• Still Time to Visit!
• Hello From the Lodge
• A True Comeback Story!

We still have a few Sportsman shows this spring - come by and see us at the booth!

• March 16 - 20, 2011 - Toronto Sportsmen Show, Toronto, ON
• March 30 - April 3, 2011 - Northwest Sport Show, Minneapolis, MN

According to the groundhog a few weeks back - Winter watchman Scotty and his loyal watchdog Lady should be preparing for an early spring. Scotty can hardly wait! "All I can say on this matter is turn up the heat !!!!!!!!!"

When the Xmas plane arrived on Jan 15th the temperature was -34 C. That cold snap was still in affect when Scotty defrosted his fingers enough to update us in mid February. Scotty shares "The coldest day was -49 C without the wind chill factor." After a 17 day period of beyond freezing temperatures, it warmed up to what Scotty calls a Mother Nature Teaser. Which meant two days of -8 to -12 & then boom right back into the -40 range.

So February 13 it was -41 C and on February 14 it went to -18 C followed by, yes you guessed it, -37 C. As Scotty had some extra time on his hands he worked out the average temperature for the month -33.8 C.

As far as snow fall this year there is very little snow as compared to the previous 3 years... Scotty says "When spring does arrive it won't take long for this place to melt."

This year, like every year, Kasba Lake Lodge receives a number of special letters from guests and former staff alike sharing their Kasba story. We thought we would share this letter with you (with a few edits to protect the innocent). Gary, the writer, is the brother of Kasba guide Iain and worked as a guide at the lodge himself more than 20 years ago…

Dear Hills

I've been putting off writing this letter as somehow I knew that I won't be able to express what it meant to me to have a chance to relive the KASBA experience last August. Not having been at the lodge since 1988 and only hearing yearly reports through my brother Iain, I had the same feelings as a first-time visitor as I stepped off the plane and onto the runway.

Fortunately (or not), I had spent the night before with Winston in Winnipeg eating Japanese food and visiting half dozen different bars in search of the right beer and company--still don't know if we found either one! I think that the last drink back at hotel around 4am was the one that ruled out sleeping before taking the shuttle to the Nolinor hanger in anticipation of the flight north.

An hour later, having coffee in the hotel foyer with the guests primed for their fishing trip started the flow of the stream of nostalgia for me. Two guys from Iowa questioned me about the lodge, the guides, the fishing and such. I told them that I hadn't been around for over 20 years, but that I had a very good feeling!

When I got off the plane I was greeted by long time friends Franny and Mary-Ann who, sadly, were on their way back to Winnipeg after their recent stay at the lodge. Even seeing them for 10 minutes rekindled so many memories of time spent in their company.

Once I saw Rob and his wife, Lou, I knew that I wasn't dreaming, and despite the lingering effects of my dining and drinking with Winnie, it struck me that I was in fact standing on the same runway (though much improved) where I first stood when I got off an 8 sweater from Aero-Trades in June 1979, during my very first season. Of course I clearly remember the fairly raging snowstorm, and wondered where the heck am I. Fast forward to 2010, I knew where I was and wondered how could I be so lucky to be back.

Being fortunate enough to spend time with Rob and Lou, and even The Big Guy Iain, back at Kasba last summer will never fade. Honestly, I found myself so overwhelmed with memories that I got lost in reliving the past in the present--absolutely surreal!

Yes, the lodge area had changed: new cabins, bigger building, walk-ways and stairs, upgrades all-round.... But, looking from the top of the hill over the boat bay out onto the lake at the front islands was entirely unchanged: The vastness, the power and beauty remain the same.

The 10 days went by like a shot. Of course I was hardly around, as my guides were most demanding with my time (ha ha). Randy and Crash still fish a hard day. As you know, fishing the Dome with Crash on the tiller is priceless; his knowledge of the structure coupled with his sense of timing, makes for truly remarkable trolling. And Randy keeps his title as Master Guide and Angler, putting us onto yet another Kasba 30+lbs list while taking time to see the sights and explore the tundra.

Clearly the new generation of guide is wired unlike we ever were, at least in terms of technology. I wouldn't have thought it possible to improve upon Kasba circa '79, but maybe so: The cruising time to fish has been halved, the boats are larger, better equipped and more comfortable than ever, and the guides seem to be more informed. Going forward what will continue to mark Kasba as the Fishing Destination is the entire experience. Supernatural!

Thank you to all of you for taking me back after all these years,

Gary M.