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Muskie Fishing -> Fishing Reports and Destinations -> Tamarack or Witch Bay?
 
Message Subject: Tamarack or Witch Bay?
Landry
Posted 1/24/2019 12:04 PM (#929179)
Subject: Tamarack or Witch Bay?




Posts: 1023


Have u been to either spot or both?
Tamarack is cheaper. Witch Bay is more protected. Have a friend that went to Witch Bay and loved it.
I want a place with good muskie fishing and places to hide and fish if it gets windy.
I only have a 16’ Crestliner FishHawk.
Can’t decide!!! Need help!!
Thanks so much
Landry
jvlast15
Posted 1/24/2019 12:09 PM (#929182 - in reply to #929179)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?




Posts: 297


Tamarack puts you closer to better fishing, IMO. There are quite a few places that you can get away from wind without that far of a trip, as well.
Musky Brian
Posted 1/24/2019 12:27 PM (#929187 - in reply to #929182)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?





Posts: 1767


Location: Lake Country, Wisconsin
I can tell you from experience that when I’ve been up near Witch Bay, it’s not easy fishing. Yes you are “protected” there but that doesn’t mean Witch/Andrews Bay is prime water. I wouldn’t overthink it...paying a lot more money to fish a part of the lake with more difficult fishing doesn’t make a lot of sense.

You will be fine out in Tamarack in a 16’, ton of places to hide out. Your boat ride out to camp might get interesting in 20+ W/SW/S winds but you can even a carve a nice path out there after a few.... bumpy/wet minutes in the big water

Edited by Musky Brian 1/24/2019 12:31 PM
R/T
Posted 1/24/2019 12:48 PM (#929191 - in reply to #929179)
Subject: RE: Tamarack or Witch Bay?




Posts: 76


I spent a week a year 1998-2001 headquartering out of Pipestone Point Resort which is in the Andrews Bay/Witch bay area. Back then I had a 16' Smoker Craft with a 25 Merc and we fished all the way down to the entrance of Yellow Girl bay. Only got airborne once. As mentioned certainly not a numbers area but there are some big fish up there. You will earn them.

I have spent a couple of weeks in the mid 90s fishing where I believe Tamarack is including what used to be nice cabbage beds off the sand beaches on the backside of Dawson Island. First trip was staying on the mainland and making the trip across to the Dawson area daily. Same 16' Smoker. Second trip was to Obabikon. Did not do so well in Sab Bay area but I believe I am in the super minority.

My info is dated but the point is I would not let your boat stop you as I believe your boat is just fine for either spot with if you stay smart.
VMS
Posted 1/24/2019 1:09 PM (#929194 - in reply to #929179)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?





Posts: 3467


Location: Elk River, Minnesota
Hiya,

If you decide to go with Tamarack, there are also alternative ways to get there rather than head west right away out of Morson. You can go straight north through the channel and work your way up to the sunset channel then head west. Unless the wind is directly west to east, this area is sheltered quite well.

Although it will be a touch farther in distance going this route and coming back south, it might pose for a smoother ride.

Going across in big wind will be slow and wet, but in your boat, it can be done...it's just not going to be a smooth ride. The boat is plenty big enough to handle 3 footers given one doesn't try to over-drive their rig or use too much speed.

Steve
Mojo1269
Posted 1/24/2019 1:38 PM (#929201 - in reply to #929194)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?





Posts: 744


I fished Witch bay camp and did well. PLenty of places to hide in a smaller boat. Only drawback IMHO is the 8-mile goat path you need to drive to get there. The staff, facilities and everything else was an A+ experience for me. I can not offer personal ex[pereince with Tamarack...
Landry
Posted 1/24/2019 8:01 PM (#929230 - in reply to #929179)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?




Posts: 1023


Thanks guys. I couldn’t decide so I picked Tamarack as it is much cheaper.
Appreciate all your feedback
Propster
Posted 1/25/2019 12:19 AM (#929239 - in reply to #929179)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?




Posts: 1901


Location: MN
Good choice you won't regret it. Hoping to make at least 3 or 4 trips to Tamarack again this summer.
ArtieT
Posted 1/25/2019 7:26 PM (#929288 - in reply to #929179)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?




Posts: 21


Agreed. Witch bay doesn’t have bathrooms in their cabins. They have community bath houses. Plus you will have to travel 9 miles one way to just get to Andrew bay (good musky waters). Plus the drive from hwy 71 to the lodge is horrible! It’ll take you 45 min to an hour to get there. I’ll be fishing the Tamarack area this summer and hear it’s a great area to fish.
dward
Posted 1/25/2019 10:20 PM (#929302 - in reply to #929288)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?




