This story goes back a few weeks, but it’s worth telling here.  Each year, we bring in some new recruits to do an “internship” at Aikens.  Usually it is a few guys right out of high school (which ends in late June).  They get to spend about six weeks at Aikens helping out with some of the daily jobs, while at the same time learning the lake, the fishery, and the culture here at Aikens.  If all goes well, it allows them to step into full-time roles in the “Aikens Family” the following year.

This year, we have been training three such recruits.  Alex, JB, and Eric (now known to the staff as E2 because we already have an Eric on staff) are here on their first Aikens Experience, and are soaking it all in.  They have had a really good time and have helped us out a lot.  With such a busy season, it seems like our 10 full-time guides have been on the water constantly, leaving no one to help out on the peninsula to do things like cut the lawn, chop shorelunch & boiler wood, or add woodchips to the trail.  The trio has been able to button up all of these things while at the same time learning about guiding and about life at Aikens in general.

At any rate, this newsletter item is intended to share a funny story that was spawned from two events on the lake, not on the peninsula.  A few weeks back, Eric was fishing at the Honeyhole.  As a small walleye was coming in, a mammoth pike grabbed hold.  In the panic that ensued, the pike let go of the walleye, but Eric knew that pike was still hungry and looking for a meal.  He put on a clown pattern Rapala Husky Jerk and started casting around.  On one of his back swings, the lure got knocked off its axis, and when the rod went forward it planted the Rapala squarely into the back of Eric’s head!  Even with a pinched barb, the hook had grabbed hold of some meat and wouldn’t budge.  With clenched teeth, Eric put on his bravest face and came back to camp (you can imagine how every ripple the boat hit felt with a hook in your head!) where Pit and Pat were forced to quickly do some haircutting and bush surgery.

After the hook was out, everyone was able to share a laugh about the incident.  The lure (less one hook) and a lock of hair were returned to Eric as souvenirs of his cast.  We told him he should get back on the horse, and to go and get that pike with it!  Well, a few days after the surgery Eric was back out at the Honeyhole after his day of work.  He was alone and determined to get that clown-pattern rap back in the water.  Lo and behold, but what should he catch?  Not the pike that had caused him grief, but instead a trophy walleye!  His self shots are pretty funny because you can tell he is trying to suppress a giant smile.  It was redemption for an incident that will be be shared around campfires for a long time!  It’s a nice ending to the story of “The Rookie Cast”.

So you think you’re in shape? How about swimming 4 miles clear across open water! This daunting physical feat was challenged and mastered by Mr. Peter and Paul Miner. The twin brothers have been coming to Aikens Lake for years. Drawn to the majestic Great Gray Owl for its luxury and unique experience, they’ve fished and boated hundreds of large fish over the years. This adventuresome duo have an impressive list of accomplishments. They’ve competed in numerous triathlons and marathons. They’ve recently passed their aviation courses and chose the fly their own Cessna to Aikens (we happily accommodate private planes). They’ve also finished their first Ironman recently. Currently training for their next Ironman (In Madison), they saw the GGO to Aikens Main Lodge swim as a perfect opportunity to continue their training (while on vacation). They donned their wetsuits and dove from the GGO dock. With a trailer boat spotting them, the  front crawled their way towards our front beach. An hour and a half later, they emerged triumphant at the main beach holding the title of the first people to have swam the length of the lake! Congrats fellas, and best of luck in your next competition.

An annual tradition here at Aikens was disputed this week. Our Aikens Olympics pit four teams against one another for the coveted first place finish. The costume coordinated teams compete in four events to determine the champions. Hand picked guests and various management staff serve as judges to oversee the games.

The usual opening ceremonies ensued with teams arriving one after another to display and boast their group pageantry. This years teams were:

The Dirty Ranchers (Kik, Marcel, Eric TS and Eric T)

The Peuple du Village AKA. The Village People (Dave, Jesse, Elliot, Alex)

E=MC Big Socks (Bruno, Griff, Mathieu, JB)

The Aikenshoen Family from the Decker Colony (Janelle, Elise, Aisha, Reanne, Josee)

Judges: Pit, Julie, Pat, Lorraine and Mr. Ken Moody

Mascots: Annika, Martin and Natasha

First off. Canada’s National Anthem.

The first event, the beer relay was disputed right after the Canadian National Anthem. This event had our competitors run to various caches of cans around the peninsula, return with said can and drink it down. Each teammate had to wait till the previous was done. A landslide victory by the Village people secured them four points for their tally.

