Loon Haunt Outposts – 2008 Our Year in Review

We were wondering if breakup would never happen this spring. Weeks of cool weather and a lack of spring rains resulted in the ice just lingering and not melting. Bill was eager to begin getting things ready for the approaching season. He had our plane pulled from its winter resting place and launched. There was only enough water at the dock to float the plane and he had to break ice to open water. Our Red Lake bay was ice free and he was able to taxi there on May 18th. Then we began a whirlwind of activity as the close outposts of Monroe and Unnamed were readied for fishermen. Howey Bay was finally free of ice on May 20th. Our daughter Kari arrived on May 21st and we flew to Goose Lake where some of the bays still had floating ice. Kari was a BIG help and we enjoyed her company and her cheerful assistance for 3 weeks.

Lake levels at all our locations were very low due to the absence of spring rains. The first 3 weeks of the season were pleasantly warm but the dry bush was a concern. We were apprehensive there might be a bad forest fire season ahead but finally the much needed rains came in mid June and continued all throughout July. Now some of the lakes were very high with Cherrington getting as high as Bill had ever seen it.

Fishing was superb this year with large numbers of walleye caught and released. Northerns were very aggressive in the early part of the season and the week of May 30th to June 7th was very productive for spring fishermen.

A freak storm dropped many inches of rain in 24 hours about 100 miles north of Red Lake in early September. Some operators were really inconvenienced by overnight rising lake levels of up to 4 feet. Cherrington Lake experienced a rise of 1 foot and the dock was underwater, but slowly over the month, the water level receded.

The summer’s high water put a damper on the wild rice crop and it wasn’t until mid August that the rice was finally standing. This was a good 3 weeks behind schedule and we knew the crop would suffer for it. Surprisingly the rice matured in record time and by mid September was ready to be harvested. After taking a good look at it, Bill decided there wasn’t enough to make it worthwhile this year and the prudent thing would be to leave it for seed. Thousands of our feathered friends had it all to themselves on their annual Goose Lake sojourn. We are optimistically looking forward to next year’s crop already as our stocks are down.

There were numerous wildlife sightings at all locations and the first flock of migrating geese flew overhead on August 16th.

We had some great weather in September and took advantage of it to shut down the outposts and winterize them. Bill put the 4 wheeler and trailer to good use at Goose Lake and hauled out of the bush great stacks of firewood for next year.

Arrival at home in Red Lake was on September 23rd, a good week earlier than normal.

Wisdom Gained from 31 Years in the Resort Business

1. Leaving lifejackets in boats makes it rain.

2. Pulling boats high and dry out of the water and pulling the bailer plugs means never having to bail out boats.

3. The best way to swamp a boat is to leave it tied to the dock.

4. The best fishing is always on the other side of the lake, as far away from the camp as possible!

5. Even a tiny bit of raw fish in a garbage can makes it very unpleasant to be in the cabin.

6. Motors must be tightened every few days because they shake themselves loose from boats.

7. Fish slime attracts flies.

8. Back trolling works better than trolling forward – no one gets caught in the motor.

9. Storing some kindling and split firewood in a dry place makes building a fire a snap.

10. Once a good fire is going, wet wood added to it WILL burn.

11. Stringing fish through both lips keeps them alive longer on a stinger.

12. Louisiana guests are very serious about their coffee!

13. It doesn't matter what you use for bait as long as you believe in it. People using artificial lures, gulp, minnows, crawlers and leeches all seem to have great fishing.

14. We could never grow without referrals from our loyal guests

– THANK YOU!

Louise’s Chatter

• Our daughter Kari introduced Chance Lapoint and Cory O’Dell to geocaching. She accompanied them on a hunt for the geocache that Bret Ford had hidden on an island at Goose Lake a few years ago. They enjoyed the hunt and discovery so much that Kari helped them create their own geocache. After much discussion on where to locate it, they finally decided that the portage at Whitedog Falls was the perfect spot. We are waiting for the first guests to find it.

