Munroe Lake Lodge - Untouched Multi-Species Fishing
It’s not often that you get to go on a trip to a remote fly-in fishing lodge. One of the best parts of travelling to any Northern fishing lodge is the feeling of vast adventure and untapped wilderness. With how remote these lodges often are, fish don’t see many lures, and they grow huge.
So, let me paint you a picture; a legendary northern pike fishery in the North that for decades hasn’t hosted many anglers at all due to focusing on hunting, but has new ownership that wants to run more anglers all summer long, and right now is available for booking. Sounds almost too good to be true, doesn’t it? Oh, they also have arctic grayling, lake trout, and walleyes. What about now? Well, I’m pleased to inform you that this isn’t just a picture, it’s a reality at Munroe Lake Lodge.
Munroe Lake Lodge
Munroe Lake Lodge is located about 90km south of Manitoba’s Northern border with Nunavut. Located in the sub-Arctic, it’s incredibly remote and incredibly beautiful. This unbelievable opportunity to fish untouched waters is a rare one. We’ve all fished pressured water before, and this is the polar opposite of whatever pressure is. The fish hadn’t seen lures and it showed.
Our adventure began in Winnipeg, where myself and 3 other friends hopped in the trucks and drove up to Thompson, Manitoba where we hopped on a small but comfortable wheeled plane up to Munroe Lake. My one friend Josh described the flight into the North so well, he said “you go from North, to really North”. And it’s so true, as you slowly see less trees, more sand, and most excitingly, more lakes. Munroe has their own airstrip where once we landed, kickstarted our experience at Munroe Lake Lodge.
The Canadian Grand Slam: Northern Pike, Walleye, Lake Trout, Arctic Grayling
Munroe Lake is known for its spectacular Northern Pike fishing. The habitat is perfect and the pressure has been shockingly low. There are also lake trout, arctic grayling, and even walleyes which completes The Canadian Grand Slam. More on that later, let’s get back to the pike.
As a group, we’ve done a lot of northern pike fishing in the North. We’ve all caught Master Anglers, we’ve all had great sight fishing, and we’ve all had awesome top water strikes, but what we saw at Munroe this week blew us out of the water - no pun intended.
Sight Fishing for Big Pike
Right from the first day, the pike fishing was incredible. We arrived early June on a perfect warming trend which locked the pike into the crystal clear bays, right where we could see them.
The sight fishing was the best I’ve ever seen. I’ve never seen that many pike in a week with my own eyes, ever. It was fun beyond measure. The first day, I kid you not, we barely blind casted at all. Almost every single cast was at a fish you already saw and decided it was big enough to cast it. It was incredible and we capped the day off with a few super chunky fish pushing the 40’’ mark.
Amazing fishing and Even Better Service
After a great first day, we headed back to camp for what we learned to be one of the best parts of the week: supper time. The team at Munroe, led by Tyson the Manager, knocked the food out of the park; steaks, hand rolled sushi, you name it. We were absolutely spoiled. After a hot shower, we hit the hay in our two bed bedrooms and got a great rest for the next day.
The Sail Fish of the North: Arctic Grayling
After a ton of unbelievable northern pike fishing, we got a perfect weather day to go on a day trip that I know that all of us were eagerly waiting for: arctic grayling. We hopped in the boat and began the trek to the mouth of the river. From there, we put the chest waders on and after a short walk, got to a stunning fork in the river with a deep hole that we could reach with casts.
Everything felt right for there to be grayling there and sure enough, after a few casts, it was game on. My buddy Jay hooked up first and we all gathered around to admire the beauty of the sailfish of the North. We caught a bunch and eventually, Josh hooked into a grayling that felt a bit heavier. We got it in the net to see what was one of the most beautiful creatures I’ve ever seen. The teal and purple on the dorsal was simply breathtaking.
River Laker
After a grayling smackdown, Josh eventually hooked into a really heavy fish that certainly couldn't be a grayling and after a few huge runs, we finally got eyes on a massive lake trout that ate his small spinner. With bright orange fins, we got it in the net and called that surprise catch the perfect way to end an incredibly memorable arctic grayling adventure. Box: checked.
"The Trout Hole"
The next major goal on the list was to check out a legendary spot on the lake that everyone at the lodge wouldn’t stop talking about: the laker hole. Again, we’ve all caught lake trout before, but everyone kept talking about how when the lake trout hole is on, it’s one after the other.
When we got there, our guide Chris told us that we were a bit early in the season for the hole but there should still be some in there but warned us that it could be slow. He said it’s probably about 10% of what it should be. Well, we rolled up and it was one after the other. It was absolutely constant. You drop your line, hit bottom, reel up, and you instantly hook up. There was multiple times when all 3 of us in our boat all had lake trout hooked up. I’ve never seen anything like it. We didn’t get a big one, but any day, and any drop, you could hook into a giant.
Back for Big Northerns
After only a few days, we were already blown away at the experience we had had at Munroe Lake Lodge but we really wanted to catch as big of a pike as we could. So, we went back to pike and kept exploring new bays, creeks, and beaches. The sight fishing was surreal and often, we caught them on top waters, sometimes right beside the boat. The topwater strikes were vicious and often, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Back to Back Giants!
Right before we headed in for supper, we hit one last bay that our guide Chris suggested. We rolled in, Josh gave it a few casts and right at sunset, locked into a bigger fish. After a tense fight, we got it in the net to enter a new class of fish over the 40’’ mark. We snapped a few gorgeous photos at sunset and let the beast go.
Josh got back up, casted in there a few more times and the same thing happened; he locked into a heavy fish. After a second, it got off. Chris backed the boat off the spot and said we should change lures and put on his personal lucky favourite, Josh casted back in and to my amazement, the fish grabbed it again. This time, gave us a legendary fight and slid into the net. Right at sunset, 5 minutes apart, back to back 40’’+ fish. Unbelievable.
Another Trophy Pike
The next day, Jay felt that he had unfinished business on the pike front. We all saw big fish in one particular bay and felt if we stuck it out in there, that we would be rewarded. The wind picked up a bit and the clouds rolled in so we couldn’t sight fish anymore so fan casting was back in business.
We sorted through what felt like endless 30’’ fish before eventually, almost like a movie, Jay yelled, “Big!” as he set the hook. After the rod buckled over the side of the boat for a few minutes, Josh scooped what we very quickly learned to be the biggest fish of the trip into the net. We didn’t need a bumpboard to know it was the biggest, it was obvious; this was a tank. After some high fives, we measured it at just a hair under 43’’. A Manitoba Master Angler and a perfect way to end our trip.
Reflecting on an Incredible Trip to Munroe Lake Lodge
The entire trip was amazing but no matter how good a trip is, there’s always still standout moments. The stunning arctic grayling, Josh’s back to back 40’s, Jays 43’’, but for me, one moment stood still in time in my brain and will forever.
One night, after supper, the lake was still, the air was warm, and the sky was nothing but peaceful as we lit a fire at the beach, pulled up the lawn chairs, and shared beverages, stories, and laughs in between the lodge and the lake. People often say, “that’s what it’s all about” regarding things they’ve enjoyed. Well, for me, that’s what it’s all about.
Book your Trip of a Lifetime
To book your fly-in fishing adventure for some of the best untouched multi-species fishing on the planet at Munroe Lake Lodge, visit thier website, www.MunroeLakeLodge.com
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