Spring also keeps us busy with bear hunting. Bait is flown in ahead of time into remote hunting sites and then the hunters are flown in a week later. The bear hunters bring the float flying season into full swing as we settle in for six months of helping people experience the ultimate in flying adventures.
Mid June to mid August our docks come alive with the excited voices of Boy Scouts heading out on canoeing adventures. The troups arrive the night before and spend a night at the Northern Tier camp packing their supplies and preparing for their trip. Time is spent with the interpreters and leaders mapping out a route through the Bloodvein and Gammon rivers and their subsiduary systems. After breakfast in town the scouts hike down to our docks with their packs and paddles. From there we fly them out to Scout lake where their canoes are cached. Since the scouts come from all over North America, for most of them this is their first time in a float plane and their first experience with the Canadian wilderness. Ahead of them they have a week of paddling adventures. Nights are spent at camp sites along the way where they get a chance to practice their scouting skills at campfire building, cooking and wilderness survival. They end their trip back at Scout Lake where they are picked up and flown back to Bissett. After a week long adventure they have many stories to go home with: moose seen on the flight to and from Scout Lake, the giant bass caught on the dock in Bissett while waiting for the plane, armies of blood thirsty mosquitos and "Heartbreak" portage. For most it is a trip to remember for a lifetime.
Along with the scouts, summer months are kept busy flying fishermen to and from remote lodges and cabins. We fly for several full service lodges and well as private remote cabins. Empty legs into the lodges (flights without passengers) are used to haul in supplies and fuel. Besides lodge work we also do charter flights for canoe outfitters and private groups looking for a quiet vacation in the wilderness. Bissett is also a good-pick up and drop-off site for those travelling to and from remote northern communities such as Paungassi and Little Grand Rapids. This service is available year round from both our Bissett and Silver Falls bases.
September brings cool winds and shorter days. With the change in season comes the moose hunt. Hunters are flown into private cabins or tent camps along the rivers or lake shores. Before the hunters depart we arrange to look for coloured tarps as signals, orange being an emergency, blue means and animal is down. While the hunters are out we make every effort to do fly-over checks whenever we are in the area. If time and room in the aircraft permit, we will pick up the moose and bring it to Bissett or Silver Falls to hang. Arrangements can also be made for special flights to bring meat out. Along with the hunting experience, there is the added bonus of the beautiful fall scenery and great fishing. Bluewater Aviation supplies no tags, but provides charter flights for those with their own tags who wish to hunt in low traffic areas. Give us a call if you're looking for a new hunting destination and we can help you find a lake suited to your crew.