Saranac Lake Fishing Adventure (part 2)
Oct 12-16, 2018 - 20 years and counting
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This year we opted for October because of a very busy September schedule for all. I was hiking quite a bit to complete the 46ers and Jon had a very busy work / family schedule. We also added 1 more day to celebrate the 20th year of making this fall trip.
Of course you never know what kind of weather Saranac Lake has in store for you in mid October and this year the operative word was "cold"!
Day 1:
The launch was very quiet as to be expected.
The fall foliage was coming in nicely as well.
A very familiar sight as we head through the upper locks toward Middle Saranac Lake. Jon's attire tells the weather story, we were indeed expecting some precipitation on day 1.
If you've followed my 46er quest you'll know that this summer and fall the black bears were very active around not only the High Peaks camping destinations but the Saranac Islands as well. The early summer drought resulted in a very poor berry production so they were looking for free handouts. This of course can be a concern to campers who are not careful about food prep and clean up. The black bears pay the ultimate price of course and the reports were that at least one nuisance bear had to be "removed' from this area as well as the eastern high peaks.
These signs were posted at most of the campsites, of course the activity
had slowed by the time we arrived.You will notice that Roger did not make it this year unfortunately. This meant 1/3 more work setting up camp, thanks a lot buddy :)
You will also notice a 20lb propane tank, yes we brought heat!Another very familiar sight. We ended up at one of our favorite locations on Weller Pond, we had hoped to get either Shaw Island or the campsite in Hungry Bay with the lean-to but they were both occupied already, much to our surprise. This is a great spot as well and our tarp shelter would serve nicely for getting out of the weather as usual.
She looks nice with her new upholstery and trim woodwork eh?
If I recall, we did not venture out onto the lake in the rain, sleet, and snow mix the first day. If we did we didn't catch any fish or take any pictures.
Day 2:
We awoke to cloudy and cold weather, so many clothing layers were needed to venture out onto the lake. We could see that the high peaks had gotten all snow the day prior, Whiteface Mt. was indeed white already. I did take a few pictures, but the peaks were just too far away to be seen. The fishing was fairly slow this entire trip but we did manage a few nice largemouth bass in Hungry Bay. This one hit my red/white spoon as it passed over a a protruding log.
Yeah I know my eyes are half shut in the picture. To answer the obvious
question, No ... it was early in the morning yet :)Hungry Bay normally produces at least 1 pike but not on this trip, so we headed to another favorite spot in the creek mouth. Like I mentioned, the fishing was very slow but I did manage to land a couple of pike while we were in there.
Trying out the new fish grabbers, works good. Not sure how well it would
on a big pike though.We fished pretty hard that first day, and the whole trip really. The fish to cast ratio was very low however.
Back at camp, we enjoy one of my favorite things about our trips up
here. We had a pair of Loons close by the whole weekend.Day 3:
We got up very early (for us) on Sunday to a promising day weather wise.
It was pretty cold but at least the sun was shining.Weller pond was very calm and serene as we headed toward our first fishing spot of the day. The low sun and fall colors really made this picture pop - Awesome
On our way, we were greeted by a lone canoeist, he looked cold..... but
happy!First stop, Hungry Bay again, just can't give up on it that easily ... but it only produced another bass off of the same protruding log.
The Captain is on the board with a nice largemouth.We spent a good amount of time on the lake this day, the sun was shining all day and up here you need to take advantage of that because you just never know what the next day has in store for you. The lake was very quiet, most times we were the only boat in sight.
The clouds had a very interesting hue today, probably because they were
frozen!Here's a short video of us cruising across the empty main lake with wilderness and solitude all around. Link
Jon with a feisty little gator, looks like the creek mouth location.Last few years we have always tied up at this location to climb the short hill for a nice view of the lake. It's a nice spot to just chill for a bit.
And look at that view of Ampersand Mountain.I know we spent a lot of time on the lake that day, even checked out some "new" spots to see if we could find the fish.
This is from the lean-to site on Hungry Bay, of course the first morning it was vacated but there was no way we were going to tear down and setup again just to get this site. We are not that ambitious.
In one of the many little hidden coves trying to entice something to
bite.Eventually the sun would start to set and some camp food and a fire sounded good.
So even though the fishing was very slow, it was a great day to be out in God's country so Day 3 was a very enjoyable and relaxing day for sure.
Day 4:
Day 4 brought more cold rain but that didn't stop us from trying, because even when it's grey, this is a great place to be. You know the old saying, a bad day of fishing is better than a good day at work. How true!
I managed to get another pike in the creek as the cold rain fell. I believe this one hit a new presentation that I was trying.
Eventually we had about enough of the rain and decided to head to camp where we knew there was the possibility of a warm fire, a cold beer and comfy camp chair.
We decided to bring the fire a little closer to us and somewhat under the canopy of our shelter, that was a challenge.
As the sun sets, Jon decides to adjust the shelters run-off system.So we just chilled the rest of the evening in camp. I'm sure a few cold beverages were consumed and I know some great classic rock was played.
So even when adding another day, the trip went by fairly quickly and it was time to break camp and head home. The cold wind was whipping on that last day and there was a definite bite in the air reminding us that winter was right around the corner up here.
One of our traditions on the last day has always been to head to the middle of the main lake and shut down the motor and drift for a while and enjoy the wild scenery one last time. The drift was rather quick this trip with the wind causing the lake to swell considerably.
Drifting toward the river in the waves with McKenzie Mt. and Whiteface
in the background.Man, we both look as cold as I remember it.
Heading through the river to a common scene in this Pentagon Rock landmark. I think here I commented to Jon that I could see this rock from on top of Ampersand a few weeks before our trip.
Docked at the lock for a final bio break and look around at the wild before heading back toward civilization.
See ya next year God willing.
go back in time to part 1
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Click any of the links below to see the original decade of Saranac adventures