Camping and lakes go together like eggs and bacon, especially when you wake up to fresh fishing in wilderness for plentiful Northern pike, walleye and lake trout. Discover three great Alberta fishing lakes in the North and where to camp during this three-day adventure.
Reel Angling Adventures offers a Northern Alberta Fishing Adventure package with three overnights. Based in the town of Legal, just north of Edmonton, owner and guide Ray Kohlruss takes you fishing at Fawcett or Peerless Lake/Graham Lake in the pristine Athabasca region.
To get to Fawcett it’s a two hour drive north of Edmonton, and Peerless/Graham lakes will require about a five-and-a-half hour run from the city. Ray will pick you up at Edmonton International Airport or you can take your own rig and meet him at his home base of Legal before you all head out.
He’s got a 16-ft. Lund Rebel that holds three people nicely plus the guide, so you can grab some buddies and make this a multi-day getaway into some rugged country where the fish are biting.
Camp and Go
At Peerless and Graham lakes there are no accommodations, so camping is pretty much the only way to go, says Ray. You can be as hands-on as you want. “Basically, we set up the tent and supplies, but if you want to pitch in and get your hands dirty, then the more hands the merrier,” says Ray.
The pike and lake trout action at Peerless and Graham gives you an opportunity to get on the lake right in the morning, sneak in an afternoon nap, then go out again and come back for supper – and you are camping right at the lake.
“You are not confined to just going out and having your eight hours fishing,” says Ray. You get long days of light during the summer because you’re pretty much up north.”
Your first day, you’re going to fish Fawcett, and then from there go to Peerless and Graham – so you are not driving on the road full length in one shot. You get an overnight at Fawcett camping, and then you wake up early, and pack up and head out to Peerless.
Once at Peerless, you get fishing first and camp gets set up later. Depending on the season and the catch, you can be eating fresh fish at the campsite. Ray provides all the meals, regardless.
“I practice catch and release but there will be opportunities to eat the catch, as long as the fish is legal and in season,” he says. “The same goes for take home fish.” Though if you’re coming a long way to Edmonton and then heading further north, it’s not likely you’re going to be packing your catch in a cooler to take all the way home.
Start and End in Edmonton
Edmonton is Alberta’s capital city and it has about one million residents. The city is booming, given the wealth generated in the province from oil and gas production, and you’ve got pretty much anything handy that you’d want in a big city.
The eight-blocks-long West Edmonton Mall provides endless shopping and a massive water park, so whether you’re traveling with your buddies or you’re on a family trip and using the fishing as a side trip, it’s worth a look. There are also casinos, horse racing, big summer music and theatre festivals, and more.
Wild Lake Fishing
You’re fishing wilderness lakes. Fawcett has only one little corner with cabins and the rest is pure wilderness, says Ray, so there is lots of non stop fishing. Each lake has bounties of walleye and pike. Peerless Lake is the one that is great for lake trout, says Ray. This lake is about 110 feet deep and you’ll find opportunities for catching lake trout up to 30 pounds – and it is a very clear lake, with many structures such as rock shoals to fish for lake trout.
“You will either troll with down riggers or jigging or casting, whatever works on that particular day and season,” says Ray.
Being as this is a camping fishing package, the summer months can be great. Early season at the beginning of June, a person won’t need to use down riggers, says Ray – “but as we get further into the summer, the lake trout go deeper so you will need to down rig.”
The walleye and pike are usually found at drop offs or rock shoals. “But I have caught pike in shallow waters of about eight feet and you’ll also find pike in the weeds and the swampy parts of the lake,” says Ray. “The larger pike like to forage off the drop offs and they will come into shallow water during spring and fall, but once summer comes they will get back into the deeps where it’s cooler.”
At Fawcett Lake you’ll see maybe five-to-10 pound pike, though some in Fawcett range up to 25 pounds. Peerless and Graham Lake pike run five to 25 pounds, and walleye anywhere from two pounds to 12 pounds. At Fawcett, you’ll more likely see two-to-three pounders.
Tricks of the Trade
“When I go for the pike I usually like trolling or casting right close to the weed edges with various spoons and crank baits,” says Ray. “For the walleye it’s either bottom bouncing or jigging for them.”
There are many different techniques to go for each of these fish and you’ll discover them if you go on the trip. Every part of the season requires a different technique, so mid summer bottom bouncing will work better for walleye whereas in spring for walleye it’s better to use jigging, says Ray.
“For the lake trout, basically fishing in early spring, trolling without down riggers and also drift casting for the lakers or even jigging is an option,” says Ray. And then mid summer, down riggers and even jigging for lakers can work. Pike invites basically trolling with spoons and crank baits during mid summer, and trying to find the right depths where the pike is hanging out – “and that is where a fish finder comes in handy to find the drop offs,” he says.
Why Northern Alberta
Ray says Northern Alberta offers pristine wilderness, great fishing for walleye and pike, and it’s one of the few areas in Alberta where you can actually keep walleye – especially if you want a shore lunch. “There are a lots of camp sites in this area and you can get cabin rentals too,” he says. The town of Athabasca has all the facilities a person needs – shopping, recreation centres, restaurants and festivals, such as The Magnificent River Rats Festival.
For more information, you can find Reel Angling Adventures in the Travel Packages area of FishCanadianRockies.com.