LAKE TROUT AND PORT

08 Jul LAKE TROUT AND PORT

Packed up camp and moved down the river again today. This has been a sweet spot, but there are many places to see yet, and miles to cover. Wind has been the strongest yet, and after two hours of paddling we haven’t covered much ground. But we have made it to a small creek mouth that flows out from Char Lake, so we pull over as hiking to this body of water is on our to do list. We’re hoping, naturally, to catch some Arctic char. Two and a half kilometres take us over a rise with numerous muskox skulls laid out in very photographic arrangements, to an oval lake with a large patch of ice. Falcons call and soar over a bluff on the other side, near another stream that feeds the lake. The gravel shoreline there looks promising so we head over. Before long Carl has a nice 2.5 lbs lake trout on the line. Not a char but we’ll take it for an addition to our meal later. I try my luck to no avail, then head up towards the bluff to investigate the flacons more closely. Sketchbook in hand, I capture the view as best I can.

Back at the edge of the Thomsen River, the wind is still blowing and we’re all feeling pretty hungry. We reach into the canoes for our kitchen bag and set up for a shore lunch. As we fill our bellies with fresh lake trout and couscous, Ryan Ryan pulls out a small bottle of Fladgate port. We toast to a great day and enjoy the moment. Making it even better is the fact that the winds are dying down now at last. All fueled up, we board the canoes again and push off. Soon, the winds pick up again, accompanied by rain. At least it’s not as windy as before. We carry on until 12:30am, find a piece of real estate to call home for the night, and call it a day.