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Newbie in the forum and to Rainy Lake

tbuss
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tbuss Explorer

tbuss

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Myself and a friend are comming up for a 1 week stay on Rainy Lake on 1 Sep 08, we have rented a houseboat from Northernaire Houseboats. What I would like to know is what kind of a GPS unit should a person have on Rainy Lake. This would be my first time on this lake, I have a quide for our 2nd day out on the lake and the rest of the trip we will be on our own. We are also going to rent their upgrade 18's Alaskan Lund. My friend and I don't have the best mobility on land but a boat should be different. I have asked the resort to help us tie up the houseboat at a good spot if possible so that we may fish from it and not have to try and tie the boat up ourself. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Semper fi Terry

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tearin' lips Mentor

tearin' lips

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Welcome to the forum tbuss! Rainy Lake is a great lake and I will bet that after your first trip you will be hooked! And there is no better way to explore Rainy Lake, than with a houseboat. The Garbe's will treat you well and help you out the best they can.

For I GPS I would recommend the Lowrance H2O-C for a couple of reasons. First it is easy to use. Second the color makes it easier to see in the sun, and finally it is just a flat out great unit! With this unit I would pair it up with the new '08 Navionics Premium North Chip. If you fish in Iowa, this will cover bodies of water down in you neck of the woods too.

Their Alaskans are outfitted with a lowrance or a hummingbird locater, depending on which one of the two you are provided with. They also have a 55 lb thrust trolling motor on the back. IT is definately worth upgrading to these units!

As for the fishing, look for the reef bite to be predominant, but good fishing can be found on the shorelines as well. Fishing in 30+ feet of water is fairly common and in certain areas they may be deeper. This time of the year you can troll shad raps, or any deeper running lures and have good success. I troll reefrunners or rapala taildancers, with 140-180 feet of line out. This brings these lures down to depths of 28-34 feet.

Good areas to fish are not necessarily the farthest away. Some of the closest houseboat sites have good fishing within a few minutes of them. However if I were to key in on any areas I would drive the houseboat to the Cranberry Bay area or out as far as Big Island. These areas have lots of structure to choose from and many great fishing opportunities. Plus, if you like Northern Pike, the Cranberry Bay area has lots of BIG ones!!

Hope this helps get you started!

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fishmeister_86 Veteran

fishmeister_86

Posted
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HI TBUSS,

AS T.L. DID, WELCOME TO THE RAINY LAKE FORUM. I GET ALL MY PRODUCTS FROM THE M.B.M./FAST FOOD MERCHANDISERS FOR MY RESTAURANT FROM MASON CITY (NOTICING YOUR FROM THERE) ONE OF THEIR DRIVERS...CHRIS SHOLL(SP) WHO I BELIEVE HAS WON THE IOWA STATE WALLEYE CHAMPIONSHIP HAS STAYED AT MY CABIN & I HAVE FISHED WITH HIM...EXTREMELY NICE INDIVIDUAL., AND A VERY GOOD STICK.

T.L. GAVE YOU A EXCELLENT POST. AS HE SAID YOU WILL BE HOOKED ONCE YOU EXPERIENCE RAINY...NOT ONLY FOR BEING ONE OF THE BEST WALLEYE LAKES IN THE WORLD, BUT ALSO FOR THE BREATHTAKING BEAUTY. AS I TELL MANY 1ST TIMERS WHO FISH RAINY, BRING A 28LB. OR RIVER CLAW ANCHOR WITH 130 FOOT ROPE. LOTS OF JIGS 1/8 OZ. TO 3/8 OZ., LOTS OF LINDY RIGS & WEIGHTS. I ALSO WOULD BRING ALONG CRAWLERS, LOTS OF LEECHES & PLASTICS & POWERBAITS CAN WORK WELL.

SINCERELY,

FISHMEISTER

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Bemidjifisher Contributor

Bemidjifisher

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Makes reef fishing easy, once you find them on the reef anchor on top of them and pick 'um off..

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tbuss Explorer

tbuss

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thanks very much for the info. I did a little checking on the H20-c and I found a few fellows that said the navonics chip would cause there unit to lock up all the time and they where recommended a lakemaster chip. Terry

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tbuss Explorer

tbuss

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Bill, thanks much for the info. Do you happen to carry the lowrance h20-c and the 08 navionics prremium north chip, if so how much, email me at [email protected], if not do you have a recommedation as to where I could get it. Terry

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Bemidjifisher Contributor

Bemidjifisher

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Hold off on buying your chip for the H2Oc... I have good information that the new Rainy/Lake of the Wood LakeMaster Chip may be out by then..

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fishmeister_86 Veteran

fishmeister_86

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HI TBUSS,

MOST ALL OF THE LARGER BOATS THAT GUIDE ANCHOR, IF THEY DIDN'T, THEY WOULD SPEND THE ENTIRE TIME UNTANGLING LINES., THE OTHER THING IS RAINY HAS SOME BIG WATER, AND WHEN ITS WINDY YOU BASICALLY HAVE 2 OPTIONS...FISH SHORELINES OR FISH OUT ON THE REEFS (WHERE YOU WILL WANT TO BE IN SEPT.) SMALL BELL ANCHORS WILL NOT HOLD YOU IN RAINY, YOU NEED A HEAVY CLAW ANCHOR TO HOLD, THE LONGER THE ROPE IS, THE BETTER CHANCE YOU HAVE OF HOLDING. I USE THE HEAVY ANCHOR...BUT I HAVE SAW MANY GUYS HOLD WITH THE LIGHTER RIVER ANCHORS...BUT STILL WITH ALOT OF ROPE. THERE IS A ART TO ANCHORING. WHAT I DO IS LOCATE THE FISH, MARK WITH A BOUY, HEAD INTO THE WIND, THROW THE ANCHOR WHERE I FIGURE I CAN END UP DRIFTING & HOLDING AT THE MARKER...DO IT A FEW TIMES & MOST THE TIME YOU CAN END UP RIGHT ON THE MARKER, WHICH THEN I NET THE MARKER TO ELIMINATE TANGLING IN IT. I ALWAYS TRY TO GET ON THE BREAKLINES WHERE I CAN DRIFT FROM THE SHALLOW SIDE OF THE REEF TO THE DEEP SIDE...MANY TIMES DRIFTING 20 TO 40 FEET.

SINCERELY,

FISHMEISTER

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Black_Bay Proficient

Black_Bay

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What the guys fail to tell you is when anchoring make sure you're driving the boat so you don't have to be the one lifting the anchor in and out. ;\)

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tbuss Explorer

tbuss

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do any of you know what kind of Lund Alaskan 18' that Northernair Houseboat use. What I mean are they steered with a tiller or from a consol. Terry

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