Summarized Review Highlights
Northwest Flying Inc., based in Nestor Falls, Ontario, has built a strong reputation over many years as a reliable floatplane outfitter serving remote fly-in fishing destinations in the Lake of the Woods region. The overwhelming majority of reviews are positive, with guests frequently returning year after year — some for over a decade — which speaks to consistent quality and trustworthiness. Owner Shane, along with staff members Gina, Ben, and others, are mentioned by name repeatedly in a favorable context, and the personal attention from ownership is something many guests highlight as setting the operation apart. The business also offers sightseeing flights in addition to fishing packages, and those guests report equally positive experiences.
Guests consistently praise the pilots for being skilled, punctual, friendly, and efficient with loading and unloading gear. Flights are described as smooth even in challenging weather, and the seaplane experience itself — taking off and landing on water — is often called a highlight of the trip. The outpost cabins, particularly on Loonhaunt Lake and Kishkutena Lake, receive strong marks for comfort, with amenities including hot water, showers, stoves, refrigerators, and deck views over the lake. Fishing for lake trout, smallmouth and largemouth bass, muskie, and walleye is frequently described as excellent, though one detailed review notes that walleye fishing can be inconsistent while bass and lake trout action compensated well. Boats and equipment are generally described as being in good shape, though one reviewer noted the boat motors are underpowered and there are no trolling motors, which is worth planning around. The cabins run on solar power, so conservative energy use is advised.
There is one notable negative review describing a serious booking and communication failure in 2014, where a solo traveler was confirmed for a day-trip fly-out but turned away on the day of the trip due to apparent miscommunication between Northwest Flying and a third-party operator. The experience involved conflicting information and a poor resolution. It is the only review of its kind across a large number of otherwise positive accounts, but it is worth noting for travelers who are booking as a solo guest or coordinating with multiple parties. One other reviewer mentioned that the aircraft used are older than those of some competitors, though no safety concerns were raised and the overall safety record was acknowledged as solid. Northwest Flying is best suited for small groups of fishing-focused travelers — whether friends, families, or repeat anglers — who want a straightforward, self-sufficient remote cabin experience with reliable air transport. It is particularly well-regarded by those targeting lake trout, bass, and muskie, and by guests who value a no-fuss, well-organized fly-in operation over a luxury lodge setting.
Summary generated May 25, 2026
Read all 31 reviews
Glen and Anne Carradice
Sep 30, 2025
TripAdvisor
Flying the Colours of Fall with Northwest Flying Inc.
We had a wonderful experience with Northwest Flying Inc.! We took some visitors up for a sightseeing tour of the numerous lakes. The variety of fall colours in both the water and the trees was breathtaking. The pilot even flew us over our brother's house that we had hoped to show our relatives from Paris, which was such a thoughtful touch. The whole team went above and beyond. Even though we had booked a smaller plane, they upgraded us to a larger one that day, which turned out to be even more comfortable. The owner came and spoke with us personally, which made us feel very welcomed and valued. Our pilot, Ben, was incredibly friendly, entertaining, and skilled — his steady hand gave everyone complete confidence, and the landing was so smooth our guests didn't even realize we were back on the water! A huge thank you to Shane, Gina, and Ben for making the day so memorable. We highly recommend Northwest Flying Inc. for anyone looking to experience the incredible beauty of Nestor Falls, especially when you have visitors from out of town or abroad. Truly an unforgettable adventure!
Outfitter overall
Grand Forks Herald Staff
Aug 23, 2024
Blog
Ontario's Loonhaunt Lake delivers memorable fishing adventure for first-time visitors
Booked the trip through Northwest Flying Inc., a floatplane service in Nestor Falls, Ontario, about a 4.5-hour drive from Grand Forks. Northwest Flying has outpost camps on five lakes, all within a short flight of Nestor Falls, but Loonhaunt Lake is their most popular. Solar electricity powers the outpost cabin on Loonhaunt Lake. Lake trout fishing was a priority in booking the trip. Despite challenging walleye fishing, the bass – both smallmouth and largemouth – and lake trout action made up for it. Using Buzz Bomb jigging lures, good numbers of hard-fighting lake trout were caught in 60 to 70 feet of water within a short boat ride of the cabin. The bass, it seemed, were everywhere, and the largemouth action encountered at times ranks among the best experienced. The lake trout fishing was a hit – most of the lakers were in the 5- to 8-pound range and the ones kept were fantastic on the grill.
