Summer walleye

[walleygirl]

I would like to say thank you for letting me join your forum. I would like to make a strange request if I could. I know this is early for questions about summer walleyes but I am trying to get as much information about Cass Lake in the summer as I possibly can. My husband is an avid walleye fisherman and I have challenged him to a little fishing contest on Cass Lake this summer. Neither of us have fished on Cass lake before so I thought it would be a fair bet. Sometime this summer, it looks like it will be middle of August, we are both going to Cass for a long weekend and we are each using a boat. We are planning on doing a little contest to see who can find and catch the most walleye for a day. The whole thing is pretty open right now. I don't have any problem reading a map or driving a boat, it is just that I have never fished for walleye without being in the same boat as my husband. When he locates the fish I can catch them without any trouble. I just don't know where walleye would be, I know in early summer we have always fished pretty shallow water, but in summer it seems like we fish deeper water. I would like to have help if possible with some summer spots on Cass. I know this sounds like cheating, but he already has the advantage of knowing where to find fish. I was hoping some nice fisherman might offer up a spot that might give up a few fish to help a girl beat her husband. If you would prefer to email it to me my email address is: [email protected]. Thanks for any and all help. We will be using a boat ramp somewhere off of highway 2 in a public area so areas near there would help but I think anywhere on the lake I could find, I have a map of the lake. Any different tactics for lures, etc would also be appreciated. Thank you

[fishgutz77]

You need to go up to allens bay and fish with 3-4" redtails and work off the sunken island called the cresent or boomerang. early in the morning work 14-18 fow and then move out as the sun gets higher. this also will give you the edge if the wind comes up. keep your live bait rig snell 3-4 ft long. I have taken lots of nice fish on the south side of this spot. this is a classic june, july thing.If your going later you'll need to find more of a main lake structure. there are lots of main lake humps. good luck.

[beef]

Sounds like a fun contest... Cass has classic walleye spots all over and the fish will be there.. By looking at the lake map you will find structure close to the access and work it with crawlers or if you want to spend the money, use red tails.. When guiding that time of the year, I would be using Crawlers or Leeches... Move around until you fnd active fish.. When you find an active school, mark it and work it until they turn off..

Hope this helps...

Beef

[walleygirl]

I guess I don't understand what classic walleye spots would be. Am I looking for humps or what? Thanks Beef

[beef]

Classic walleye spots are drop offs or transition areas that go from muck to sand or weedlines that give way to different structure... If your husband is as good as he sounds you could ask him about classic walleye structure and that should help you out... If you are looking for community spots you will find them when you get to the lake.. There will be boats on the various spots and if you have a good map like the Lakemaster Map, that will give you an idea of where your at.... Good luck in your competition and I'm sure I will see you on the water....

Beef

[walleygirl]

Thanks, I am trying to figure all of this out on my own so I am not going to my husband for information. I would like to learn as much as I can before August so that I won't need to ask him where to find fish etc. I have a hotspot map, are these any good or should I be looking for another type? Do you know of any good books I could read that might shed a little light on where to find fish that time of year? Thank you

[Windy City Walleye Hunter]

Walleygirl,

Our family has been coming up to Cass for the past 20 years and we stay the last week of July and first week of August at Wishbone Resort. I would tell you two places to focus on during that time, both are on the main lake. During that time the main lake seems to produce better than other parts. I would get to be very familiar with Deadmans Bar and the Cedar flats. Deadmans is a huge island out in the middle of the main lake and I like it because you can fish different parts of the island depending on the direction of the wind. The island usually tops out at about 5 feet and the drop off is quick which usually holds walleye. Trolling is the preffered method here. I use a crawler harness, though the rest of my family prefers a minnow and a Little Joe Spinner. I usually out fish most of them and I usually catch the majority of walleye while they catch a mix of walleye and northern.

Cedar Flats is ok if you want to Lindy rig and drag a leech or crawler and you have to play the wind and drift fish. I do not care as much for this type of fishing, too boring. I like to be moving.

The best thing you can do is book Brian Jones at First Choice Guide service. He is my master who has taught me everything I know about Cass. He has fished the lake since he was a kid and his father fished it before him and still does. They talk on the cell phone all the time trading info so Brian is usually always on the walleye. Not only will he teach you where to fish and with what bait but he will teach you how to fish Cass Lake. He is a young family man and is very informative, he won't keep all his secrets, he will share them with you. His trips are also not the 4 hour dock to dock cookie cutter trips. He takes the time to insure your success.

Give Brian a call if that is within your rules, otherwise good luck with the tips I have given you.

Windy

[beef]

I second Brian as a great guide... If he is busy there is also Chad Benson, Mark Christenson, Chris Haley, Paul Nelson, Travis Griffin, Jerry Bergeron, Col. Ron, Tim Hinrichs and myself... Cass if full of some of the best guides around and we all try to put the best service we can out there so our friends/clients can have the best experience possible... Every guide that I mentioned above is a class act and they all know the lake EXTREMELY well and can put you on fish... I also apologize if I forgot some of the other great guides out there...