• Bob Rose got serious with his lake trout fishing this year at Cherrington. He brought along a new downrigger and experimented with fishing techniques. The trout were found at 50 feet and Bob caught an impressive 5 in one day.

• Dave Keller treated the members of his party to a delicious dessert every night of their stay. We are still thinking about his fried bananas with coconut! He even brought along special molds for homemade brownies. No canned fruit and Twinkies for this crew!

• Scott and Max Barnes reported catching 40 walleye over 20 inches during their 5 day stay at Goose Lake. From previous visits they knew the prime areas to target.

• Lon Bernth’s gang of 4 caught over 1000 fish in their week at Goose Lake. They fish strictly artificial and pointed out that they lost a day and a half to bad weather.

• This year we were pleased to see many grandfathers introducing their grandsons to the sport of fishing.

• There were bad weather delays almost every weekend this spring and we appreciate the patience of our guests who took it in stride. Later in August Ron and Kathy Neider had to spend an extra night at Poirier Lake while Steve and Nina Milliner were stuck in Red Lake. Bill deemed it too dangerous to fly because of the high winds and he moved them the next day.

• Walt Beleau and Peter Stachnik called over from Whitelaw Lake to let us know they were OK after a wicked storm pounded them in June.

• Our hat's off to George Brown for the largest Northern this season - 46 inches at Cherrington Lake!

• Bill had no large projects planned for this year, just ongoing maintenance. When space was available on the Otters, timbers came in to be used in 2009.

• Talk about beginner’s luck! Bob Holliday brought along friend and first timer Norm Youngberg. Norm proceeded to best everyone with a 28 inch Walleye.

• Don Fleming's crew reported fantastic fishing at the mouth of the river on the way to Woman Falls. We spread the word and other parties spent a lot of time there as well with equally good results. Folks appreciated the beaver stick landmark Mike Hubbard erected.

• Leo Wantor’s party, traveling in 2 vehicles and separated by miles, was in a hurry to get to Red Lake to begin their fishing adventure and weren’t watching their speed. Around Ear Falls, both got stopped and fined for speeding by the same officer. Bummer!

• At Goose Lake, Dave Keller set his pole down for just a second only to see it “fly” out of the boat in front of his eyes! BIG Northern?

• Doug, Dana, Dustin and Daniel Sutton found that using an AC Minnow crankbait produced big fish ( 26.5, 26.5, 27, 28 inch Walleyes) all caught on the same lure and mostly the same place - “the honey hole” at Goose Lake. Dustin caught a 32 inch Northern using the same plug!

• Ted and Kathy Michael, first timers at Whitelaw, fished for numbers during their 5 day stay. They chaulked up an impressive 546 Walleyes – 330 for Ted and 216 for Kathy! Their bait of choice – leeches. Rain and high winds kept them off the lake for several hours each day so they mentioned their totals would have been higher if they had just been able to get out on the water.

• We again had the pleasure of hosting Ken Smithson’s large group of 22 avid fishermen. They set new records at Goose Lake this August – using 337 dozen minnows, drinking the most beer and catching a new camp record Walleye! Todd Livengood recorded a whopping 33 inch Walleye on the bragging board!

• The pressure was on for Steve Milliner this year at Poirier Lake. Could he put the largest Walleye on the bragging board for yet another year? YES! Steve came through with a 27 ½ incher!

• Stan Kosiewicz and Amy Anderson gave Steve a run for his money. Fishing at Poirier Lake in August produced 8 25 inch Walleyes for them and 1 26 inch Walleye. Stan, Amy, Steve and Nina all agree that fishing deep (30 + feet and using a very slow presentation is the key to catching the big ones.

• For some years now I have been interested in finding out more about the Hudson’s Bay Trading Post marked on an old map of our area. This map shows the site of the fort to be at the east end of Goose Lake and the date it was active – 1789. This summer I contacted the archivist of the Hudson’s Bay Company in Winnipeg but she could not provide any helpful information. Perhaps Goose Lake had a different name back then. I will try to include a visit to the Winnipeg archives sometime for more research.

