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Winnie Perch Report


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Just got back from fishing Winnie from Wednesday through Sunday. Weds through Sat were really good fishing, Sun was tougher for us. We were fishing 26-28 fow, mostly using jigging spoons with minnow heads, and drilling lots of holes and moving around constantly. Colors that worked well were the typical glows, green, firetigers, golds, and oranges -- it changed depending on the day and the light. We also did some deadsticking (no bobbers) with live minnows (or just minnow heads) and caught fish that way too. When the bite got tougher for us on Sunday I went to some of the plastics I use for crappies and tried to finesse the perch with them, I caught a few but need to play around with it some more to find something that really works well. I still believe the best strategy is to drill lots of holes, move around, and find the fish that want to bite. The size of the fish was really nice this year, with many fish at 11 inches or better. You can get around off the plowed roads if you're careful and pick your spots, but bring shovels and tow straps just in case.

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Did you catch any eyes? We got some nice ones on pinkjigs with a fathead in 17'fow out in front of HighBanks on thursday and friday,none on sat.or sun.But we got some nice perch and pike!

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No walleyes for us. We were targeting perch and fishing away from the breaks, in deeper water during the daytime. We occasionally catch a walleye or two doing that but never very many and none on this trip. No pout for us either, but we did get a few pike, a few tullibees, and one big sucker.

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Perchjerker,

I got a sucker about 4lb.out there on saturday! Thought I had a nice eye! Can't say I ever got one through the ice before that.

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I didn't catch the sucker, someone else in my group caught it. Jigging spoon with a minnow head, he worked the fish up 4-5 feet above the bottom before it hit. It was about 5 lbs. I'd never seen one caught through the ice before. We saw a few other suckers on the cameras also.

B420, how was the perch fishing for you? It sure was beautiful weather on Saturday.

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I've fished for them alot in the spring in the river,but I have never seen one caught through the ice!and to work it 4to5feet off the bottem,thats strange,but thats fishing you never know whats going to happen!

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The perch fishing was pretty slow overall for us. We moved around a ton, marked and caught fish all over but the size wasn't quite what we were looking for. Fished from 18-31 ft, jigging and using setlines. The jigs accounted for the bigger fish 9"+ and the deadsticks got bit a ton, but LOTS of little ones. Two us ended up with 12 keepers, but we worked hard from sunup to sundown! No walleyes and a few pike.

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Great report my man. I'll be up there after I return from Lake Gogebic. Will I be spoiled?

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You'll be spoiled.

But ..... this was the best trip I've had to Winnie for big perch in quite a few years. Our group has done this trip for the last 12 years, and I've fished Winnie a few other times the last couple of years as well, and this trip was the best in quite a while.

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Following this year, I hope to say in 2020 that that will have been my 12th trip to Gogebic too.

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I'm really looking forward to hearing how your Gogebic trip goes. We've toyed around with the idea of going there but have never gotten serious about it.

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Well, either way, I'm sure the report we have when we get back will help you make up your mind.

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Team Otter,

I live about an hour away from Gogebic. In my experience it is a size lake and not a numbers lake. Are your trips to Gogebic similar. There are some true slobs in there but you really don't get the numbers like Winni. Good luck on Gogebic.

Dodger

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MY DAD CAUGHT A SUCKER A FEW YEARS BACK THROUGH THE ICE. IT TANGLED OUR OTHER THREE LINES ON THE WAY UP. THAT WAS THE FIRST ONE I HAD EVER SEEN CAUGHT. GLAD TO HEAR THEY ARE STILL BITING UP THERE. THAT WAS A GREAT TRIP WE CAUGHT PERCH, WALLEYE, PIKE, POUT, WHITEFISH, AND A SUCKER ON THE SAME TRIP.

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First trip for me. I'm going with a guy who traditionally gets both size and numbers. We'll see what happens when we roll into town.

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