Spring came early this year in NW Ontario.  Usually we're still ice fishing in early April, but not this year.  The ice has been unsafe for weeks now and a lot of areas are open water.  The ice isn't totally gone from the big lakes, but it will be any day now.  

Early ice out like this gives us a unique opportunity to fish walleye from a boat before the season closes on April 15th.  It's been a real treat with some awesome action and big fish.  We're getting fish in 15-25 feet as they stage near spawning areas.  Males are already milty and the females are fat with eggs.  

This is the earliest I've ever fished Lac Seul in a boat.  It sure felt great to get out and set the hook on some walleye.    

Coming up - ice out lake trout and wild turkey hunting.  Gotta love springtime!  

The weather we've had here in NW Ontario this March will go down as the warmest in memory.  The snow disappeared so quickly and the ice is already unsafe.  And to think, last year we were ice fishing well into mid-April.  Now my snowmobile is put to bed for the summer and my short rods are stored for another year.  Looking back, though, it was an awesome season on the ice - short as it was.  

I snapped this shot on March 22nd at the Deception landing boat launch on Lac Seul.  The ice is breaking down quickly and any current areas are already open water.    

The whole lake is probably going to be ice free before walleye season closes on April 15th.   This unique situation will result in some great opportunities for catching 'pre-season' walleye from a boat.  


There are a lot of things to look forward to in the spring - particularly ice out lake trout fishing and turkey hunting.  Stay tuned for more reports.  

One of the great things about living in NW Ontario is that friends like to come up for a visit and get out fishing.  Winter is no exception, and this year I've had some awesome trips with friends of mine.  

A couple weeks back Trent and his GF Jessica made the long trip from southern Ontario to Sioux Lookout for some ice fishing.  We had a great time and the weather cooperated too.  We put in some quality time on the ice and came up with some really nice fish for our efforts.   

Jessica got us started with a really nice lake trout.  Having grown up on Lake Simcoe, she's no stranger to pulling fish up through the ice.     

In fact, she landed the biggest fish of the trip - check out this awesome pike! 

Lucky for Trent and I she let us get a few that were worthy of the camera.  

Trent lives on the Bay of Quinte in SE Ontario so he's used to pulling big walleye through the ice.  He showed us how to get it done in NW Ontario with the big jigging spoon.  

Trent's big lake trout was the first fish we caught on one of the days.  Great way to start a day! 

I used my home field advantage to land a few nice fish myself.  

Next up, my friend Dave was driving out west from southern Ontario and made a pit-stop in Sioux Lookout for some hard water action.  We landed some nice fish, but the highlight of the trip was this big pike Dave caught.

Dave really wanted to catch a big lake trout as well - so first I had to show him how it's done. 

Then Dave got his lake trout too - his first one in 15 years.  

It's a great feeling to be able to take friends out fishing and share memories that will last a lifetime.  

In other news, the long range forecast is showing unseasonably warm weather here in NW Ontario.  Looks like ice fishing season will be cut short this year.  We've still got a couple weeks at least to fish so stay tuned for my late ice wrap-up report.  

Looking ahead - spring means two things: ice-out lake trout fishing and turkey hunting.  

Until next time, good fishing.

Ben

It's hard to believe, but we're already at the mid-way point of the 2012 ice fishing season.  Normally mid-winter is the toughest bite of the ice season but we're still going strong with a lot of great days on the ice and big fish being caught.  We've been having a relatively mild winter so maybe that has something to do with it.  I wouldn't mind another deep-freeze though... we need to build more ice so we can fish into early April.    

I'm going to start off this report on a bit of a sidetrack with some news and housekeeping from benbeattieoutdoors.com.  First, you'll notice a new page on bbo.com - Videos.  I really enjoy putting together videos of my adventures, so look for the Videos page to grow with content.  In fact, I just made a new video of an exciting musky catch from 2 seasons ago while fishing with some good friends.  Here it is!   

