I recently returned from a successful trip to Meadow Lake Fishing Camp (MLFC) near Little Fort, BC. MLFC is one of the few remaining camps along with Rustic Resort and Rock Island Fishing Camp the Nehalliston Plateau above Little Fort. My family has visited on and off since 1970 and it has been an annual trip for my dad since 2013. I have only missed 2014 (work), 2020 (COVID), and 2024 (military) in recent years and I was excited to get back at it after missing last year. Our group included my dad, uncle, me, my 14 y/o, and my 9 y/o (first trip). Rob and Tammy Veitch have been the operators since last year and they are doing a great job maintaining the camp and upholding traditions. With 2 exceptions (non-trophy lakes), all lakes are naturally reproducing Pennask strain rainbows...no triploids to be found here. Lake names will not be publicly posted, but if you are planning a visit you can DM me for specifics. With exception of "Favorite Lake", all 14 lakes in the chain provide dependable action from the fish all day long. Here’s a recap of our experience:
July 4: Hit the border in Sumas at 8am and only had a 15-minute wait to cross. Stopped for a lunch/rest break and then again in Little Fort to fill up on gas and get ice. We met the new owner of Little Fort Fly Shop and got the report that the caddis and mayflies should be the primary insect food source during our trip. Arrived at camp around 3pm and then hiked out to “Favorite Lake” to get our lines wet before dinner. We caught 3 in a few hours including this 19.75” beauty on caddis nymphs. Kept two fish to sample the stomach contents and found one chalk full of scuds, while the other had small brown leeches. Returned to fish “Favorite Lake” after dinner as we do every night and caught 1 more before dark.
July 5: I always have trouble sleeping in the first few days, so I hiked out to “Favorite Lake” early and was fishing by 5am. Trolled a sink-tip and intermediate line to the upwind end of the lake and then wind drifted while I got my indicator rods set up for later in the day. Caught a few in the 18”-19” range while drifting and had my rods set up by the time was back across the lake. After breakfast we went back to “Favorite Lake” and our first fish hit in about 10’ of water in the flats on a black wooly bugger/sink-tip combo. The fish took me well into the backing on a few runs and we had a loon come from across the lake to try to take it off our line. After a few big runs the fish was gassed and we had it in the net. We taped it at 22” length and 12” girth and I’ve caught enough fish in this range to know that likely put us just over 4lbs (which is trophy “wallfish” size at MLFC). We decided to run back to camp to weigh in since it was only 9:40am and if we waited to dinner it could easily lose a few ounces. We weighed in at 4lbs 2oz with the 2nd wallfish of the year at MLFC. Not bad my 9 y/o's first full day visiting the camp…hopefully it doesn’t spoil his expectations for future visits.
After celebratory drinks we hiked back out and had a slow rest of the day with just a 18” and 16” fish to the net. The evening was productive with 3 fish to net including a 20” and 19” fish. Overall, one of my best big fish days on “Favorite Lake”.
July 6: Woke up early again and fished “Favorite Lake” before breakfast, but no fish on this trip. We decided to fish “Mountain Lake” which required a 15 minute drive and 20 minute hike though active logging, 10 y/o clearcut, and old growth. This lake is higher in elevation and has very steep sides and minimal flats…if you are 20 feet from shore it will be 20 feet deep and crystal clear so that you can see the bottom clearly 20-25 feet down. I pumped the first fish we caught and it was absolutely stuffed with mayfly nymphs. Once we found the fish it was a busy day of reeling. In total we caught 18 fish with the largest at 19” that weighed in at 2lbs 10oz (only fish kept). The fish were much fatter than at my last visit and we certainly didn't catch the biggest fish the lake had to offer.
After dinner I went back out to “Favorite Lake” where my dad had landed a 23”, 3lbs 10oz fish earlier in the day. I caught at 16” and lost a big one on a caddis emerger. The sunset was the highlight of the night.
