Ice Fishing Anyone???

The end of this season brings notice of continued plans for our first annual ice fishing season.

We’re looking to open camp for the 4-weeks of February. A minimum of 24 guests are needed to make this project a reality (we’ve received verbal commitments from 6 to date).

Expectations are to have two 4-man cabins available for rent, on a four-day basis (minimum).

Approximate rate for this four-day trip is $550(US) and includes cabin, meals, access to two snowmobiles, one ice-hut per two people, pre-drilled fishing locations, and available staff on the premises. There will be groomed trails for use on the property, but are intended for ice fishing. Snowmobiles are mainly to be used for local traveling between the lodge and predestined fishing locations. For those hearty individuals interested in taking part in the first Lunge Lodge ice fishing season, please provide your feedback to us promptly so that we can move forward with these plans. If you thrive on adventure, contact Mike as soon as possible!

(412) 992-7226

lungelodge@aol.com

"Hunting With Penn's Woods" TV Show Comments

Hello Everyone,

I just want to thank all of you for an enjoyable trip. As I told Mike, everything about the trip was great and if anyone knows you can't control mother nature and wild animals, it's us. We'll get 'em next year. You guys really went out of your way for our buddies ... that was far and above what was necessary.

We all understand that you are running a business there and that there were no guarantee's.

I can assure you that we will do everything we can to bring customer's your way. Thanks for taking great care of them and us !

Please stay in touch, tell everyone that we said, "Hello" and it was truly a pleasure to meet each and every one of you !

Tom Neumann
Penn's Woods Products, Inc.
"Hunting With Penn's Woods" TV Show

MERICS FINISH WEEK

JAY WITH ANOTHER NICE MUSKIE49.5" !!!!!

Hunting with Pennswoods

Pennswoods Pro-Staff members Mike and Dave pose with a bear they shot and filmed last night.

Reed Mardis with a 42" 20lb pike caught yesterday.

BREAKING NEWS MERICS SCORE AGAIN

ROGER MERICS LANDS A 53" IN THE MORNINGJAY HOLDING A NICE 40" CAUGHT AT NOON
JAY WITH ANOTHER NICE PIKE!

WEATHER CONDITIONS. SUNNY WITH STRONG WEST WINDS. SURFACE TEMP 63DEGREES

MERICS PHOTOS

ROGER WITH A 45"

JAY WITH A 16LB PIKE


ANOTHER NICE PIKE


50" RACK SHOT LOCALLY

The Miller's vacation

TODD AND MIKE,

HERE ARE SOME PICTURES OF ERNIE AND JOE.

THEY ARE NOT VERY CLEAR, BUT BOB WILL BE SENDING YOU SOME BETTER ONES.

ONCE AGAIN, THANK YOU BOTH SO MUCH FOR EVERYTHING, WE HAD A WONDERFUL TIME.

EVERYONE THERE WAS SO NICE TO US. I CAN NOT WAIT TO COME BACK.

TAKE CARE,

ERNIE AND CORINNE MILLER

Collins/Pettry Photos

Muskie Madness Videos

Here is video of Brian Bernhardt's 48"-50" Muskie from last weeks tournament.
Another special thanks to the Binder group for shooting the video.

Here is Steve Pettry's 45" Muskie

A guest writes...

Hi Mike

I would like to start out by saying Thank You!

I cannot say enough about the staff at Lunge Lodge. They were kind, courteous, and would help you at the drop of a hat. Because of a hectic work schedule ( as you know only to well ) our booking at the lodge was last minute. We just needed to get away. Nancy was overjoyed at the thought of not having to do a thing. I was beside myself with the thought of being able to fish for 12 hours a day! Long and the short of it, it was our nicest week away since Nancy and I got married 22 years ago. For you ladies out there who like to fish and be with your Man, this is the place to be. Nancy loves to fish and although I’m a Fishaholic, she never got bored or tired. She out-fished me in the Smallies 4 to 1.

The fishing was pretty good for 3 of the 4 days (1 rainout ) and our first time out with a tally of 8 Walleye, biggest about 4lbs., 4 Northerns, biggest about 4 lbs., and 14 or so Smallmouth, biggest 2.5 lbs. Not bad!

Please tell Mary that the food was excellent and that her enthusiastic welcome of all comers to the Lodge makes for a great stay and will keep them coming back.

Once again Thank You and We will be back.


Marv and Nancy Ostopovich
Sydenham, Ontario

Musky Madness Final

The tournament ended with a bang Friday when Joe Shimkus’ last ditch effort right at dark resulted in a 45 incher inhaling his top water offering.

Unfortunately there are no pictures to post, as our San Drive card reader gave up the ghost! Once our musky hunters return home, they’ll be able to email their photos so we can catch up.

On day 2 (Thursday), several near misses and some nice catches were reported. Scott Chieffo got 2 bruisers to the boat, but lost both.

Mike Pettry came close, but size and species kept him out of the chase. A 32” musky, to go along with a 36” and a 40” pike, were heart-pounding, but not valid for this contest.

Gary McClain was our day 2 winner with a 36” specimen.

All fish were successfully released.

Final standings:

Day 1 Winner: John Shantz – 49.5”
Day 2 Winner: Gary McClain – 36”
Day 3 Winner: Joe Shimkus – 45”

Grand Prize winner (free trip next year): John Shantz

Congratulations to all of our entrants – the week, the party, and the two tournaments (Musky and Bass) were a rousing success!

Check back for new posts; there’s a crew from "Hunting With Penn's Woods" TV Show in camp this week documenting their bear hunts.

