Has anyone done the early June Smallmouth fishing trip through Piragis?
I would like to know more about it.
What percentage of the group is using fly fishing gear vs. spinning gear?
Are a lot of guys doing both?
How young are some of the boys on the trip?
My son is finishing the 5th grade and I would like to do this trip with him soon but don't know how many years I should wait.
We live near Dallas, Texas and don't have any BWCA experience so I was thinking a guided trip would make sure we don't get lost, get eaten by mosquitoes or starve.

Can't speak to the guided trip offered by Piragis, but when my nephew was 10 1/2 years old, we took him to the BWCAW for the first time. Had a guy back out at the last minute and could not find a replacement. Original plan was to have him in the middle of a 17 ft. canoe and paddle as much or as little as he wanted. He ended up making the entire one day paddle to the far end of Lake Insula going out of Lake One entry point. I think my brother was pretty tired at the end of the day, but the two of them made it. Just kept most of the heavy packs in my canoe. Luckily, we avoided head winds most of the day.

Advantage of going with your son and no guide, is you go as far as your son wants to go or can physically handle. Worst thing you can do is push the poor kid beyond his limits and give him a bad first experience. The most important thing to remember is that if you are taking your son, the trip should be about him and that means you may have to sacrifice some...less time on the water fishing, or different menu items. Sure fishing might be hit or miss without a guide, but you will find time doing a lot of other things to keep him busy....swimming, catching crayfish, looking for firewood. If the success of the trip for your son will be measured by the number of fish you catch, then maybe go with a guide, but be sure to let them know your son's age and what you think he can handle. An outfitter like Piragis should be honest with you.

This summer I am taking my 10 year old son with me. He has been asking to go for 3 years now. We are making the same trip to Insula again this year. I plan to have him be a paddler in the middle of my canoe. Our trip will be late July when the water is warmer for swimming. He already plans to jump off "The Rock." I will make sure we do at least a couple nights of tent camping and some paddling on the lakes nearby my house to prepare him for the trip.

My nephew is now going on 7 straight years in the BWCAW since his first trip. He says it is the highlight of his summer and looks forward to going every year. If you play this first trip right, you will have a life long canoeing partner to share your BWCAW experiences.

I have met a few groups from the midwest and they struggled in the fish catching department. One group was from Texas and the other Father/son team was from Oklahoma if I remember correctly. They were largemouth guys and they brought their equipment of heavy line, bait casters and pounding the shoreline with spinnerbaits to canoe country and did not fare so well. The Oklahoma team fared worst with the Dad complaining bitterly (I felt sorry for the kid) and I think they left early.

The fishing can be world class but over tackling can be an issue. The combination of clear water and basic lack of obstructions on which to get snagged on make this fishery a light tackle dream. 10lb trilene XL clear is as light as I would go with lures and 6lb is best for live bait. Make sure your knots are good. In early June the topwater bite is usually off the chart. I would also advise you to inquire of a one Quetico Mike and ask about his Zulu system. He will help and point you in the right direction.

For your first trip a guide is good. The guides will help in putting you on good fishing as well as nice campsites. And usually the guides themselves are interesting and entertaining people. I am not familiar with the guides that Piragis offers but they are a fine and knowledgable company and I cannot imagine them offering services which are sub par.

Be certain to communicate with your guide before showing up. Ask what equipment you need to bring. Pay attention to the guide and bring what he suggests. I would also educate myself as per the fishing. There is a book on Boundary Waters fishing which is an excellent first step to becoming educated about what the area has to offer.

Lastly, I would be bringing my own fishing line. I prefer mono generally speaking although braid certainly has plenty of devotees. The braid is typically more visible however and can be a bit tougher to work with and unforgiving when it comes to snags resulting in deep cuts to the unaware or broken rods. The problem with trusting someone else's equipment is you never know how long the line has been on the reel or how many trips it has been on. Breaking fish off because of bad line is a bitter pill.

