What to Bring!

You will need to consider three groups of items when planning your trip to Canada - clothing, tackle and groceries.

Clothing:

Canadian weather is unpredictable for most of the fishing season. If your are planning a trip in May, June, or September, we recommend that you bring a supply of warm clothing as well as summer clothing. Layering is the best idea and the easiest to pack. Rain gear is essential and the most versatile of all of your clothing. Your rain jacket can be a windbreaker or your outer jacket when combined with a sweatshirt. Quality clothing is another plus. And finally think minimal. You can always wash something out if you run short. This is especially important for fly-ins because you will be limited as to the total weight of all of your gear. Here is a recommended list of clothing for a 7 day trip. The list does not include the clothing you are wearing.

• 4 t-shirts
• 4 pairs under shorts
• 4 pairs of socks
• 1 Long sleeve flannel shirt
• 1 pair long underwear
• 1 heavy sweatshirt
• 1 set rain gear (Jacket and pants)
• 1 pair of boots or tennis shoes (which ever you are not wearing)
• 1 hat
• 1 pair of gloves
• 1 pair shorts
• Sleeping bag
• First aid kit
• Camera

Personal toiletries — Soap, shampoo, tooth paste and brush, sunscreen, insect repellant, sunglasses, prescription medications, towel. For my personal trip this gear weighed approximately 35 pounds. Again these are the minimums. You can add to it but you will add to your weight total.

Fishing tackle and gear:

• Personal floatation device (life jacket) some resorts supply them.
• Fillet Knife
• Needle nose pliers
• Jaw spreader
• Flashlight
• 1 or 2 6' to 6½' spinning rod and reel for walleye and small mouth
• 1 or 2 6' to 6½' bait casting rod and reel for northerns
• Jigs: (Minimum numbers since you will loose them in heavier timber environments.)
• 10 — ¼ oz. Chartreuse 10 — 3/8 oz. Chartreuse
• 10 — ¼ oz. Orange 10 — 3/8 oz. Orange
• 10 — ¼ oz. White 10 — 3/8 oz. White
• Also consider the use of slip sinkers/bobbers for "bottom bouncing" technique.
• Plastic Bodies and Trailers:
• 50 — 3" grub Chartreuse 50 — 3" shad Chartreuse
• 50 — 3" grub Black 50 — 3" shad Silver/Black
• 50 — 3" grub White 50 — 3" shad White
• Spoons:
• 2 — 4" Red/White Daredevils 2 — 4" Five of Diamonds
• 2 — 4" Johnson's Silver Minnows
• 2 — 4" Mepps Timber Doodle or Northland JawBreaker Spoons in assorted colors (at least one Fire Tiger)
• Spinners and Bucktails:
• 2 — #2 Mepps Bucktails (Gold or Silver Blades)
• 2 — #5 Mepps Bucktails (Gold or Silver Blades)
• 2 — Large Musky style in line spinners in bright fluorescent colors
• 4 — Large Spinner baits in natural colors (Walleye or Perch; Northland Bionic Buck tail is a good choice)
• 2 — Hildebrandt Titanium Flex-Tec
• 4 — Buzz baits in white or fluorescent colors
• Crank Baits:
• Shad Raps SR8 & SR9 in fire tiger, black/gold, blue/silver
• Husky Jerk 2 oz. In fire tiger, black/gold, blue/silver, perch
• Jointed Rapalas J-11 & J-13 in fire tiger, clown, blue/silver, orange/gold
• Rat L Traps ½ oz. (floaters and sinkers) in fire tiger, blue/silver
• Thunderstick 3/8 oz. in fire tiger, green glow in the dark
• Terminal Tackle: The most overlooked aspect of the tackle box.
• 25 snap swivels
• 12 12" wire leader
• 25 #10 barrel swivel (tie 2 feet ahead of your jig to eliminate line twists)
• Leader line in whatever test you choose (usually 6 — 8 lbs.)

If your are considering a fly-in, a trick to reduce your weight is to create a single tackle box for each boat. This will eliminate all the duplication.

Food:

Drinks-(a case of water soda or beer weighs approximately 20 lbs. If at all possible take powder drink mix instead. Crystal Light makes sticks that are pre-measured for a twenty oz. bottle of water. Take empty bottles in with you and use the water at your cabin to mix with the powder. If the water is suspect purchase a water purifier for $80. You will be able to use the purifier to make over 40 gallons of clean water before the filter has to be changed. This is more than enough for two trips or more) Coffee, creamers, sugar, crystal light iced tea or lemonade.

Condiments — Salt and Pepper, Ketchup, mustard, mayo, peanut butter, jelly, honey, Garlic powder, your favorite spices, syrup.

Staples — potatoes, onions, pork and beans, canned vegetables, canned fruit, and cooking oil.

Multi use items — bisquick ( can be used to make biscuits, pancakes, and as fish batter mix.) Bread ( can be used for sandwiches, instead of hamburger buns or hot dog buns, or to make garlic bread, dry milk for cereal or to mix with fish batter (saves on weight if brought in dry and tastes reasonably good if kept very cold)

Cold items — eggs, butter, meat of choice, ground beef, bacon, chicken and luncheon meats.

Dry items — paper towel, toilet paper, dish liquid, SOS pads, foil, matches, cereal, cookies, candy, snack foods or granola bars.