This lodge
M Cummins
Jul 13, 2023
TripAdvisor
Great week in the outdoors fishing and exploring
We had a great week of fishing at their outpost cabin on Loonhaunt Lake. Beautiful Cabin, excellent fishing and excellent boats for fishing out of. Shane is an excellent host and made sure we had a great time.
This lodge
William Forsyth
Jul 2, 2022
Facebook
Great service, cabins, and staff. Very helpful and accommodating. 5 of us just spent 6 days at one of their outposts and had a wonderful time. We will be returning.
Outfitter overall
Checkout northwest flying. They have a couple larger outposts. They are based in Nestor Falls so it's an easy trip up there.
Outfitter overall
malibuswo
May 30, 2018
TripAdvisor
These guys are great...
Fantastic vacation: a must do experience. Short Story: - Incredible beauty and unique fishing opportunity. - Great service from start to finish - Fun way to disconnect and get some serious fishing. Long Story: If you don't have a vacation like this in your repertoire, go ahead and book something through Northwest Flying. It's an unmatched getaway with an emphasis on being out in Canada's great outdoors. - Trip Prep: Sent a few emails to NWF via the address on their website. Answered promptly each time. Worked out pricing timing and location within a few days. Very easy to work with. - The Fly Out: Greeted by NWF pilots bursting with enthusiasm in an almost creepy way. Stepped out of the car, loaded and up in the air in 30 minutes. No joke. - Cabin Check In: Cabin at Kishkutena (sp) lake was in great shape. Hot water, shower, stove, refrigerator and beds: sleeps 6 comfortably, 3 awesome boats with swivel seats. Kish is a Great Lake: bass muskie and lake trout. - Pick Up: Pilot arrived a little early and ready to help load plane. Gear up and headed back in 20 min flat. Landed back in Nestor Falls in 20 min. Greeted by friendly NWF employees to help you load your car. Highest possible recommendation. Put this trip in your vacation arsenal. Let NWF be the ones to make it easy for you.
This lodge
SnoMan56623
Nov 19, 2017
TripAdvisor
Fly in fishing & sight seeing
Business has been in Nestor Falls for a long time. Busy place in the summer. Seems to have a good safety record, although using older type aircraft, than their competition.
Outfitter overall
RJKE_4
Feb 1, 2017
TripAdvisor
Great service
We have used Northwest as our flying service twice for our fly in fishing experience. My father uses them anywhere from 2 to 3 times a summer. Flights have always been great, pilots are friendly and work their butts off to get your gear loaded and unloaded in a timely fashion so you can get out on the lake to catch the big one. Myself and my family highly recommend Shane and his crew!
Outfitter overall
Daniel K
Dec 3, 2015
TripAdvisor
Great flying service
Easy to get to, they have several different fly-in fishing packages, reasonable rates, and their equipment is in good shape. Everyone working there is dedicated to making your fly-in enjoyable and hiccup free.
Outfitter overall
Jack R
Sep 7, 2015
TripAdvisor
Hector Lake Fly In Camp
I've used Northwest Fly In service to fly in and out from Hector Lake Fly In Camp every year for over a decade now. Never so much as a hiccup. Excellent service always on time safely. Just can't say enough good about them.
Outfitter overall
Forrest E
Aug 15, 2015
TripAdvisor
Father and son trip.
The trip could not have worked out any better, Shane and his crew were very accommodating, We did three day trips, They brought us to three different lakes and the fishing was just what he told us it was going to be if not better.
Outfitter overall
Susan S
Aug 5, 2015
TripAdvisor
Fly in trip
We had a four day fly in trip which was managed well. The flights were timely, smooth (even with the windy weather), and the pilots were friendly and did all the loading/unloading of our gear. The cabin we stayed at was excellent. It had everything you needed for cooking and comfortable living arrangements. The deck overlooking the lake was beautiful! You do need to bring your own toilet paper for the outhouse and when it says they supply pillow cases, it means there are pillows there. You are completely 'disconnected' when you are at the lake and it was wonderful!
Outfitter overall
Mountainman827
Apr 7, 2015
TripAdvisor
Great service and flights
Always use their flight service to go to our brothers cabin on fly in lake. Friendly service and great pilots always a smooth landing. Very accommodating to our needs. They offer day fishing trips and lodging.
Outfitter overall
MinnTraveler3693
Jan 30, 2015
TripAdvisor
dependable for years
The crew at Northwest Flying is very dependable. Have flown with them for many years to get to and from Tang of the North. Never had any issues.
