It’s Just a Baby

by | Jun 1, 2010 | Uncategorized

blog_may_31_2010_1[1] The rain was coming down this morning when we left our cabin to chase the fish around. Not only that, it was cold and windy. Put those ingredients together at the latitude of northern Saskatchewan and you have a very nasty day for fishing. We rented two boats from Thompson Camp and headed out on Otter Lake. Otter Lake is actually an over swollen part of the Churchill River. On the map, Otter Lake looks to be about fifteen miles long and eight miles wide in some places. There are hundreds of islands and you could get lost quick. We weren’t too worried as we purchased a good map and had our GPS.

Even with the rain coming down we were comfortable, completely dressed in warm clothes and waders with rain jackets. We were also as pumped as you could be. Our main target today were big pike. Having the opportunity to fish for big pike doesn’t come often for we Rocky Mountain folks. The first place we stopped proved we were going to catch fish. We must have caught twenty small pike. Place after place we caught fish. Finally I stumbled into a decent pike by most standards, a fish of 6lbs, but for the locals it’s a baby.

blog_may_31_2010_2[1] The highlight of the day was hitting a favorite walleye area on the lake. The dude who rented us the boats recommended we try a particular spot. I was fishing with Bill and when we pulled up to this spot, Chris and Steve were already there anchored. They were jigging for the walleye and were excited to say they caught several. This was good news because despite being serious “catch and release guys”, fresh walleye for dinner was on the menu. I purposely brought along my 6-weight Ross rod and a Rio Type 3 sinking line just for the walleyes. I strung her up and on my first cast landed a gorgeous walleye. I released the fish and two casts later landed another. To make a longs story short I went on to land eleven in less than an hour. The fly performed better than jigging by far which is very unusual.

blog_may_31_2010_3[1] It was a great day to start the trip. The best part is we ended the day with sunshine and no wind. Perhaps our weather took a turn for the good. Tomorrow we will relax in the morning then drive two hours north to the small town of Southend on Reindeer Lake. At 4 pm we will catch a sea plane to Pagota Lake and spend the next four days. Because we will be so far in the backcountry, this will be the last report till we get out. Be ready for some exciting entries and photos in a week!

 

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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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