August fishing can be great. Phil brings the guys up every June and this year decided to try a little later in the season. Getting 12 professionals lined up with schedules and flights from across the country is a logistic challenge. Phil manages every year to get the guys together for a week at Ses.
August fishing is just fine at Seseganaga Lake.
“Hello Brad & Karen -
Just a quick note to say thanks again as we had a great time on Irene and caught some nice fish.
The attached photos has our newest fisherman Jim with the biggest fish, a 38" northern.
Also Ray has a nice smallmouth and the lake trout caught on the eve of our last day.
Best wishes,
Terry”
Irene Lake can sometimes be a challenge in the summer months with the clear water and seeming lack of structure. Some guys however keep going back year after year and and are rewarded for their knowledge of the lake.
This group drives up from Oklahoma to experience Ontario’s finest. The long drive builds anticipation and the action on the lake turns the anticipation in reality and then great memories. The drive back is spent planning the next adventure.
Canada, NW Ontario, Ignace, Seseganaga Lake, July, walleye, perfect day, on vacation… wish I was there.
Somewhere there is a football team missing its defensive line. No worries tho’ they are just relaxing on Metionga Lake. Bring the whole team! Team Metionga is a good team too.
Do you throw it back or save it for the frying pan? We like to think vacations are a time to relax but sometimes we have to make the tough decisions.
Many of our guests know Joe at Ses as a congenial guy with the best job in the world. In fact at least weekly, someone returning from Seseganaga Lake is volunteering for his job.
What many don’t know is that Joe started his career working on bush planes in 1974 with Ignace Airways as an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (AME). He moved on to other parts of Ontario for many years while specializing in DeHavilland aircraft. Several years ago, Joe moved back to Ignace and again worked for Ignace Airways in the hangar before beginning a second career as a camp attendant on Seseganaga Lake for Ignace Outposts.
It is in the behind the scenes, non glamorous part of aviation, that the AME toils. Keeping aircraft airworthy is a job with great responsibility and requires skill and diligence. Similar to being a camp attendant.
While Joe is currently partially retired from working on our aircraft, he still keeps his fingers in the pie so to speak. Viking Air, the owners of the DeHavilland DHC-1 to DHC-6 aircraft type designs (the Beaver is DHC-2 and the Otter is DHC-3), has established a certificate of recognition for AMEs who achieve 25 years working on their aircraft types. In recognition of his 38 years working on the Beaver and the Otter, Joe was recently awarded a certificate of achievement and a 25 year pin from Viking Air. (They only go to 25 years since so few guys even reach that.)
Marcel (who many remember ran our shop for years) once commented that there was seldom a day working with Joe in the hangar that he didn’t learn something from Joe. Joe is respected in the industry a being very thorough and knowledgeable in his trade. It can be said that Joe has forgotten more about these aircraft than many will ever know.
Now you know the rest of the story.
Over the years many of our guests have got to know Randy. And I can not count the number of times guests have commented on his skill and ability as a pilot. I think some come here just to fly with him.
Recently, Randy was awarded a DeHavilland achievement certificate and pin for surpassing 10,000 hours of flying time on one type of DeHavilland Aircraft. The DeHavilland Otter is a Canadian made aircraft designed for bush flying. It is the flagship of Ignace Airways. Randy actually surpassed 10,000 hours several years ago. Randy has been flying Otters for over 30 years (accident free) and is well known in bush flying circles as one of the most experienced and talented Otter drivers in Canada. Randy began his career in 1976 in Manitoba and besides Northwest Ontario, has flown in Northern Manitoba and the low arctic. Randy never pursued an IFR rating and has flown these special aircraft his whole career. Randy has been our chief pilot training and mentoring our other pilots since 1988. Of course Randy has several thousand hours on our other aircraft too.
On behalf of Karen and the rest of the Ignace Airways Team, Congratulations Randy! We are pleased that you are part of the team.
And tomorrow (I gave him today off) he will be back in his office (the front left of the Otter) transporting our guests to and from our Ignace Outposts camps.
We’ve had a forest fire burning on Flindt Lake since July 12. The government is “observing” it rather than “actioning” it. Since the fire was started naturally by lightening and is in the Wabikimi Park, the response is to let it take its course unless it threatens life or property. So far it has stayed away from our cabin. Fire is nature’s way of renewing the forest.
Last week, it had reduced it self to just a smolder and we put guests in camp. While they were there it flared up again.
Presently the fire is over 400 hectares or close to 1000 acres. Here is a link to the Ontario forest fire map. The Flindt Lake fire is “Thunder Bay 35”.
In a couple of year both the blueberries and the moose populations will be awesome in this area.
Here is August’s desktop. It is Randy greasing it on at Seseganaga Lake. For a PC click on the photo, and then right click and save as desktop. For an Apple, send Karen an email for instructions or get a PC.
Did you know that caribou and reindeer are the same animal. In our area we have many of these majestic animals. Our outposts on Flindt Lake, Kawaweogama Lake, Seseganaga Lake, Hilltop Lake and Metionga Lake are within some of the most southern caribou habitat in North America. Our guests will often catch a glimpse of a caribou. Sometimes they are fortunate to get a good picture.
These photos were taken on Seseganaga Lake about a week ago. Both the female and male grow antlers but the male’s antlers are often considerably larger.
