Ranger,

You can hardly beat the southwestern rim of Russell Lake, below Chatterton Falls, for smallmouth bass fishing. I saw consistent action throwing the tiniest crankbaits in my box towards typical shoreline structure. On the other hand, my brother saw far less action with his big Rapala but pulled in the biggest smallie I've ever seen when he pitched it into the mouth of a small stream during the evening hours.

Jean Lake is beautiful & has a great reputation for lake trout, so take enough weight to get your bait deep enough. If you're accessing Jean via Quetico Lake & Conk Lake, don't overlook the waterfalls at the portage into Conk. There's a very nice campsite there, too. Depending on the time of day, it's a great place to pick up smallies & walleye. For that matter, little Conk Lake itself is a pretty nice smallie lake as well as a good place to spot moose (paddle past the portage into Jean through the swampy section & it opens up again; we often see moose on that side of the lake). We fish Conk Lake when the winds kick up too high on Jean.

If you're accessing Sturgeon & Jean via Dore Lake, don't overlook the fishing potential on Dore. It's the clearest lake I've ever seen, probably due it's elevation. No other lake flows into it. It features good smallie & lake trout action & a nice island campsite.

Have a great trip!

Jimbo

Posted by Jimbo on July 19, 2002 at 12:10
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