Second event. The Can Toss. Buckets were set at various distances (each worth from 5,10,or 20 points). Each squad was given twenty cans. Players had to throw the cans from the B&T porch into the buckets. The Village People  were again victorious with their slow and steady approach. Opting  to only target the closest bucket (5 points per can) they potted 55 points with 11 well place lobs.

The third event is an Olympics must. The Volleyball Tournament. All four teams played a single elimination game of ten points. The girls and the Nerd team were beaten in the first round, and faced each other in the third place match-up (E=MC secured third) . The first place match was tightly disputed between the steamrolling Village people and the confident Dirty Ranchers. Exceptional rallies and awesome spikes later, the Village People again emerged victorious. Would anyone slow them down?

The final event was the Balloon Toss. Teammates paired off and were handed their water balloons. Throughout the evening our panel of unbiased judges attributed bonus points to teams that offered them subtle bribes. A expedited refill or a well-place lawn chair afforded teams extra balloons, except for the Village People - who had not earned many (if any) brownie points with the judges.  They were heading into the final event short handed; would this be their demise? Surprisingly the game dragged on for a while. With every team lined up in a row, one partner would toss the bomb to the other over the volleyball net. With a successful catch both lines would take a step back and throw it over the net again. And again. And again. It was to the point were the squads were easily 25 feet apart. In the end, the Dirty Ranchers won the event with a clever use of their cowboy hats as landing baskets.

Once the points were tallied it was evident who would be our Champions. The Victorious Peuple du Village hefted the Olympics Plaque and cheerfully celebrated the win. The Dirty Ranchers took Second, E=MC third and the ladies, well, better luck next year. These game are always a blast! The staff was very happy to have capped the night off in Big Molly’s shaking hands and swapping highlights with all competitors and spectators. Now that’s the Spirit of the Games!

Ever wonder who Chef Elise thinks should play the lead in her autobiographical movie?  Have you thought about how many of our staff believe in Elsie, our resident ghost?  These answers and more can be found on our updated staff bios. You will find a short candid snapshot of our guides, housekeeping, and kitchen crews!

We all know that the staff is a huge part of the “Aikens Experience”.  Here’s your chance to learn about our incredible staff.  Enjoy!

http://www.aikenslake.com/services/staff-bios.htm

Euchre

Pronunciation: \ˈyü-kər\

Function: noun

Etymology: origin unknown

Date: 1841

: a card game in which each player is dealt five cards and the player making trump must take three tricks to win a hand.

Four consecutive nights of Euchre. Big Molly’s was the stage upon which two neighboring nations confronted each other for The International Euchre Fly-In Championships. Team U.S., represented by former two-time champion (2007,2008) Mr. Bill Lapp and his partner Mr. Gene Reibel squared off against home-town shufflers Pit Turenne and 2009 champ Patrick Trudel.

The first night of play was devoted to warm-up. A bit of posturing and feeling out each others tactics helped both teams to prepare for the next night’s opening game. The tourney was a best of three format over (if needed) three evenings.

Night one. After the cordial handshakes and salutes to their respective countries, the championship trophy was put out to preside over the players during the next few days.  The cards were dealt and play ensued. Team Canada came out to an early lead taking the first game (10-4), then giving up a few points early in the second they turned on the jets and didn’t look back. Pit and Pat secured the evening with another convincing 10-4 victory. As a side note, 10-4 was a hot call sign over the radios during the next day fishing.

Night two. Must win for the U.S. team. And they did just that. Stretching the play to the third game, the hot carded team U.S.A. closed the deal to lock up the second night’s competition staving away a 9-3 (us-can) comeback to win the third game 10-9 . The board was set for a duel to the finish on the final night of play. All four players eagerly awaiting to heave the trophy o’erhead.

