for daily guide trips in the Garden River First Nation Reserve:

Ben's Bait and Tackle

Ben Belleau

61 Wigwaus Street

Garden River, Ont.

Canada P6A 7A1

ph. 705-946-6334

For info on staying in a remote bush camp on Garden River First Nation Lands visit: www.dfishinfool.com

For information on the Garden River First Nation lands www.gardenriver.org

For all inclusive day trips with a Orvis endorsed guide on the Garden River Chuck Hawkins www.hawkinsflyfishing.com

Native fishing guides

Albert Williams   705-942-9963 ontarionorthlandfishing.com

Black Wolf Tours 705-524-9674 www.blackwolftours.com

About the Author

Don Dfishinfool Mathews is a full time licensed fishing guide from North Eastern Ohio.  He has assembled a staff of six guides at Dfishinfool's Guide Service.  They offer all inclusive guided trips on "Steelhead Alley"  They are the busiest steelhead Guide Service in the Great Lakes Region. Don is licensed to guide in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York.  He is on the Hyde Boat Pro staff  and is a Orvis Pro Guide. Don is a acclaimed fly tier who has developed many unique patterns for Great lakes steelhead. He works closely with the Cortland, and Scott Rod companies. He has helped leading manufacturers develop some of the rods and tackle in use on the Great Lakes today. Don is the founder of the Steelhead School and is a speaker on fishing the Great Lakes region.  He has had many articles published on the subject. He organizes trips for discriminating guests to some of the best fly fishing destinations in the world.  Places like Bocca Grande, Islamorada, Belize, Cape Cod Massachusetts,  Cozumel Mexico,  Dominican Republic, and Quebec Canada

Each fall Don joins forces with Bens Bait and Tackle and they set up a Wall Style tent camp on a remote section of the Garden River. Guests are treated to first class accommodations in a remote setting. Availability is very limited on this Salmon adventure of a lifetime.

Don can be reached at dfishnfool@aol.com  or by calling 330-565-5457   Or check out his website at www.dfishinfool.com

Ben's Bait and Tackle

Ben Belleau

61 Wigwaus Street

Garden River, Ont.

Canada P6A 7A1

ph. 705-946-6334

Fish The Garden .Com

This website is devoted to fishing the Garden River in Ontario Canada.

Compliments of Don Dfishinfool Mathews

When it comes to  Great Lakes Salmon streams the Garden River has no equal. Sure there are lots of streams that receive runs of Salmon.  The beauty of the Garden River is the solitude you can find there. It lies in an area of Ontario that hasn't seen a lot of human impact.  Much of the stream flows through the Garden River First Nation Reserve.  Access is strictly limited to band members and guests accompanied by a sanctioned native Ojibway guide.  Only a select few non-natives are lucky enough to fish in the reserve each year. It is a wild and beautiful place. Much of the river is surrounded by breath taking high rock formations.  The Ojibway Natives called the area "Ketegaunseebee" or The Creators Garden. The Garden River is a Mecca for wildlife. Bald Eagles are everywhere and it is not uncommon to see Deer, Moose and Black Bear along her banks. The Native Americans are good stewards of their land. I feel privileged to have experienced the Garden River. A magical feeling takes over me while I'm there.

The Garden River is my favorite place in the world to fish.

The Garden River flows into the St. Mary's River about six miles east of Sault Ste. Marie.  Highway #17 is the main East-West route in the area. Heck every road in Sault Ste Marie in named Highway # 17.  Grinning..!!  Leave the Soo and follow East Rt #17 until it crosses the Garden River.  You are now in in the reserve. Just downstream of this bridge is where the Garden dumps into the St. Mary's.  This is the town of Garden River.  Approx the first 22 kilometers of the river are in the reserve. This is the best section of stream to fish. Fish are still fresh from the lake and full of fight. Fishing can be great in the first rapids just out of town and most native guides take their day clients there as opposed to a very long bumpy truck ride upstream. It's a sure thing that fresh fish will move into these rapids each night of the run. Much of the stream above the reserve can't be reached by car. 4wd trucks and ATV's can navigate some of the bush roads to access remote sections of stream. Remember you can't drive on bush roads in the reserve without a native guide. There is a fairly accessible public section of river off of Ranger Lake Road  Rt 556 it is well above the reserve near the falls. It can be a good place to fish. The problem is the fish are usually in poor shape by the time they make it up there.  Plus I find that the majority of fish stop to spawn well before they get to the falls. The public sections close to the falls can be crowded. Its best to do some waking up there. The falls stops the fish from traveling any further upstream. The Coho run in October can be good, up near the falls, as they migrate the river very quickly and are in better shape when they make it to the upper river. There are many fishing opportunities in the area. Many of the small streams in the area also receive runs of Salmon. Plus there is always the famed St. Mary's rapids in Sault Ste Marie. It is a great place to fish but the wading is tricky. There are many small pristine lakes in the area that hold lake, brook or speckled trout.

The big draw to the Garden River is the huge runs of Pink Salmon it receives.  The Garden's fine gravel bottom makes for excellent spawning habitat. The Salmon population in the Garden River is thriving. The Pinks in the Garden will average 17-20" long.  They are an excellent quarry to pursue with the fly rod. While in the river to spawn they take flies much better than the Chinooks do. Pink Salmon traditionally run every other year. They have bigger runs on even number years in the Great Lakes. I find that even on the so called off years there are still more than enough pinks to keep anglers happy in the Garden River.

