Hello, walleyewisdom.com watchers! It was just two weeks ago I returned from a fishing outing on the northwest corner of Lake of the Woods. The trip was put together this spring by former Iowa State President Greg Geoffroy. He’s turned into a real “fishaholic” since retiring from ISU a couple years ago! He invited another Ames buddy, Jim Trow, and a friend from Wadena, MN, Dick Ealy, and me to bring our boats to LOTW for a week at the Ash Rapids Lodge. He also invited three former teaching pals of his from out East: Steve Weinreb, Phil DeShong, and Bob Matthews. Each of these men had never caught a walleye! Finally, he invited an Ames area farmer and friend, Jeff Taylor, to round out the group. We arrived at Kenora, ON, on August 18th, and packed the boats with our gear for the 30 minute boat ride to the Lodge. We shared a large cabin and enjoyed daily prepared breakfasts in the Lodge, sandwiches for lunch, and a nice meal each evening on the deck of the Lodge. Greg got us going early each day to spots he’s fished there before plus some new spots we checked out together. I’m happy to report each of the men from out East caught a nice 29 inch walleye plus some big pike! Greg had the guests rotate through each of our boats so everyone had a different fishing experience to talk about over dinner! The week went by too quickly while we caught and released lots of walleye, big pike, and nice smallmouth bass. Dick even caught his first and the only muskie caught during the week–a 35 incher! We did keep some fish for a Wednesday night meal back at the Lodge–a tasty treat for everyone, including our guests. We left the Lodge Friday afternoon, the 23rd, and began our return home with an overnight at Virginia, MN, then on to the Minneapolis airport for Greg to drop off the boys from the East. This trip was one of the very best I’ve experienced with seven people I’d never fished with before!! Thanks, again, to Greg for arranging….for the boaters, and for the new friends we made during our week at the Ash Rapids Lodge. Hope you enjoy the pictures from the trip.

Tight lines, Spike