Saranac Lake Fishing Adventure (part 2)
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September 11-15, 2019
November 6&7
Glad to report that we were able once again to head up to Middle Saranac Lake for our fall fishing trip. Roger was also able to make the trip all the way from South Carolina. Since the 20th year, we have added a day so this would be a 5 day 4 night outing.
DAY 1
The first day's forecast had us in our raingear for the boat ride in, but other than that, the day turned out pretty nice and we were able to setup camp in relatively dry weather.
A familiar sight as we head through the upper locks toward Middle
Saranac Lake.Before long we are at our home away from home for a few days, one of two camp sites that we almost always use.
Umm, there's still a lot of gear to get off the boat. Not to mention a
camp to setup. Guys? Hello?Truth be told, we are never in much of a hurry the first day, I just like to setup while it's NOT raining so I get a little anxious.
Well that's a good start but I think we are missing a few poles :)By mid afternoon, we were unloaded and camp was setup. Time to let the worries of the world melt away for a few days at least. The sun also came out so we decided to hit the lake and see if anything would bite, but mostly just to get some sun and enjoy the scenery.
Roger is on the board! Must be the new hat.
That's a beauty and according to the photo archives, maybe the only fish
caught the first day. Shimano would be proud.DAY 2
One memorable part of this trip were the family of loons that seemed to hang close to our camp on Weller. We see and hear loons every year, but they seemed especially vocal this year and we saw a good many of them.
Early on day 2, we are greeted by this large male (I assume) not far from the docked boat.
And on our way out to the main lake, the entire family.
If I recall, it was cool but sunny that day so we spent a good amount of time on the lake seeing what we could entice to bite. The action was slow, especially in one of our normally "good producing" spots, but we eventually got some bites and managed to land a variety of species.
First mate is on the board
I recall I got him while drifting a new spot near some weeds and a
boulder field.
Looks who's the Perch King now Roger.
That's what we came for.Throw in one of these
and one of these
and we've covered them all.So like I said, they weren't jumping in the boat on that first full day of fishing but we managed to get some action. We decided to head back to camp fairly early and start preparing the evenings meal.
New addition to the trip this year, perfectly sized Weber.
With the moon waxing full, and our stomachs satisfied by Steak and Taters, it's another end to an awesome day in the north country.
DAY 3
We woke up to an awesome morning with the promise of bluebird skies. The mist on Weller pond and the glass like water made for some great photo ops.
The Grumman in all her glory ready for another day's adventure.I never get tired of this view early in the morning.
With a renewed spirit of adventure, we headed out in search of the elusive Esox Lucius
I persuaded the captain to drift over the weed bed / boulder field again
and managed to land this one.A little later I found a hungry largemouth willing to be fooled by my presentation.
After a brief break for lunch and to put on another layer, we found ourselves back out there heading toward the creek mouth for the evening bite.
At an undisclosed location just outside the creek mouth, Roger is doing
his best (at having fun).Now he looks serious
After a while, it was clear the fish were not at the drop off, so we headed into the creek to see if the bite was any better. Jon managed to catch another one of those giant golden shiners, I'll bet they'd be good bait for ice fishing. They actually fight pretty hard too.
I think we landed a few more small bass and then Jon and I got our best fish of the trip and maybe the best smallmouth and pike of all of our trips. They were certainly right there with them if not. I have to give Roger an honorable mention here, on the first or second day, he had the biggest smallmouth I have ever seen right at the boat but it go off. It was bigger than mine for sure.
Another nice sunset and an end to another great day on the lake.
DAY 4
So from the picture archive, it appears we slept in a little on day 4, the first photo on the water was at 11:30 am.
I managed to land a small pike and opted for the gentle release right from the net.
Here's Roger attempting to defend his title as Perch King.I recall the fishing had slowed quite a bit on day 4, so we cruised around the lake and enjoyed the solitude and also spent a little time visiting some of the other campsites.
This is a nice site, better for the summer I think as it has a nice beach.
This site is usually top on our list to try to reserve, mainly because it has a lean-to but it's also close to a few of our favorite fishing spots on the whole lake. It was already snagged when Jon made the reservations way back at the beginning of the year. Wouldn't you know it, no one showed up the whole time we were there.
So we hung out for a while and enjoyed some more solitude and the awesome wilderness surrounding us. The site is always good for catching a nice sunset as well.
Well, eventually we needed to head back to our camp on Weller pond before dark, which luckily was not too far.
Looks like a happy camper!Back to camp just in time, looks pretty dark.
Must be a good tune, maybe The Guess Who.Time to settle in for the last evening in camp and get a good fire going, eat some grub, have a few cold ones and listen to the sounds of classic rock as well as our Looney friends on the lake.
DAY 5
Well, believe it or not, 5 days goes by pretty quickly. We awoke to good weather for packing at least. It's always a bit sad when we have to leave. This place is so awesome in the fall.
This butterfly was fluttering around our camp all morning while we were packing up, and believe it or don't, it flew out onto the lake along with us for a good while as we left in the boat.
See ya next year ....... or maybe sooner?Appendix - November 6&7