BY BOB AND GINNY RIEGE

Want to really surprise your spouse this year with a perfect gift? One gift that keeps on giving is to spend time alone with your spouse. I am sure that you are thinking about going to Las Vegas, or the Caribbean, maybe even to Disney World. But, the best gift of all is a fly-in vacation. Sportshows will be starting soon and now is the time to get that gift that both of you will appreciate for the rest of your life. When was the last time the two of you got away? Were you alone? Or were you on a cruise? How about that special vacation when your spouse attends a conference and you get to come along? You owe it to each other to get away from the crowds and to enjoy the great outdoors.

One thing that I think about when someone mentions a fly-in, is a bunch of guys getting together to plan a vacation away from the family and their spouse. Therefore, I decided to take my wife on her first fly-in to Canada and allow her to experience as much fun as the guys do when they come to camp. The reason that we chose Ignace Outposts, Ltd. was two fold.

Pure relaxation is what a fly-in is all about. No deadlines. No concerns. Just fishing and resting.

Fortunately, or unfortunately Ontario has many excellent, well-established resorts and fishing camps for the visiting fisherman. These camps are located virtually everywhere throughout the province, so in many cases the visiting fisherman has trouble selecting a given resort or outpost. Have you been to the sportshows and looked at all the various resorts bidding for your attention and eventually your business?

After checking with other people and a desire to fish Seseganaga, we decided to contact Ignace Outposts, Ltd. out of Ignace Ontario. Brad and Karen Greaves are the owners and operators of Ignace Outposts, Ltd. The Greaves have worked hard for over a decade and a half to establish a unique tradition of fine Canadian hospitality.

A small plane will take you to a lake perhaps 50 miles or more from the nearest road and drop you off at a small comfortable cabin in the wilderness.

Nowhere else have I ever experienced such peace and quiet. This used to be something only for adventuresome outdoorsmen, but Ignace Air outpost camps are quite comfortable, with showers, saunas, hot/cold running water and solar electricity. You will be there alone until the plane comes to pick you up, or in our case we had a caretaker who lived across the bay.

In most of their camps it’s just you, the wilderness and whoever you chose to take with you. It is a great opportunity to spend quality time with your spouse. To little time is spent with our spouses especially enjoying each other’s company. We are so busy with our careers the family and taking care of the house, sometimes we forget to take time for ourselves. Sure, you can sit out at night and look at the stars, but how many of us do that at the end of the day? Here the nights are extremely dark. There is no TV to distract us or phones calls to return. Here there is just you two. Speaking of stars, you cannot believe how bright the stars are at an outpost that is miles away from the city. You have to see it to believe it.

There are no sounds of civilization on such a trip, except an occasional plane that passes overhead. The days are filled with the wind in the trees, the haunting call of the loon and the occasional cry from a bald eagle. Most of us don’t realize what silence is anymore. In fact, the noisiest thing that we had in our cabin was the clock on the wall. Most of us go to the wilderness to experience the fishing, but along the way we also develop an understanding of what nature has to offer, away from the city and the mechanization.

Our flight lasted about 40 minutes or so before we put down on Seseganaga. Keith, the pilot maneuvered our Cessna plane to the dock and quickly jumped to the dock to tie us off. We unloaded our gear and Keith helped us take it to the cabin. Keith gave us the rundown on the facilities. He also provided us with some good info on where we might expect to find fish and what to use. We got settled in and decided to go out and try our luck for the evening. The “gift” was starting to be unwrapped.

Like I said before in this vacation there were no schedules, no deadlines all we had to do was fish and that we did. I lost track of how many big fish we did catch, or how many fish we did catch and release. I know that we took a lot of great pictures and saw some of the most spectacular scenery, and wildlife. We saw bear, moose, woodland caribou, eagles, otters, deer and of course walleyes and northern pike.

Our approach to fishing was simple; we used jigs tipped with leeches, or Cabela’s living eye minnow. Backtrolling jigs and spinners in shallow sunken island locations allowed us to net at the minimum seventy five walleyes a day.

We had great weather, good conversation, the enjoyment of each others company and most important we gave each other the best gift of all. This is a gift that keeps on giving and it is a gift that you can give each other today. Start building those special memories for years to come and if you want more information contact: Ignace Outposts LTD, Ignace Airways Brad and Karen Greaves, Box 244 IGNACE ONTARIO, P0T1T0 CANADA 1-807-934-2273 office, 1-807-934-6647 fax or on the web at: flyin@ignaceoutposts.com or www.ignaceoutposts.com.