Posts: 573


Location: Germantown, WI
Just to set the record straight from the last post.....

It's not 9 miles to Andrew Bay (more like 3).... More than half their cabins do have bathrooms (i think only 4 left without).... and the drive with a boat on dirt road takes me about 24 minutes every time i do it. It's not as bad as some people are trying to make it out. They improve it every year and has gotten better over the last 7 years i've been going...that's for sure

Can you find more fish and bigger fish elsewhere- i have no doubt, but you will not be better taken care of by the owners and staff than at Witch Bay.

Edited by dward 1/27/2019 12:20 PM
Kirby Budrow
Posted 1/26/2019 8:25 AM (#929309 - in reply to #929302)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?





Posts: 2255


Location: Chisholm, MN
Tamarack area gets hit really hard. I’m looking at heading to another area with less pressure.
Matt DeVos
Posted 1/26/2019 10:09 AM (#929316 - in reply to #929179)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?




Posts: 571


I've stayed at Witch Bay. Steve and Gail are great hosts and it is a nice camp. It is certainly on the more expensive side of things. Nice to hear that the road into camp is being improved, because the last time I drove it I vowed to not do it again. No, it wasn't terrible as in fearing for your safety or the integrity of your truck/boat/equipment (as long as you are not driving like an idiot). The road is just more of a general pain in the a** in the context of the price you are paying to stay there.

As far as the fishing goes, I know the area fairly well. There is some decent fishing without having to run very far but overall, it is definitely a lower numbers area as compared generally to Sabaskong or NW Angle. Decent chances for big fish, though. Although there are fewer muskie boats around in terms of overall quantity, it doesn't often feel that way because many of the better spots are well known and get worked regularly. This is particularly true in Andrews Bay, for example. Spend a mid-summer afternoon and evening in there and you're likely to be bumping into other boats with frequency. That doesn't mean you can't be successful, but I personally like to get away from other boats when possible. Of course, in that regard, there is no shortage of less pressured water further west and/or if you choose to run south of French Narrows, but in that event you're potentially making some long runs.
Landry
Posted 1/27/2019 10:13 AM (#929377 - in reply to #929179)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?




Posts: 1023


Sounds like they are both different but good choice. Im happy with my decision and pumped to go. Thanks for your honest input guys.
Ruddiger
Posted 1/27/2019 10:14 AM (#929378 - in reply to #929316)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?




Posts: 244


Howdy,

I've spent 12 weeks at Witch Bay, 7 weeks on Cass, two weeks on Vermillion, two weeks on Eagle, two weeks at Obabikon and two weeks at the Angle. I've also spent 20 years fishing in the Kawarthas and on other lakes like Nip#ssing and St.Clair too. Here is my honest take.

The Road can be terrible or relatively easy. Regardless it is 7 miles long. I drove it at night my first trip there and it was dreadful. The worst trip I've ever taken down the road by far. Lots of pot holes that were magnified by the darkness. That was by far the worst I've ever seen it.

Since then I've always encountered good grading and came early in the day. The larger problem would be two large trucks and trailers having to pass each other at the same time as the road is narrow. No matter the condition, it should take at least 45 minutes to get down it as it's 7 miles long.

You can make better time depending upon it's condition but you do so at your own risk (or your boat's risk for gel cracks). I have a Suburban and a 23 foot boat so my turning radius is large and I have to go slow and be cautious (plus I baby my stuff).

The Resort is the best I have ever stayed at. THE BEST. Gail and Steve are amazing people and go out of their way to make your stay a good one. The food is the best American Plan I have ever seen and its not even close. It's restaurant quality at every meal and you will gain weight while your there.

My daughter goes with me every season for two weeks (she is 14 now) and it has become impossible to take her anywhere else. It would be akin to taking your kid to Disney for years in a row and then trying to convince them to ditch that trip for the local water park. Good luck with that.

I can't stress this point enough so I will repeat it, Gail and Steve are the most gracious and accommodating people I've ever seen running a resort. Almost to their detriment as their kindness could be easily taken advantage of by the wrong customers. Thankfully those type of people tend not to stay there with regularity.

The cabins are all being converted to new deluxe style cabins and well over 70% of the camp is now the deluxe style that have full indoor facilities with showers, toilets, etc. Any older posts you read about the accommodations are that, older posts.

