It was mid-October, and we were on the highway, pointed north on the scenic drive through Northern Ontario to Gogama Lodge. Autumn colours were in full swing, and the expansive, rolling hillsides were decorated with explosions of red, orange and yellow. Located 20 miles north of the Arctic Watershed on the shores of the 21-mile-long Lake Minisinakwa, Gogama Lodge is a quintessential Northern Ontario retreat that offers families and outdoorsmen four seasons of fun. From bear, moose and wolf hunts to year-round fishing and boundless ATV and snowmobile opportunities, Gogama offers it all. But for this particular adventure, we were after a specific kind of hunt—something of a different scale than the usual Canada in the Rough adventure. On this trip, we were hunting grouse.
I was joined this week by longtime friend Jeff O'Connor—an avid outdoorsman and grouse hunting enthusiast from southern Ontario. Jeff makes annual trips to the Gogama region for grouse-hunting adventures, so I was excited to have him along for the camaraderie but also the expertise in finding birds in this endless playground of grouse habitat. Jeff was joined by his canine companion, Bo—a Brittany Spaniel.
"For grouse hunting, we have a very unique area," explains lodge owner Rob Julien. "We're in a very vast area of Northern Ontario with mostly crown land all around us, many logging roads that offer ATV trails and walking trails. These trails are a perfect habitat for grouse."
Sure enough, zooming out on a map of the Gogama region reveals a seemingly endless labyrinth of logging roads and trails cutting through vast stretches of crown land.
"These trails are a perfect habitat for grouse. The grouse population is so high around here that our hunters have no problem coming back with their limit every day. They can go out every day into different areas and get their limit of birds."
But with a massive incoming storm front threatening to end their hunt abruptly, Paul and Jeff were overwhelmed by the possibilities. They were eager to get out and make use of their limited time, but it was hard to decide where to begin.
Thankfully, it just so happened that our stay at Gogama Lodge overlapped with the stay of the area's most prolific grouse-hunting enthusiast, Eric Beauregard. Lodge owners, Rob and Loretta, were happy to introduce him.
Explains Rob: "We have a repeat guest in Eric, who comes an average of six weeks a year because he's able to work remotely out here. He has been such a great ambassador as well. He's easy to talk to, and he'll help our other guests to point them in the right direction for them to have a successful hunt."
Jeff and I had barely finished unpacking our gear when Eric knocked on the door and introduced himself, eager to share his thorough knowledge of the area and offer his expertise. Though his time would be short, Eric offered to accompany us on our first excursion into the grouse woods and show us some potential hot spots. The trio planned to head out together at first light.
The next morning, Jeff and I were introduced to Eric's two grouse-hunting dogs—Suki, an energetic English Setter and Wanda, a determined Wire-haired Pointing Griffon. Eric is passionate about grouse hunting and, in particular, showcasing the impeccable work of his canine companions, who demonstrated an immediate knack for pointing out these well-camouflaged birds.
During our first few hours, we walked several trails that looked “less-travelled”, each offering a glimpse into the region's rich and varied vegetation. Each swath of the woods provided a perfect habitat for either ruffed or spruce grouse, sometimes both—and the population of each species was so significant that we quickly realized we could be selective about which species we harvested and still hit our limit. It never seemed long before the on-duty dog would go "on point"—standing perfectly still, its nose turned up toward a bird in the trees, and sometimes on the ground.
In one area, the bird population was so dense that we shot two grouse in two trees less than 10 yards apart—one ruffed and one spruce! These two species aren't known to be particularly good neighbours; they typically choose different habitats.
Our first day of grouse hunting with Gogama Lodge was a huge success. The well-trained hunting dogs made easy work out of finding even the most well-concealed birds, and all three of us came out of the woods with our daily limit of grouse. And all in time for Eric to make it back to camp to start his remote work day.
Jeff and I were both very grateful for Eric's expert guidance on our first day. True to Gogama Lodge owner Rob Julien's introduction, Eric was very forthcoming with his knowledge, which helped us get on birds quickly.
Jeff and I hit the trails on our second day, joined only by our hard-working canine companion, Bo. Instead of switching dogs in and out like we did yesterday, Bo was the starting line-up and the back-up this day. Armed with greater knowledge of the region's ample grouse habitat, Jeff and I were confident enough about filling our limit that we quickly decided to focus on shooting ruffed grouse only to lengthen out our day.
It was even as if Bo's confidence had been bolstered by the experience of the previous day, watching Suki and Wanda work their magic. She quickly became the MVP of the hunt. She would race down the trails, bouncing from one side of the trail to the next, before abruptly stopping and going on point. Then, BAM. Another bird down. We had an absolute blast hiking the trails and watching Bo work, and by mid-afternoon, we both had our full limit of birds. It was a perfect day of grouse hunting.
Unfortunately, our second day was to be the last day of our hunt. The looming storm arrived, bringing incredible amounts of rainfall that washed out roads and cut our hunting week short. The two days of hunting were incredibly enjoyable. Grouse hunting is a great exercise and very social. Watching the dogs work was a real treat as well. Overall, we had an incredible experience and came away with greater knowledge of and appreciation for the sport of grouse hunting and the dogs that make it so enjoyable.
Special thanks to Rob and Loretta at Gogama Lodge for providing a wonderful and scenic home base for our autumn grouse hunting adventure.
"We have a sign above our dining room door that says 'Enter as guests, leave as friends,'" says Rob. "This is a philosophy that we really believe in. It's been amazing, the friendships we've made with people we've met who come to Gogama Lodge."
After experiencing just a small portion of what the area has to offer and waking up each morning to a gorgeous sunrise over the lake, it isn't difficult to see why Gogama Lodge attracts so many visitors who keep coming back again and again.
In fact, if you find yourself at Gogama Lodge, say "Hi" to Eric for us.
