Preliminary Report

Trip date:  June 5-18, 2013

Entry:  Mary's Lake (fly-in)
Exit:  Bloodvein River, between Sabourin & Simeon Lakes (fly-out)

Route:  Mary's, Artery, Barclay, Musclow, Sabourin, Simeon Lakes and sections of the Bloodvein River.

Weather:  OUTSTANDING.  Only had 1 day over that stretch when the wind was an issue ... but wasn't to the point where you couldn't get on the water.  Only a small smattering of rain (I actually got a lot wetter from being splashed by pike at the canoe).  Skies ranged from blue-bird to cloudy.  Temps ranged from mid-70's to low 50's.

Bugs:  Unexpectedly light.  Did have evening skeets which started about 8:30-9:00 (but a host of dragonfly's seemed to discourage them on points).  Did see a few blackflys and gnats, but not in significant numbers.  I did see 1 tick.

Fishing:  Good to Very Good.  I was able to catch walleye (enough to eat) and pike every day.  In most cases the number of walleye ranged to about 20 with about half that number of pike.  One afternoon I did manage to bag over 40 walleye. Their size ranged from small to large with the vast majority falling into the perfect "eater" size category.   The largest pike came in at 43 inches, with another topping 40.  Several others in the 36-38 range.  And YES.  I did catch a few smallies.  They were wide spread with the largest going 18 inches.

Portages:  The trip turned into more of a base-camping adventure due to the condition of portages.  Unless visited by a lodge operator (e.g., Musclow portage), the portages were in bad to extremely bad shape.  We took both portages into Artery ... one listed at 14 rods, the other 35 rods.  Each took approximately an hour to negotiate due to deadfall in the trail (if you could actually find the trail).  Some of the deadfall would require something more than hand tools to remove.  However, much could be cleared with hand tools and a little muscle.

Campsites:  Like portages, the campsites needed a little TLC.  Some of the observed campsites had substantial deadfall covering them ... some would need chain saws to clear.  We did some amount of clearling on every site where we stayed (3 of them).  The first site (Mary's Lake) took a couple of hours to make livable.

Solitude:  Not so much.  There is a large fishing lodge on Sabourin and the motor boats range all over the connecting waters there.  So, most days we did see motor traffic.  Generally speaking they were at some distance and making runs from one "hot spot" to another.  Only in the most rare circumstance could we see them fishing from where we were.  We did have 3 days where none were seen/heard. Oddly, we also ran into fishing boats on Artery (which cannot be directly accessed by the Sabourin Lake Lodge).   But as a concession, I did get a could of beers from the fellow Texan I encountered.  (Not the only Texan I encountered on the trip, btw.)  We only met 1 other canoeist during our trip.

More details later.

dd

much like prouboy I was interested in reading your account dd. I am always yearning for details and just a bit more from most trip reports I read however. Pics are always nice to..........

Musclow has always intrigued me.........did you give it a go?.

Your post leaves me wondering abiout my own adventure..........

Much like the famous line in Jaws.........."we're going to need a bigger boat">>> I am wondering if I'm going to need a bigger saw 

a

starting to get pumped up........storm, down trees, bad portages......it all adds up to a bit of a mystery.

This is exactly why I like catching big fish.......your never really sure of the outcome. Always a bit of a challenge. And so it will be in WCPP. I have a strong inclination that my choice of route is not oft used. I will ease about and see if it will go.

I'm more concerned about the return leg than the way in. I'll take my bigger silky saw and clean up as much as I can so in case I need to to do an about face and return the way I came I can make some decent time. Never know when you will be turned back.

And who knows........I might end up much as dd.........basecamping and doing some side trips. The thought is unappealing however after the long drive, the long winter getting in shape and the muskies waiting at the end of the line.

nice fish dd........

didn't mean to throw off on your trip. You took what was offered and I would of probably done exactly the same thing from the sound of your description..........and been content.

But as much as I like to fish what I have in mind puts the fishing in 2nd place. Sort of weird.......the fishing is the motivation but the transit to the fishin hole is the real reward. I know you understand what I mean.