Here is the attraction. Wild steelhead in all the rivers.

What a find.  I am talking about The Voyageur’s Lodge and Cookhouse located on the TransCanada Highway, about an hour’s drive north of Sault Ste. Marie, on Batchawana Bay of Lake Superior.   I was in the area (officially known as Algoma Country) last week scoping out the spectacular steelhead fishing in the many rivers flowing off the rugged Canadian Shield and into Lake Superior, between the Soo and Wawa.   If you’re a trout angler and you haven’t fished the area, you simply do not know what you’re missing.  It feels a lot like being in British Columbia or Alaska only it is a lot closer to home for most folks and a lot cheaper.  I’ll tell you all about the fishing in upcoming editions of Outdoor Canada Magazine. 

Right now, though, I’ve got to let you in on one of those rare hidden gems that you only find every once in a while and that you come to treasure.  The Voyageur’s Lodge and Cookhouse is a combination motel (offering suites as well as rooms) and a dining room but with a big difference.  The whole place caters to anglers and outdoor enthusiasts in a big way.   I knew it the minute we pulled in the driveway and saw the sign - Rainbow Are Running, Snow Is Melting, Spring Is Here.   

The sign says it all

Frank and Gail O’Connor run The Voyageur’s Lodge and bend over backwards to cater to your every need.  And the Cookhouse dining room is to “die for” - featuring fresh caught local lake trout and whitefish from right across the road in Batchawana Bay.   In a fancy fish joint in downtown Toronto, you’d expect to pay $25 - $30 for a tiny bite-size piece of trout or whitefish that has undoubtedly spent part of its latter life in a deep freeze somewhere.  At the Cookhouse, on the other hand, I feasted on a plate with three huge, totally deboned, fresh trout portions that were “out-of-this world”.  And get this: the price for the luncheon special was $7.95.   When I got the bill at the end of the meal, I thought our server had made a mistake.  I won’t dare tell you about the fresh pies and home made butter tarts. 

But here is what tells you everything you need to know about the place and its owners.  As most anglers, we were there to go steelhead fishing and we were up most mornings by 5:30 and did not back to our motel rooms until 10:00 PM or later in the evening.  The dining room was closed and we were “dog-tired”. 

But don’t worry, Gail told us.  What we do for visiting anglers is put one of the daily evening dining room specials in the refrigerators in your room and then you can microwave it when you get back in the evening?  Are you kidding me?  We had fresh crispy Caesar salads awaiting us, home made soups, buns, bread, and entrees that were scrumptious.  I am sure when the staff collected our plates the next morning when they cleaned our rooms they thought we had rinsed them clean.  We hadn’t - we’d licked them spotless!  I mean, this kind of service is like having your cake and eating it too.  Ditto for the lunches.  Gail and the restaurant staff made them up each day in advance and put them in our refrigerators the night before.  So, we were ready to go first thing in the morning.  Let me tell you, as an angler, it is small things like this that put the finishing touches on a great trip. 

The Lodge (and Cookhouse) also lives up to its name - it is a total Voyageur theme throughout - with murals on the walls and authentic Hudson Bay artifacts hanging everywhere.  Frank also told me that one of the fastest growing segments of his and Gail’s clientele is comprised of “adventure kayakers” who explore the incredibly beautiful and rugged north shore of Lake Superior in their boats.  The resort even has an authentic 26-foot long, voyageur-style, birch bark canoe available

I wonder if you can troll from this thing?

for guided evening and twilight adventures out on Lake Superior.  I am definitely going to come back and try that sometime, but with all the fabulous steelhead rivers and fishing available, I am guessing it is going to be quite a while yet!

If a friend ever discovered a place like The Voyageurs Lodge and Cookhouse and didn’t tell me about it I’d be sorely disappointed.  That is why this friend is telling you to check it out at http://www.voyageurslodge.com/homepage.spml or  The Voyageur’s Lodge and Cookhouse, P.O. Box 129, Hwy. 17 North Batchawana Bay, Ontario P0S 1A) Telephone (705) 882-2504 info@voyageurslodge.com 

Even if you’re only traveling along the TransCanada and looking for a place to spend the night, trust me, this is it!

As I said, what a find!