Jump to content
  • GUESTS

    If You  want access  to member only forums on FM, You will need to Sign-in or  Sign-Up now .

    This box will disappear once you are signed in as a member.

Recommended Posts

Hey all, I have been doing a little research and watching some YouTube videos on minnow trapping. I wondered if any of you trap your own minnows and if so, what method do you use?? It seems a lot of people use the cylinder traps with bread or dog food as bait and I wondered if that's something that also worked on Vermilion.

I know minnows are pretty cheap, I just like the idea of being resourceful more than anything! Appreciate any help or advice you guys can offer!

Edited by Jrod0582
Link to comment
Share on other sites

i have had luck with bread and  or  dry dog food  for  my trap  but i have never tried to trap in a lake  only streams

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 'we have more fun' FishingMN Builders

If your dropping off a dock with a lot of heavy waves, I would go with dog food as the bread just falls apart right out of the trap.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Usually the only thing that you will catch in a minnow trap in Vermilion is Rusty Crayfish,small perch, or very small panfish. All are poor or illegal to use as bait.

The screen type traps work pretty well. Use bread, dog food, and white Styrofoam  packing peanuts as bait.

Beaver ponds and creeks produce the best bait. In this area that will be mostly creek chubs, river shiners, rainbows, suckers, and fathead chubs.

Cliff

  • Thumbs Up 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi,in uninfested lakes,a gees minnow trap will catch many minnows with both baits.But I have a question myself,what water temp do the miinnows move in?

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I can't help you on the water temps. Never checked!

Cliff

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I can guarantee if you hang a minnow trap off our dock it will be filled with rusty crayfish.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 'we have more fun' FishingMN Builders
2 hours ago, Fish Head said:

I can guarantee if you hang a minnow trap off our dock it will be filled with rusty crayfish.

Well, if your lake has them. Never got one cray in mine ever off the dock. It would be kind of fun though to try a big Rusty boil sometime. :)

  • Thumbs Up 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the feedback everyone! It's clear I need to be looking for a stream or river to make it trapping worth while. I appreciate the help.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, leech~~ said:

Well, if your lake has them. Never got one cray in mine ever off the dock. It would be kind of fun though to try a big Rusty boil sometime. :)

Done it numerous times. Plenty of large ones if you sort through them. Lot of work but they sure are tasty. Any restaurants on the lake ever do this? Feel like there would be some interest in that

  • Thumbs Up 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

CT,

I do not think that the restaurants can sell them legally because they would not have been inspected.

They are tasty! 

Cliff

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We do a boil or two every summer on my parents lake..........sadly this lake is in Brainerd.  Those buggers take over like no ones business.

  • Thumbs Up 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 'we have more fun' FishingMN Builders
2 hours ago, JP Z said:

We do a boil or two every summer on my parents lake..........sadly this lake is in Brainerd.  Those buggers take over like no ones business.

Which lake? We're on Edwards all summer.

Edited by leech~~
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I believe it is illegal to trap in streams that have trout.  Someone can correct me if I'm wrong.

I used to trap minnows in a pond near my house.  An hour and I'd have a couple dozen and if I left it over night I'd have hundreds or even thousands.  Mix of fat heads and rainbows.  The square traps yielded more than the cone style ones for some reason. Bread worked better than dog food.  Using a thicker type bread like a hotdog bun stayed together better than regular loaf bread.

We'd also seign shiners when they'd run on the shores of lakes in early summer.  Shiners wouldn't go in the traps when they were running.  Their attention was focused on making shiner love, not eating.

  • Thumbs Up 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 4/26/2016 at 5:26 PM, Cliff Wagenbach said:

Vermilion is full of the nasty little beggars!:(

Cliff

Haven't made it to me yet.  But I am ready with trap, salt, and propane burner.   Last I heard they were in Niles Bay and moving west. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Figured that was the case Cliff. Too bad, giant crawfish jambalaya a few times a summer would be pretty fun!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

FowlSki,

You are correct on all accounts!

I did catch a lot of shiners if the trap was in a spot that forced them to try to pass through it.

Have to make sure that your DNR number is on the trap also!

Traps have to be checked at least once every 24 hours too.

Cliff

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This thread has given me a renewed desire to toss a minnow trap in my beaver swamp. May they be plump and plentiful. Thanks for the inspiration.

  • Thumbs Up 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 'we have more fun' FishingMN Builders
1 hour ago, SkunkedAgain said:

This thread has given me a renewed desire to toss a minnow trap in my beaver swamp. May they be plump and plentiful. Thanks for the inspiration.

While your at it throw in a Gunny sack with a rock and piece of old meat in it or coffee can with pen size holes and catch a few leeches for fishing as well. ;)

  • Thumbs Up 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Or I could stand knee deep in the muck while I pull out the minnow trap, and just pick the leeches off my legs!

  • Thumbs Up 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, SkunkedAgain said:

This thread has given me a renewed desire to toss a minnow trap in my beaver swamp. May they be plump and plentiful. Thanks for the inspiration.

I was thinking the same thing. I was opening up my cabin in Western Wisconsin last weekend and cleaned out the bunkhouse. I noticed my minnow trap which I haven't used in 4 years. I was unsuccessful at my previous attempts. When I'm up there for the week I thought it would be fun to be resourceful but realized I don't know where to target them. I soaked some traps on the East End of Vermilion last summer and was amazed at how quickly they were loaded up with Rustys. We had our first boil - lots of work but fun nonetheless!

