Ice-Fishing, Lac Desert (Mar 15 - 18)

I'm not one to describe myself as an ice-fisherman.  I've gone ice-fishing a number of times--always had fun, but I wouldn't say it is an activity on my winter "to do" list.

It is now.

Lac Desert is east of North Bay and a little north.  It's geography and topography is similar to the Pine, Turtle, Talon lakes area.  There are several beaches along its shoreline, there are also cliffs to jump off--which makes for great swimming and shoreline lunch adventures in the summer.

My brother Kelly came up with the idea to put a trip together to Lac Desert where brother Dennis and cousin Bob Milling have cottages.  It is an isolated area and the tall Pine trees and geography remind me of Lake Temagami and more locally Pine, Turtle, and Talon lakes.  A trip in the winter to Lac Desert was not a new idea, but it was an idea from the Captain and he came up with it while at the funeral for Mike O.  "What are we waiting for--let's do this."

Not long after the date was set, Kelly and I started searching for snowmobiles.  The trek in from the logging road is about 12 k and Bob's 4-wheeler on tracks was necessary but not sufficient.  After carefully talking it over with our spouses, we settled on two economical and rational machines.  Enough said.

Kelly and I left North Bay on Thursday morning at 7 am.  The weather was mild--a little drizzle.  It had been raining for a couple of days so the snow was nearly gone.  The snow slowly disappeared as we moved east and then north.

The Gatineau River as we headed north on Hwy 105.  There were ice bergs floating down stream.

We arrived at the pick-up point around 1:20 pm.  Bob was there to meet us.  He had his four-wheeler connected to a sleigh and loaded with fishing gear and equipment.  We loaded up Kelly's sleigh and headed off to Lac Larche for our first fishing adventure.

A: Pick-up point, B: Lac Larche fishing hole 1, C: Lac Larche fishing hole 2,  D: the cottage, E: original planned location for fishing, cancelled due to ice conditions. 

The snow on the trail was about a foot deep in some places but it was granular and slippery.  This made for tricky sledding on the trail.  There was no snow on the lakes, and the shoreline was slush or thin ice.  On the way in, Kelly's sled--towing a heavy sleigh got stuck.  Bob was able to winch him out and we made our way to Lac Larche.

We fished at two locations. Point B was 20 metres from the trail.  The ice was about 8 inches thick and there was about 3 feet of slush near the shore.  No problem for the "Plow King's" atv or the sleds.

While Bob and I cut holes Kelly set-up some lines.  We were fishing in minutes.  Not long after, Bob scouted down the shore and came back and suggested we try further down (Point C on the Map).  Here the ice was about 1.5 feet thick.  We spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying the beautiful weather and scenery.

Around 4:30 pm the clouds started getting darker and we decided to pack up and head to Bob's cottage.  The trail from the edge of the lake rises steeply in a short distance--about 15 m then turns sharply to the left.  Kelly was able to get up and out with his sled and sleigh, but Bob ground-in part way up the trail. He was pulling a heavy sleigh.  We disconnected it and we were able to connect his winch to a tree and he hauled himself up and out.  Once turned around, he connected to the sleigh and hauled it up.  We were then on our way.  During the 30 minute delay, the warm rain began and stayed with us on the 10 k ride to the cottage.

A comfortable evening at Loon Lodge.

The cottage was warm, dry, and comfortable.  Soon a roaring fire was burning and plans were under way for dinner.

A view from the porch with Arrow in the foreground.

The main beach at Lac Desert.

Friday morning started with hot coffee and a delicious breakfast.  Plans were underway to meet Brad and Dennis at the pick up point.  We loaded up the sleighs and started down the trail with Arrow for another day of ice-fishing.

Dennis and Bradley arrive around 10:30 am.  We were concerned that they might not make it through the mud at the beginning of the road, but the Mercedes had no trouble.  We celebrated with a ham and cheese and started to our next lake for fishing--Lac Poeil.

Bradley and Ardie, "Is this the way to the cottage?"

"... whose idea... onto the ice?"

The Captain checks the ice, Bob du Lac hauls the sleigh.

Bobbie showing how it is done.

B and the Captain, hauling out.

My snowshoes helped keep my feet dry on the ice.  Nice colours in the photo.

The trail back to the cottage was traversed by a stream being held back by a beaver dam.

Back at the cottage and time to relax.

Chill'n on Bob's porch.

Dennis

The Captain

Bradley

Bob du Lac

Arrow, Smooch, Ardie.

Fantastic dinners at Loon Lodge.

Luke and Gabe's cabin.

Sun in the Pines.

The main lodge.

Dennis, Smooch, and Arrow enjoy the view from Pine Lodge.

First fire of the year at Pine.

The boys doing breakfast.

Spring is around the corner. 

Clockwise from the red hat.  The Captain, Bob du Lac, B, Dennis, The Teacher.

On the final day out we loaded everyone and everything and three dogs into and onto the 2 sleds, atv and 2 sleighs.  It took about 70 minutes to cover the apx 12 k to the road.  A beautiful warm day--about 17.  Fantastic journey out and a great ride home with Kelly.

Special thanks to cousin Bob Milling--the ultimate host.  He shared his cottage, atv, fishing gear, food, and stories about family and friends.  

Looking forward to my next trip to Lac Desert.

Kelly has already began scouting out a sled route from here to there.

All good.