A long awaited trip commenced today.  Granny and I began our journey to Gangler’s North Seal River Lodge in the far north of Manitoba.  But we didn’t start by plane.  I recently discovered that it’s a 7 hour drive from Hayward, Wisconsin to Winnipeg, Manitoba so we left a few days early in the Ruby Van.  We will fly from Winnipeg to Gangler’s on Saturday.

One reason for the drive to Winnipeg was to save money.  Flying from Duluth to Winnipeg didn’t make sense.  Another reason was to enjoy a little van life for a few days and see parts of Northern Minnesota at a nice pace.  But most of all, visit with my friend Stu Thompson who lives in Winnipeg.  I’ll get more into Stu tomorrow but he’s the master of the Red River channel catfishing on fly rod and we intend to chase them tomorrow and Thursday.

It was a slow departure from Hayward that began at 1 PM.  We eased our way north with lunch on Lake Superior.  A few stops at scenic views.  And a stop at this beautiful welcome sign into Orr, MN.

Tonight we camped in a stunning little spot in the middle of nowhere on a backroad near the Canada border.  We had a bottle of red and listened to the Cubs beat the Brewers 1-0.  A nailbiter for this fan but in the end we prevailed.

The plan is to get up early and head for the Red River at Lockport, Manitoba in the morning.  Then its catfish time!

Jeff Currier Global Fly Fishing