Hello Tang Friends,
www.tangofthenorthlodge.com
Fall, 2013
Terry, Pete and I purchased Tang of the North Lodge from Rick and Barb Pentilla on February 22, 2002. Hard to believe,
but the 2014 season will be our 13th year of operations. Many of you have been with us every year and also many
seasons with Rick and Barb. We continue to thank you for your loyalty and business. February 22 is a BIG day in
history….the day we bought Tang and my Dad’s birthday, George Washington Schneider. (Grandma & Grandpa had a
sense of humor and patriotism) Dad will celebrate his 90th birthday this February 22. Cheers, Dad!
To start, a big thanks and congratulations to Rebecca for the excellent job she did her first year at Tang. We’re hoping
Rebecca is back for another season in 2014. Also, big thanks to Frank and Donna King for helping out this season. The
bar has been set very high for special treats, but don’t get used to it. Pete, Terry and I have no clue how to make
desserts and treats like Donna. Thanks very much!
The 2013 season was another great year of fishing for our guests. Walleye action continues to be very good to excellent
and average fish size seems to be increasing. There are now always reports and pictures of 30” + walleyes caught and
released. Years ago, there were very few reports of walleyes this large. There are plenty of walleye to be caught on all
the lakes we fish from Tang, including Lawrence, Southeast, Otter Bay and Pullover. Our portage lakes certainly are
excellent walleye producers, but when a portage doesn’t appeal to you, there are plenty of walleyes on the “Tang side”
of the portages.
Reports of large, 40”+ northern are also increasing. I heard of and saw many northern over 40” this past season,
including a 43” caught by my Son, Nick.
The smallmouth bass population is growing, both in numbers and size. Catching a 15” smallie is not unusual anymore.
The 19”- 20” smallies are on the way I have a feeling. There are various opinions if the smallmouth population increase
will help or hurt our fishery, but I feel there is plenty of water for all species to continue improving in quantity and size.
The largemouth bass population also continues to be strong and BIG. Be sure to check the mouth/throat of these beasts
when you catch one. You never know what you might find. Reports (and pictures) of baby loons being dinner for the
largemouth have been witnessed by our guests. Sad scene, but “nature’s way” as they say.
The lake trout were slow to start this season, but they came on strong as the season progressed. The now famous Tang
“Laker Lure”, the Rapala DT-16 and DT-20 continue to be the hot lure for lake trout. Be sure to stock up on various
colors of this fabulous lure. Color definitely matters and it might take a few changes of the lure to discover the hot color
of the day.
I believe the largest laker was caught by Renee Hotz, a “rookie” to Tang and lake trout fishing. Renee and her husband,
Larry, friends from Denver, CO., were fishing Upper Lawrence with someone writing this newsletter and hooked into a
large fish. About 10 minutes later and after some excellent “on the job training”, Renee pulled in the fish of a life time, a
37”, very heavy, Laker. There was a quick decision to make…keep the fish for trophy mount or release and have a
reproduction made from pictures. Decision…reproduction! (Excellent decision, Renee…thanks from all the Tang guests
who now have a chance to catch this fish once again.) We were in such a hurry to release the fish, that we (I) failed to
measure the girth of this beast. Some educated estimating tells me girth of about 22 - 24 inches….very heavy fish. We
estimated this fish at 20 pounds while in boat starring at this guy. All lake trout calculators I have seen would put this
fish in the 22 pound range. Whatever the weight, it was a great battle for Renee to get this fish in the boat. Checkout
Tang Facebook for a video of the fight and fish that Larry Hotz produced. Congratulations Renee!
Fishing at Tang is excellent and getting even better. I truly believe the slot limits and the new culture of “catch and
release” that many of our guests now practice, has contributed to the success of the fishery we have at Tang. Thanks to
everyone for protecting this very special resource!
A special thanks goes out to Pat Heng of Nebraska who brought in our new Tang mascot, the “Welcome Bear” at the
base of the lodge stairs. Greatly appreciated! Thanks Pat!
Now for a few “business notes”:
Please call NW Flying when crossing border to announce your arrival time to Nestor Falls. NW # is 800-461-2126
NW Flying has a weight limit of 80 LBS. per person. Weight over this amount will result in a surcharge to your
plane cost and/or your over-weight gear coming in “later” on another plane and possibly holding up your fishing
if tackle and poles arrive on later plane.
We will need to adhere to our “1 PM or after arrival time” into Tang on your arrival day. Many groups are
asking to come in early and it results in confusion, lost gear, fuel expense and more work for our “staff”. Please
plan accordingly to arrive after 1:00 PM. NW Flying has been told to NOT fly guests in before 1:00 PM.
NW Flying is under pressure by us to keep the price of their flights in and out of Tang reasonable. Unnecessary
weight coming out adds to their cost (airplane fuel and plane turn-around time). As some of you witnessed this
year, left over beverages will not be allowed to be flown out of Tang on your departure flight. Plan accordingly.
We will have a couple 5-gallon bottled water dispensers at Tang beginning in 2014 for your use with cooking
and drinking. Beverages (water, beer, pop) add a lot of weight to your 80 LB. limit per person. 1 case of
beer/water weighs 22 pounds. Save weight on plane and leave water at home….drink our water.
There are many CPAP machines in use at Tang by guests. We have 12-volt batteries you can use and recharge.
You need to bring a AC/DC converter into Tang with you. NW Flying is actually restricted from flying batteries in
planes with guests and will need to adhere to this going forward. Leave your 12-volt batteries at home.
PLEASE, PLEASE…if you know that fish line has been caught in your prop, or even suspect it might be in the prop,
tell us when you get in from the lake and we can remove the fish line in about 2-minutes. Fishing line is the
single, biggest cause of motor damage and can totally ruin the lower unit of the motor if not removed in a
timely manner. We prefer to remove the line rather than having to start charging guests for lower unit damage.
We hope to have the Tang “Logo wear” back this year. Hats, sweaters, t-shirts etc.
My son and his buddies have started an annual fishing contest for their group each year that is great fun and
competition. 1-day contest, 8 AM – 8 PM, total length of largest walleye, northern and lake trout caught per
boat. Have to have atleast one fish in each species to qualify for the contest. Picture of fish with measurement
ruler in picture required for each fish registered. Really fun. Forces everyone to fish for all fish species. Give it
a try. This year, 84” won I believe.
Bring lard for the portages. Really helps sliding boats over portage with much less effort.
Our staff are always college students and really appreciate your generosity to help pay for college. Thanks
If you do not wish to receive future copies of our annual Tang newsletter, please call 612-868-1070 or email me
at [email protected] and request that your name and address be taken off our mailing list. If you would
rather receive this newsletter electronically, email me ( [email protected] ) and you will be added to our
email list.
A reminder that our “Kid Rate” is ½ price for kids 18 and under. This is a very generous policy compared to all
other resorts in NW Canada. Please let me know the age of the kids in your group when booking to receive the
“1/2 price kid discount”. Thanks
This annual newsletter triggers many bookings over the next month or so. If you are planning a trip for 2014, be sure
to call or email me very soon to reserve your preferred dates. A deposit of $125 per person is required to hold your
spot. Please understand that I can only hold a reservation for 14 days without a deposit for all in group.
Check out our website ( www.tangofthenorthlodge.com ) for more information such as 2014 rates, sports show schedule
etc. Have a safe and happy winter / Holiday Season and we’ll see you next season at Tang of the North Lodge.
Cheers!
Mark, Pete and Terry
612-868-1070, [email protected] (new email address)