The sign on the front door of Raven Rock Grill that reads “Gone Fishing” will be telling the truth this Tuesday as we pack an overnight bag and head north for Saganaga Lake. Summer is slipping away fast and there are not going to be many more opportunities for us to mini-vacation before school starts up in September.
Walleyes are biting great on Saganaga Lake this past week, and the blueberries are big and ripe. Fishin’ and pickin’ is only good for a couple of weeks each year and has become our favorite time to visit the cabin. Rachelle and I are efficient berry pickers, especially when you know where to go, while the kids like to eat whatever they pick on sight. It is fun to spend time in the woods, especially when the rewards are delicious.
While guiding anglers on Saganaga Lake, I stop and explore different camp sites while we eat our sandwiches in search of the next great berry patch. The Ham Lake burn area has been hot picking for the past few years, but some of the unburnt islands on Saganaga also have great patches – there is even a big island named Blueberry.
I cooked a shore lunch last week for some longtime regular customers on my favorite island camp site and was asked if I had ever seen any bear on the islands, to which I replied, “They can swim, but it is rare to see them out here on the islands.” I took three more steps and nearly tripped over a fresh pile of berry-filled bear scat in the middle of a mangled patch of berries.
Luckily the bear left enough for us to munch on while patiently waiting for the walleyes to fry. We never saw the bear that day, even though the scat looked very fresh, but we did have two bald eagles fighting over the fish guts I had left on the shoreline less than 20 feet away while two otter were playfully swimming in the distance – it was a pretty good day to be on the water.
Cory Christianson has worked as a fishing guide on the Gunflint Trail since 2000. If you have any fishing or wildlife reports or stories to share, send an email to: christiansoncory@hotmail.com or call 218- 388-0315. You can also visit Cory’s website at Gunflintfishingguide.com.
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