horseshoe/vista

[paddler1]

I'm coming up next week and planning to spend 5 days in the horseshoe and vista area. Setting up a base camp and fishing the entire time. Maybe stay on Vista and take side trips on other lakes if things are slow. Do any of you have any suggestions for catching walleye on these lakes and do you think it would be worth a try for lakers on Misquah? My brother has one of those compact depth finders that sends a signal to a wrist watch, so at least this time we'll have a depth finder.

[Maximum12]

paddler1, last time I was in Horseshoe there were a couple of good weed beds in Horsehoe that were productive - don't know if they'll still be there this time of year or not.

One is to the channel to the right as you come out of the portage from Caribou. The other is just around the point in the southwestern arm of the lake, leading to Gaskin. We've caught walleye in both these spots - biggest one was about 23 inches. Good little lake if the fish are active, we caught smallies & pike there as well.

Good luck!

[thistlekicker]

Misquah is a beautiful lake and worth a trip. I have gotten a couple fish out of there and their meat was the brightest orange I've ever seen on a lake trout. There is a big bluff on the northeast side (Gaskin Mountain, I believe), and you can hike/bushwack to the top if you're into that sort of thing and feeling ambitious.

If I remember correctly the landings at both ends of the Vista-Misquah portage aren't great but the portage itself isn't too bad. Now the portage from Misquah to Little Trout, that's another story

[paddler1]

thistlekicker and maximum12.. this information is greatly appreciated.. i had heard about the mother of all portages from misquah the going south, and we're not going that far.. this is specifically a fishing trip, although we may slip over on the south side of misquah and hike the portages. do you think it would be worth our while to take frozen or salted minnows or cisco's on the trip. i don't like the idea of packing in live minnows for this many portages and 5 days.. also, have any of you fished on vista and what methods may work for walleyes during the 3rd week in sept. i'm wondering about crawlers instead of minnows.. any help is appreciated..

[Maximum12]

paddler1, I started a "Late September Fishing" thread a week or so ago asking just the same question. It's on page 2 as of this moment - check it out, lots of great information on that page. Sounds like I'm going to be packing in minnows after all.

[paddler1]

i checked out the late sept. thread.. looks like minnows are the best if possible.. because of the multiple portages and length of trip we may opt for tipping jigs with a peice of crawler or using a crawler harness instead.. i just packed all my harnesses.. may still buy a jar of preserved minnows and give those a shot.. i like the idea of slip bobbers..

seems like i heard more about these lakes a few years ago and not much the last couple of years. i checked the idnr stocking web site and haven't found where they stocked either of these lakes in a long time.. wondering if the great fishing was years ago within a couple of years after stocking. i wonder whats going on.. any insight would be helpful.