• Terry Schmidt’s foursome was fishing from 2 boats at Woman Falls this summer and 1 man from each boat caught the same good sized Northern at the same time.

• Rosemary Wilson has to be one of our most consistent Northern fishermen. Although she and her husband Bob always fish Monroe Lake and know that lake very well, this year they tried their luck at Unnamed Lake. No matter, she still recorded 34, 35 and 40 inch Northerns on the bragging board! Her secret? Rosemary swears by her trusty Thin Fin – she uses no other lure.

• Ken Dawson's group of 6 recorded close to 2000 fish during their week long stay at Goose Lake in August.

• Gary Sweeney and Tom Townsend had good luck with the big Northerns at Monroe Lake in late September. Gary targeted these lunkers and posted 40 and 41 ½ inch Northerns on the bragging board. The largest was caught right off the dock at Monroe!

• Norm Wright, the friendly mustached Otter pilot from Green Airways, has finally retired. His back got progressively worse over the summer and he decided to end his long flying career.

• We have to thank Jared Visker for the excellent job he did on a fishing video of Goose Lake. Check it out for yourselves at www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBODLtyRx4w Makes you want to get a few friends together and start driving to Red Lake and board a plane for Loon Haunt Outposts!

• Our guests enjoy seeing wild animals up close. There were many moose sightings this year by members of the Brazier, Bernth, Rambo, Beleau, Vorbrich, and Kosiewicz/Anderson groups. Scott and Max Barnes were lucky enough to see a cow moose with 2 calves as well as 2 caribou. Ken Dawson had his camera handy and was able to take several pictures of a caribou eating lichen and nibbling some leaves at Goose Lake. Some of Scott Geest’s group spied a pine martin behind their cabin at Goose Lake while members of the Fleming crew saw a swimming bear in the distance. Arnold Schmidt and Joe Vuillemin chanced upon a swimming otter.

• Each year we thank many of our guests for their acts of kindness and this year’s list is particularly long. Jon and Kathy Pounds mailed a guest’s forgotten item for us. Scott Bittner sent us a water purifier that has come in handy. Mike Hubbard always brings along Vidalia onions, coffee, candy and Bush’s beans for us. Roger Schrage had extra venison sausage to share with us while the Schweitzer party very generously supplied us with wonderful jam and chocolate! Ron Sinwell brought along some Iowa sweet corn that was our first taste of the season. Thanks to Bud Scott for bringing a huge watermelon and delicious pecans all the way from Alabama! The Washa family provided us with delicious huckleberry jam from their home state of Montana. There was a generous supply of candy from Brian and Betsy Doubek and special cookies from Jerry Lichfuss. We munched our way through the candy while reading all the books supplied by Ken and Noemi Balog, and Ralph Gudeman. Lon Bernth brought along some Cabela souvenirs that we’ll put to good use. Amy Anderson sewed a beautiful wall hanging of our airplane, thanks Amy! Nina Milliner supplied us with a lovely loon plaque. Ed Bisson shared some home made spinners he made from Labatt’s Blue bottle caps. He said they really work! Ken Smithson’s group always helps me celebrate my birthday. Ken even made homemade ice cream this year to accompany the birthday cake! My 60th birthday was very special thanks to you all – many thanks for the bottle of wine too!

• Our thanks to Merle Cash and Russell Hulett for taking time out from fishing – they helped replace the gray water line that a pesky bear had dug up. They also helped Bill get the old gas tank to the dock for the flight out. Several parties helped out with unloading timbers at Goose Lake. Many thanks to the Holliday, Bernth, Visker, and Ken Smithson’s groups for muscling the heavy timbers. Airplanes always fly full and we appreciate all the assistance in unloading and loading them. The Brazier, Rose, and many outpost parties helped unload freight and even firewood! Dick Lindemulder’s group at Cherrington helped Bill replace the fridge with a freezer – thanks guys! Terry Schmidt’s guys helped us move the wild rice speed head to where it wouldn’t come to any harm. Dave and Carol Bennett helped us make short work of cutting and hauling next year’s firewood at Poirier Lake.