 

07-06-2014_0053-1.JPG

  • Thumbs Up 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I threw out a minnow trap in a small creek a couple of days ago and caught around 6 dozen very nice creek chubs!

Will be great bait for the opener!

Cliff

P5050001.JPG

  • Thumbs Up 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nice haul Cliff.

I walked back into the woods on Friday morning and tossed out a trap in the big beaver pond with a slice of bread and a rock for weight. On Saturday morning I moved it to a new spot. On Sunday morning I pulled it again with still no minnows but two snails. It was shallow though. I might try tossing it in the deeper end by the dam.

I may not have caught minnows but I did walk out each time with a bunch of wood ticks. Unfortunately, they all experienced similar deaths by flame.

Edited by SkunkedAgain
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Skunked,

I have also found a lot of ticks this spring!

Cliff

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Skunked - try deeper pool - also, sometimes shaded areas hold more minnows.

Remember  - opening on down stream side.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

For what it is worth, treating clothes that you wear in the woods with permethrin is said to be effective against ticks.  Permethrin is cheap in the farm department at FFor online. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The best beaver dam for minnows we have access to was blown up last fall. Much less water and more concentrated minnows. Using dog food the trap was packed full in 3 hours.  I wasn't expecting that.  Now just to keep them alive for 4 days.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.



  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • mulefarm
      With the early ice out, how is the curlyleaf pondweed doing?
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the south end...   The big basin, otherwise known as Big Traverse Bay, is ice free.  Zippel Bay and Four Mile Bay are ice free as well.  Everything is shaping up nicely for the MN Fishing Opener on May 11th. With the walleye / sauger season currently closed, most anglers are targeting sturgeon and pike.  Some sturgeon anglers are fishing at the mouth of the Rainy River, but most sturgeon are targeted in Four Mile Bay or the Rainy River.  Hence, pike are the targeted species on the south shore and various bays currently.   Pike fishing this time of year is a unique opportunity, as LOW is border water with Canada, the pike season is open year round. The limit is 3 pike per day with one being able to be more than 40 inches. All fish 30 - 40 inches must be released. Back bays hold pike as they go through the various stages of the spawn.  Deadbait under a bobber, spinners, spoons and shallow diving crankbaits are all viable options.   Four Mile Bay, Bostic Bay and Zippel Bay are all small water and boats of various sizes work well. On the Rainy River...  Great news this week as we learned sturgeon will not be placed on the endangered species list by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.     The organization had to make a decision by June 30 and listing sturgeon could have ended sturgeon fishing.  Thankfully, after looking at the many success stories across the nation, including LOW and the Rainy River, sturgeon fishing and successful sturgeon management continues.   A good week sturgeon fishing on the Rainy River.  Speaking to some sturgeon aficionados, fishing will actually get even better as water temps rise.     Four Mile Bay at the mouth of the Rainy River near the Wheeler's Point Boat Ramp is still producing good numbers of fish, as are various holes along the 42 miles of navigable Rainy River from the mouth to Birchdale.   The sturgeon season continues through May 15th and resumes again July 1st.   Oct 1 - April 23, Catch and Release April 24 - May 7, Harvest Season May 8 - May 15, Catch and Release May 16 - June 30, Sturgeon Fishing Closed July 1 - Sep 30, Harvest Season If you fish during the sturgeon harvest season and you want to keep a sturgeon, you must purchase a sturgeon tag for $5 prior to fishing.    One sturgeon per calendar year (45 - 50" inclusive, or over 75"). Most sturgeon anglers are either a glob of crawlers or a combo of crawlers and frozen emerald shiners on a sturgeon rig, which is an 18" leader with a 4/0 circle hook combined with a no roll sinker.  Local bait shops have all of the gear and bait. Up at the NW Angle...  A few spots with rotten ice, but as a rule, most of the Angle is showing off open water.  In these parts, most are looking ahead to the MN Fishing Opener.  Based on late ice fishing success, it should be a good one.  
    • leech~~
      Nice fish. I moved to the Sartell area last summer and just thought it was windy like this everyday up here? 🤭
    • Rick G
      Crazy windy again today.... This is has been the norm this spring. Between the wind and the cold fronts, fishing has been more challenging for me than most years.  Panfish have been moving in and out of the shallows quite a bit. One day they are up in the slop, the next they are out relating to cabbage or the newly sprouting lilly pads.  Today eye guy and I found them in 4-5 ft of water, hanging close to any tree branches that happened to be laying in the water.  Bigger fish were liking a 1/32 head and a Bobby Garland baby shad.   Highlight of the day way this healthy 15incher
    • monstermoose78
    • monstermoose78
      As I typed that here came a hen.  IMG_7032.mov   IMG_7032.mov
    • monstermoose78
      So far this morning nothing but non turkeys. 
    • monstermoose78
      Well yesterday I got a little excited and let a turkey get to close and I hit the blind!!
    • smurfy
      good......you?? living the dream..in my basement playing internet thug right now!!!!!! 🤣 working on getting the boat ready.......bought a new cheatmaster locator for the boat so working on that.   waiting for warmer weather to start my garden!!!
    • monstermoose78
      How is everyone doing? Holy moly it’s chilly this morning I stayed in bed and will hunt later today when it warms up.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.