Greetings fellow anglers. Been awhile since we have posted. I don’t know about you but its been a long winter and I’m ready for spring. Alas, in NW Ontario it is still very much winter. The next 10 days or so see frigid temperatures, not good. As such we are starting to lean towards a later than normal ice out. If I were to guess right now I would say mid-May. We shall see.
A few things in no particular order:
- Next week I head to Asheville, North Carolina to the annual Orvis Lodge and Guide conference. 4 days of networking, learning and talking about my favorite subject…fishing! We will also learn if we will finally take the prize for best Orvis Lodge in North America. Our fingers are crossed. Either way we are honored to be a finalist for the best lodge in the continent for the 4th time (in 6 years).
- As you know we decided to extend the season into mid-September, our latest closing ever. Little did I know that there was so much interest. So much so that the first 2 weeks of the month are essentially sold out! So we are now extending the season once again until the 3rd week of September (9/22). If you are interested in some incredible fall fishing let us know. We have NEVER fished this late in the season. Beautiful foliage, crisp evenings, warm fires and killer fishing.
- We are finishing up a few major upgrades as I type this. One of which is a new staff cabin with second story, large lounge, 3 season porch and larger bedrooms. Our staff is the best around and as such we can never show them too much appreciation. Additionally cabins 6A and 6B received brand new bathrooms. We have added a few goodies in the kitchen, bought the last 4 out-lake boats, one more new Crestliner for the main lake and a few more Humminbird mega-side imaging hi-definition depth finders. We also plan to plant 50 shrubs and flowering trees and plants throughout the property. And this is just the beginning. We are in the process of designing a new bar area at twice the size with larger deck, new floors…the works.
- Speaking of staffing this year’s staffs looks to be wonderful. We have 80% of our staff returning which is unheard of in this industry. Our wonderful chef Martina will helm the kitchen once again, Paul and Jerlyn, Alyssa (the best waitress ever!), Earl on the docks and the majority of our guide staff. We could not be more excited. As I say to our guests, the web-site and myself may bring you in but its the staff that will bring you back.
- Reservations – blazing hot right now, best ever. But as we have extended the season we still have slots throughout the entire summer. That’s right. Even June has a few KEY weeks open which has never happened before. Late July is very tight, June is very tight (but again a few openings) and late August tight. So if you are still thinking of coming up please let me know!
- Trip Insurance – This topic comes up every year on multiple occasions and I thought I would address it here. Every year we have guests that have to cancel their reservations for one reason or another. As such they request a refund of their deposit or a roll-over to a different reservation. We try to be very accommodating. But it is not always possible. Our deposit policy is pretty straight forward and laid out in every deposit email we send out. More importantly we try to stress the importance of trip insurance and even provide a direct link to purchase it through our preferred provider. Trip Insurance can be a godsend and is something I firmly believe in. For pennies on the dollar you can make sure you are covered should anything happen before or during your trip. With no questions asked. You break a leg, or child or spouse gets sick you are completely covered and a check is cut right away. You hit a deer coming up, slip and fall no problem. And for even more serious medical issues while on vacation in a foreign country where coverage can be non-existent it can be a godsend. Airlines, cruises, safaris basically nearly every vacation I know of needs to have most if not all of their cost paid up front and is non-refundable. Please consider this insurance next time you book. I buy it personally and in fact used it last week when Sophia got sick and I had to cancel our spring break cruise. They cut a check with no questions asked.
That’s it for now. Our next post will likely be at the lodge. Looking forward to another wonderful summer
Cheers
Ted