This is a true bargain-priced fly-in lodge with numerous fishing locations and options for catching 10- to 20-pound northern pike, 3- to 8-pound walleyes, and brookies to 4 pounds plus! Again, a fly-in location, remote, but the flight to camp is INCLUDED in the package! Every year sportsmen enjoy the thrill of catching and releasing large numbers of trophy-sized northern pike and walleyes.
Although most folks choose to use regular fishing gear, they have recently upped their number of fly fishing programs and clients. So you are welcome to use whatever tackle you most enjoy. Either way, those 15- to 20-pound pike, on a fly or a lure, are gonna wind you up!
You are going to fly into a 14 mile long true wilderness lake. The lake has a variety of rivers, bays, islands and inlets to fish. You get picked up in either an Otter or a Beaver for the 25 mile flight into the wilderness lodge. You will normally be fishing within a few hours after arriving! Then back to the lodge for great home cooked meals in the main dining room. Then sit and enjoy a crackling fire in the lodge, or retire to your own cabin.
The lodge offers an exceptional level of comfort and services throughout the property. The main lodge offers satellite TV, Wi-Fi, comfortable couches and a camp store for your convenience. Fishing tackle, beverages, snacks and lodge sportswear are all available for purchase. The fully-furnished guest cabins come complete with hot/cold running water, three-piece bathrooms (flush toilet, sink and shower), and electricity, as well as comfortable beds and bedding, blankets, linens and towels. The largest cabins can accommodate up to eight people, and the smaller cabins comfortably house two guests. All cabins offer a beautiful view of the lake from their decks.
For an even higher level of service, take advantage of the American Plan, offering you the highest level of service. Breakfast and dinner are served to you each day in the beautiful main lodge dining room. Also, after you return from your day of fishing, you will find your cabin completely tidied up, beds made and towels exchanged.
For guests that prefer to prepare their own meals, the Housekeeping Plan cabins come with kitchens equipped with refrigerator, stove and oven, pots, pans and cooking utensils. Gas grills for barbecuing are also supplied on each cabin’s deck. Take advantage of their advance “grocery order” service by sending them your food order ahead of time. Your supplies will be in your cabin when you arrive.
Walleyes are caught in abundance almost all season long in these cold sub-Artic waters. Although walleyes average in the 2-3 lb. class, fish in the 5-10 lb. class are not unusual. The northern pike fishing provides some outstanding chances for the fishermen looking for a tackle busting battle. During the peak weeks, 14 to 18 pound northerns are being caught almost daily with 20 lb. plus fish not uncommon.
For variety there also is whitefish, brook trout and perch. Every year sportsmen enjoy the thrill of catching and releasing large numbers of trophy-sized Northern Pike and Walleye. We recommend that the “trophy” fish be released.
GUIDING: Your packages are all DIY- do it yourself unguided packages, with lodging, meals, and boats and motors all included. We think it is simply smart to hire a guide for 2 days. You will learn the hot spots and the lake, the areas to look at and the ones to avoid. They will teach you the lures, the depths and the retrieves that produce. They will prepare a shore lunch of fresh walleyes, a great treat! And if you want to fish the rivers for the brook trout, a guided boat trip is the best way to go! They run the boat down river while you fish. Brookies can reach 4 pounds plus- gorgeous wild fish! So the guide knows the various lakes and the streams.
Jim Graca – Midwest Outdoors Magazine:
“An explosion occurred and my extra heavy rod was loaded up – 18 pounds of pike put a hurt on me. After posing for a photo and releasing the beast my Dad yelled, “Fish, big fish!” duplicating my catch with another pike pushing 18 pounds. Five minutes later, I had another fish on and what I thought was a small pike turned out to be an eight pound walleye. At the end of the day we had caught 27 pike between 10 and 22 pounds and three big walleye on these huge offerings. It was absolutely amazing.
Bill Rivers – Ontario Fisherman Magazine:
“Appreciate, if you can, the tone of the outing and the concentration spent on each retrieve after hooking and landing a thrashing, 15-pound-plus brute on a first cast! But wait. After catching scores of decent pike ranging from 3 to 12 pounds (and at least one on every lure in my pike arsenal), the morning came to an end with a hefty 41-inch wolf which I promptly released so that I could rest and take in the events of that exciting outing.”
PLANS:
The lodge has two basic options, both being self-guided, although you can add on guiding if you wish. The first option is the “American Plan” which includes your lodging, your meals, shore lunch kits or a box lunch, daily room service, cleaning and freezing fish and the log sauna, YOUR FLIGHTS IN AND BACK, AN 18’ CEDAR STRIP BOAT AND MOTOR, AND ALL YOUR GAS. You take meals in the main lodge with homemade bread and desserts daily. Your cabin has electricity and 3-piece bathroom and hot shower.
The second plan is the Housekeeping Plan. No room service, do your own cooking and cleaning of your cabin. You still get the flights in and out, the boat, motor, gas and even the use of the sauna. Your cabin has the cooking utensils you may need. You must bring in all your food and drinks.
A third plan is to stay at the OUTPOST Camp located 25 miles down river from the main lodge. Details are below.
2024 PRICES (prices in USD and do not include taxes; all prices subject to change without notice)
Guide $260/day
American Plan (at the Lodge):
6 days $2,365/person
5 days $2,260/person
4 days $2,050/person
3 days $1,875/person
INCLUDES:
Round trip float plane
Lodging & meals
Linens, bedding & towels
Boat, motor & gas
Daily cabin cleaning
Cleaning & freezing of fish
Shore lunch kits or box lunch
Landing nets, life preservers and bait containers
Housekeeping Plan:
6 days $2,050/person
5 days $1,950/person
4 days $1,920/person
3 days $1,600/person
INCLUDES:
Round trip float plane
Lodging, linens, bedding & towels
Kitchen to use – can order food too
Boat, motor & gas
Cleaning & freezing of fish
Shore lunch kits
Landing nets, life preservers and bait containers
We have additional options for couples, youth, and families!
COUPLES June 22nd through Sept 1st: take 10% off our regular package rates.
YOUTH (21 AND UNDER) Take 10% off our regular package rates.
(Planning a trip with your children or grandchildren? Check out these YouTube family fishing adventures filmed at our lodge)
FAMILIES Families are always welcome at Esnagami Wilderness Lodge, therefore we are offering custom-designed, discounted packages for family groups. Please contact us for rate information.
Guide Rates
LAKE GUIDES $320/day
RIVER TRIP GUIDES $500/day (based on 2 guests)
FLY FISHING:
Brook trout fanatics already know that in any brookie quest a good canoe is usually involved. Due to the low position you assume in a canoe, longer rods such as 9’6” and 10’ models make casting easier. Seven weights offer good backbone and comfort when casting sinking tips. For fishing dry flies a good 6 weight with a floating line would be best.
Be prepared to encounter varied water conditions. You could be dry fly fishing, or you could end up with a 6’ fast sinking tip and a short 3’ or 4’ fluorocarbon leader if water is high. There are many leeches in these waters, so have a fly box full of leech-type patterns, including black, brown, purple and white Zonker, black and purple egg sucking leeches and the traditional box of streamers with Ghosts and Mickey Finns. A box of dry flies and a box of nymphs should hold you.
BUGS: Bring a Therma cell and some bug dope- they can be obnoxious depending on the weather. A face mask can help, although on the lake its not bad. Streams will have them though.
TRAVEL:
You will be heading to an area located about 5 hours north of Thunder Bay. You will end up in Nakina, which you can drive to or fly to via a charter. The fly-in to the lodge is from there. We will get you full directions of course.