Outfitter overall
Doug G
Jun 29, 2014
TripAdvisor
Great operation
On time, dependable and great Pilots. You wont have a problem with these great folks. We stayed at Tinkers and flew out with Northwest.
Outfitter overall
Richard P
Jun 20, 2014
TripAdvisor
Northwest Flying is the Worst
STAY AWAY!! Called Northwest Flying, Nestor Falls in May 2014 to ask about day trip fly-in lakes for fishing. I said it would be for one person. They said no issues. They would get me in - just call a couple days before my trip. I call them on June 11, saying I want to do two fly outs one on Fri and one on Sat. They say come in, once I arrive in Nestor Falls. I come in to their office and float plane base, and they don't yet know the schedule for Fri, but I should talk to Kelly at Kelly's Castaways (not sure why Shane is telling me to talk with Kelly, as he does the fly-outs). I talk with Kelly on Thurs, and he says he is going to Shingwak on Sat, and he has just three parties going out, so there is room for one. I go back to the float plane base, and discuss with Shane. He puts me in his book, and says to be at the float plane base on Sat at between 6:30am to 6:45am. I go to the float plane base on Sat at 6:30, and they tell me to go down to Kelly's Castaway's for pick-up there. I drive down, and unload my gear. Kelly comes to tell me he booked another party, and now there is no room for me. I say I was just at the float plane base, and they told me to come down here. He said I must have talked with Shane's father. So no day trip for me, and too late to book another. Very POOR operation, customer service, bad attitude and run around. I should have used Nestor Falls Fly-In Outpost instead. STAY AWAY
Outfitter overall
Amazing outfit! Flew us into the lake where we set up camp. Tons of Musky and small mouth. Highly recommend these guys. Will be coming back next year along with the correct gear for the lakers.
Outfitter overall
Love these guys! Been using their flying services for 15 years - I think, but have lost count - and have enjoyed staying at their outpost on Lake Kishkutena for many years. Whether you use their flying services or stay at one of their outposts you will not be disappointed. The pilots are terrific, the planes are like one of the family and Shane and Gina and crew will make you want to return every year.
This lodge
I love this place all my friends and their dad's get together and tent out on arrow lake once a year and it is so much fun!
Outfitter overall
Great service, fantastic location and super friendly staff. If you need to fly these are the guys you want to contact.
Outfitter overall
We had a fun trip to a nearby lake. Pilots were great, providing some info about the area we flew over, and loading/unloading was very efficient. Our vehicle was moved near the plane for our arrival back to make efficient work of getting our gear loaded and on our way home.
Outfitter overall
Dimitrios Protsios
Google
Awesome sightseeing flight and great service. We flew over the Lake of the Woods and a few other lakes with the Cessna 180 and we really enjoyed it. Thank you guys for the memories.
Outfitter overall
Amazing!!! What a great experience to share with my friends. Shane is professional, punctual and personable guy. The cabins are comfortable and cozy. We had the lake to ourselves and enjoyed every minute. I highly recommend.
Outfitter overall
Excellent service and a great cabin. Everyone was personable and professional. Shane is very helpful and our pilot Ben was a pro.
Outfitter overall
Did a fly-in here in late July. Have fished this lake several times before, but stayed on the other side in another cabin so this was a good change of pace. Being on the fat side of the lake, you have a lot quicker access to tons of good fishing spots. Boat motors are underpowered and do not have trolling motors so plan accordingly. The cabin is great. Simple, but they all are up here. Layout is good and the deck off the front is awesome. Mostly solar powered, which means you want to be conservative with the power you use.
Outfitter overall
Amazing operation! Really adds an extra level of excitement to take off and land on water. Wes keeps the dock tight and the engines running (soon to be in the air as well), Ben is an amazing pilot and knows how to work the crowd. Flying with Northwest is the Cherry on top to the adventure!
Outfitter overall
We Fly with NWF to the lake and their planes are perfect. We just spent 6 days in Loonhaunt Lake it was an incredible experience, our cabin was incredible and comfortable.
This lodge
Very professional and a great pilot. The take off and landing was better than a commercial flight. Very enjoyable.
Outfitter overall
Awesome!
Amazing experience! The pilots are very friendly and definitely know what they are doing! We had a great week there! Would definitely recommend Northwest if you are wanting to get out of civilization for a week!
Outfitter overall
Outstanding!
Great fly in service to remote resorts in the Nestor Falls area. On time, experienced pilots take you to and from resorts only accessible by flying.
Outfitter overall
I have flown with Northwest many times the past ten years and never a problem. Always had excellent service.
Outfitter overall