Having given Char fishing a miss last year, I decided that a return visit to the Tree River was in order, and together with GBL angling buddy Kenny Gold, we booked into the main lodge, with our sights set on being the first to fish the Tree since August of last year.

This “Bear Tale” comes to us courtesy of the Plummer family. The "old stove" is currently on display, together with the narrative to follow, at Great Bear Lake Lodge.

This is a story about a fishing rod – a fly rod to be precise -but not just any old fly rod either.

From the tying bench of Josh "Jelly" Gelinas comes a great early, mid-season Char fly - and it's not too shabby when it comes to Lake Trout either.

Anyone reading this who has either heard about, or been fortunate enough to visit the Tree River in Nunavut, is likely of the view that this little piece of heaven on earth is justifiably famous for both its breathtaking natural beauty and the world’s biggest Arctic Char.

If you are in the market for some custom tied flies, then look no further than those produced by master tier Alex Ginther.

I’m not going to go into too much detail regarding how to tie these because ANY WILL WORK WITH THE METHOD WE USE TO FISH THEM!

Many years ago, there were a couple of guys – brothers I think - who fished out of Trophy Lodge, that were known to the guides and a few guests as the “Leprechaun’s.”