Hey guys, wanted to do my first report based on the trip I went on with a few buddies to Tunnel Lake, located 1hr East of the Soo in Wharncliffe, ON. We stayed at Cedar Rail Lodge and had a beauty 4 days. There were four of us, three who had done the trip regularly including one who basically grew up on the lake and acted as our guide (thanks bud), and myself, a newcomer to the lake as well as fishing in that area.
It was about an 8hr drive up from London with stops here and there, including the inevitable stop at Cabela's in Barrie. We were jonesing for an outdoor superstore a little too hard and actually got to Bass Pro Vaughn 1 hour before it opened, so Cabela's it was.
Tunnel Lake is a man-made lake with a dam on the Mississagi River, meaning it's situated in the eroded-out channels of the rock the river once flowed through, and sections of it are 80ft deep or more. The view from above the dam was a beauty.
CRR has two outposts on this lake and we stayed at #1, about a ten minute boat ride from the dam. A good way to ease in to boat-in lodges. The outpost can also be accessed by horseback.
We spent the mornings dragging one another out of bed and jigging for walleye. We caught a lot of little guys and a few good ones. This was my first time jigging from a boat for walleye. We'd mostly be jigging at depths of 40 feet or so, dropping the jigs til the line would go slack on the top of the water, reeling in about a foot of line, resting the rod against the hull and letting the wind do the work. This was the only technique we caught walleyes on all weekend. Worms and leeches were the bait of choice.
After a break at the cabin for breakfast we'd troll around bays hunting for bass and pike. Probably the most impressive fish we caught were the smallmouth bass. This was the biggest of the trip. I caught it on an original rapala size 11 in orange, just trolling out of a bay not expecting to get a thing. It hit pretty hard and leaped a few times far from the boat.
There would be times we'd spot the bass feeding on the surface late in the afternoon or evening, and jointed rapala's cleaned up here. For some reason we had a hard time setting the hooks properly on these fish, and after a leap in the air or two they'd be gone, but this was one of the highlights for sure.
This bass was basically black, and if anyone can indicate why that would be I'd love to know. He was surfacing late in the evening, almost dark, and all I had on was a jig and a worm from walleye jigging. Not wanting to miss the surface feeding opportunity I just cast in his area and he smashed it. It's incredible how, no matter how bad or inaccurate your cast is, they'll somehow sense it and hit it almost instantly if they are in fact feeding.
We rolled into a good ol' Northern Canadian party mid-afternoon one day without a trip back to camp to change and got nothing but compliments about the attire. Northerners get it.
The pike fishing was pretty good too. I would say most of the pike were caught trolling. My Cotton Cordell Wally Diver in black and silver with red eyes is now dubbed "Pike Slayer" for its innate ability to trigger strikes that seemingly come out of nowhere. Several times this lure would work on the pike when nothing else would, I'd cast and have a fish on before I'd even close the bail on my reel it seemed. Trust me, I'm sure it had nothing to with with my technique, I would recommend this lure. They weren't huge, but this was my best one of the weekend:
It was a great trip and hope you enjoy the report.
Berg.
It was about an 8hr drive up from London with stops here and there, including the inevitable stop at Cabela's in Barrie. We were jonesing for an outdoor superstore a little too hard and actually got to Bass Pro Vaughn 1 hour before it opened, so Cabela's it was.
Tunnel Lake is a man-made lake with a dam on the Mississagi River, meaning it's situated in the eroded-out channels of the rock the river once flowed through, and sections of it are 80ft deep or more. The view from above the dam was a beauty.
CRR has two outposts on this lake and we stayed at #1, about a ten minute boat ride from the dam. A good way to ease in to boat-in lodges. The outpost can also be accessed by horseback.
We spent the mornings dragging one another out of bed and jigging for walleye. We caught a lot of little guys and a few good ones. This was my first time jigging from a boat for walleye. We'd mostly be jigging at depths of 40 feet or so, dropping the jigs til the line would go slack on the top of the water, reeling in about a foot of line, resting the rod against the hull and letting the wind do the work. This was the only technique we caught walleyes on all weekend. Worms and leeches were the bait of choice.
After a break at the cabin for breakfast we'd troll around bays hunting for bass and pike. Probably the most impressive fish we caught were the smallmouth bass. This was the biggest of the trip. I caught it on an original rapala size 11 in orange, just trolling out of a bay not expecting to get a thing. It hit pretty hard and leaped a few times far from the boat.
There would be times we'd spot the bass feeding on the surface late in the afternoon or evening, and jointed rapala's cleaned up here. For some reason we had a hard time setting the hooks properly on these fish, and after a leap in the air or two they'd be gone, but this was one of the highlights for sure.
This bass was basically black, and if anyone can indicate why that would be I'd love to know. He was surfacing late in the evening, almost dark, and all I had on was a jig and a worm from walleye jigging. Not wanting to miss the surface feeding opportunity I just cast in his area and he smashed it. It's incredible how, no matter how bad or inaccurate your cast is, they'll somehow sense it and hit it almost instantly if they are in fact feeding.
We rolled into a good ol' Northern Canadian party mid-afternoon one day without a trip back to camp to change and got nothing but compliments about the attire. Northerners get it.
The pike fishing was pretty good too. I would say most of the pike were caught trolling. My Cotton Cordell Wally Diver in black and silver with red eyes is now dubbed "Pike Slayer" for its innate ability to trigger strikes that seemingly come out of nowhere. Several times this lure would work on the pike when nothing else would, I'd cast and have a fish on before I'd even close the bail on my reel it seemed. Trust me, I'm sure it had nothing to with with my technique, I would recommend this lure. They weren't huge, but this was my best one of the weekend:
It was a great trip and hope you enjoy the report.
Berg.