The newer cabins, which I'm sure you can get if your flexible on dates, are probably nicer than your house. I know they are nicer than mine and I'm comfortably middle class. Some guests actually prefer the really rustic cabins with a central facility (I do not). That said, the newer cabins are truly amazing. Again, once your kid thinks that is what a Cabin in Canada is like good luck going elsewhere.

The camp is overstaffed by design. Dock boys are plentiful and always available. Serving girls are always preset. The FREE guide service (just tip them as a common courtesy) is always available if you ask in advance.

Gail always asks at every meal how you did that day (the truth can at times be embarrassing to admit) and will try to get you a free guide if she thinks you're struggling. Don't be offended as her desire for you to be happy is sincere regardless of how it impacts your fragile muskie laden ego (trust me, I've been there).

In 25 years of going to Canada I've never seen another camp operate like this. Where else can you go out with a guide for 8 hours and not pay a dime for it? Not even for the gas. I usually give them $50 for half a day and $100 for the whole day but it's not required. Even the rental boats are tip top with trolling motors, casting decks, etc. The only thing you pay for (excluding gas in your boat) is the bait, and the prices are reasonable. Even the ice is free while you stay there.

The walleye fishing is insane. Absolutely insane! Better than most fly ins I've been to. Most of their long time customers come up for the walleye and for good reason. The fish are everywhere. EVERYWHERE. There are so many walleye in that part of the lake that it undoubtedly makes the muskie fishing harder in that the time it takes for a muskie to get a meal is incredibly short.

The muskie fishing is the only criteria where the camp takes a back seat to other areas of LOTW. At this point proceed with caution and read the following carefully.

This area of LOTW, from Witch Bay through the French Narrows, offers a much lower population density than other parts of LOTW. While it's not as low of a population as you get on Whitefish Bay, it is also not anything close to what you get as the Angle or in Sabaskong (or in any of the Kawartha lakes in Eastern Ontario). So if you go there and are expecting to see and catch the number of muskies LOTW is famous for you WILL leave disappointed. The fish just are not there in those numbers. I repeat, the fish are not there in those numbers.

However, the size of the muskies is another story. This part of the lake is what you get if the Angle and Whitefish had a baby. Much clearer water, less numbers of muskies, but much bigger average sized fish. Only you know if your true interest is bigger fish or higher catch rates so be honest with yourself. My experience has been that most guys talk a good game about wanting quality over quantity when in reality that can't live with the results of that decision from day to day on the water.

Fishability, is similar to a smaller inland lake which is good and bad. By that I mean, the only direction you can drive is west as Witch Bay flows west into Andrews Bay, which eventually flows west to the French Narrows. As such it feels a lot more like the West arm of Vermillion in than it lacks the open water areas of other parts of LOTW. There is no way to spread the fishing pressure out in all directions. We all drive west to find fish. Thus, fishing pressure is more than you would think even though there are no other camps in the area.

Big muskies are caught almost every day in camp by someone, but not by everyone fishing for them. Your catch rates will probably be, at best, half of what you will get at the Angle or Sabaskong, and that's during a good week. It may even be less than that.

However, the percentage of fish hitting fifty inches will be much greater here and you're likely to catch more fish over 45 than you do under 35. Their girth will be noticeably larger and inch for inch the fight will be noticeably stronger. I was almost pulled to my knees by a 38 inch pike last September. I've never seen anything like it elsewhere. I know that sounds like B.S. but I assure you it's the truth.

As I mentioned earlier, the fishing pressure is higher than you would think only because all of the spots are west of camp and are commonly known (thanks to the free guide program). You can still find fish, you just need to work for them, be persistent, and take advantage of prime time. In this way its more like Vermillion but without the crowds (somewhere in between).

Water quality is relatively clear and getting clearer. The bloom the last few seasons has almost been nonexistent compared to other parts of the lake due to the lower fertility levels. Its almost like its a mesotrophic area that desperately wants to become oligotrophic but can't. While most of the weeds on LOTW are gone, prime spawning areas still exist around camp due to the muck bottom in the bays. Consequently these spawning weeds should remain long term as the rusty crayfish don't thrive in those muck botom areas. As such there is also really good pike fishing there as well.

There are a lot of big pike available when the water temps are low enough for them to be shallow so If you add those big pike in as bonus fish it helps to justify the lower numbers of muskies you will encounter (for me at least). Even then, however, the muskies can really try ones patience and even I have been tempted to go elsewhere when the fishing is really tough. Nonetheless, I am back again this year for 6 weeks.

