up on the weekend.  If not I would expect a fire ban until something changes.

When we picked up the Otter there was still ice on larger lakes but that went very quickly with warm and windy weather.  It has been sunny for most of the last 2 months.  The snow went from knee deep to nothing within 10-12 days.  The ice went from 30 inches to being gone within 2 and a half weeks around Red Lake.  Spring is here and we are ready to go.

We have added a new member to the Amik Outposts family.  A Cessna 185 CF-ZQV.  This will be used for camp work and look forward to spending some time in a smaller aircraft to do odd jobs and possibly do some fishing……..

Some brand new WC-14 Lund boats found their way to Findlay Lake.  Combined with new 4 stroke motors last season. The only water in the boat will be dripping off the walleyes you bring into the boat.

We have had a cancellation on one of our June dates and would love to fill  the spot with some fishermen.  If you would like to fish our Cobham Morley cabin during the month of June please click here to enquire about special last minute pricing.  The date is June 22-27th, 2018.  

GO JETS GO

It is great to make the playoffs!  It is great to win one playoff game!  
Winning 2 series and go further than any Jets team in our NHL history?
Awesome :)
We are big and strong and know how to score. 
Our fans are special.
35 Thousand plus show up every game, the arena only holds 15. 

We are loving every minute of it!!!

It has come to that time of year where we are able to hunt the largest mammal in North America!  I am fortunate to be able to be in the thick of it the entire time each season.  Moose hunting can be a very mentally tough hunt and great patience is required to get close to these monsters most of the time.  Persistence, patience and silence of human noises are all key.  It is so rewarding each and every time you are successful.  Here is a few videos from some past hunts to get you in the mood for hunting season.  They are all videos but it doesn’t show the icon.

As always it is bittersweet to see the season come to an end.  We had a very good season, the weather was perfect for the most part, fishing was awesome as were our guests.  Each and every one had a great time and I would say almost every guest said to us as they left, “We will be back” or “See you next year”.  It makes us feel good to be able to show people a good time in the pristine wilderness.  The fishing is usually the first reason you make the trip to see us but after a trip or two, the fishing becomes a bonus.  Where you are and who you are with becomes the reason you come here.

Scott and I are closing camps as quick as the fishermen are done.  Servicing motors, washing boats and tipping them over, draining water and cleaning up and making notes on what is needed to provide a quality, trouble free trip.  The weather so far has been pretty nice for working, still warm but pleasant.  Nice enough for fishing in the evening.  Here is a Monster Walleye Scott caught while we were working at the Cobham. 30.75 inches!

We have also been working hard during the day.  The dock at Cobham Daniel is almost done, the roof at Blackbirch has been replaced, outhouse holes have been dug and some new boardwalks and fish cleaning tables have been built.   Here are a few pictures from our trips to the north recently.

The Daniels dock has been on my list for a long time but the water has not gotten low enough to do it properly until this year.  We had to start fresh for most of it but at least we didn’t have to find too many new rocks to put into the cribs.

Ripping apart the old cribs wasn’t too hard and then we got to have a nice all day fire…

It is much easier to work with a new crib.  We are heading up north again soon to finish the rest of it but it is coming along great.

We also spent some time at Blackbirch putting on a new roof.  We had some perfect weather for roofing.  It was windy but warm and sunny.  We had 3 guys and lots of time.  We were able to get it done in a day and a half and also get some fishing done in the process.

Reminder!!!  ALL deposit checks are to be made payable to “Lac Seul Airways Ltd.”