Fly Fishing On The Amazing Nipigon River

It has always been a dream of mine to fish the river that gave us the largest brook trout ever caught. The world record brook trout was caught on the Nipigon River on July 21, 1915, by Dr. J.W. Cook. The fish weighed 14.5 pounds and had a length of 31.5 inches! Over 40 years ago, when I first heard about the world record brook trout, the usual comment by anglers was, Those were the good old days before the brook trout and their coaster cousins collapsed on the Nipigon system.

However, starting in the mid-1990s, Ministry of Natural Resources staff with the support of local anglers developed the road back for this watershed and its brook trout. Since the late 1990s and early 2000s, there has been work with many partners to help these fish come back. And come back they have both in the lake and river!

My dream from 40 years ago was realized this past summer when my good friend and colleague, Silvia D’Amelio, CEO of Trout Unlimited Canada and I headed up to Nipigon. I had waited almost 40 years to fish the river for brook trout of a size I would never see outside of Labrador. Silvia who had worked as a biologist for 5 years around the Nipigon studying coaster brook trout, was eager to return after a 20-year hiatus.

We were invited to stay at the newly-renovated Lodge at Red Rock and spend five days fishing the Nipigon River. Accommodation at the lodge was first rate: comfortable rooms, great food, an amazing view of Nipigon Bay and wonderful hospitality. Everything is designed to provide the visiting angler with a great experience and opportunity to seek a personal best brook trout.

We arrived on a warm Saturday in mid-August and were eager to get on the river. We were told that it might be a challenge given the weeks of unseasonably hot weather experienced by the area.  River temperatures were up and the fish were hunkering down in the deeper runs and pools.

Despite the conditions, we spent five days with several great guides affiliated with the Lodge at Red Rock. I never topped the trophy category but did manage large brook trout that put a strong bend in my 7-weight rod. The scenery, whether you are fishing the lower river, mid reaches or the upper river above Pine Portage was incredible and breathtaking. Both Silvia and I managed good fish up to 21 inches in length and moved fish that were likely larger. This is despite the relatively warm waters due to the previous weeks of heat.

Is there a new world record somewhere in the Nipigon system? I would not be surprised. The enormous work by anglers and Ministry staff over 20 years ago is certainly bearing fruit. Numbers of brook trout are excellent, there are multiple-year classes of fish showing that the river is certainly providing excellent habitat for the trout and large fish up to 10 pounds have been caught over the past year or two. Conservation efforts have made a difference and I hope that we will not waiver but stay the course to once more allow this river to really showcase the finest large brook trout fishing in Ontario. You can bet that both Silvia and I are eager to go back to the Lodge at Red Rock and especially to the Nipigon River and once more cast for those amazing brook trout.

What To Bring

Weather from mid-August to Early September can be highly variable. Expect everything from very warm sunny days to fog, drizzle, heavy rain and windy conditions. After all, this is Northern Ontario and the North side of Lake Superior so be prepared.

Basic Things To Bring

• Clothing that can be layered for various weather conditions
• A good raincoat
• Gloves, a good hat and a toque
• Waders for getting in and out of a boat, depending on where you fish
• Good and appropriate footwear for the boat when not wading
• Sunscreen and bug dope
• Good polarized sunglasses to see into the water and protect your eyes.
• Life jackets are usually provided by guides for fishing in their boats however, I prefer to bring my inflatable vest with me.

Tackle For The Fishing

• Rods in the 6-weight, 7-weight and 8-weight range. Ideally, rods that are 9 to 10 feet long are ideal. I used a 7-weight for most of my fishing and it was great for casting streamers. You might go to a 6-weight if fishing dry flies.
• Good reels with good drags
• Floating line for the 6-weight rod in case you wish to fish rising trout. Heavier floating lines for the heavier rods as well as either sinking tips ranging from slow sinking to fast sinking, or integrated fast sink tip flylines.
• Flies can include dry flies such as Stimulators, Grasshoppers, and Chernobyl Ants as well as large nymphs and especially streamers that imitate minnows as well as sculpins in sizes 4-8.
• If fishing on your own, a good net with a large mouth and deep basket (otherwise a guide will have a good net)
• Leaders of 7.5 – 9 foot tapered to 1x, 2x or 3x depending on the fly you are using (i.e. I prefer 2x with larger streamer flies since these larger trout are not leader shy).
• I was using 2x Fluorocarbon tippet material and this appeared to work well for the fish I was hooking.

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