Last summer would have been my 26th year in a row traveling to Canada on the coolest trip imaginable. This summer COULD have been my 27th.
Yup. My annual fly-in fishing trip to Canada is not an annual trip anymore. The border’s still closed to US travelers, you see, and the Northern Pike and Walleyes are fat and happy.
It is, indeed, the coolest thing I do (did). 200 miles from even the hint of another human. Completely off the grid. No electricity. No indoor toilets. No cell phone. No internet. No news. No Circle K.
“Good luck there, boys,” says our float plane pilot as he drops us off at camp. “Hope to see you in a week then, eh?”
Because it might not be a week – could be longer, could be shorter. Float planes don’t fly when it’s foggy or storming.
My two college pals and I (and now my son, too) start planning the next year’s trip the day we leave the current one. Literally. Opportunities are so limited, we have to book a year out.
But fishing is secondary, believe it or not. While amazing, catching 100-150 fish per boat per day, is not why we go. The solitude, jaw-dropping beauty, tales around the fire and the Northern Lights creeping through the pines keep us going back year after year after year. Well, not last year. Or this one.
Dang.
We Arrive on the Float Plane
Set Up Camp Near the White Water
Someone Has to Catch Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Someone Gets to Cook ‘Em Up
My two college pals and I (and now my son, too) start planning the next year’s trip the day we leave the current one. Literally. Opportunities are so limited, we have to book a year out.
But fishing is secondary, believe it or not. While amazing, catching 100-150 fish per boat per day, is not why we go. The solitude, jaw-dropping beauty, tales around the fire and the Northern Lights creeping through the pines keep us going back year after year after year. Well, not last year. Or this one.
Dang.