Lake Trout Tales

He was born in a tent, the temperature outside near -40 Celsius; for most of his life Ovide has trapped, fished and guided in the north. For years he spent winters in the remote wilderness with his family, enjoying the solitude but waiting for the summer so he could guide anglers from all over the world.

For the last thirty years he has commanded a boat, guiding on the same lake and for the same lodge. Though owners have changed over the years, Ovide stayed on, quickly becoming a legend to the customers that came back every year. His knowledge of the lake and the culture of the north, one of a lifetime of experience, are priceless in today’s world.

One of his biggest converts is a retired business owner from Chicago. For the nineteen years that Carl has been coming to this northern lodge, he has requested Ovide as his guide. Carl has been retired for twelve years, after selling his meat packing plant in the Chicago area. For years he worked fourteen hours a day; when he retired, he knew that it was time to spend his summers in the area that he loved the most – northern Manitoba. You see, Carl loves to catch big lake trout and the pristine lakes of the north hold the size of fish he was looking for. Carl doesn’t like to take pictures of his trophy lake trout anymore, he has caught so many.

On his last trip, he and Ovide had a day most anglers could only dream about – ten lake trout that weighed in at over thirty pounds each, caught and then released. The biggest lake trout that day was a true Manitoba monster, some 47 inches in length with a 27-inch girth. No weight was taken of the fish to reduce the stress on this denizen of the deep. If you use a conversion chart, however, this fish would be over 40 pounds in weight.

Carl has caught a lot of trophy lake trout in his many trips to northern Manitoba, but that’s only part of the reason he keeps coming back - he truly appreciates the service supplied by the friendly people of the north. Carl also has a special bond with the guide called Ovide, a real admiration for the man who loves what he does. He will also tell you that he never tires of the delicious shore lunch that Ovide prepares every day they’re on the water!

Before the trip is over, Carl makes sure that he plans his trip for the next year at the same time, always with Ovide – a true legend of the north.