Accomplished musky fishermen, the Merics and Mardis’ are also in camp. The action is expected to be top notch.

Our season will conclude at the end of this month but it should go out with a bang. Stay connected for details.

Confirmed 49.5" Musky Ends Dispute

Day one of Musky Madness was exciting and somewhat controversial, given the variables associated with a catch & release tournament. Reported catches began with the Cross family's 34" (which was not counted) and a 36" which was the leader for a moment.

It was quickly surpassed by Steve Pettry's 45" beauty.

That's where it got interesting. Brian Bernhardt, relegated to fishing alone because his partner became unavailable, hooked into a large fish. During the battle, the Binder party was close enough to assist and quickly began filming the exchange using Brian's DVD film-making equipment. The fish was successfully landed but the anglers could not arrive at a consensus measurement. They estimated it was anywhere from 48 to 50 inches!

Brian Bernhardt

NOTE: Blogger now allows video, therefore, be sure to check the posts late next week.

So we were faced with a dilemma as to who the real leader was.

That all changed once the Chieffo team reported in. John Shantz was declared the uncontested winner of day one with a solid 49.5 inch cow! The team reported that they had hooked and lost 2 other fish as well. For the day, they reported a total of 8 fish brought to the boat between the catch, the lost fish, and follows.

The weather yesterday was a comfortable 70° and partly cloudy. Today's forecast calls for cloudy with southeast winds. Surface temperature is approximately 67°. Keep checking for updates to this post (pictures) and new posts of today's action!

MUSKIE WEEK/ PETTRY BASS TOURNAMENT

PETTRY BASS TOURNAMENT

Conditions: cloudy, upper 60s, and winds from the east.Once again the team of Big Bob Collins and Michael Pettry pulled out the win by a few ounces. They weighed in a great mixed bag of Large and Small mouths. Mike took big fish with a 4lb 11oz smallmouth. The four fish weighed 12lb 4oz.

Second place team of Joe and Dan Pettry weighed in an impressive bag of smallies at 12lb 1oz.

Mike Petras and Matt Fussner finished third with a 10lb bag.

Brendan Breen and Tom Albertini finished fourth with a 8lb 3oz bag.

The tournament was a huge success, with the winners holding over a 3lb average. Thanks again to the Pettrys for holding the annual event.

Oh, by the way, these fish were caught after the tournament:

Steve Pettry
Joe Pettry poses with his third musky of the day.

Musky Madness Update

Lunge Lodge's 9th consecutive Musky Madness week has officially taken off and, although the tournament does not begin until Wednesday, several guests in camp are already hot on the trail of the most wanted fish on the French River. The Chieffo group has already reeled in two muskies over the weekend, with Scott Chieffo's measuring in at 48inches and John Shantz's at 50inches.

Scott Chieffo

John Shantz

Big Bob Collins is in camp with the Pettry group this week and already he's landed a 26inch walleye and this 45inch musky.

Bob Collins In bear news, Theron Uncapher shot his first sow last night, weighing in at almost 150 lbs. He is the first of the bear hunters to succeed in this week's hunt.
Theron Uncapher

Tomorrow, the Pettry group is holding their annual bass tournament. With almost everyone in camp signed up to compete, this year's bass tourney should leave much to report, as Musky Madness week continues...

Bear Hunt update

Two of our bear hunters have met with success already this week.

Mike Card's bruin was estimated to be between 4-5 yrs of age and weighed approximately 170 lbs.

His son Michael's sow was an older 8-9 year old, going nearly 200 lbs., according to staff bear guide Jake.

2008 Ice Fishing

LUNGE LODGE

FIRST ANNUAL ICE FISHING SEASON

Lunge Lodge is proud to announce that we are currently in the beginning stages of planning our first annual ice fishing season.
As with most endeavors there are going to be logistics to overcome. For the 2008 winter season, we are looking for a minimum of 24 guests to participate in the initiation of this project. Over a three-week period between mid-January and the end of February, we will have two 4-man cabins available for rent, on a four-day basis (minimum). Approximate rates for the four-day trip are $550(US). This rate includes cabin, meals, access to two snowmobiles, one ice-hut per two people, pre-drilled fishing locations, and available staff on the premises. There will be a groomed trail for use on the property, but the trip is intended for ice fishing. Snowmobiles are mainly to be used for local traveling between the lodge and predestined fishing locations. For those interested in taking part in the first Lunge Lodge ice fishing season, your prompt feedback is important for us, in order to move forward with our plans. If you thrive on adventure contact Mike as soon as possible!

705-763-2180
lungelodge@aol.com

Update

On his second trip to camp this year, guest David Mulby landed this impressive 27inch walleye, weighing in at 7lbs.

Ron Smith stayed with us in early August, and just recently sent in these photos of their catches:

Some remarkable underwater shots:

What our guests are saying...

Mike and Todd,

Now that two weeks have gone by since fishing out of Lunge Lodge and our feet are now on the ground, all I can say, for myself, my sons Tom and Dave Kerka and brother in-law Ed Bartkiewicz -- we had a great time on the Upper French River and the hospitality and accommodations at the Lodge are fantastic. Hopefully, we can get back for years to come!!! We have all talked about the Lodge, but mostly about the great food that Mary is putting out of your kitchen. Mary, you are one in a million.

Stan Kerka


Mike,

Wanted to reach out to again thank you and the staff for providing a great time for my son and I. We hope to return about the same time next year and will contact you to set up.

Now that we know where more of the rocks are, I hate not to reap some return on that investment. Stay well and I hope the season is a profitable one.

Regards,

Jim Walters