Diaries of a Lodge Owner

Outdoor Journal Radio
  • 5.0 (48)
  • Wilderness
  • Updated Weekly

In 2009, sheet metal mechanic, Steve Niedzwiecki, turned his passions into reality using steadfast belief in himself and his vision by investing everything in a once-obscure run-down Canadian fishing lodge.After ten years, the now-former lodge owner and co-host of The Fish'n Canada Show is here to share stories of inspiration, relationships and the many struggles that turned his monumental gamble into one of the most legendary lodges in the country. From anglers to entrepreneurs, athletes to conservationists; you never know who is going to stop by the lodge.

  1. 16 hrs ago

    Episode 147: Life Behind The Guideboat Wheel

    A fishing guide’s job is not just finding fish. It’s reading people, managing pressure, and turning a tough bite into a day your guests will still talk about on the drive home. Around the table at Two Rivers Lodge, we trade honest stories about guiding in Northern Ontario, learning unfamiliar water near Kenora, and the moment you realize you’re not “just a fishing buddy” anymore, you’re responsible for the experience. We get into what happens when yesterday’s shoreline pattern dies, how short strikes and changing conditions test your confidence, and why electronics like Humminbird side imaging and forward-facing sonar can feel amazing one day and confusing the next. We also talk about the stuff that truly builds a lodge’s reputation: guide teamwork, sharing information, and keeping guests engaged even when the lake makes you work for every walleye and northern pike. Then the stories take off. Wolf pups at a shoreline den, a rescued golden eagle named Hope, and bush-job close calls involving float planes and a helicopter power loss that still makes your palms sweat. We wrap with hard-earned outdoor lessons, from hunting adrenaline to the simplest fishing truth of all: your chain is only as strong as your weakest link, and a cheap snap can cost you the fish of a lifetime. If you enjoy fishing lodge life, multi-species angling, and real guide talk about walleye, pike, muskie, and trout, you’ll feel right at home here. Subscribe so you don’t miss the next one, share this with a buddy who lives for the north, and leave a review to help more anglers find the show.

    1h 22m

  2. Jun 17

    Episode 146: I Return To Guiding To See If I Still Have It

    You can own a lodge, hire great guides, and still feel your confidence wobble the moment you step onto a dock where nobody cares about your past. At Two Rivers Lodge, I’m back in the boat as a working guide, staring at new water, new electronics, and guests I’ve never met, asking myself the only question that matters: do I still have it?  I talk through the real difference between “helping out” and being responsible for the entire guest experience, from navigation and safety to putting walleye in the slot for shore lunch. You’ll hear what it’s like to learn a lake fast with GPS mapping, Humminbird Helix, and Garmin LiveScope, plus the honest frustration when the screen does not look the way you’re used to. Then we get into the fishing: northern pike patterns shifting with weather, cabbage at the mouths of bays, current areas that hold fish deeper, and the simple trigger that keeps producing strikes so far: hits on the pause.  But guiding is not only about fish. I share the awkward feeling of being “not the owner” in the main lodge, and the way service and conversation build trust the same way a good day on the water does, one small moment at a time. If you love Canadian fishing lodge stories, northern Ontario multi-species action, and the mindset side of guiding, this one is for you. Subscribe, share this with a fishing buddy, and leave a review so more listeners can find the show.