Night three. All players reported a little early to Big Molly’s. By now the rest of the guests and staff were wondering just who would collect the honors for the Euchre International. Team Canada showed up sporting the Maple Leaf (and sweatbands to wick away the nerves). A short stretch later, the final hands started to fly. The Northerners didn’t dally firmly securing the first game. The Southerners weren’t phased by the show of force. They put the hammer down and notched one in their win column for game two.  It all came down to this. The idle banter and pleasant chatter was left aside and some very serious Euchre was on display for the now-growing crowd of onlookers and cheering sections. Low-scoring and tight play kept the game close. At 5-4 (us lead) Mr. Bill Lapp took 5 tricks with Mr.Reibel’s help. 7-4. Smelling blood, Team US. euchred (won three tricks on their opponents hand) the home team to bring the victory within striking distance (9-4). Team Canada rallied a huge alone hand for four (9-8 US lead). The cards were shuffled and dealt by Mr. Trudel. He offered up a Jack of Diamonds (a boss card). Everyone passed on the Jake… including Patrick to everyone’s surprise (The saying goes: turn down a bauer, lose for an hour!)  Pit, not wanting to let the Americans open first (they only needed one point for the victory) ordered up Clubs. Little did he know he was playing right into his partner’s hand. Four tricks later, the Canadians slammed done the final trump card to sweep all five hands. Two points awarded and high fives started flying! With the win Patrick and Pit brought the overall series to a dead tie (USA 2007-2008, CAN 2009-2010).

 Congrats to our winners and a worthy salute to their solid opponents. Be it Hockey or Euchre, the honors belong to Canada in 2010! All anticipate the showdown in 2011. One year to practice as of now.

We have been experiencing some of the nicest weather we have seen in a while here at Aikens.  Weather has been 75-80 for the past month, and the winds have been really light.  The rain we have had is certainly intense, but it is limited to small pockets that move in and out in less than 30 minutes (mostly in the middle of the night)… then it’s back to clear skies!  It is a stark contrast to last summer’s drizzly grip.  This summer has been wonderful so far!

Despite starting off the year with really low water, it has since crept up for all of May and June.  It finally seems to have peaked here in late July.  That is a good thing because the water was licking the bottom of the dock planks just last week!  The good news is that it has crested and is now back down about 4″ under the dock.  We are hoping that it drops quickly so we can complete our dock project at GGO this September.  The water temps have been very high and are mainly in the low 70’s.  The thermocline is very deep (over 30′?) as we measured 57 degrees at a 25 foot depth the other day!

The high water of late has opened up more areas for our great walleye population to spread out.  We are still catching walleyes in traditional spots, such as the Mouth of the River, Saddle, MOFN Reef.  These pods of ‘eyes are hanging out in varying depths, with each spot having it’s own unique “magic depth”.  Fish at the Mouth are in 24-26 feet… on MOFN they are in 28-31 feet, and at Red Rock they are in only 16 feet of water!  Other non-traditional spots are also holding walleyes right now.  As you read about last week, there are some huge walleyes sitting the shallow bay around GGO.  This has made for some interesting fishing during shorelunches as there was another 28″ caught from the dock yesterday while the morning’s catch was frying in the pans!   Another fun bite has been to cast and troll rocky shorelines (4-12 feet) with shallow crankbaits.  This has proved successful on the lake-side of Bear Island, at Toad’s Hole, and around the Three Sisters.

Yesterday we landed 5 Master Angler fish - and all were in different depths!  42″ pike at the Honeyhole.  Trophy walleyes at the Mouth, Red Rock, Wet Rock, and the one at GGO.  They ranged from 6 feet to 30 feet!  Our inaugural Century Club campaign has been a very big success as well.  The idea of the Century Club has been quickly adopted and adored by our guests!  People love gunning for that 100″ of walleyes every day… and if they get stuck at 98 or 99″, it just makes them hungrier for it the following day!  The Century Club has been moving at about the same pace as the Master Angler list with one or two anglers a day earning that distinction.   It is certainly a program that has legs and will continue to grow and blossom in future years.  With less than 7 weeks left in our season, time is running out for you to make it onto the website with either your Master Angler or Century Club designation!

We have started noticing a new pattern at Aikens.  Since early July, some big walleyes have been hanging out in very shallow water.  They are doing this in the middle of the day - even when it is calm with a bright sun!  Maybe this is due to our really high water (Note: the water level seems to have peaked - it has sat about 1″ under our dock for the past week and hopefully will begin it’s yearly descent soon.)  Maybe it is due to a change in baitfish and forage.  Or maybe it’s just something we never noticed before!

That said, it is a very cool sight to see big fish swimming around in their natural environment as if they were in an aquarium.  One such place to do this is at the GGO Shorelunch site.  It only seems to be larger fish (22″ and bigger) that hang around.  They cruise around the shallows looking for minnows and other forage.  One day last week was particularly interesting because it was more than just one or two fish - but a school of half a dozen walleyes all between 3-9 lbs.  As the guides were up on the rock filleting the shorelunch fish, the guests were crowded around the water’s edge watching their own personal nature show!

