Bush Pilot Angler

Book excerpt: Most people know the late Lee Wulff as the world's foremost salmon angler. Few, if any, think of him as a skilled bush pilot and explorer. But he was both, as Lee reveals in this extraordinary memoir. Based on an unpublished manuscript that was rediscovered only recently by his widow, Joan Wulff, this book tells the story of Lee's years pioneering the Atlantic salmon and brook trout fisheries on the remote coasts of northeastern Newfoundland and Labrador. Having established a handful of outpost sporting camps by boat, Wulff quickly realized that getting clients and supplies in and out efficiently would require an airplane. So he cut a deal with Piper Aircraft and learned to fly a new bright-yellow J-3 Cub equipped with floats. Throughout the late 1940s and early 1950s, he ferried his sports one-by-one into isolated lakes and rivers where the fishing went beyond their wildest dreams. Soar with Wulff through unpredictable mountain gusts, low over muskeg bogs, and blind through thick fog and smothering darkness. Meet his sons, Barry and Allan, and feel their father's pride as both become good anglers and valuable contributors to the operation of the camps. Get to know the warm, hard-working Newfoundlanders recruited as guides and camp staff. And share salmon pools with some of World War II's most notable generals, who fished with Lee during brief breaks from the horrors of the European front. Bush Pilot Angler is an unforgettable story of courage, flying, love, and fishing. It is a fitting tribute to Lee Wulff, an extraordinary man who fought tirelessly for the conversation of his beloved Atlantic salmon in Newfoundland and throughout North America.