    34 min

  3. Jun 3

    Episode 145: How To Reboot A Remote Fishing Lodge Without Burning Out

    Lodge season does not “start” so much as it hits you all at once. Early June brings that first real wave of guests, the scramble to reopen cabins and docks, and the reality that Mother Nature controls the schedule, especially when you are running an island lodge on the French River. We talk through what those first days actually feel like, from the excitement of opening to the gritty details that never make it into the brochure.  A big theme is staffing a remote fishing lodge when turnover is normal and training time is limited. We get honest about why overhiring can be the only sane plan, how culture shock shows up fast when young staff live in a dorm-style setup, and why lodge owners spend so much time managing personalities. We also share what helps people last, including scheduling true escape time off-island so staff can reset and come back stronger.  We dig into guest experience and expectation management in hospitality. Instead of pretending everything is perfect in week one, we explain the “training period” approach: subsidising early trips in exchange for patience and feedback. That shift turns guests into partners, helps returning anglers reinforce dock routines, and builds a community that improves service, reviews, and morale. Along the way, we get into the unglamorous systems that matter, like orientation, fire drills, and the very real grinder pump rules.  Then we tell a spring work story that sums up lodge life: rebuilding a stone walkway with 987 bags of concrete, moved by hand on an island, right up until guests arrived. If you are thinking about lodge jobs in Canada, we also share exactly how to stand out by calling, researching, and making a real impression. Subscribe, share this with someone who loves the outdoors, and leave a review so more people can find these Stories Of The North.

    51 min

  4. May 27

    Episode 144: Grief, Gratitude, And The Lessons Dad Left Behind

    He wasn’t flashy. He didn’t say a whole lot. But he always had my back and that kind of fatherhood changes everything. After losing my dad just days ago, I sit down for a raw, personal reflection on grief, gratitude, and the lessons that still guide me as a lodge owner, a parent, and an outdoorsman. I talk about what it meant to take the leap into lodge ownership when the timing felt impossible, the money was tight, and the pressure was real. The story goes straight to the unglamorous truth of small business life: broken plumbing, long days, and that sinking feeling that you might not get it all done. Then comes the line my dad gave me that became a survival tool for entrepreneurship and for life: you get it done because you have to. No shortcuts, no excuses, just steady work until the job is finished. The memories that hold it all together come from the Canadian outdoors. Catfish at a local bridge, the smell of cedar and fresh water, and the quiet way a father can pass down a love for fishing, hunting, and stewardship without making a speech. If you have ever learned who you are from a parent or a father figure, this one will hit close to home. If it resonates, follow the show, share it with someone who needs it, and leave a review so more people can find these Stories of the North.

    20 min

  5. May 13

    Episode 143: Rookies On The River

    A thousand-foot gill net can hold a whole day’s worth of truth about a fishery and Paige Drew has lived that reality on Lake Superior. We sit down with Paige and Caleb Johnson, two newly minted guides at Two Rivers Lodge, and talk honestly about what it means to earn your place in a lodge family when the season is just starting and the water is still near freezing. The conversation starts where most guests never get to look: broken water lines, massive food orders, generator upgrades, new docks, and the kind of teamwork it takes to make a remote Northern Ontario fishing lodge feel effortless. Paige walks us through her route from growing up around Ontario fish hatcheries and studying Fish and Wildlife at Fleming College to working Great Lakes field projects. We get into invasive species control, targeted netting, and the detailed sampling that happens after the nets come up: sorting by mesh size, measuring fork length, taking scales, collecting fin clips for genetics, and even pulling otoliths for aging. If you’ve ever wondered what fisheries science looks like on the water, this is the clearest picture you’ll get without stepping onto the tugboat. Caleb brings the next-generation angle, coming from Alberta with a YouTube goal and the drive to build something real as “The Alberta Angler.” We talk about chasing better fishing opportunities, filming in a working lodge environment, and why fish handling ethics matter if you want a sustainable trophy fishery for pike, walleye, bass, and muskie. Subscribe, share this one with a buddy who loves the North, and leave a review with your biggest question about guiding life.

    59 min

  6. Apr 29

    Episode 142: A Lodge Owner’s Playbook For Weather And Growth

    Spring at a Northern Ontario fishing lodge can feel like two different worlds at once. We’re watching flood water threaten roads and docks around the French River and Lake Nipissing, while up near Kenora the ice is still hanging on and every plan depends on wind, rain, and when the system finally opens up. That push and pull sets the tone for a candid lodge-owner conversation about preparation, risk, and the messy reality behind a smooth guest experience.  Willie “The Oilman” joins me fresh off an 11-day Louisiana fishing adventure, and the stories are as useful as they are wild. We get into bull redfish in brackish bayou water, why the slip bobber and live shrimp bite is so violent, and how the Everglades-style maze of reeds changes everything from casting to boat control. Then we zoom out to what really matters to operators: how a place like Captain Allen’s Native Adventures runs hospitality, pricing, cabins, meals, and service in a way that makes people want to return.  From there, we talk fishing lodge marketing and power networking the kind that actually moves the needle. Cross-promotions, partnerships, and helping “competitors” when they’re short on staff or supplies can protect the whole region and keep standards high. We finish on team building, cross-training, and the leadership challenge of matching the right staff personalities to the right guests, plus a few hard-earned kitchen and dining room lessons.  If you like fishing stories with real business insight, hit subscribe, share this with a lodge buddy, and leave a review so more anglers can find the show.

