What to Bring
HERE IS A LIST OF RECOMMENDED ITEMS TO BRING.Check back to see if I’ve added anything I forgot.
Let me know if you think of something that I forgot.
I heartily suggest packing in waterproof duffle bags or Rubbermaid containers. There is no weight limit on how much you can bring however common sense suggests a maximum of around 40 lbs. per container. I would suggest not packing all the heavy stuff in one container. – If you find it heavy so will others. Definitely do not pack in cardboard boxes or paper bags. If it is raining or heavy waves on the trip to camp and the paper bags get wet then – well you know.
Passport and birth certificate and driver’s License. If bringing children make sure you have a letter from the child’s mother giving you the authority to transport the child across international borders.
Clothes
- Polypropylene base layer. Fleece out layer, Gore-Tex top layer.
- Extra socks – polypropylene, cotton, wool, Gore-tex socks are awesome
- 2 pairs of waterproof boots – Gore-Tex.
- Shoes for around the cabin
- Good quality rain gear – Gore-Tex.
- Swimming trunks
- Flashlights and extra batteries
- Wet/dry bag, black garbage bags
- Zip lock bags in a variety of sizes will work for storing just about anything. Flashlight, batteries, camera, GPS unit, shaving items, soap, shampoo, tackle etc. etc. They will keep items organized and dry.
- Heavy Duty xxl Zip Lock bags or other dry bags for storage of jackets etc in the boat
- Sandwich bags for sandwiches and for storing small items, twister tails, tackle, matches, lighters, compass, camera, lip balm, first aid kit, extra socks, etc. They can also be used over socks and under shoes if needed.
- Large Freezer bags for packaging fish and storing all sorts of items.
Note: when packaging fish, squeeze all the air out before you seal the bag. Your fish will keep better in the freezer. Eat your fish within two months for best results.
Personal Gear and Fishing accessories
- GPS Unit
- Depth maps (we have at camp)
- Fishing line clippers
- Minnow dip net
- Landing Net
- Bait aerator (our boats have live wells)
- Oxygen tabs for minnows
- Crawler bedding (You can’t transport live bait into Canada except worms if in bedding not dirt)
- Marker buoys
- Measuring tape and scale
- Hook remover
- Jaw spreaders
- Jig eyelet punch out
- Hand soap
- Hand towels – several
- Baby wipes
- Fillet Knife
- Pocket Knife and sharpener
- Mosquito repellent.
- Bring a mosquito jacket and hood if traveling into areas where there is a lot of Muskeg example northeast Ontario and Manitoba especially northern Manitoba and the NWT/ Nunavut
- Lip balm
- Sunglass’s – two pair polarized amber color
- Sunscreen
- Hat/ cap
- Gloves
- First aid Kit
- Liquid bandage
- Hook remover kit (to remove hooks from people)
FISHING TACKLE AND EQUIPMENT
Put all rods in one large rod tube to save room.
- 7 foot Heavy action bait caster,
- 7 foot Medium heavy action bait caster
- 6-foot medium light action spinning
- 6-foot medium action spinning.
- Depth finder
- Net / cradle/landing device as required.
- Line clipper
- Compass
- Needle nose pliers
- Side cutters.
- Pliers for removing “O” rings
- An assortment of “O” rings.
TACKLE BOX
Walleye tackle
- 20-30 lb power pro line
- Six – 20lb titanium leaders 9 inch length.
- A roll of 20 lb seven strand wire (titanium preferred).
- 100 crimping sleeves of the correct size.
- A few dozen quality swivels. (This is for making stinger hooks and leaders. Ask at the sportshop and they will give you what you need.)
- 25 of each ¼, 3/8 and ½ oz. Jigs – good colors are chartreuse, chartreuse/orange, white, yellow, black and pink.
- 50 -100 Stinger hooks 2-3inch length – size 4 or 6 – wire line preferred mono will do.
- Slip bobbers, line stoppers, beads, ¼ oz split shot, size 4 and 6 treble and single hooks.
- Lindy rigs
- Spinner minnow rigs – little Joes 24″ long various color blades with ½ and ¾ oz sinkers
Several hundred of each.
- Twister tails – 2-4 ” chartreuse, fire tiger, yellow, white, black.
- Power Grubs 2-4 ” – Chartreuse, fire tiger, yellow, white,
- Fuzzie Grubs – chartreuse, fire tiger, yellow, white,
Other:
- Floating jig heads.
- Rapalas 6-0 inch, large shad raps, Rat-L Traps, Hot and Tots.
- Clown color is excellent, silver blue, silver chartreuse,
- Bottom bouncers 2-4 oz
- Live bait
Minnows, night crawlers, leeches (all available at camp)
PIKE TACKLE
- 50-60 lb Power Pro line (power pro is the best of the super lines in my opinion.)
- 75-100 lb Titanium leaders 12-18 inch lengths.
Spoons
– Daredevils- Troll devil size (chartreuse, fire tiger, five of diamonds, silver, red and white)
– Johnson silver minnows – Large 1&1/8 oz – silver
– Little cleos – orange/gold, chanteuse/gold, silver
Spinner baits
– Tandems – Large musky size tandems – black hair with silver or brass willow leaf blades. Chartreuse skirts with chartreuse blades. Other combos as preferred.
– Large bass style/size tandem spinner baits – with single stinger hooks (trailer)
– In lines – Mepp’s #5 silver with white buck tail.
-Slug-gos, Pork-os – chartreuse, white, green, blue, orange
-Crank Baits – Gramma lures, white/black, Chartreuse, Clown
– Super Shad Raps – white/black, silver/black. Silver/blue, gold/chrome
– Magnum Rapalas, Orange/gold, Clown, silver/blue
– Husky jerks, Clown, Silver/blue, black/gold.
Stick baits
– Suicks (my favourite) 9 or 10 inch weighted. brown back/yellow belly gold flecks on side !!!! Ask Kevin about technique.
grey/orange, Fire tiger, other combos as preferred
– Burts – colors as prefered
– Bobbie baits, colors as preferred.
Jigs – ¾ -2 oz jigs with large wide gap sturdy hooks
– 6-8 inch paddle tail rubber shads – white body/black back, chartruese
Dead bait presentations
– Half a dozen of each:
– Jigs – ¾ and 11/2 oz Esox Cobra jigs
– Quick Strike rigs
– Bobbers – large enough to hold a few ounces of bait and lead.
Bring extra single stinger hooks for bass spinner baits. Pork rind and power grubs for trailers on spoons and spinners.
Bring a one of a kind off beat lure – only one – use it the first afternoon if the fishing is slow. You’ll likely hook a huge pike, fight it up to the boat several times then have the line break. For the rest of the week you’ll agonize over not having brought more of the “secret ” lure. Of course one guy in the group can bring a few extras and sell them to pay for his trip.
Pick up some cheap tacky piece of junk lure that you can clip on before returning to camp each evening. This usually draws a few smirks and keeps others from pumping you for your hot spots.
Checklist for the boat ( WE HAVE ALL OF THESE ITEMS – BUT CHECK DAILY)
- Anchor
- Rope
- Paddles
- Depth sounder
- Safety Kit
- Bailing Bucket
- Lights
- Minnow Bucket
- Quality landing net
- Life jackets
- Fire extinguisher
- Gas