Some other exciting news to share - I'm presenting a seminar on musky fishing at the Central Canada Outdoor Show in Thunder Bay.  The show is at the Sports Dome and my talk is on Saturday Feb. 25th at 12pm.  If you are in the area come on out to the show and lets talk muskies!

Alright, back to ice fishing.  It's hard to beat the multi-species action we have at our doorstep here in northwestern Ontario.  Who could argue with catching walleye, lake trout, whitefish and pike from the same hole?  

Lake trout are my favourite fish to chase in the winter.  They get big and fight hard, giving the best chance for some serious reel-peel on the ice.  I have the same philosophy with lake trout that I have with muskie - target big fish!  It often means catching less fish, but when you do get one it's well worth the effort.  I'll start off with a few pictures of some really beautiful lakers.  

Here's my buddy Mike with a beauty that hammered a jigging spoon and gave him an awesome fight.

This next fish crushed a Lindy Darter, 5-minutes after I dropped it down the hole.  

Another philosophy from muskie fishing that I share with lake trout is the importance of catch-and-release.  I let all my big lake trout go.  There's nothing wrong with keeping a trout for the table, but I much prefer smaller fish for eating.  Three-to-four pounders make great table fare.  

Walleye fishing has also been excellent this winter with lots of action and some big fish in the mix as well.  Here's a couple nice walleye from recent trips.  Both fish hit a Lindy Rattlin' Flyer Spoon tipped with a minnow.  That spoon has been my hottest bait this winter, catching every species under the ice.    

While I don't often target pike during the winter until last ice, it's common to catch them while fishing for other species.  Here's a trophy I landed while jigging for walleye.  

One of the most underrated species we have here in northwestern Ontario is the whitefish.  They are super fun to catch and when you land on a school of them the action can be non-stop.  We do get incidental catches while chasing walleye and lake trout, but we also target whitefish too.  Here's a few big hump-back monsters from recent trips.  Notice the difference in colours between the first two that were caught on different lakes.  

Believe it or not, but these big whitefish are smelt eating machines!  

I also had the opportunity to fish at Brown's Clearwater West Lodge near Attikokan, Ontario with Ontario OUT OF DOORS travel editor, James Smedley.   We had a great trip, exploring new water on Clearwater Lake, White Otter Lake and Grey Trout Lake.  These waters are known for producing BIG lake trout, including the current ice fishing world record.  James and I landed some really nice trout - no giants - but that's reason enough to go back again.  

Here's a shot that James snapped of me with a nice Clearwater Lake trout.

James is an award winning photographer and outdoor writer from Wawa, Ontario.  For more information check out his website www.jamessmedleyoutdoors.com 

Here's James with a nice trout that he caught on the first day of our trip.

Another cool thing we got to check out on this trip was White Otter Castle.  Hand crafted by Jimmy McQuat on White Otter Lake in the early 1900's, the Castle tells a story of one man's triumph and tragedy in the rugged Ontario wilderness.  Read more about it here.  

This is a picture of the Castle today, after restoration.  

Coming up, there's still a lot more winter to enjoy here in northwestern Ontario.  Believe it or not, the best ice fishing is yet to come!  March offers the best action of the year and usually the nicest conditions too.  Get in touch with me to book an ice fishing trip you'll never forget.  

Until next time, good fishing.

Ben

The 2012 ice fishing season is off to an amazing start here in northwestern Ontario.  Unlike our friends in more southerly areas, there is lots of ice and snow to play on up here.  We’ve had some great days on the lakes with some really big fish caught already. 

Walleye and Lake Trout get most of my attention during the winter but we get other great species like pike, whitefish, bass, specks and other trout as well. 

One of the coolest fish I’ve seen hit the ice so far this winter is this Rainbow Trout that my buddy Greg caught.  

The MNR stocked these fish a few years ago and needless to say, they’ve grown to an impressive size!