To really experience the true Garden River you are going to need a native guide. You are not permitted to enter the reserve unless you are accompanied at all times by a sanctioned native guide. For years I have used Ben Bellieu at Ben's Bait and Tackle in Garden River as my guide.  I reserve Ben's services exclusively each fall for our Salmon trip. We reserve the same 10 days each fall. Ben and his son (little Ben) have spent their whole lives fishing the river and they know the Garden better than anyone. I enjoy the time we spend together each fall. They offer daily guided trips in the reserve at a rate of $150 US per angler. Spring is steelhead time and the Salmon runs start in late August. You will need a fishing license and your own fishing gear. Ben has a bait and tackle shop.  Watch for his sign on Hwy #17 just East of the Garden River bridge.  He is located on the banks of the St. Mary's.  Fishing is great right in front of his shop. He has double launch ramps into the St. Mary's. They have convenience store items and sell fishing licenses. Ben rents boats and motors and does guide trips fishing the St. Mary's as well. He knows where to catch the fish. I highly recommend Ben as your native guide.

The pink Salmon "oncorhynchus gorbuscha" were accidentally introduced to Lake Superior in the 1950's. The population is slowly growing and spreading across the Great Lakes. The male Pink Salmon are easily distinguishable by a hump they get on their back. They are nicknamed humpies. The Pinks stage at the mouth of the Garden River in August.  They will start to make their spawning run in early September.  Waves of fish will enter the stream with each rain we get.  Traditionally the run will peak in Mid September. The hens will build a nest in the gravel and spawn. After spawning the hen will stay and protect the nest until she dies a few days later. Males survive longer as they await more fresh hens to arrive but eventually they die also.  Rotting fish carcasses litter the stream and provide nutrients for the young salmon..

The Pink Salmon eggs will hatch in December and January. The young fry stay in the stream until April or May. Then they will migrate to the Lake. Most of the Pinks will travel thru the St. Mary's river into Lake Superior and Huron.  Pinks are very adaptable and can eat a wide variety of food sources. They will spend 18 months in the Lake before returning to the stream to spawn.  As adults they will weigh between three to seven lbs and will be 18-20 inches long. The fish are like clones, they all are very close in size.  On rare occasions a fish will remain in the lake a extra year.  These fish are the trophies and can reach 22-26 inches long.

The Garden River also gets a big run of Chinook Salmon "oncorhynchus tshawytscha".  The Chinook Salmon like the pinks are a wild self sustaining population.  The implanted Pacific Chinooks or "Kings" will average 14-20 lbs on the Garden. Some years the fish will be bigger than others.  Trophy fish to 35 lbs are taken each year.  The Chinook Salmon run is good every year on the Garden.  They will follow the Pinks and their run will peak two or three weeks after the Pinks.  The Kings will fight with the Pinks for the prime spawning gravel .  The shear numbers of Pinks overwhelm the bigger Kings and usually the smaller Pinks win the rights to spawn on the best gravel.

Joe with a Garden River Hog..  Click here to read the story.

The different Salmon compete heavily for prime spawning areas.  Some cross breeding between the Chinooks and Pinks occur naturally.  They call the offspring of these cross bred fish Pinook's. The Garden River is a great place for a chance at a Pinook for the record books.  Often when sight fishing you can tell the Pinook's from the Chinook's by the reddish tint they take on when in the stream.  The male Pinook's get brilliant mottled pink sides. Pinook's reach sexual maturity but do not spawn.  They follow the rest of the fish into the river.  On the spawning gravel flats the Pinook's seem to wander around lost.  They don't seem to have much interest in spawning. They take flies very aggressively.

Tactics for fly fishing the Garden River include high stick nymphing and swinging flies.  Pink Salmon are aggressive and will take a variety of patterns.  Chinooks tend to get lock jaw in the stream. I find small well presented egg patterns are your best bet for Kings.  Chuck and Duck methods are not necessary on the Garden River. Water depth and flow are suitable for fly fishing.  True fly fishing techniques work well.  I use a 10 foot seven weight rod with 2x or 3x tippets for traditional fly fishing.  You could go lighter for the Pinks but with Kings around, it pays to be ready.  For swinging flies on the spey rod I like 12-14 foot eight weight rods.  I outfit my spey rod with short one or two foot sink tips I make up with Rio  T-14 Tungsten material. I use a double taper fly line on my spey rod.

Spey fishing the Garden is becoming very popular.  Wide shallow gravel flats full of aggressive Pink's are prime targets to swing flies too.  I find marabou spey's, wooly buggers and traditional hair wings all are deadly medicine on the Pinks.  Kings will occasionally take big aggressive flies too. As a rule we do much better with #12 and #14 egg patterns on the Kings. Most of the time the Garden is slightly tannic but the water is still very clear. Pastel colored Sucker Spawn, Glo Bugs and Moe eggs are all top producers for the Chinook.

The Garden River also gets good runs of Steelhead. The wild steelhead do seem to run a little smaller than most Great Lakes steelies do. They are brilliantly colored and heavily spotted. The Garden and its feeders are home to a resident trout population of rainbows and brookies. Unfortunately the Salmon fry compete heavily with the native trout. Ben tells me when he was younger, before the Salmon, the trout fishing was awesome. Numbers of trout are down since the Salmon have taken over. Migrating Steelhead start to enter the stream as early as September.  Spring is prime time to target steelhead.  Often snowmelt is a problem in the spring. Water levels are usually too high to fish the main river.  The Gardens feeder streams often fish good in the spring.  When the Salmon run is on we do good on steelhead by targeting them in the deep pools below the gravel spawning flats.  The trout will feed heavily on the Salmon eggs drifting downstream.  Egg patterns are top producers.

Female Pink Salmon

Garden River Ontario Salmon fishing  /  Ont salmon guide /  Garden River Pink Chinook salmon  /  fishing trips /  Ontario Salmon fishing  /  Ontario  /  Fly Fishing  /  Pink Salmon  / Links