The point is Cass Lake needs tourism and the without the tourists this area would be struggling.. Resorts, guides, restraunts, and local buisnesses all need the support from tourists and they are here to help you.

Hope this helps...

Beef

[Windy City Walleye Hunter]

And I will second that. I have been out with Chad, Travis and Mark (many moons ago) and have talked many times to Beef out on the water and Col. Ron on the FM threads. Cass is really lucky to have so many good guides since it is a lake that can present challenges to the rookies! That is why us flat landers from the land of Lincoln are eager to bring our "green" to Minnesota, LOL!

Beef,

We will have to hook up sometime if Brian is ever double booked or sick and see what trouble we can get into!

Windy

[beef]

No prob, look forward to seeing you on the water....

Beef

[walleygirl]

I appreciate the information, I just won't have time to set something up with a guide. We are fishing the lake one day, without having fished it before, and trying to see who wins. If it is possible I would like to pick some of your brains as it gets closer to summer. I know that ice fishing is a little different than summer fishing. I am just trying to gain a little knowledge about the lake and find some spots to catch some walleye. I am trying to narrow down the areas I have to fish to find walleye. I have heard that this is a big lake and hasn't there been some problems with water levels. I was reading some of the past topics. If anyone wants to send an email so their spots don't end up on the forum I have listed my email address above. I am not looking to steal anyones spot I just want to fish it for a day and beat my husband. Thanks

[Windy City Walleye Hunter]

Walleygirl,

With that being said, I would focus on Deadmans Bar and try to play the wind. Cass usually responds after about a day and a half of wind from one direction. You could try Cedar Flats area if you are into slow drift fishing with a Lindy Rig. These spots are not "honey holes" they are huge and there is usually traffic out on them. If you are fishing at night, I know that Cedar gets a ton of action. You can just get into the "conga line" and follow the rest of the boat lights. If you do fish at dusk, one good method that Brian taught me is to pull crankbaits in very shallow water, 4-8 feet sometimes less. Look for gravel or rocks on your Hot Spots map and pick an area that has been getting wind for a day or so. If you are just daytime fishing I would stick with the main part of the lake, try some of the shores of Star Island as well, they produce. Good luck and may the best (wo)man win! LOL

Windy

[soldoncass]

Couple questions for you....What size boat/ motor will you be using? The lake is large and wind has a major impact on where you can fish( depending on how much you like waves).

Daytime only fishing, or into the evening? That time of year it still will be light til 9ish. Daytime fishing will be deeper than evening fishing , so they require different methods and locations

It is my favorite lake.... so I think you will enjoy it, no matter how you do.

[walleygirl]

I will be in a 2002 tracker targa with a 200hp outboard. I'm not to worried about wind, within reason. I'm sure if there are dangerous winds we won't go out that day. I think a little breeze is good though. We haven't given this a great deal of thought at this point but we will be fishing during the day and maybe into the evening. We may even break for lunch if it is a really hot sunny day and start up again in the afternoon. I doubt we will fish much at night unless we are in the same boat, I don't want to be out after dark trying to find my way around. I'm not that sure of myself on the water after dark I don't want to ruin a prop or worse. My guess is most of the fishing we do by ourselves will be during daylight and into evening before it is dark so that is the type of fishing I need to focus on. I have been looking at the map and I don't know how anyone decides where to start, it is a little overwelming. How do you know there will be fish on a spot just because it has a nice dropoff or a hump. I know that we have caught walleye on spots that we didn't necessarily see anything on the depth finder. How long do you fish in an area before you move to another spot. Will the fish swim a ways to get a bait or do I need to move deeper as the day gets warmer. Where would I go to catch one giant walleye to really get my husband going? I do want to say that we are not planning on keeping fish, they will be released. We may keep a few eating size fish but that would be it. We haven't decided if we are going to catch a fish, take a picture and then release it right away or keep them in the livewell. I think we will probably just take pictures and release them. I have one of those weight thingys to know how much each one weighs also so I don't see any reason to take a chance hurting a fish. My email address is [email protected] if you would like to send any ideas that you don't want everyone on the forum to see. I know that guys are pretty protective of a fishing spot and I wouldn't want anyone to give away a secret spot to everyone, thanks.

[Windy City Walleye Hunter]

Walleygirl,

If you are planning on stopping for lunch you have to hit the famous Pike Hole, it is through Pug Lake you can see it on the Hot Spot map and they have docks. Outstanding mushroom swiss burgers as well as many others, great waffle fries and ice cold beer! The perfect stop for a bite when the temps are hottest.

Windy

[walleygirl]

Thanks for the email. I appreciate any and all help.

