Sounds of an approaching plane increased as the easily recognizable Otter appeared just below the clouds from across the lake.  It was due to pick up Mark, Kara and Tim for their journey back to civilization and to drop off the second wave of hunters and camp crew.  The pilot was right on schedule.

 

On the plane were bear hunting enthusiasts Jim Thompson and Darrel Bahner from Kansas and Bob Reil from Michigan.  The remaining passengers, Nolan and Candis Blian, were a husband and wife team from Manitoba.  Nolan would replace Tim as assistant guide, and Candis would take Kara’s place as camp cook for the week.

 

It was nearly 1:00 p.m. by the time we finished saying our goodbyes to the first group and welcoming in the second.  All three of Monty’s new clients wanted to hunt that afternoon, so we all scrambled to get them to their bait sites. 

 

I decided not to hunt since my bait still had not been touched.  I really didn’t see the point of sitting over an inactive bait site, so I chose to bide my time.  I would help Nolan and Monty out as much as I could and planned to spend the next seven days fishing, or at least until my bait site showed some sign of feeding activity. 
  
Seeing as though my schedule allowed me to stay for another week, I figured Monty could use the help around camp with the daily chores.  And, since I didn’t mind casting for “lake gators,” there was always room in the cooler for more walleye and pike fillets to use for our late-night banquets of deep-fried fish and chips.  It was a win-win situation for both Monty and me even if the bear hunting was slow.

 

A short time later Monty and Candis jumped in one boat and took Jim and Darrel to their respective bait sites, and Nolan and I escorted Bob to his spot.  Without warning, things started to go south for us soon after we got out of the boat.  We didn’t get ten steps down the trail before Bob started cursing under his breath.  Both Nolan and I stopped dead in our tracks and watched in disbelief as Bob started fiddling with his gun. 

 

Apparently the guards at the Canadian border made him remove his scope so that the serial numbers on his shotgun were clearly visible, and now he was not able to load a slug into the chamber.  It seemed that after checking the serial numbers and replacing his scope, the guards inadvertently over-tightened the mounting hardware, rendering the shotgun’s action completely useless.  Bob was not happy.

 

We then returned to camp to look for Monty’s toolbox.  Luckily for Bob, Nolan and I were able to locate the exact sockets that we needed to loosen the scope mount after suffering through several tense moments of searching for them.  Since a Wal-Mart or a Home Depot was what you would call “a good distance from camp,” Bob was extremely grateful that we were able to find the right tools for the job.  While we were still back in camp, Bob checked to see if he could load a slug into the chamber, and once he confirmed that his gun was working properly we headed back to his stand.

 

After dropping Bob off for the second time, Nolan and I met up with Monty and Candis in the middle of the lake to discuss our plans for the afternoon.  Candis and Nolan wanted to fish, so I switched positions with her.  Monty and I then headed off in one boat to “The Narrows,” the spot where we had been catching all of our big fish, with Nolan and Candis following closely behind us in the other boat.

 

The fishing was slow on this particular day.  We caught a few fish, but the bigger variety seemed to elude our lures on every single cast.  As the shadows started to lengthen, Nolan and Monty quickly dropped Candis and me back at camp before going to pick up the boys from Kansas and Bob.  Candis started supper while I spent a little time gathering up some wood for the wood stove.
 
We later found out that the bear hunting was just as slow for Monty’s clients as the fishing had been for us.  No one saw a bear, and none of the barrels had been knocked over.  Our only consolation on this night was enjoying another mouth-watering supper of deep-fried fish and homemade French fries.
 
 
Stay Tuned for Day 9