For this angler, you can’t beat Great Slave Lake’s far-flung East Arm for incredible laker action on the fly

THE GUIDES

The fishing guides at Frontier Lodge are experienced and knowlegable, armed with GPS coordinates for the prime hot spots. They’ll provide all the coaching and advice you need to be successful. If you’re a fly angler like me, they’ll also share some go-to patterns you’ve probably never seen before, such as the unnamed fly from Ryan that resulted in my 28-pounder.

THE LODGE

Storied Frontier Lodge is located at the mouth of the Stark River, across Christie Bay from the Dene community of Lutselk’e on the south shore of the East Arm. Both Lutselk’e and the bordering Thaidene Nëné National Park Reserve are tied to the local Dene people and their ancestral lands, while the lodge touts itself as the “Gateway to Thaidene Nëné.”

Canada’s newest national park preserve, Thaidene Nëné is located within the traditional territory of the Lutselk’e Dene First Nation. It’s home to a wide variety of wildlife, and during my latest visit to Frontier, I was delighted to see several hardy muskox (there are reportedly hundreds in the immediate area).

The surrounding landscapes, meanwhile, harken back to the paintings of Canada’s Group of Seven—bold, majestic and primeval. A side trip to nearby Red Cliff Island, with its towering ancient red cliffs, is highly recommended. In short, Frontier Lodge is ideally located for guests to enjoy both the East Arm’s majestic scenery and the outstanding fishing for lake trout. (Also see “Getting there.”)

While at Frontier, guests can expect to feast daily on mouth-watering shorelunches of lake trout, a quintessentially Canadian experience to celebrate a day on the water. The lodge also allows each guest to take home one filleted or smoked lake trout, which is a nice touch. Country-style breakfasts and upscale dinners are served at the lodge, where guests stay in newly refurbished log cabins with all the amenities of home—the perfect setting to unwind after a long day of world-class fishing.

Edmonton’s Duane Radford is the author of  Canadian Fly Fishing—Hot Spots & Essentials.

GETTING THERE

Frontier Lodge general manager Corey Myers asks guests ro arrive in the N.W.T. capital, Yellowknife, the evening before their chartered flight to the lodge. The following morning, lodge representatives will take them from their hotels to the airport for the 50-minute flight to Lutselk’e, followed by a boat ride to the lodge. N.W.T. Sport Fishing Licences can be purchased upon arrival. At the end of their lodge stay, guests are returned to Lutselk’e for the return charter to Yellowknife to catch their connecting flights home.

Boasting all the amenities of a modern city, Yellowknife is serviced by Air Canada, Canadian North, First Air and West Jet, with connections primarily through Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa, Vancouver and Whitehorse. I’ve been to Yellowknife many times, and I always look forward to some down time in the city. Must-do tourist attractions include the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre and a walking tour of Old Town, the “zany, historic, outdoorsy epicentre of the city.” I enjoy northern cuisine, so I also make a point of dining at restaurants such as Bullock’s Bistro and the quirky Wildcat Café; several high-quality hotels also featuring good dining.

Learn more about the lodge and fishing in the N.W.T. at www.frontierfishinglodge.com and www.spectacularnwt.com.