Pay attention on the trip even thought the guide is making your way. Learn much and the next time you will be able to guide yourself if you so desire. Yes, get a guide and have the trip of a lifetime. It is a very beautiful area.

It would be a good trip with Piragis I am sure. I wish someone would have taken me to the Boundary Waters when I was in 5th grade. Only problem would be getting spoiled by the fishing and not wanting to fish anywhere else. I would assume most of the people on these trips are spin fisherman. Call Piragis and talk to Drew or Adam in outfitting and they can go over the whole trip with and you can determine if the trip is what you are looking for. Great guys to deal with. Just have a list of questions together before you call them. Probably not going to be other boys on the trip, but who knows, I'm sure Piragis can give you a range of ages on the customers.

If you want to read my article on lures for the Boundary Waters called Grand Slam Lures just send me an email and request it - queticomike@yahoo.com - I also have another article that has been helpful to others with fishing soft plastic jerk baits called - Zulu Magic - I can send you that is well if you are interested.

Thanks for the info so far. I am not concerned with our ability to adapt and catch Smallmouth in early June. I am concerned with getting lost on a week long trip, getting eaten alive by mosquitoes and getting very hungry by day 3. I am a lousy cook. We have canoeing experience as I have owned several canoes and kayaks but we have no portaging experience. We have tent camping experience but it has always been “car camping” where we can walk back to the car to get more supplies.

I want a guide to show us how it’s done up there. How to pick a campsite with fewer mosquitos. What to cook and how to cook it. I am hoping the Piragis Smallmouth trip would put us with like minded campers - people who want to fish first, then canoe/camp/explore.

If you have been with Piragis on their Smallmouth trip, please post up.
If you are aware of a trip report about it, please post a link.

PowerLizard: "Thanks for the info so far. I am not concerned with our ability to adapt and catch Smallmouth in early June. I am concerned with getting lost on a week long trip, getting eaten alive by mosquitoes and getting very hungry by day 3. I am a lousy cook. We have canoeing experience as I have owned several canoes and kayaks but we have no portaging experience. We have tent camping experience but it has always been “car camping” where we can walk back to the car to get more supplies.


I want a guide to show us how it’s done up there. How to pick a campsite with fewer mosquitos. What to cook and how to cook it. I am hoping the Piragis Smallmouth trip would put us with like minded campers - people who want to fish first, then canoe/camp/explore.


If you have been with Piragis on their Smallmouth trip, please post up.
If you are aware of a trip report about it, please post a link."

You won't get lost with a guide. I can't guarantee you won't have bugs. If bugs are a main issue I would suggest you plan a trip for September. You will eat well with a guide. I am sure anybody who goes on that trip will be fish first type of people.

Hmmm.......if fishing is key plan on June. Mosquitoes are going to be an issue, especially in the early morning and at dark. Education is key and clothing is the best deterrent. The Original bug shirt is quite helpful if you have low bug tolerance. I also like fingerless fleece gloves which allow you to use your hands freely without constantly getting pestered. Throw on a smidge of deet, (I like putting it on top of my hat) and your good to go.

Even with a guide there is no magic bullet. While he (or she ;-) may try and find a point campsite as opposed to one next to a swamp the winds calm, the sun drops and the skeets appear. Its like magic!

As per cooking you can learn. Its not rocket science, you just have to want to. Get some books and educate yourself. When I first got into canoe camping I couldn't read enough. Its all out there, you merely have to want to. So man up, or woman up, whatever the case may be and attack the deficiency. The result will be the admiration of your kid ("geez Dad, I didn't know you could cook") and a feeling of self satisfaction. Its in "the doing" of shared activities is where the bonding occurs. Sure you will have hardships and difficulties but that is part of it and what makes for good memories ("Remember when you burnt the fish and we had plain boiled rice for dinner, wasn't that great" ;-)

I think having a guide will suit your interests. As for bugs, June will have mosquitos especially at night. They are usually not an issue on the water during daylight. But at camp they can range from non-existent to awful. The bug shirt references is very good. Another tip is to buy some Permethrin, dilute it properly, and soak all your clothes before your go. It is an excellent mosquito repellent. I hate DEET and virtually never use it up there - but I always use permethrin. It works for ticks as well.

