I've been back for a while but I just got the pictures yesterday.
That being said, after all the effort that went into this trip between 4 of us, no one touched a single fish
However, it was still worth it as the scenerey up there is simply stunning.
A few notes from the trip:
The total length of the hike was 25km to the far east end of the lake. Unfortunatly, I'm under the impression that most of the good fishing is down on the west end of the lake. There is a trail along the north side of the lake that goes down a ways, however, I'm not sure how far it goes. A sign from 1997 said that it went half way but it could very well be further now.
We didn't even see so much as a rise the entire time. I think next time I will hike further down the lake or at the very least bring a boat of some variety to do some more exploring. I think I would also likley take a few extra days to make the trip. One day of fishing isn't nearly enough.
The hike in took us 8 hours, the hike back took 6. The difference in time is due to lighter packs and much nicer weather for the hike out.
Nest time I do this trip I think I will do the hike in two parts. Show up after work on a thursday and do the first 15km to the Athebasca crossing and then do the second half on friday, however, I would camp further down the lake either at the fortress creek site or one further west if it exists.
We saw a total of 6 people the entire trip and they were all daytrippers on the first 6km of the trail.
We didn't see any wildlife the entire trip, however, we did see several piles of bear skat on the way in.
The Chabba crossing is very very cold. The guys I was with said it was one of the worst experiences of their lives. I had my waders with me so I ddn't mind it too much.
There is also a large assortment of abandoned shoes at the crossing so if you are going to make the wet wade, don't worry about bringing an extra set of shoes to do it.
The site we stayed at on the west end of the lake had a picknick table, fire pit, maul and axe as well as a very nice bear hang. There was also a grill, fry pan and tarp stashed away.
At the fortress creek site we found two more sets of camping gear stowed away. There was even a rubber dingy, oars and pump. Unfortunatly, the porcupines got the at the dingy.
Apparently Fortress lake has a nasty porcupine problem. We never saw any, but we did find a bunch of quills in one pair of shoes in the morning. I have heard stories of them eating the cork off of rod handles and chewing holes through belly boats so don't leave anything lying about.
The outhouse had a spring loaded door that opens inwards. There is a latch on the outside for when its not in use. From what I can tell at least twice, people forgot to close the latch and porcupines, found their way in, only to be trapped later on by the spring loaded door.
Thats about all I can think of right now but if anybody has any questions I would be more than happy to give my best answers. It is very hard to get good info on fortress so first hand info should be prized. All in all, this was a very enjoyable trip which I plan on making again some day.
Here are some scenic pictures. Enjoy.
Fortress lake.
Crossing the Chabba on the way up. Note the miserable weather.
The Athebasca crossing.
Author
Topic: Fortress Lake (Read 8464 times)