July 7: Finally slept in. The weather was hot and the wind was strong. “Favorite Lake” finally put up the challenge that I have been used to over the years. Only 2 fish all day, but thankfully I had an audiobook to keep my 9 y/o entertained. The evening bite was more favorable as we caught and released 4 fish including a 3lb fish. Since it was the warmest night I decided to stay out late to see what would happen after dark, but unfortunately I never found the bite and I arrived back at the cabin around midnight.
July 8: We decided to try a different high elevation lake known for very big fish that was about a 20 minute drive plus 20 minute hike away. “Muddy Boat Launch Lake” also has very steep sides with minimal flats. The rain started early and never stopped throughout the day. We caught 10 fish in about 3.5 hours up that were between 14”-17”. We saw a few big ones on the fish finder and I’m confident there are a few trophy fish to be had there.
I took the boys back to camp mid-afternoon to dry off and headed back out to “Favorite Lake” just in time for the rain to let up. “Favorite Lake” can be a grind, but usually there will be a window during the day when the bite turns on and I was lucky to be there for it as I caught 4 nice fish between 4:30pm-5:30pm. I only caught 1 that night drifting a caddis pupa, but it was another great sunset.
July 9: My 9 y/o and I explored “High Water Lake” near the camp for a quick after breakfast trip. There is a new beaver dam on the lake and the water is up a foot or two since the last time I fished it. There is also a new beaver lodge on the lake. We caught 4 small fish in about 45 minutes and the loons got 2 of them upon release. The loons are very aggressive and well fed at this lake, so you can always count on them coming in close for a photo op.
We spent the rest of the day at “Favorite Lake”. Only 2 fish all day, but we burned through a lot more audiobook. Unfortunately our last evening in camp was an absolute downpour. I still hiked out to “Favorite Lake” because you never know unless you go, but I only caught one fish all night. My boys were smarter and stayed back at camp. My 9 y/o finished his best of 3 battleship championship with Rob (camp operator), which was one of his highlights of the week.
July 10: Said our goodbyes and departed camp after breakfast. Stopped at Little Fort to get ice for the 10 fish (3 fresh, 7 smoked) that I was bringing back, which is the only time of the year that I keep trout (I released 50). We hit the border around 2pm and only had a 5 minute wait. Back home in time for a tasty trout dinner as a family.
Overall it was another great week in BC. MVP flies included Black Wooly Bugger, Rotten Pumpkinhead, Six-Pack Variants, Halfback, Chan's Stillwater Caddis, and Crystal Idaho fished predominantly on sink-tip and intermediate lines.
July 4: Hit the border in Sumas at 8am and only had a 15-minute wait to cross. Stopped for a lunch/rest break and then again in Little Fort to fill up on gas and get ice. We met the new owner of Little Fort Fly Shop and got the report that the caddis and mayflies should be the primary insect food source during our trip. Arrived at camp around 3pm and then hiked out to “Favorite Lake” to get our lines wet before dinner. We caught 3 in a few hours including this 19.75” beauty on caddis nymphs. Kept two fish to sample the stomach contents and found one chalk full of scuds, while the other had small brown leeches. Returned to fish “Favorite Lake” after dinner as we do every night and caught 1 more before dark.
July 5: I always have trouble sleeping in the first few days, so I hiked out to “Favorite Lake” early and was fishing by 5am. Trolled a sink-tip and intermediate line to the upwind end of the lake and then wind drifted while I got my indicator rods set up for later in the day. Caught a few in the 18”-19” range while drifting and had my rods set up by the time was back across the lake. After breakfast we went back to “Favorite Lake” and our first fish hit in about 10’ of water in the flats on a black wooly bugger/sink-tip combo. The fish took me well into the backing on a few runs and we had a loon come from across the lake to try to take it off our line. After a few big runs the fish was gassed and we had it in the net. We taped it at 22” length and 12” girth and I’ve caught enough fish in this range to know that likely put us just over 4lbs (which is trophy “wallfish” size at MLFC). We decided to run back to camp to weigh in since it was only 9:40am and if we waited to dinner it could easily lose a few ounces. We weighed in at 4lbs 2oz with the 2nd wallfish of the year at MLFC. Not bad my 9 y/o's first full day visiting the camp…hopefully it doesn’t spoil his expectations for future visits.