I think this would be the perfect way to introduce your son to the Boundary Waters.

It would certainly help to alleviate first trip concerns and mistakes. Also the guide would be aware of the better smallmouth fishing areas and the best ways to catch fish.

One thing I would say from having spoken to several guides along the trail. A guide is not a indentured servant. Everyone in the group should help the guide at every opportunity with every task. If in doubt ask him what you can do to help.

Some of the guys I have talked to had clients that expected them to be supermen - catch the fish, carry the canoes, pitch the tents, cook the meals etc etc etc. The last thing in the world you want is your guide to cop a bad attitude and the surest way to prevent this is to pitch in with the work. The second worst thing you could do is give the guy a bad tip. If he is good, works hard, shares invaluable knowledge and everyone has a safe and awesome trip - remember this at the end of the trip!!!

H2OFanatic: "I think this would be the perfect way to introduce your son to the Boundary Waters.


It would certainly help to alleviate first trip concerns and mistakes. Also the guide would be aware of the better smallmouth fishing areas and the best ways to catch fish.


One thing I would say from having spoken to several guides along the trail. A guide is not a indentured servant. Everyone in the group should help the guide at every opportunity with every task. If in doubt ask him what you can do to help.


Some of the guys I have talked to had clients that expected them to be supermen - catch the fish, carry the canoes, pitch the tents, cook the meals etc etc etc. The last thing in the world you want is your guide to cop a bad attitude and the surest way to prevent this is to pitch in with the work. The second worst thing you could do is give the guy a bad tip. If he is good, works hard, shares invaluable knowledge and everyone has a safe and awesome trip - remember this at the end of the trip!!!"

Excellent advise. Just remember to fish with ZMAN ShadZ (aka Zulus) if you want to catch some smallmouth :)

The Piragis smallmouth trip is full for 2018. If you are still looking for a guided smallmouth trip in 2018 contact my friend Donald Bean at Jasper Creek Guide service.

A good guide that I have used is Moose Tracks based in Ely.

QueticoMike: "The Piragis smallmouth trip is full for 2018. If you are still looking for a guided smallmouth trip in 2018 contact my friend Donald Bean at Jasper Creek Guide service."

I am aware that the Piragis Smallmouth trip is full for 2018. I was thinking ahead to next year. Last weekend, I was "weening" my son off his spincasting setup and on to a spinning rod. I also had him unhooking his own fish.

You may want to look at some of the outfitters right on Moose Lake north of Ely. They can provide a tow and drop you and your canoe off a short paddle away from prime smallmouth areas so getting lost won't be a issue. Many are true expert fishermen. The owner the Moose Bay Co.. Who I used a few years ago used to be on In-fisherman TV as their smallmouth expert. Most of the places up there have guides on staff but I don't think you'd need one. The maps and advice they provide should be enough.

PowerLizard: "

QueticoMike: "The Piragis smallmouth trip is full for 2018. If you are still looking for a guided smallmouth trip in 2018 contact my friend Donald Bean at Jasper Creek Guide service."

I am aware that the Piragis Smallmouth trip is full for 2018. I was thinking ahead to next year. Last weekend, I was "weening" my son off his spincasting setup and on to a spinning rod. I also had him unhooking his own fish."

Oh, I had no idea you were talking about 2019. I just happened to see it was full so I figured I should let you know. A year's worth of practice he should be good to go by next year. Good luck on whatever you decide to do!
p.s. Grandpa I think only took a few of my first fish off. I think it was the fourth bluegill where Grandpa said you are going have to learn how to take off those fish. I learned quickly :)