First Full Day Fly Fishing at Selwyn Lake Lodge

by | Jun 24, 2015 | Uncategorized

blog-June-24-2015-1-selwyn-lake-lodgeWe woke up to a stunningly beautiful morning here at Selwyn Lake Lodge.  The skies were a rich blue. Despite last nights late night of fishing and a few beers till 1 AM this morning, we were up and ready to start fishing and filming early.

 

Unfortunately, not far from here the skies aren’t so blue.  The forest fires expanded considerably down in southern Saskatchewan and Ron had to take care of numerous concerns from some of their other Adventure Destination lodges.  Ron wasn’t able to break loose until 10 AM.

 

blog-June-24-2015-2-selwyn-lake-canadaIf you’re wondering why we didn’t just take off in a boat fishing ourselves there’s a reason for this.  Selwyn Lake isn’t only so big you get lost easily, but there are numerous hidden submerged reefs.  It’s easy to wreck a boat or bust a prop off a motor.  Until we get a taste of this place, fishing on our own isn’t an option.

 

blog-June-24-2015-3-flyfishing-at-selwyn-lake-lodgeOnce out we had someone to help us find our way around, a new guide here, Brennan Kruger.  I quickly caught on that Brennan not only knows a ton about fishing but he’s also a good fly fisher.  With Brennan we were able to take two boats and we headed off in what was now overcast from clouds and smoke.

 

blog-June-24-2015-4-warpath-fliesThe first stop we made was at the mouth of a small pike fishing bay twenty minutes from the lodge.  The plan is to attack the pike until we have our film complete.  But as RA and Austin got their camera gear ready to film I made few blind casts with my pike fly.  We were drifting in deep water but my Warpath jig fly was heavy and I let it sink.  On my first strip I hooked and landed a lake trout.

 

blog-June-24-2015-5-ron-stirker-adventure-destinationsThat laker changed the crews train of thought.  Indeed we’re here to make a pike film but RA and Austin would also like to make a nice promo film for Adventure Destinations.  Filming a few lakers would be nice touch.  For about two hours until the wind became too strong, Ron and I dredged for lake trout with my 300 grain sinking line.

 

blog-June-24-2015-6-flyfishing-for-laketroutWe picked up about ten small lake trout on the fly.  But an exciting event happened worth mentioning.  As I was landing a standard 18” laker and he was thrashing on the surface a huge lake trout came to investigate.  My childhood bait fishing instincts kicked in and I let my small hooked laker back down.  The (what I’d estimate to be 36” laker) massive char swirled excitedly around my fish several times as if to eat him but soon became suspect and took off to the deep.

 

blog-June-24-2015-7-flyfishing-with-brennan-krugerThe open lake where the lakers thrive became too windy to reasonably continue fishing there.  We focused back to pike fishing and Brennan led us to some sheltered bays.  The pike love these kinds of places because there are plenty of baitfish and weeds to ambush them from.

 

blog-June-24-2015-8-jeff-currier-flyfishing-the-northwest-territoriesFor two hours we dealt with heavy wind, broad siding gusts and rain.  But like with a lot of fish, the stormy weather brought on the bite.  Ron and I landed about twenty-five pike including four nice ones over 35”.  Although the fishing was insane, it was hard for RA and Austin to film with all the rain.

 

We headed back to the lodge at 5 for a rest and dinner.  The clouds and smoke lifted and by 8 PM it was gorgeous out.  The five of us headed back out to film some pike fishing exactly where we were last night.

 

blog-June-24-2015-9-RA-beattie-outdoor-productionsAnyone who says pike aren’t smart is incorrect.  Last night we caught over fifty pike in this bay and tonight we caught about a dozen.  We had lots of follows but you could visually see the pike roll their eyes and turn away not to be seen again.  It was humbling to say the least.

 

blog-June-24-2015-10-midnight-sunsetRegardless of the slow fishing, tonight was perfect for enjoying the midnight sun.  If you’ve never experienced being this far north in June you must.  All of us that trout fish have experienced epic hatches at sunset that we wish would never end.  The midnight sun sunset lasts about four hours thus giving you that never ending feeling!

 

A special thanks to RA Beattie Outdoor Productions and Adventure Destinations for bringing me along on this incredible adventure to Saskatchewan!

Jeff Currier Global Fly Fishing

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Welcome to the Blog of Jeff Currier!

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I started fly fishing at age 7 in the lakes and ponds of New England cutting my teeth on various sunfish, bass, crappie and stocked trout. I went to Northland College in Ashland, Wisconsin, where I graduated with a Naturalist Degree while I discovered new fishing opportunities for pike, muskellunge, walleyes and various salmonids found in Lake Superior and its tributaries.

From there I headed west to work a few years in the Yellowstone region to simply work as much as most people fish and fish as much as most people work. I did just that, only it lasted over 20 years working at the Jack Dennis Fly Shop in Jackson, WY where I departed in 2009. Now it’s time to work for "The Man", working for myself that is.

I pursue my love to paint fish, lecture on every aspect of fly fishing you can imagine and host a few trips to some of the most exotic places you can think of. My ultimate goal is to catch as many species of fish on fly possible from freshwater to saltwater, throughout the world. I presently have taken over 440 species from over 60 countries!

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