We’ve been getting good numbers and sizes of walleye from Lac Seul and Minnitaki Lake.  The morning and evening primetimes have had noticeably better action than mid-day.  We’re getting fish in classic wintertime spots like prominent points, humps and bottleneck areas in and around the main lake basins.  Depths of 25-to-30 feet have been best.  Hot baits are Lindy Darters, jigs/minnows, Jigging Rapalas and Rattlin’ Flyer Spoons.  

Lake trout are one of my favourite fish and there’s no better time than during ice fishing season to catch big lakers.  I have the same philosophy with lakers as I do with muskie – I’d rather catch fewer big fish than a bunch of small ones.  Luckily a couple of my buddies feel the same way, so we set off on a hunt for big lakers last week.  We landed multiple fish over 30-inches, including 4 over 35-inches.  I'll let a few of the pictures do the rest of the talking!

This is my good buddy Mike with one of the biggest lakers I’ve ever seen hit the ice.  A beautiful 38-incher. 

Here’s Mike releasing another big lake trout.  Congrats buddy! 

Another nice lake trout for Greg. 

Turns out Mike was on a big fish hunt… check out this FAT 41-inch pike!!

Rounding off the great multi species action from the past couple weeks are small mouth bass, splake and whitefish.  

Big hump-back whitie that slurped down a Lindy Slick Jig.

In other news, be sure to check out the new Ontario OUT OF DOORS.  I’ve got an article in there about a fly-in trip I went on back in September to Richter Lake, north of Nakina, Ontario. 

Check out this video I made from the trip too.    

Keep up-to-date with all my ice fishing reports by visiting the Lindy National Audio Fishing Reports page.  Click on the National Audio Fishing Reports logo on the top of the Lindy page, then click on Ontario on the map, and then click my name/picture.  An up-to-date audio report that I recorded will play, giving you the details on what's happening on the ice.  

Be sure to check back soon for more ice fishing action here in NW Ontario.  

Cheers and good fishing!

Ben

Winter always comes quick here in NW Ontario.  It seems like yesterday I was cranking in muskies on Lac Seul, and now it's      -20C and the lakes are frozen over.  It's a welcomed change though.  One thing I really love about NW Ontario is having 4 distinct seasons - each bringing with it exciting opportunities out of doors.

My frist ice fishing trip was November 26th, chasing brook trout.  We fished on 4" of solid ice and 2 of us managed limits of 13-to-18 inch brookies.  Such pretty fish... and delicious too!    

There's a lot I'm looking forward to this winter on the ice.  My number one favourite species to target is lake trout.  There's nothing like watching a thick red band on your flasher as it closes in on your bait... the anticipation and the unmistakable thump of a solid hit followed by some serious reel-peel!!  January 1st can't come soon enough.  In the meantime, there's brook trout, splake, walleye and pike to keep us busy.  The auger is gassed up and the snowmobile is ready to go.  

Check out this video I made highlighting some of the amazing ice fishing we have here.  All of the footage and photos were from last season and all within 30-minutes of Sioux Lookout.  

If that doesn't get you pumped up to hit the ice, I don't know what will!!  

Also be sure to check out the Novmeber/December issue of Ontario OUT OF DOORS magazine.  It's loaded with great content, including a feature article I wrote called 'Size Small' - A downsized approach for icing winter walleye.  To view the article, download the .pdf here.  

Keep up-to-date with all my ice fishing reports by visiting the Lindy National Audio Fishing Reports page.  Click on the National Audio Fishing Reports logo on the top of the Lindy page, then click on Ontario on the map, and then click my name/picture.  An up-to-date audio report that I recorded will play, giving you the details on what's happening on the ice.  

Be sure to check back soon for more early ice action here in NW Ontario.  

Cheers and good fishing!

Ben

Its been a great fall in Northwestern Ontario.  I spent a lot of time chasing muskies on Lac Seul but also visited Eagle Lake and Lake of the Woods.  We are so lucky here in NW Ontario to have three world-class muskie destinations within a few hours from each other.  Read more about my muskie adventures next fall in Ontario OUT OF DOORS magazine.  

