I go to Canada's Kasba Lake for the fishing but stay for the food

Bill Gindlesperger
Columnist

This column is being written from Kasba Lake Lodge in northern Canada.  On the border between Northwest Territories and Nunavut, about a thousand miles north of Winnipeg, Manitoba.  

My wife and I arrived here on July 2.  We had flown the day before into Winnipeg from Baltimore and stayed the night.  The charter from Winnipeg into Kasba requires us to be up and going before 4:30 am.  That way when we arrive into camp we are able to get our clothes changed and fishing equipment together for a full day on the water fishing. 

The temperature in Winnipeg was hot.  Not so much when we landed into Kasba.  It was raining and cold as we stepped off the plane. 

We were greeted by the camp staff.  And a horde of black flies and mosquitoes.  I’m not sure which are worse, the black flies or the mosquitoes.  The mosquitoes you can hear coming.  They sound like miniature helicopters.  The black flies are more stealthy.  You can’t tell you were bitten until you feel the blood run down from the wound these ferocious insects inflict. 

Bill Gindlesperger

My wife gave me the “I am doing this for you and payback will be a trip somewhere else without bugs” look.   

Of course, my wife puts up with it.  She loves me.  She also knows.  The more bugs, the better the fishing.  Especially for the lake trout and Arctic grayling.  Both species slurp these bugs off the surface.  When that happens the fishing is incredible. 

Last year we caught 650 or so nice sized fish with many trophies in 30 days.  This year we are on track to break that record.  To qualify at Kasba as a trophy fish the northern pike must exceed 38”, the lake trout must exceed 16#, and the Arctic grayling over 2#. 

We are fishing on Kasba Lake or one of its rivers everyday through the end of July.  In the rain or in the sunshine.  But not in heavy wind.  On the main lake a hard wind can push eight foot swells.  Sometimes higher.  Dangerous and uncomfortable in an 18 foot aluminum boat. 

My wife fishes with me everyday.  Yet she will not stay with me the full 30 days.  Two weeks is her limit.  So my eldest daughter takes her place and fishes with me the third week.  Then, she, too, has had enough.  And it becomes just the guide and me.  That is a good time to explore places on the lake that neither the guide nor I have ever seen.   

More stories from Kasba Lake: 

More:A world apart at Kasba Lake in the Northwest Territory

More:Arctic grayling: The little rascals of Kasba Lake

More:In the Northwest Territories, silence, big fish... and black flies

More:Kasba yields bounty of fish and moments to treasure

More:Kasba Lake: 36-pounder proves to be a fish to remember

Honestly, I could stay another month if the camp were open that long.  The best kept secret.  I come for the fishing but stay for the food. 

This far north Kasba Lake Lodge is something special.  It has cabins and a lodge built on several cleared acres at the high point of an esker, overlooking the 1,500 square mile lake. 

The esker is a long ridge of gravel and stone, covered in tundra and bush.  It’s attached to the mainland to its north and runs miles to the south.  It separates a large portion of the lake to the east and the mouths of several rivers behind the esker to the west. 

The facilities were built little by little over 40 years.  Everything is brought by airplane from a thousand miles or more away including food, materials to build or repair the facilities, gasoline for boat motors, fuel for the electric generator and LP gas for the kitchen.  Even boats and motors have to be brought in by air.   

The camp has hot and cold running water, flush toilets, electric heat, insect repellent.  And... terrific food. 

Kasba Lake Lodge employs one of the top chefs in the business.  Many northern camps hire a cook for their seasons.  Some of these cooks travel from camp to camp depending on the season - fishing, duck hunting, big game hunting, etc.  As the seasons change the cooks move from camp to camp.  There are a handful of chefs in this group.  And Kasba Lake Lodge attracted one of the top chefs. 

I come for the fishing but I stay for the food.  Yes, it is that good. 

Breakfast is served early.  There is cereal, oatmeal or Red River with fruit; pancakes or French toast; eggs with bacon or ham; thick pieces of toast made from homemade bread with fresh jams; and strong coffee.  That’s my breakfast.  My wife picks and chooses. 

The idea is to load up on carbohydrates to stay warm on the boat ride to a prime fishing spot and to maintain energy until lunch. 

Mid morning and mid afternoon, we eat homemade cookies, bananas and apples.  The cookies are made in camp by the staff, who also work to keep the cabins clean, act as servers during breakfast and dinner and tend bar in the evenings. 

Some of the cookies are peanut butter, oatmeal raisin, old fashioned chocolate chip.  They are fresh, large, thick and chewy.  I usually eat two in the morning and two in the afternoon.   My wife eats one provided it does not include raisins, which she doesn’t like any better in the Canadian wilderness than she does at home. 

Dinner is prepared by the chef.  Every evening is different.  One night is steak.  Another ribs.  Sometimes it’s fancy with chicken cordon bleu,  prime rib with yorkshire pudding or beef wellington.  One night is cornish game hen with fresh red raspberry sauce and horseradish mashed potatoes with melted butter. 

Dinner is served with a camp-made soup du jour, fresh salad, vegetables, potatoes, homemade bread and fruit.  Dessert is always freshly baked whether it is pie, cake or fudge brownie.  

Kasba is wild and unpredictable.  The fishing is sensational.  But it is the food that is not to be forgotten. 

Bill Gindlesperger is a central Pennsylvanian, Shippensburg University trustee and founder of eLynxx Solutions that provides Print Buyer’s Software for procuring and managing direct mail, marketing, promo and print.  He is a board member, campaign advisor, published author and talk radio commentator.  He can be reached at Bill.Gindlesperger@eLynxx.com