OutdoorCanada.ca’s 10 most popular fishing and hunting stories of 2023!

Over the last 12 months, we’ve posted some 280 stories on OutdoorCanada.ca, packed with hunting, fishing and conservation know-how, hot spots and tales of exciting adventures, both close to home and across this great land.

This year’s most popular posts include perennial favourites such as our gear round-ups and gift guides. Our most popular how-to stories included fishing editor Gord Pyzer’s comprehensive guide to ice fishing for northern pike, and fishing baits you can find in grocery and pet stores. And coming in at #1 is something a little different for Outdoor Canada, but a story that obviously struck a chord with is combination of fishing, bootlegging, gambling and gangsters…

#1  The untold story of a Lake Erie nature preserve that used to be a  fishing lodge and casino for gangsters

“The waves crash upon the limestone shores of Middle Island, a small, woody 18.5-hectare speck of land in Lake Erie, lying a mere half-kilometre from the U.S. border. Sitting atop a rocky shoreline outcropping, the rotted-out hull of a long-forgotten fishing boat overlooks the aquamarine shallows. And just inside the treeline, you’ll find the ruins of the once great Lake Erie Fishing Club, founded by Italian-American gangster Joe Roscoe from Toledo, Ohio. While some fishing definitely took place at the resort on Canada’s southernmost point of land, it mainly served as a notorious destination for lavish parties, a cover for illicit activities and a strategic waypoint for rum-running during Prohibition…”