• In Memorium: Michael Schweitzer, Charlie Peigler, Steve Douglas. Michael Schweitzer was supposed to accompany his father and brother to Goose Lake along with other party members this spring. Shortly after he was married, he was tragically killed in a motorcycle accident. Charlie Peigler also passed away this spring. Charlie annually looked forward to fishing Monroe Lake along with Ted and Melissa Marquess. Each summer he would try and best the large Northern he caught the previous year. Steve Douglas also looked forward to fishing Monroe Lake. His brother Warren told us of the many conversations he had with Steve about Monroe Lake and the memories it held for both of them.

Reservations for 2009

We look forward to your return! We enjoy renewing old friendships and making new ones. Join us at Loon Haunt Outposts for a relaxing fishing adventure. Please contact us to lock in your favourite week and your favourite location.

Check out our website www.loonhaunt.com for more pictures of 2008 guests. With so many digital cameras in use these days posting your pictures is so much easier than the old days. Thanks to everyone who sent photos. It’s never too late to send us your pictures so we can include them on the website. Our email address is:
fishing@loonhaunt.com

Thank You

We enjoy living with nature at our back door and take our job as stewards of the resource seriously. Our goal is to take the best possible care of it as well as the cabins and equipment so it will be ready and waiting for your return.

2008 was a year of economic uncertainty. High fuel prices kept some of our regular guests from making their annual journey to Canada. To all the fishermen who visited us this year, we thank you for your company and business! To those still dreaming of your first Canadian fly in fishing experience, we look forward to sharing our part of the country with you.

Who Caught What at:

Thank you for taking the time to enter your catch on the bragging boards. We enjoy reading about your success and often feel we were in the boat with you! We can imagine the thrill of catching these fish and the satisfied feeling of releasing them so they can swim away unharmed. We noticed, however, that this year our guests were not as diligent in posting their catches as in past years. A special thank you to those guests who did!

Unnamed Lake

Name	Month	Species	Size
Joe Crabb	May	Northern	37, 38, 39
Cam Zimmer	May	Northern	37(2), 40
Matt Crabb	May	Nothern	37, 38
Matt Crabb	May	Walleye	24(3), 26, 28
DeMarco party of 4	June	Northern	37(2), 40 (140 wk total)
DeMarco party of 4	June	Walleye	24(11), 25(5), 26(5), 27, 28 (700 week total)
Stiller party of 7	July	Walleye	21(10), 22(10), 23(8), 4(7), 25(10), 26, 27(2), 30
Kirk Titus	July	Walleye	23(2), 25(2)
Wes Stiller	July	Walleye	30
Alan Ventress	August	Northern	30, 33, 36, 39
Alan Ventress	August	Walleye	27
Rosemary Wilson	August	Walleye	20
Rosemary Wilson	August	Northern	34, 35, 40
Scott Wilson	August	Walleye	19
Scott Wilson	August	Northern	30, 33
Brandon Wilson	August	Northern	31, 34
Brandon Wilson	August	Walleye	21
Bob Wilson	August	Northern	30(2)
Bob Wilson	August	Walleye	20.5, 24
Douglas Scheper	August	Northern	35
Douglas Scheper	August	Walleye	20, 22.75
Kyle Scheper	August	Northern	26
Kyle Scheper	August	Walleye	19
Tim Pearson	August	Walleye	23, 28
Tim Pearson	August	Northern	30.5, 31.5, 33, 34
Leroy Weimer	August	Northern	31.5
Leroy Weimer	August	Walleye	21

Monroe Lake

Name	Month	Species	Size
Thomas Sayer	June	Northern	37
John Johnson	June	Northern	37.5
Jack Lenz	June	Walleye	22
Brett Brown	June	Northern	35
Justin Hale	June	Walleye	22
Brandon Brown	June	Walleye	23
Hale Party of 4	June	W&N	685
Tom Beckstrom	July	Walleye	25
Joseph Laurich (age 8)	July	Northern	27 (2)
Joseph Laurich	July	Walleye	21
Henry Laurich (age 10)	July	Walleye	21
Laurich family of 4	July	W&N	Approx. 500 in 7 days
Kelley family of 4	July	Walleye	Approx. 300 in 3 days
John Schmidt	August	Walleye	26
Dale & Sara Schultz	September	Walleye	24+
Gary Sweeney	September	Northern	40, 41.25
Tom Townsend	September	Walleye	22

