The Full Story
About Us
Bill Peever moved his family to Northern Ontario in 1940 where he ran a trapline,
worked on fire towers and guided tourists to support his family. He and his wife Isabel lived and raised their family at Tondern, mileage 13 on the CNR line. Tom Peever is the youngest of 7 children.
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Linbarr Lake is part of the original trapline and tourist business where Tom’s father guided tourists. The tourists were brought to Linbarr Lake by portaging up through the Obakabmiga water system from the railway track at Tondern.
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In 1963, due to failing health, the tourist business was sold first to Bill Woodstock and Jack Bingham who turned it into a fly-in fishing lake and then to Maurice Olivier.
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In 2011 Tom, now retired, purchased the Linbarr Lake outpost fishing business from Maurice Olivier.
History
Linbarr Lake is situated in Foch township approximately 15 miles airline from Hornepayne in Northern Ontario.
Linbarr has four bays, surprise bay, deep bay, roaring bay and whitefish bay.
The lake contains approx 1300 acres of water. The north end is its deepest point being over 110 ft. The lake maintains its water level and temperature very evenly throughout the year. It is also one of the last lakes to freeze over in winter.
It flows into the Obakamiga river system but is independent of it and set to the west of the system.
It is a good producer of pickerel (walleye) all season long when some other lakes are slowing down due to hot weather.
Linbarr Lake has good northern pike. It also has whitefish and perch but no trout.
In 1923 one of the largest forest fires ever recorded burned around the east side of Linbarr Lake. The burned stumps can still be seen along the Linbarr creek. The fire encompassed the area from Lake Superior North to James Bay. The fire was allowed to burn itself out as no fire suppression was in effect back then. Hence, Linbarr Lake was originally known as Burnt Lake. The portage connecting Lessard Lake and Linbarr Lake was known as Burnt Lake Portage.
The Obakaminga river route was one of the main canoe routes between Mobert on the CPR RR and Tondern on the CNR RR.
The Lake can only be accessed by Aircraft or traditionally by canoe and portaging from the railroad.
