Lunge Lodge

Anyone every gone up there and fished the french river?  just curious and looking for reviews.

Went in late august or september caught bass and pike. walleye were few just have to watch for rocks in some sections.

We have fished at Lunge Lodge for 8 years.  Mike O'Neill and Todd Klaas, the owners are great guys.  Food and lodge accomodations are fine.  Boats are some of the better ones you will find in Canada -- 25-30hp 16ft semi-Vs -- platforms and nice seats.  Some of the boats are aging, but many Canadian lodges still use wood boats or only have bench seats.  If you have your own boat, get a detailed river map otherwise you will run the risk of taking out a lower unit.  The detailed maps are accurate down to the 2 ft rock.  A map is necessary even if you use their boats as it will help with knowing where to target fish and prevent you from getting lost -- there are lots of islands, bays and channels on the upper French.  I have caught 8lb walleye on the French but I agree with some of the other posts in that it's tough water to score tons of fish on.  The fish are there, but you have to work to find the pattern that's going on at the time you are there.  Lake Nip****ing does have some nice spots.  They don't look like much on the map, but can produce.  I agree that you fish Nip****ing like Erie, but if you can find the small bumps on Nip****ing you can jig them.  As for the River, it's like a lot of places post spawn -- the walleyes are coming out of bays and grouped up.  As summer comes, they spread out.  Some times you find them in the weeds with the pike.  There are plenty of places to fish in the River, but work a spot and move on until you find the fish at the right depth and size.  Don't be afraid to fish at 40-50 ft down.  Harnesses or drifting work fine.  There are plenty of SM if you focus on them around the dozens of islands.  Pike can be found in the weeds but as the water warms go deeper.  I've caught lots of nice pike jigging for walleyes.  If you fish muskie, it's not a big numbers fishery, but there are monsters in there.  If you have an Aqua View take it.  I frequently mark fish, drop the camera and determine if they are eyes or not.  I've had walleye, perch, and muskie swim right up to the camera.  The fish are curious about it.  Overall LL is a beautiful place and the people who run it are fantastic.  Are there better Canadian fisheries?  Yes.  But if you take time to study the map, adjust to conditions, talk to Mike and Todd on updates, then you can really get a great fishing trip out of it.  Let me know if you go. 

Trans, SM is pretty good.  I never focused just on them, but have caught some footballs.  In the bays you will pick up some LM.  Will you do better than Erie -- no.  Will the scenery etc. be better than Erie, yes.  Will you get more pick than Erie, absolutely. 
 

Hey Guys. Ran across you talking about the Lunge looking to buy a map of the river. Just got back a few days ago from my second trip this year. Went up looking for muskies, but didn't have much luck, even though an eleven pound sheephead had me going for a bit. When are you thinking of going up Trans?

Booked a trip to Lunge Lodge in June. We usually target bass and pike. Have heard mixed reviews on that area. Sounds like better fishing in Nip****ing...at least for walleye. I HAVE heard good things about "Bob's Bay". Can you give me any tips....maybe some GPS coordinates or something. Also, I'm looking for a detailed map of the river. Do you happen to know where I might be able to buy one?