Cedar Valley Lodge August 19-25

[Kill Switch]

Hey all,
289walleye here, now Kill Switch. Reason for name change in the report.
We left Waterdown (Hamilton) at about 6:30am. We got into the usual traffic near Barrie. Got to North Bay at about 10:15am and we were starving. We went for breakfast at a little restaurant called 50s Diner. She ain't pretty, but darn it, breakfast was sensational and not expensive. Place was jammed!
After filling our bellies we hit the road to Temiscaming. Picked up some provisions at IGA, OK beer, we picked up beer. Drove to Laniel, hit the dirt road and made it to the dock for 2pm. Longer than usual to get there, but we were taking our time.
Dock pick up is is basically in the same area as Loon and Eagle.
The pontoon ride to CVL is about 15 minutes. We unloaded, set up the cabin (new cabins are great) and then headed out by about 4pm.
That first evening brought nothing but a couple of bass. They were HUGE. I just don't get where the bass came from.
Sunday- we don't kill ourselves to get up for a morning fish. We like to relax and take our time. We will fish for pike during the day and walleye for the evening bite. We caught some pike in the 3 to four pound range. We kept a couple to eat as I think they are delicious. Ditto with bass. We kept a couple to fillet. That evening we went for walleye and were skunked. We ended the evening at Smith Bay thinking maybe we could salvage our outing. Nope. Better yet, when it was time to go, the motor would not start. Luckily we were able to get a cell signal on the lake and called the lodge for a tow. When we got back, we all noticed that the kill switch was disengaged. Talk about having my tail between the legs. We all had a good laugh and for the rest of the week the gang at the camp called me "Kill Switch"..hence the new name on the account. That night the Basel Hayden went down well.

Monday - literally rinse and repeat. We could not find walleye, in fact no one staying at CVL cold find them. I though of @Hodgey1 and his report. We tried jigging, trolling, slip bobbers and bottom bouncing. ZILCH. My Garmin had all kinds of "specs" on it that were suspended, but not fish. 

Tuesday - we hammered bass even though we were not targeting them. I know they are fun to catch, but part of me feels they are a nuisance. We ran into Brian on the lake. He has been fishing Kipawa for 35 years. He mainly targets Lakers with downriggers. I told him we were getting skunked on walleye. He said he was not surprised as he noticed there was another fly hatch in the water. He is convinced that around August 20th of every year there is a second fly hatch. That would explain what I was marking on the Garmin. For reference, Brian used to own the cabins at Loon and Eagle.

Wednesday - this was a happy day for me as my son drove up to join us. We started fishing Kipawa together 13 years ago when he was just 8 years old, now 21. Time flies. it's hard to explain the excitement of being with adult children. He lives in Toronto full time as he is still in university (4th year now). Anyway, I had to give him the news that nothing was biting. We hit the flats in Hay Bay and got skunked again. We went up to Moose and tried a few spots. Again, nothing. We trolled out of Moose where it narrows and landed a 28 inch walleye. Finally! We anchored and jigged for a while. We caught another 6, 3 of which were in the slot to keep. The bite was really light. I was happy that we found a few.

Thursday - overcast and some light rain. I thought, YES!, some good fishing weather. Nope! Fish were hard to find. Flats, rocky points, the rock island with the rebar in Hay Bay. No walleye.
Rockman, marked fish but nothing would take our offering.  Still managed some bass.

Friday - I had to leave a day early as I volunteer running a soccer club at home and it was our end of season festival on the Saturday.  My son stayed the extra day with out friends. It was an emotional goodbye with the owners of CVL. They are like family to me. Drive home was smooth.

This was my second trip to CVL this year. First was late May into June. Both trips were frustrating. it's like the walleye checked out, or the bass have pushed them out. I know they can coexist but.... The lake was beautiful as ever.  I miss the smell of the cedar in the air. When I go up to Kipawa I think about life quite a bit. My daughter started university this year and is staying in residence U of Western. My wife and I are empty nesters for the first time. Not sure I like it, but I am excited to see my kids spread their wings.
Fishing is my way of staying grounded and a chance for me to reflect on all that all I am grateful for. Heck this forum is a place for me to escape the day to day when I am not up north.
So not a great "catching" trip, but still a wonderful fishing trip. @Hodgey1 , we will need to work on our spots and techniques for next year.

Tight lines everyone.
Patrick
aka Kill Switch
aka 289walleye

[limacharley]

Before I opened your trip report I just figured you were an electrician Lol.
Nice report nonetheless.

Yes sometimes the walleye are difficult to find.

I once went to look at a cottage that was for sale up in Baie Moose. Wonder if he ever sold?

[puckster_guy]

Great report Kill Switch. Kipawa works it's charm even with the walleye somewhat absent. It's been slow all summer. My thinking is they are too well fed to hit a lure. BTW I did the same thing on one of my  first trips to Kipawa. Another boater at the launch saved the day. 

[Hodgey1]

We all had a good laugh and for the rest of the week the gang at the camp called me "Kill Switch"..hence the new name on the account. That night the Basel Hayden went down well.

Classic camp story to be retold of many years! Oh, i wish I was there to share the Bourbon! Love BH

He said he was not surprised as he noticed there was another fly hatch in the water. He is convinced that around August 20th of every year there is a second fly hatch. That would explain what I was marking on the Garmin. For reference, Brian used to own the cabins at Loon and Eagle.

Could very well make sense? Something shut down the bite

The lake was beautiful as ever.  I miss the smell of the cedar in the air. When I go up to Kipawa I think about life quite a bit. My daughter started university this year and is staying in residence U of Western. My wife and I are empty nesters for the first time. Not sure I like it, but I am excited to see my kids spread their wings.

Being in a place like Kipawa can't help but make a person reflect, I know I do. Empty nesting is step one of many. There's an awesome step possibly along the way in the future ....grandkids!

@Hodgey1 , we will need to work on our spots and techniques for next year.

July was tough for us, my September trip was not. I'll put a trip report in soon.

[ziggy6]

Great report...definitely can relate to the mixed emotions of children becoming adults..