Winter has set in and we are back on Lake Manitoba commercial fishing.  Many of the lakes in the north have not frozen over yet but this lake is quite shallow and freezes sooner than lakes which are deep and have current.  

We have 9 or 10 inches of ice already.  There is not much snow on the ice and the ice has been going down pretty fast even though we have not been very cold.  It definitely makes your winter go by faster when winter is late in showing up. Before you know it the days will be getting longer and we will be getting ready for another season in Red Lake.

The Jigger takes our line out and then we have to go find it.  Pretty easy when the ice looks like this.  We were on about 3 inches of ice that day but it is a bit tougher to find through 4 feet of ice covered in snow on a windy day though.  There is a small tapper that helps us find it.

My Great Nephew Brey came out there to help us set a few nets.  Another generation that loves it out on the lake.

We get to see some awesome sights out there.  The sky always seems so big.  But this place can also be like hell during a storm.

It is hard to stand on this kind of ice, so we use snowmobile track screws on the bottom of our boots.  The first day I was out there, mine were wore out and it was windy.  It makes for a frustrating day if you can not move around.

Dustee is a pretty unique dog.  When the ice is smooth like this she will ride on the sleigh over the rough ice just like this for miles.

And this is why we do it.  Walleyes are our main target but they buy pretty much all species of fish that we catch.  These are worth the most and most of them normally head to restaurants in the USA as well as Canada.

We see thousands of fish each day and see some pretty strange variations.  This is a Tullibee, normally a nice silver but this one was very red and a little while later we caught one that was yellow.

At the end of each day we take our fish to town and pack them in ice to ship to Winnipeg and be processed.  

Our family has been fishing on Lake Manitoba for 4 generations.  This lake has been good to us and the surrounding area.  Generating a lot of money for the local economy.  Back in the day, every farmer along the lake was a fishermen.  The number of fishermen has dropped in the past years since there is no guarantee of making enough money.  It is a great place to work in nature and make some money if you work hard at it.  I feel fortunate to be able to carry on the tradition.

Dates for 2022

After the border closure and shortened season this year we have fewer available dates open at this time than we normally would, which is good for us but not always good for getting people the dates or lake that they may want.  We do have openings left for 2022 but just want to remind anyone interested in fishing with us next season to be flexible if possible on dates.  We will do our best to accommodate you.  Here is the link for reservations.

Amik Outposts Gear

If you are looking for a unique gift for Christmas, check out our Online Store.  Anything you order will be made in the USA and shipped to you.  Here is the link to our Shop Amik Page.

Amik Outposts on Instagram

Our Instagram Page has been growing in leaps and bounds this summer.  Taina has been doing a great job capturing the essence of our business and showing it to the world.  Many of our reels and photos have gone viral already.  Check some of them out here.  Amik Outposts Instagram.

How many fishing trips have you been on where the fishing, the outfitter, or the accommodations did not meet your expectations.  Amik Outposts takes pride in making sure that you have a great fishing vacation whether it is your first trip or your 40th one.  We are a small owner/operator company where even the smallest details of your trip will be handled professionally and courteously.  The accommodations are not extravagantly fancy, they are well planned, up to date with lots of fridge/freezer space, comfortable beds, couches and enough space for your party to stretch out and relax.

We know you are on a fishing trip and will spend many hours on the water enjoying the beautiful scenery in an area of Canada that has remained untouched since the beginning of time.  The fishing also has remained untouched since the beginning of time.  Unlike many lakes further south that were being used as outposts for 50 years during a time when everyone took home a limit of 6-8 walleye and 6-8 pike, all trophies, most of our lakes were opened up in the early 90’s and have had a conservation policy in place since that day.  Our gene pool is healthy and the fishing is as good as it gets.  Just look around our website, our pictures are from last season on all of the pages.

Here are some of the beauties caught and released last summer.

Hey Rena,

Here is the picture I promised you. What a fish, I have never ever caught a fish even remotely close to this size!!!! She was 40 and ½” long!!!!  I will truly remember it until the day I die. Thanks for making our trip run without a hitch from beginning to end your professionalism really rang true and although we could have gone somewhere else on the cheap, there is no way that we would have experienced the fishing we did. Take care and until we meet again be safe.

