We arrive at Missinipe, which, contrary to popular belief is not the headwater of the Mississippi River.
Our first night's accommodations are actually quite luxurious by fish camp standards.
The port of Missinipe.
Otter Lake.
Fear enters our hearts as we contemplate another flight with Kamakaze Joe.
Fortunately, Joe was too cranky to fly so we scored a ride with Frank on the Twin Otter.
Frank drops us off at Dead Lake, where we hope to find some Walleye.
The boats appear to be in working order, so spirits are high.
Frank promises to come back for us, but in this place it's never a guarantee.
Bob and Larry find a spot.
Mike tries to find some Walleye here.
Ron, Dick and David also can't seem to find the Walleye. Only later do we find out that the original settlers of Dead Lake all succumbed to illness many years ago. We start wondering if a similar fate caught up with the Walleye.
Aldo comes through for the team with some timely Walleye for shore lunch.
Dwight also adds to the booty and it looks like we won't go hungry.
Chef John prepares quite a meal.
Of course, he did have plenty of supervision...
Mmmm...
This is the Churchill River, which connects many of the lakes in this area.
We hear the sound of...
the famous jet boat as it...
...flies up the rapids.
Little do they know of the wet surprise that Mr. Thompson has in store for his unsuspecting passengers.
Looks like we can finally fly.
Frank returns from Oliver Lake.
You can see the look of dismay on his face when he sees how much stuff we have.
Frank can parallel park this baby better than most can do with a car.
Mike forgets to look at the camera during this photo op.
The first pike falls victim to his assortment of colorful lures.
Minutes later, guess what, it's another Pike. It's only later that we realize how many Pike there are.
John snags the first trout and it's a nice one.
He almost falls out of the boat dancing a jig while holding the trout.
We find more trout are lurking...
The calm before...
...the slaughter.
The fish are only safe for a little while longer.
Another rare (compared to the Pike) trout.
Steven, what's for dinner?
Nebraska smoked pork chops!
After dinner the fish stories begin to flow...
It's a good thing we're all wearing boots!
I find a nice 30+" Pike at the mouth of a bay...
...but it's the only one as we stumble on some nice trout.
Larry, Steven, Mike and I find the first Pike Pit of the day.
And the battle is on...
Mr. Pike attempts to confuse me with his rendition of "Twist and Shout".
But, to no avail. This fish is so big he doesn't even fit in the picture.
Finally Mike and I get at opposite ends of the boat (which isn't all that big as you will see later).
Steven and Larry also appear to be very busy.
Finally, we take a lunch break as our arms are ready to fall off after each catching over 25 pike in 1.5 hours.
Another rare trout.
More fish stories...
Check out the color on this male trout.
Mike disproves Bob's theory that he can't fly fish.
Mike and I embark on our 3 hour tour "across the lake."
Aldo and Dwight rest as Bob (the guide) chauffeurs them across the lake.
Looks like fish for dinner!
Our host Leo checks to see if we need anything.
The Texan's cabin has it's own private dock.
Our tiny boat almost ran out of gas during our trans-lake crossing.
Another (cold) day in paradise.
The main cabin...
Leo lives here.
Kinda reminds you of Petticoat Junction.
Chef RonJon prepares the meal.
Bob (a.k.a. Ernest) shares his conquests of the day.
Mike and Bob (they guide) work out the finer meaning of the phrase "across the lake".
Wake up, Aldo!
Steven almost falls off his chair.
It probably has nothing to do with the liquid refreshment.
Our last breakfast together.
Mike decides to challenge himself by fishing with half a rod.
We all think he's crazy...
...as we charge off for a last round of fishing.
Meanwhile, back at camp...
The Nebraskans leave just as we return from our last excursion.
The turboprop really appears to help as the plane uses almost no runway to take off.
Our pilot has the hammer down. It's Friday evening and he's probably got a hot date in La Ronge.
Our spacious cabin...
As we arrive back in Missinipe...
...our pilot scopes out a landing spot at 1000 feet...
...and immediately dive-bombs the lake. It's another nail biter and we later suspect he's Kamakaze Joe's son (or learned to fly from him).
1 second later we're touching down on the water.