    1h 15m

  7. Apr 22

    Episode 141: Lake Simcoe Ice Fishing Recap With Hotbox Huts

    The best ice seasons are not always the ones with the most chaos, they are the ones that run smooth from first hut to last pullout. We’re back with Donny Crowder of Hotbox Huts to debrief a Lake Simcoe winter that started early, stayed stable late, and gave his crew something rare: time. Time to stage “Hogtown” properly, time to avoid panic days, and time to connect with clients one-on-one so families leave with more than just fish photos. We get into what showed up under the holes this year, from big early-season perch to walleye talk and the odd sightings that make you question what you thought you knew about Simcoe. Donny also breaks down why underwater fishing cameras can be a game-changer for stationary ice fishing, especially for kids and new anglers who learn faster when they can actually see the bite and fish behaviour in real time. Then the conversation goes deep on ice safety. Donny explains how heavy snow, melt cycles, shoreline runoff, and springs can turn a “good” year into a constant monitoring job. He shares how measuring core ice temperature helps predict breakup, and why candled ice can look walkable while being structurally ready to separate when sun and water do their work. Off the ice, Donny walks us through his hundred-acre conservation-minded property, a thriving duck pond, semi-guided waterfowl hunts, and the realities of regenerative farming and making maple, birch, and silver maple syrup the old-school way. If you care about guided ice fishing in Ontario, hardwater safety, conservation, and building a life around the land, this one delivers. Subscribe, share the episode with a fishing buddy, and leave a review so more people can find the show.

    1h 24m

  8. Apr 15

    Episode 140: We Can Train The Nervous System To Handle Modern Life

    Your body already knows how to come back to centre. The problem is we rarely give it the right signal, long enough, often enough, to override modern stress. We talk with Spencer DeLeal, president of Art of Living Canada, about how rhythmic breathing and mindfulness can help reset the nervous system when life starts to feel like constant fight or flight. We dig into Sudarshan Kriya, a structured breathing technique built around rhythm, and why the breath is the most overlooked “inner technology” for stress management, anxiety, focus, and resilience. Spencer explains how stress chemistry like cortisol can hijack clear thinking and push us into reaction, and why practices that pull us into the present moment can change the way we show up at work and at home. We also connect this to real-world health: hypertension, inflammation, and the hard truth that progress disappears when we drop the daily routine. Then we get practical about what an Art of Living retreat in Quebec actually feels like: simple comfortable accommodations, vegetarian meals, morning yoga, guided breathing sessions, lakes, trails, and optional Ayurvedic spa treatments, plus a real chance at a digital detox. Spencer shares powerful outcomes from veterans’ programming, including a story about deep sleep returning after years of hypervigilance, and we talk about how learning in a group can accelerate growth the same way a guide accelerates learning outdoors. If you’ve been running on fumes, take this as your sign to try something measurable and repeatable. Listen, share this with someone who needs a reset, and subscribe and leave a review with your biggest question about breathwork and stress.

    1h 43m
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About

In 2009, sheet metal mechanic, Steve Niedzwiecki, turned his passions into reality using steadfast belief in himself and his vision by investing everything in a once-obscure run-down Canadian fishing lodge.After ten years, the now-former lodge owner and co-host of The Fish'n Canada Show is here to share stories of inspiration, relationships and the many struggles that turned his monumental gamble into one of the most legendary lodges in the country. From anglers to entrepreneurs, athletes to conservationists; you never know who is going to stop by the lodge.

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