After celebratory drinks we hiked back out and had a slow rest of the day with just a 18” and 16” fish to the net. The evening was productive with 3 fish to net including a 20” and 19” fish. Overall, one of my best big fish days on “Favorite Lake”.
July 6: Woke up early again and fished “Favorite Lake” before breakfast, but no fish on this trip. We decided to fish “Mountain Lake” which required a 15 minute drive and 20 minute hike though active logging, 10 y/o clearcut, and old growth. This lake is higher in elevation and has very steep sides and minimal flats…if you are 20 feet from shore it will be 20 feet deep and crystal clear so that you can see the bottom clearly 20-25 feet down. I pumped the first fish we caught and it was absolutely stuffed with mayfly nymphs. Once we found the fish it was a busy day of reeling. In total we caught 18 fish with the largest at 19” that weighed in at 2lbs 10oz (only fish kept). The fish were much fatter than at my last visit and we certainly didn't catch the biggest fish the lake had to offer.
After dinner I went back out to “Favorite Lake” where my dad had landed a 23”, 3lbs 10oz fish earlier in the day. I caught at 16” and lost a big one on a caddis emerger. The sunset was the highlight of the night.
July 7: Finally slept in. The weather was hot and the wind was strong. “Favorite Lake” finally put up the challenge that I have been used to over the years. Only 2 fish all day, but thankfully I had an audiobook to keep my 9 y/o entertained. The evening bite was more favorable as we caught and released 4 fish including a 3lb fish. Since it was the warmest night I decided to stay out late to see what would happen after dark, but unfortunately I never found the bite and I arrived back at the cabin around midnight.
July 8: We decided to try a different high elevation lake known for very big fish that was about a 20 minute drive plus 20 minute hike away. “Muddy Boat Launch Lake” also has very steep sides with minimal flats. The rain started early and never stopped throughout the day. We caught 10 fish in about 3.5 hours up that were between 14”-17”. We saw a few big ones on the fish finder and I’m confident there are a few trophy fish to be had there.
I took the boys back to camp mid-afternoon to dry off and headed back out to “Favorite Lake” just in time for the rain to let up. “Favorite Lake” can be a grind, but usually there will be a window during the day when the bite turns on and I was lucky to be there for it as I caught 4 nice fish between 4:30pm-5:30pm. I only caught 1 that night drifting a caddis pupa, but it was another great sunset.
July 9: My 9 y/o and I explored “High Water Lake” near the camp for a quick after breakfast trip. There is a new beaver dam on the lake and the water is up a foot or two since the last time I fished it. There is also a new beaver lodge on the lake. We caught 4 small fish in about 45 minutes and the loons got 2 of them upon release. The loons are very aggressive and well fed at this lake, so you can always count on them coming in close for a photo op.
We spent the rest of the day at “Favorite Lake”. Only 2 fish all day, but we burned through a lot more audiobook. Unfortunately our last evening in camp was an absolute downpour. I still hiked out to “Favorite Lake” because you never know unless you go, but I only caught one fish all night. My boys were smarter and stayed back at camp. My 9 y/o finished his best of 3 battleship championship with Rob (camp operator), which was one of his highlights of the week.
July 10: Said our goodbyes and departed camp after breakfast. Stopped at Little Fort to get ice for the 10 fish (3 fresh, 7 smoked) that I was bringing back, which is the only time of the year that I keep trout (I released 50). We hit the border around 2pm and only had a 5 minute wait. Back home in time for a tasty trout dinner as a family.
Overall it was another great week in BC. MVP flies included Black Wooly Bugger, Rotten Pumpkinhead, Six-Pack Variants, Halfback, Chan's Stillwater Caddis, and Crystal Idaho fished predominantly on sink-tip and intermediate lines.
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