One of the guests decided to cast a line into this frenzy, and lo and behold the first ever trophy walleye was caught from the rocks at GGO!!!  We have posted the video to our Youtube page.  Click on the link to see the video (careful for young ears as the language is strong while everyone cheers on Tony!)  For those of you that saw the trophy listing and were wondering where the “Butcher Shop” was on Aikens, it is the cutting area of the GGO shorelunch site!  We don’t know if this is a one-time occurrence this year or how long this might continue, but for right now it is quite a sight to behold.  Enjoy the video!

Link:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RF9iruqmSW8

Don Lamont, who we wrote about recently, also has a weekly column in the Winnipeg Free Press.  This week, he expounds on the virtues of our unique Century Club program!  Read all about it here:

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/other/century-club-the-holy-grail-of-aikens-lake-99162519.html

Don Lamont has been in the Outdoor industry in Manitoba for over 30 years.  Former host of”The Complete Angler” television series for 15 years, Don has worked as a professional angler in both public and private industry to promote the great outdoors in Manitoba!  He is an incredible steward of our natural resources and has become a Manitoban fishing icon.

Don first visited us in 2006 during our PWT Celebrity Shootout tournament.  At the time, he was with Travel Manitoba as their outdoor products manager.  It was his first experience at Aikens, and one he would cherish for a long time until his eventual return this season!

Don is currently the Provincial Youth Angling Coordinator for Fish Futures.  He is also the co-chair for Fish Winnipeg.  This past week, Don graciously hosted a trip to Aikens that had been auctioned off this winter by the Grace Hospital Foundation in Winnipeg.  The group included the two auction winners who were hosted by Don and his guest for a three day experience on Aikens Lake.  They had themselves a grand time at Aikens - filled with fish during the day, followed by laughs and stories into the night!  As Don said it: “I’ve been to just about every lodge all over Canada in my 30 years in the business, and Aikens is easily in the top 3.”

Visit Don’s blog and recap of the trip here: http://donlamont.blogspot.com/2010/07/aikens-lake-lodge.html

First off, we have to apologize for the length between posts!  Truth be told, we were all on vacation!  As is our custom, we fly out the staff for just over a week in early July.  Traditionally the first week of July has not been sought after by our clientele, and so we use it as an opportunity to let everyone sleep in a little bit and reconnect with loved ones.  It gives everyone a chance to recharge their batteries.  We work hard and we play hard up here, and so that break is needed (although often our staff would prefer to work right through it!)  Whether we like it or not, working 7 days a week does take a toll on us all!  This scheduled break is the perfect way for us to give everyone that boost so that our second half goes as well as the first half did!

At the lodge, Julie and Pit hosted Julie’s family for the first part of the break.  Although fishing was very good, it was tough to get all the kids (5 in all) organized to go out fishing so we only got out on the lake a handful of times.  Julie’s brother-in-law Dan caught a Master Angler (or Monster Angler as the kids call them) at Middle Gull.  His 5-year old son Joel was not interested in jigging, so his rod was placed in the rod holder.  When the trophy fish hit and Joel’s rod was doubling over,  he wanted nothing to do with it!  Dan tried to convince him to reel it in because we could tell it was a big one, but Joel was already decided.  Dan had to reel it in himself and to his delight the fish ended up being a really healthy 28″ by 13″ walleye.  The fish was Dan’s slump-buster, and he finally got the mug he so coveted (and one that his wife and mother-in-law both already owned!).  For the second part of the break, our newlyweds Pat and Janelle hosted their parents and siblings.  It was during this very same break last year that Pat popped the question to Janelle in front of their close family.  They spent some good days in the Back Bay kneeboarding and tubing, but again the fishing was scarce because of the high winds.

Meanwhile, our staff was back home and busy traveling all over Manitoba and Canada during our break!  It was a great opportunity to reconnect with family, friends, and of course girlfriends and boyfriends!  Many went to the Winnipeg Folk Festival - a huge outdoor music extravaganza that lasts 4 days.  Some went to Countryfest in Dauphin.  Some traveled back home from the Western border of Manitoba all the way to the Eastern border of Ontario!  The guides had the opportunity to restock those tackle boxes with all of the lures that the fish loved in the first half.  And of course, they all took the opportunity to sleep in a little bit and catch up on those Z’s!

So all in all, it was a good way for everyone to spend the last ten days.  Everyone is really psyched up about our busy 2nd half to the season.  The fish are now squarely on the classic summer spots, and we are ready to get back in the Saddle again (like the pun?!?)  Look for our regular updates to get back on track as well.  Thanks for following along with us online!