Wabigoon Lake for fall muskie

The lack of muskie around Thunder Bay may be why I’m so infatuated with them. Or, maybe it’s just because they are elusive, challenging, finicky, toothy…and big! No matter the reason, I’ve sought to take advantage of any opportunity to target these apex predators. I’ve tried a few locations over the years and learned what a challenge these creatures present. After plenty of frustration, and some success on Lac Seul and Eagle Lake, I opted to test the waters of Wabigoon, a lake with a mix of everything.

The first few times I targeted muskie, I was accompanied by veteran muskie anglers. This time we were flying solo. My wife Corine and I visited Wabigoon in September out of Bonny Bay Camp.

We drove from Thunder Bay, and met up with Len Hoey, who with his wife, Cynthia, had recently become the new owners of Bonny Bay. Situated outside Dryden on Wabigoon’s north shore, it’s a beautiful spot with everything required for a fishing/family getaway on a true multi-species lake, and an amazing angling destination.

We met Len in Bonny Bay’s quintessential fishing lodge. It overlooks the lake, walls are adorned with mounts, and there is plenty of seating, games, and room for gatherings of anglers and hunters.

Bonny Bay Camp

Though we visited during a time with pandemic restrictions, we could envision what a fun place it would be, gathering after a day afield, sharing stories, playing games, and just having fun. We settled into our well-finished cabin with all the comforts of home, overlooking the green space, play area, community fire pit, and Wabigoon. Though we were taking a kid-free weekend to focus on muskie, it would be a great place to return with the family. I sat down with Len, looked at maps, got my bearings and a few local tips.

Bonny Bay Camp serves as a base for multi-species fishing trips, family getaways, as well as bear and white-tailed deer hunting opportunities.

We put the boat in, setting sights on the first few X’s. Over that afternoon and the next day, we bounced from one potential muskie spot to the next. The grind of muskie fishing is very real, and doing it alone was a first. Previously, I fished with friends who were dialed in, but here it was all on me. It posed a challenge, yet made it exciting, and ultimately more rewarding. After torturing Corine for a day or so, casting giant baits for hours on end, we acted on a hot crappie tip from Len.

We headed across Wabigoon, through a wide, weedy river system into Butler Lake — it is attached to Wabigoon, and on the map almost looks like part of the lake. Sections of the adjoining waterway are several hundred metres wide, yet it is absolutely choked with vegetation, with a narrow river-like channel running through the middle. The ride was an adventure in itself, and the area was absolutely loaded with waterfowl that had me thinking a return visit with a shotgun was in order.

A crappie day

Not knowing much about crappie, but knowing they gravitate to cover, we found a log poking out of the water in 20 feet of water as soon as we hit Butler. We sent our micro jigs down beside it, and in almost no time at all we caught our first crappie. We pulled a few fish off this log, then continued on to a small island Len said had a sunken tree off the east side. Over the next several hours, we pulled dozens more off this tree. The importance of both good electronics and staying on the structure were made very clear.

If we got away from the tree, things went silent, but once I found that tree on my Humminbird Helix, we were on fish.

Thankfully crappie are more plentiful, and less finicky than muskie, providing a reprieve from the monotony that muskie fishing can present.

I think you must be wired a certain way to like muskie fishing — being content casting for days on end, enduring cramped hands from big reels and giant baits, tolerating long periods of inactivity and frustration with potentially nothing to show for it. Sounds fun, right? But when you see a muskie, or hook a muskie, or land a muskie…it all makes sense. It may not be for everyone, but for an angler who wants that challenge and that rush, is okay with periods of sheer boredom and frustration, muskie fishing is for you. Corine is not necessarily wired the same as me — she loves fishing, but also likes catching fish. I’m okay not catching fish, if there is a chance I can catch a giant. Crappie provided balance.

Muskie mercy

Mercifully, the muskie didn’t make me wait too long. On the afternoon of day two, we stopped at an island, with a deep, narrow channel between it and another island. It had a weedy cove, alongside a steep sand bank, and looked like muskie perfection. I sent my giant bucktail along the edge of the weedbed and saw a giant flash. My rod buckled, and I watched the unmistakable thrashing of a muskie in the stained water. As my heart rate sky-rocketed, Corine grabbed the net, and moments later I was hoisting my first Wabigoon muskie.

The Wabigoon chain consists of 10 interconnected lakes, providing almost 50,000 acres of multi-species fishing. Along with muskie, it is an exceptional fishery for walleye, smallmouth bass, yellow perch, northern pike, and black crappie. It is a true multi-species destination and a great northern Ontario angling destination year-round.

Cost

Eight housekeeping cabins with full kitchens are available. Fishing packages start at $800/person/week (including docking, bait and gas allowance). Boat rental packages start at $975/week. In September and October, minimum three night-stay packages for muskie anglers are offered. Two-night/three-day ice fishing packages in March and April start at $500.

Public access

There are several public boat ramps on Wabigoon, including off Queen Street in Wabigoon and at the end of Van Horne Ave. in Dryden. There are also two on the southwest side of the lake, accessed by Hwy. 502 and Contact Bay Road. 502 connects with Hwy 594 west of Dryden.

Contact

Bonny Bay Camp,
866-815-5971
www.bonnybay.com

Getting there

From Thunder Bay drive four hours west on Hwy. 17. Wabigoon is near Dryden, two hours east of the Ontario/Manitoba border.

Originally published in the July 2023 issue of Ontario OUT of DOORS