 Sal Pusateri

Owatonna, MN

The weather has been comfortable for quite awhile now with one day of rain last week but we are into a trend of changing weather with some more rain in the forecast.  Fishing has been outstanding!  Walleyes are getting a beating on every lake.  Numbers have been phenomenal and the big females are being caught and released more frequently every week on all the lakes.  Many 27- 28 inch walleyes were caught last week, some in 3 feet of water.  Some fishermen called it fishing in a bathtub.  Drifted up against the weeds, your line 3 feet below you, lifting fish after fish almost out of the water when you set the hook!  For the most part walleyes are in 8 feet of water or less right now, on windy shorelines and sometimes in the shallow bays up against the weedy shoreline.  The thing about fishing walleye at this time of year is that your biggest pike will most likely be caught on your jig and light tackle!  Big pike have been everywhere, caught at the bottom of the rapids, on top of the rapids and in the walleye holes.  The action has been fast and furious if you want it to be.

Here are some highlights from the past week.

The Holland party has been fishing on Findlay lake for a lot of years.  They have seen many different weather patterns and water temperatures in their time spent on Findlay.  This year was one of the rare ones where the sun shined everyday and didn’t need rain gear until their last afternoon.  Their experience on the lake proves to be a huge benefit every year.  They know where the big fish hang out, and they provide us with the pictures to prove these are not just fish stories!   The fish this year were larger than normal with the group catching more 24-25 inch walleyes than they ever have before!  Chuck had the biggest one measuring 27  inches.  The pike were on this year as well.  Lots of thick healthy trophy pike were caught and returned to the water.  Brian had the biggest catching a 40 inch pike!

The McConnell party made their return to Blackbirch Lake last week.  They had a great time as usual and again they said they had the best fishing ever!  When you are in such an awesome environment with good friends it is easy to have the best time ever, over and over again. 🙂  Here is Marty with a thick 38 inch trophy pike.

Shorelunch.  Fresh out of the lake and into the pan!

The Plummer crew came from far and wide to meet up on Jeanette Lake, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and even Hungary.  These guys have been doing flyin trips for a long time and seem to have found a home with us.  They really enjoyed Jeanette lake.  The northern pike were crazy this week.  They caught lots of 30 plus inch pike, 12 above 35 inches a fat 38 inch, 2 at 39.5 inches and the biggest one for the week was a 41.5 inch pike.  Walleye were numerous all week and the size increased daily.  The biggest ones were caught late in the week up to 27 inches.

The caribou still like to hang around the cabin at Jeanette.  They are so quiet and peaceful.

The Olsen party were back for their every other year trip to Shearstone Lake.  This is their 4th trip to Shearstone and they love it.  I heard rumblings as they were leaving that they may have to start doing it every year.  Lots of nice fish were caught on Shearstone Dave had a 40 inch pike and a 25 inch walleye, John also caught a 25 inch walleye, Larry had a fat 38 inch pike and the leader Alan caught a 24 inch walleye.  They enjoy the silence of the north and this year had quite a bit of wildlife around.  They saw a moose swim across the lake, saw 2 eagles fighting, although when they toss and turn through the air, that is more of an intimate moment when they are mating 🙂  They also heard some wolves ands saw some otters.  Another great trip to Shearstone Lake!

The Sanders family went back to Darkwater Lake last week for the 2nd time.  They also brought a new guy along named John.  I am pretty sure this is the first time that someone other than family has been on a trip with them.  Adam, the youngest, had an opportunity to move up from leech boy with new blood in the group for the first time in 20 years but missed his opportunity and did it out of routine.  They had a great time and caught over 1000 walleye during their stay at Darkwater.  A number of walleyes up to 24 inches were caught and released.

The moose population around Darkwater is high.  Almost every group sees moose while they are there.

The pike on Darkwater are very aggressive!  2 times during the week they had walleye attacked on the way to the boat.  That is always exciting!  Same time next year, same lake!

These are some of the highlights from last week.  There are many more stories as they are happening everyday at our 12 outpost cabins.  What will yours be?