[bull75]

I have an idea for you.I've been fishing Cass for over 10 years and I've found the best Walleye fishing to be on Kitchi lake.The lack of other boats and number of sunken islands are unreal.Just hit the ones in front of Camp Pennington resort at about 12-20 feet and you'll have all the walleyes you'll need.Pending what weekend you go I could meet you there and help point out a few spots.We have a 5th wheel at the resort there.Anyway good luck and whoop it up on him.lol

[walleygirl]

Is it difficult to get up to Kitchi lake? I have read some of the past posts and it sounded like the water levels were so low that you couldn't get a boat up there. I just have a map of Cass and it shows a channel that goes up to Kitchi, can you give me some idea of where this resort is, or is it easy to find? Are these sunken islands rock, weeds, or what and what are you using to catch the walleye--jigs, crankbaits? Thanks for your help.

[JuiceBox]

bull75 is right, I fish with him all the time, Kitchi is a good place. Lots of structure and little pressure. It's easy to get to and we had no problems getting through the channel this summer. We go there every summer and usually have good luck.

[soldoncass]

The entrance/ channel from Cass into Kitchi is very shallow sand. That gets you into Pughole ( a tiny wide spot really). After going through that you go under the road bridge by Pike Hole restaraunt/resort. Be careful there, it is narrow, with rocks by the sides. Then you are in Kitchi Lake, with Pennington on the northeast corner. I would suggest looking at a map on DNR LAKEMAPS site. Just do a search for Kitchi Lake in Beltrami county , and it will come up. A nice lake for sure, but it is quite a ways from where you are putting in on # 2.You will go over a lot of fish on your way up there.

[JuiceBox]

It can be a long ride from #2 especially on windy days. But if you have a boat that can handle it, you can fish anywhere on the Cass chain. Either way, I love fishing that area no matter where I go! FYI, there are a few good secret spots in Allen's Bay if you look for the structure. I've had some success in there with no one else around me.

[walleygirl]

Can you be more specific about where and what you are using? I am not familar with the lake and I don't have a map currently, how big is Kitchi? What are you using to catch walleye, what structure, etc. Thanks

[bull75]

I use a lindy rig with Leech.Go over the humps at about 5-6pm and go til dark.You should catch em.If I can anyone can

I fish Muskie most the time but like to fish for the Eye's also,just not too good at it.Anymore questions I'll try to help.O'Neils off star Island is really good also but I tend to get more small ones then anything.We used to stay at Break on the Lake for 8 years so kinda have agood feel for Allens bay.Also if the boats are not too bad try the Egg.

[bull75]

I agree with Soldoncass.You will go over alot of fish on cass.It's a great lake I just like to have alot of sunken Islands all within a good drift you can hit at least 4 if not 5.It's about a 15 min+ boat ride if you have a 50 for a boat motor.the channel is shallow but you can make it past.You have to go to Pikehole for a a meal it's really good but cash only.

It's so nice to see alot of Cass Lake friends here.maybe they can help me land the big one instead of watching it being caught by my wife or Kids

[rodmaker]

Welcome!!!!!!!

I can get you an e-mail for Borch. He is a FM member/staff. He fishes Cass and can help.

I'll send it to you at your e-mail later on this am.

[bull75]

Thank you very much.I look forward to reading what you have to say.

[JuiceBox]

I agree with bull75, the "egg" in allen's bay can be a sweet spot if you work it right. Heck, i showed it to him. I've fished it a few times with some success and never see anyone else walleye fish it. Zig-zag the drop off all the way around it with a lindy and a leech. I don't mind giving out a few spot because I know this FM family can keep is safe.

[Borch]

The thing about Cass is there's far more spots than a person has time to fish in two weeks let alone a day.

Several of the guys had already given you some great advice.

Play the wind. Even if the wind has layed down from the day before the eyes will still be related to that wind blown structure.

Don't be afraid to fish shallow, especially on windy days. It still surprises me how many fish I pull out of less than 15 ft of water on Cass on bright summer days.

If the small perch are really pestering you move on to another spot. When the eyes are on the feed the small perch generally are not.

Search aggressively and then slow down if you have to. I pull cranks or spinners on bouncers looking for aggressive eyes and switch for a lindy rig or jig only if fish aren't going on the aggressive techniques.

Have fun! Lots of beautiful sites to see. Cass is really a beautiful lake.

Good Luck!

[JuiceBox]

Borsch said it exactly right. Wind is the key, you can't run out of places to fish. I think it's one of the best lakes in the state to fish and it's a beautiful one too!

[walleygirl]

Can you give me an idea of how big the egg is? Is it difficult to find on the water? On my map I only see the potato islands, is it the island on the west side. I also see boomerang, is it just east of that? I am just trying to figure out how to work these walleye. Will they be on top of a drop off or over the edge of a drop off or down on the bottom of a drop off. When you work a point do you just drive up and down the edges of it from deep to shallow water and back out again? Is there some sort of strategy you use to work all around an area? What type of areas do you look for that you have an idea there will be walleyes there, I have heard deep, shallow, weeds, points, drop offs. I am confused on what to look for to tell if there will be walleye there in the first place. I think if I can figure out where they are supposed to be I can maybe catch them. Does anyone use jigs with minnows or worms or leeches or are the fish really spread out during the summer? Thanks alot for the information.