Category Archives: Minipi waters

Minipi’s Wildlife

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One of the great things about fishing at Minipi Lodge is, despite the fact that you’re going to have fun catching world class brookies, you never know what nature is going to provide you.

On one particular day me and my guests Steve, Lewis and Terry decided to go fishing on the Little Minipi River. So as usual Chris the pilot flew us to the Little Minipi OutCamp so that we could take a boat and navigate to the river. To reach the river we had to navigate for about 30 min to cross the lake and get to the outlet. The scenery was beautiful. To be there standing in such wilderness is an incredible feeling.

On our way to the river we saw something strange swimming across the lake. As we got closer we found out this strange thing was in fact a beautiful young caribou. I immediately informed my guests to get their cameras ready to video as I was getting closer and closer to the caribou.

The set up was perfect. We had the chance to get close enough to watch him swim but still keep a safe distance. What a wonderful moment it was. My first ever caribou in the wild.

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After a few pictures and video we made our way to the river, and as we expected, had another great day of fishing.

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Now’s the time to book your Minipi adventure!

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Now’s the time to book your Canadian fly-fishing getaway at Coopers’ Minipi Lodges – the falling price of the Canadian dollar translates to a sizeable discount on your trip.

As of January 22, your fishing trip will cost roughly $5,090 USD, or $6,295 Canadian, down considerably from last season when our dollar was stronger.

We’ve got limited spacing available at the lodge – send us a note of interest and enjoy your week in the Labrador wilderness, hunting for that brook trout you dream about.

Colorful brookie

 

Hex vs. Drake

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When Bear Andrews first asked me to go with him to Labrador, he enticed me with descriptions of the big “Hex” fly hatches and spectacular rises by monster Brookies. It worked. I couldn’t wait to see that. Brook Trout have always been my favorite trout and a chance to catch a true leviathan was too much… I HAD to go.

Well, the hatches materialized and so did the Brookies. Bear wasn’t pulling my leg. Labrador turned out to be everything he said it was. At one point, I was crouched down in the boat with my camera lens focused on a big Hex just a couple of feet away. Fish were rising all around us, but I wanted a photo to commemorate the occasion. I was waiting for a big Brookie to come along and snatch up that fly right in front of my camera. I don’t remember how long I waited but it was several minutes.

Meanwhile, those trout were still rising and I was getting antsy. Finally I couldn’t take it any more. As soon as I stood up a huge Brook Trout rose right in front of me and that Hex I was watching disappeared. 

The “Hex” fly of Labrador is a fly they call the Green Drake. It’s actually a close relative of Hexagenia limbata, or what fishermen in Michigan call the “Michigan Mayfly”. It’s considered the to be the filet mignon of trout flies by most trout. Fishing the Hex hatch in Michigan is one of the major highlights of our fishing season. This is when the big boys come out of the woodwork to play… especially at dark.

The photo accompanying this story is a Green Drake or Hex fly. I like the photo because my wedding ring had turned upside down and the image of a mayfly matching the one on my hand can be seen. No… I didn’t plan it that way. Just a happy accident. One of my best friends made our wedding rings for my wife and I, and since I’m a fanatic fly fisherman, and so is my friend, I naturally asked for a Hex fly on it. My wife chose a Dragonfly for hers. At the end of our wedding ceremony my wife and I walked beneath a row of crossed fly rods held by my fly fishing buddies. It’s my favorite photo from our wedding. Our minister understood, he’s a fisherman too.

Oh by the way… the crossed fly rods was my wife’s idea! She’s a keeper.