Whitelaw Lake

Name	Month	Species	Size
Merle Cash	June	Northern	9 (yes, 9")
Merle Cash	June	Walleye	24
Curt Hulett	June	Walleye	21
Kathe Mundinger	June	Northern	30
Bob Howell	June	Walleye	21
Ed & Paul Bisson	July	Walleye/Northern	303 in 5 days
Ted & Kathy Michael	August	Walleye	546 in 4 days
Mike & Marie Glazier	August	Walleye/Northern	Lots, did not count
Bill & Debbie Rose	September	Walleye	Many walleye (21 largest)

Poirier Lake

Name	Month	Species	Size
Curt Hulett	May	Northern	32
Curt Hulett	May	Walleye	24
Merle Cash	May	Northern	32
Merle Cash	May	Walleye	24
Gale Mote	June	Walleye	26
Clint Mote	June	Walleye	24
Dave Wall	June	Walleye	22(2), 23, 24
Bill Wall	June	Northern	38
Steve Boehm	June	Walleye	many 18 - 22
Steve Boehm	June	Northern	28, 30
Douglas Scheper	June	Northern	30
Douglas Scheper	June	Walleye	23.75
Kathleen Scheper	June	Walleye	23
Kathleen Scheper	June	Northern	32
Jon Pounds	July	Walleye	20(lots), 23.5
Jon Pounds	July	Northern	30, 31(lots)
Kathy Pounds	July	Walleye	lots up to 23
Kathy Pounds	July	Northern	27, 28
Bob Rupel	July	Walleye	24
Bob Rupel	July	Northern	20-23(many)
Jim Dobernic	July	Walleye	23.5
Joe Abramajtys	July	Walleye	25
Joe Abramajtys	July	Northern	30
Jay & Bud Scott	July	Walleye	25 (607 total)
Jay & Bud Scott	July	Northern	40 (58 total)
Howard Eads	August	Walleye	20-24(lots), 24.5
Don Bauer	August	Northern	18-30(lots), 32
Noemi Balog	August	Northern	30
Ken Balog	August	Walleye	23
Amy Anderson	August	Walleye	25(2)
Amy Anderson	August	Northern	30, 35
Stan Kosiewicz	August	Walleye	25(6), 26
Stan Kosiewicz	August	Northern	30, 32(2), 35
Ron & Kathy Neider	August	Walleye	lots to 25
Ron & Kathy Neider	August	Northern	41
Steve & Nina Milliner	August	Walleye	many up to 27.5
John & Bethany Harrelson	September	Walleye	many 20 - 25
Dave & Carol Bennett	September	Walleye	many up to 25
Dave & Carol Bennett	September	Northern	many up to 27

Cherrington Lake

Name	Month	Species	Size
Rory Wiebel	June	Northern	32(2), 33, 34(2), 34.5, 42.5
Adam McDermott	June	Northern	30(2), 34, 36, 38
Luke McDermott	June	Northern	30, 31, 32, 33, 39(2), 40
Ron McDermott	June	Northern	31(2), 32
Ron McDermott	June	Walleye	23, 24, 25, 25.5
Luke McDermott	June	Walleye	23(2)
Luke McDermott	June	Lake Trout	25
Gene Theisen	June	Walleye	26, 27
Gene Theisen	June	Northern	37
Mike Rogers	June	Northern	31, 34(2), 36, 38
Bob Theisen	June	Northern	31, 34, 36
Nils Melberg	June	Lake Trout	26, 27
Brian Devroy	June	Sucker	22
Brian Devroy	June	Lake Trout	32
Theisen group	June	Walleye	20+ too many to count
Jim Rose	June	Lake Trout	26, 27
Brian Rose	June	Walleye	26
Brian Rose	June	Northern	33
Brandon Rose	June	Northern	35, 36, 37
Brandon Rose	June	Lake Trout	25
Bob Rose	June	Lake Trout	21, 24(2), 25(3), 26
Don Rose	June	Lake Trout	27(2), 28, 29
Don Marshall	June	Lake Trout	23
Dick Lindemulder	June	Walleye	26.5
Dick Lindemulder	June	Northern	36
Dick Lindemulder	June	Lake Trout	27
George Brown	June	Walleye	26
Leo Wantor	June	Walleye	27
Barney Graves	June	Northern	24
Rich Little	June	Northern	26
George Brown	July	Northern	46
Jerry Samson	July	Walleye	29
Jerry Samson	July	Northern	27.75
Bill Matthaeus	July	Whitefish	19, 23
Joe Janik	July	Burbot	28