Overall the fishing was pretty good.  I had my share of fish-less days - but the days where you catch one or two makes up for that in a hurry.  I broke my personal best twice this fall - both on the same lucky 10" Jake.  

Trolling dominated for big fish once the water cooled down to the low 50's and into the 40's.  I rigged my boat out with Salty Down-East rod holders, mounted on Bert's Custom Tackle bracket and track.  My new Thorne Bros custom trolling rod turned out to be a big fish magnet!!  

I definitely had luck on my side, or maybe it was just that white Jake that did it all, but I got my share of nice fish.  Here's a few shots of some fall-time muskies.  

This next fish I caught while out with Ontario OUT OF DOORS writer and photographer Tim Allard.  Tim was up for a muskie photo shoot for the magazine and this big girl decided she wanted to be a star!  You'll have to wait for next fall to see more pics in Ontario OUT OF DOORS.  Thanks to Tim for coming up and capturing some incredible shots!  

This next fish stands as my personal best muskie to date at 53".  It was the only fish of the day and it came on the last run of the day... I was literally 100-yards from pulling the chute and heading home.  I guess the old saying is true - 'It ain't over 'til it's over'.  

I had the chance to fish Lake of the Woods with Ryan Marlowe, owner of Figure 8 Baits in Kenora.  Figure 8 Baits is the premier muskie shop in Canada.  

We battled some rough weather with high winds, cold, rain and snow - but got 5 muskies to the boat.  Here's a couple of the better fish.  

Ryan with a nice fish that slammed his lure seconds after he popped it free from a snag.  

With temperatures remaining below freezing and a few inches of snow on the ground its time to call and end to the 2011 muskie season.  Time to start the count down to June 16th 2012!

Shifting gears to another favourite fall past time - Hunting - makes putting away the muskie rods a little easier.  After a moose-less moose hunt in October I was really hoping to get a deer for the freezer.   

I was more than happy to see this nice buck walk out the other morning.  50-yard shot and he dropped where he was standing.  

Looking ahead I see -18C in the forecast and that means one thing.... ICE FISHING is coming soon!  I already fired up the snowmobile and I just got my Lindy order in the mail so I'm all set for another season on the ice.  Darters, Slick Jigs, Rattlin' Flyer Spoons and much more - check out their awesome selection of ice fishing tackle on their web site www.lindyfishingtackle.com  

You can also hear my audio fishing reports for the upcoming ice fishing season on the Lindy National Audio Fishing Reports page.  Look for the first report sometime in early-mid December.  

See you on the ice!

Cheers,
Ben

Fall is my favourite time of the year.  What's not to love about big muskies, fat walleye and open hunting seasons?  There's so much to do on the water and afield that it sure makes the weeks go by quickly.  

Lately I've been putting in time on Lac Seul chasing muskies.     Casting with big rubber baits and trolling plugs has been getting fish into the Beckman net.  I'll get some pictures going,  starting it out with a good one!  This is the biggest muskie I've ever caught - 52.5".  It hit a 10" jake while trolling just after sunset.  My good friend Mike Owen was with me and got some great photos - thanks Mike! 

This fish ate a Bulldog on the first spot of the morning.  Great fight from this chunky 49-incher!

Had the pleasure of fishing with George Clark, from Thunder Bay, for a few days on Lac Seul.  George boated this nice muskie trolling a Jake. 

Here's a big Lac Seul walleye I guided a few weeks back at Silver Water Wheel Lodge.  Check out that girth!    

It was also my pleasure to host James Smedley and Gord Ellis from Ontario OUT OF DOORS magazine for some fishing on the lakes around Sioux Lookout.  We caught some lake trout and walleye and chased muskies as well.   Here's a shot of Gord and James doing their thing.  For more on this trip you'll have to wait to read about it in Ontario OUT OF DOORS.  

Another great thing about fall is the hunting opportunities.  Here's a shot of my friend Graham with a nice Ruffed Grouse from last week.  

Stay tuned for Fall Part 2 coming up soon with more muskies and a moose hunt.