The Fishing
As beautiful as the Upper French River is, what really counts is the world under the water that you can’t see. Chaudière Lodge offers you a chance to fish both the Upper French River and Lake Nipissing on your own or with a Chaudière Lodge guide. These waters are yielding more and more big fish every year, it is prime fishing territory and its waters are well respected amongst the angling community.
The Upper French River and Lake Nipissing produce trophy fishing throughout the season and is one of the largest and most exciting water sheds to fish in Ontario. It holds world record Musky, Walleye second to none, Large and Smallmouth Bass and huge Northern Pike. This lake and river system occupies over 900 square kilometers and yields numerous musky over 50” and 50 pounds per year, making it one of the fastest growing Musky hot spots in North America. It now boasts an official live release World Record Muskie caught by Kevin Davison on October 6th 2006. There really are few places where you know that a world record lives and this is one of them.
Can I bring my own boat? Of course or use one of our standard or special upgrade Boats.
Walleye
Arguably Ontario’s most dynamic and high-density population of walleye is found within the French River and Lake Nipissing. Fishing opportunities for both ‘eater,’ or ‘shore lunch’ walleye as well as magnum-sized, trophy specimens exist all season. A range of habitats, from lush weed beds to current to main lake/river rock structure exists over a range of depths, and our walleye use it all. Fishing techniques run the gamut, from finesse-type, live bait fishing to more aggressive, casting and trolling methods. If you’re into catching a lots of fish, with great chances for big fish every day, Chaudière’s walleye experience is hard to match. 40 to 100+ walleye days are the norm.
Northern Pike
Season after season, the pike fishery at Chaudière Lodge continues to thrill guests. From our Opener in mid-May right through November, our countless rock/weed combinations, deep water structures, fertile bays and suspended bait clouds produce steady pike action. A great compliment to one of our famous shore lunches, pike hit and fight hard, they’re not overly complicated to find and catch and they really offer guests fast fishing action. Pike over the 40” mark are not uncommon and in many cases, successful casting sessions can yield dozens of fish per day over a range of sizes. Ready to have your arms worked out? The pike fishery at Chaudière is fantastic!
Largemouth Bass
Sometimes lost in the shuffle with our world famous walleye and Musky fishing, largemouth opportunities are incredible at Chaudière. Both the river and lake are peppered with fertile, sheltered, weedy and woody backwaters that hold not only big numbers of green bass, but some giants, as well. Largemouth have been verified and released to 7lbs. Mid-summer and early fall are prime. Weed and wood cover is fun to fish! Whether you poke around the edges with search-type baits or wade right into the thick stuff, we offer incredible top water, flipping, pitching, crankbait and spinnerbait bites for our guests. Keep your eyes peeled in the largemouth areas for wading deer, moose, amphibians and a range of shorebirds and waterfowl. As with our smallmouth fishery, the largemouth here afford our guests all-day action with some really big specimens mixed in. You’ll love it!
Smallmouth Bass
Maybe Chaudière’s best kept secret is the caliber of our smallmouth fishing. Unmatched as far as willingness to bite and as fighters on the line, our French River smallies are flat-out mean! Schools of bass can take hours to work through on prime structure, with double, when triple headers being the norm. And our average smallies are nice fish, usually around the 2lb mark. Fish to 5lbs are caught regularly. If you’re into smallmouth, Chaudière’s northern serenity mixed with the sheer numbers of willing biters is something you’ll have to see to believe.
Muskie
Both Lake Nipissing and the French River are top-of-the-food chain destinations for muskie fishing. Long known for both size and numbers of muskies, the habitat, forage base and natural, Canadian Shield backdrop adds up to a big-fish experience that’s widely regarded as world class. Successful muskie fisherman remain versatile, using a variety of casting, trolling and jigging methods. Three of Ontario’s top muskie anglers guide at the lodge, and considering spending some time on the water with them is a major step towards encountering one of these legendary predators. Both the river and lake offer outstanding bucktail, top water and soft plastic bites. Whether you cast or troll, Chaudière Lodge is on a very short list of Ontario’s very finest muskie destinations.
Other Fish!
Freshwater Drum (sheepshead) and jumbo perch round out the Chaudière fishing experience. What sheepshead lack in the looks department, they more than make up for in their sheer size and relentless, line sizzling fights. Fish over 15lbs are common! The perch fishing on both the lake and river rivals the perch fishing anywhere in northern Ontario. Big schools of fish from 10-13” roam many of the spots we walleye fish, and perch are a tremendous sport fish for new anglers. They’re also a fabulous eating fish and really add to the buffet at lunch time. Both species are usually encountered as by-catch while walleye or smallmouth fishing and really add a great, new wrinkle to a fun day on the water.