Goose Lake

Name	Month	Species	Size
Chance Lapoint	May	Walleye	24
Chance Lapoint	May	Northern	30
Dale and Cory O'Dell	May	Walleye	26
Cory O'Dell	May	Northern	25
Chad Schrage	June	Northern	27.5
Terry Barron	June	Northern	36 (2)
J.R. Woodall	June	Northern	29, 30
Ray Oeth	June	Northern	29
Jim Holland	June	Northern	38
Frank Schweitzer	June	Northern	32
Frank Schweitzer	June	Walleye	21
Scott Schweitzer	June	Northern	32
Kale Frank	June	Northern	36.5
Chad Schrage	June	Walleye	23.5
Wally Milbrandt	June	Walleye	23.5, 25.5
Bill Schuneman	June	Northern	28
Roger Schrage	June	Northern	35.5
Kale Frank	June	Walleye	23
Scott Geest	June	Sucker	24.5
Tom Olson	June	Northern	38
Tom Olson	June	Walleye	26.5
Keith Frank	June	Walleye	24
Ralph Geest	June	Dip net	52
Tim Stahman	June	Northern	36.25, 37
Barry Kruse	June	Walleye	23.75
John Kastner	June	Walleye	23
Chuck Beck	June	Northern	36
Chuck Beck/John Kastner	June	Walleye	180+ in one day
Scott Kruse	June	Walleye	24
Harold Kruse	June	Walleye	24.375
Barry Hager	June	Walleye	25.125
Barry Hager	June	Northern	35.75
Troy Kruse	June		Family Poker Champion
Todd Fleming	June	Walleye	23
Curt Fleming	June	Walleye	22
Curt Fleming	June	Northern	30
Grant Fleming	June	Northern	30
Don Fleming	June	Walleye	22
Norm Youngberg	June	Walleye	22, 24, 28
Norm Wise	June	Walleye	24.5
Greg Holliday	June	Northern	33, 36
Bernth Party	June	W&N	1000+ for the week
Bernth Party	June	Walleye	23.5
Paul Keller	July	Northern	38.25
Dave Keller	July	Walleye	24
Dave Keller	July	Northern	33.5
Scott & Max Barnes	July	Walleye	20-26 (40)
Daniel Sutton	July	Walleye	26.5
Doug Sutton	July	Walleye	26, 27, 28
Dustin Sutton	July	Northern	32
Bill Tarter Jr.	August	Northern	35
Sherm Sweeney	August	Walleye	23
Roger Hutchinson & Lawrence Montoya	August	Walleye	168 in 1 day
Roger Hutchinson	August	Walleye	52 in 3 hours
Jason Harrison	August	Walleye	26.5
Jay Cave	August	Northern	31
Trent Clark	August	Northern	33
Todd Livengood	August	Walleye	33
Todd Livengood	August	Northern	35
Brant Privia	August	Northern	31
Marlin Pieske	August	Walleye	25
Joe Cearley	September	Walleye	24
Kyle Visker	September	Northern	28, 35
Jared Visker	September	Northern	38
Jim Bradford	September	Walleye	21
Gordon Woodward	September	Clams	5
Jared Visker & Mike Bradford	September	Walleye	123 in 2.75 hours