Conjuring up Some Fish

So far, our need to cover water has meant I haven’t had a chance to wet a line, but with a free evening, our guide Ryan relinquishes his dishwashing duties to join me in some exploratory angling. We launch below Thunder House and paddle upstream where steep walls of rock rise above foam-licked waters. We round a bend to see an angular rock pillar rising 25 metres. I recognize this from photographs as Conjuring House Rock. It's not only a transition point between the Precambrian Shield and the James Bay Lowlands, but a significant spiritual location for the Ojibway and Cree. A powerful spot to catch my first bass and walleye of the Missinaibi trip.

The following day, we negotiate the 2,000-plus-metre portage around Hells Gate Canyon. It takes most of the afternoon, but the portage trail ends at a deep swirling pool. While the others relax on the cobble shoreline, Ryan and I summon our angling reserves and clamber onto angular rocks to work the pool. I’m rigged before Ryan and manage to catch three walleye in three casts. Once rigged, Ryan enjoys similar results before the others have the canoes packed and ready to roll.