Finally, consider this last point. WBC offers discounts on their website for second trips in the same season and also offers discounts after September. So if you go on multiple trips a year like I do, their higher initial costs become a lot more affordable. There is a lot of value there in what you pay for which has not always been the case for a lot of other American Plan camps I have been to.

Additionally, they book trips starting on any day of the week that you want so you're not locked into a Saturday-Saturday cycle. This is particularly nice for people seeking shorter stays or for people like myself who drive two days to get there and need to be back at work on a Monday.

All that said, be honest about what you want out of your trip. A lot of people say they want trophies. But for a lot of people that level of dedication wanes after three days with nothing in the boat and tales of colossal catch rates elsewhere on LOTW from your friends at the muskie club.

Only you know where you are at in your fishing progression. Also, if you're not into catching 100 walleye with ease to break up the monotony of slow fishing for muskies, then this huge selling point of the camp does nothing for you.

Case in point, I fish by myself a lot now. The reason for this is two fold. First, I live in Ohio and a lot of my friends don't want to drive 20 hours to go fishing. Secondly, most of my family and friends don't fish muskies enough to ever get past the stage of wanting to catch numbers of fish. They also only go to Canada once a year so I don't blame them in the least. Consequently, most of them don't want to go back to Witch Bay with me. My daughter does, but she is the exception to the rule.

Finally, WBC is almost entirely American Plan. They offer very limited housekeeping and its really not until late September and October. Even then it's probably booked already by the same groups. So if you don't like being on that type of schedule, and you enjoy fishing at dawn or in the very early morning, know in advance that this will be a problem for you as you're probably not getting on the water before 8:00 AM. Thereafter, lunch is at 12:00 if you eat lunch in the lodge (they offer a sack lunch too) and dinner is at 5:00. Meals can take close to an hour at dinner because there are so many courses.

All that said, I'm going back again this year as the positives far outweigh the negatives for me. Believe me, it's very tempting to go elsewhere at times for all the reasons we keep chasing the next great spot, or after we experience a really tough trip. Eventually, however, (for me at least) the benefits of Witch Bay far outweigh the negatives. If you do go, take advantage of everything the camp has to offer with the guides and the fantastic walleye (and good smallmouth too). If you get a chance to fish with Russ please do so as its a fantastic day on the water. My daughter and I love the guy!

Finally, the camp is very pet friendly. If you love pets and bring your dog to Canada its just another reason to choose Witch Bay. They love dogs and encourage people to bring them so long as you're a responsible pet owner. As a person who fishes alone a lot, having a dog in the boat is good company. It's nice to have someone to bounce ideas off of who always agrees with you in the end.

Feel free to PM me for additional details.

Take care,

Ruddiger

Edited by Ruddiger 2/22/2019 4:46 PM
Landry
Posted 1/27/2019 6:08 PM (#929424 - in reply to #929179)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?




Posts: 1023


Wow!!!!! What an amazing post. One of the best I have ever read. Thanks for taking the time to do this!!!
Brian Hoffies
Posted 1/27/2019 7:22 PM (#929432 - in reply to #929424)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?





Posts: 1663


Very good post! I had no interest but now.................lol

What are the hazards like in that area? Lots of under water rock or are things pretty well marked? I'm a Pike guy & a troller. Whats your opinion?
Ruddiger
Posted 1/28/2019 5:20 AM (#929443 - in reply to #929432)
Subject: Re: Tamarack or Witch Bay?




Posts: 244


Howdy,

I have Lowrance units in my boat and run Navionics for mapping. I find the chip to be accurate for main lake navigation but not very accurate for areas within casting distance of the fish. As such I am constantly putting waypoints down in areas that are 10 foot or less in shoreline areas.

I personally don't troll anymore but back when I did, this was not the type of area I would do it until the fall when the fish are moving to deeper breaks. Its classic shield water and there are a lot of shallow fish. As such you will likely hit a lot of shallow unmarked structure trolling during the season. Come fall your boat will be less likely to hit something as the fish move deeper.

If you ever watch any of the Lindner shows where they were trolling for late summer pike on shield lakes know those episodes were filmed out of WBC so there is certainly a good deep water pike bite there in late summer. Those fish, however, were here today gone tomorrow when they filmed that episode.

Take care,

Ruddiger
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