ottertail area fishing in August

[Guest]

Hi there...

I am coming up to Ebert's on Star lake Aug. 11 - 18/19. I fished the ottertail lakes area as a kid, mainly Rush, but my dad and uncles hit many other lakes in the area, pulling spinners for walleyes/northerns. I have never fished Star, and I am looking for any info. on Star, Lida, McDonalds, Pines, Rush, etc. for walleyes/northern/bass.

Also, I am hoping to find some panfish action, for both myself and my girlfriend. Any help there would also be appreciated. I have been to the DNR website and used the lake reports to target Dead/Star/Rush/Buchanan for the panfish.

Lastly, I remember fishing a little lake Called Head once when some friends of my dads convinced him that there were good crappies there. We did very well, but the DNR hasn't surveyed it since '77, and there doesn't seem to be a public access. Any info. on this would be great.

Thanks for your time...

David

[GullGuide]

I'm pretty familiar with the area, but I'll let Paul fill ya in.
As for Head Lake, there are some real monster Bluegills out there. Unfortunately, there is not a public access that you can get a boat into. There is one for the slough, but you have to carry your boat a ways. The resort used to let people through, but last I heard(last summer) that they were not allowing non-guests to access through there anymore. There also used to be a farmer that would let people in but he shut down the access for insurance reasons.
Good Luck,
>"////=<

[Paul Rohweller]

Hi deystone,
Welcome to fishingminnesota.com!
Gullguide hit the nail on the head with the response on head lake. As far as panfish action goes I have been getting some decent gills on kerbs lake, a little but extremely deep puddle attatched to little mcdonald lake. Crappies after dark there too.
Alot of the same strategies you used as a kid still work wonders around here, pulling spinners will never go out of style it seems, just find a weededge or a deeper weed flat and go to work! Let the fish tell you what they want colorwise, I would start with a hammered gold colorado blade with red or orange beads.
I tend to fish lida alot more than star lake. Last trip there the bigger pike were running in 23 feet of water, it seems the shallower you went the smaller the northerns became. Depths to start looking for walleyes would be from 16 to 23 feet. Trolling your crawler harnesses and covering some ground you should be able to come up with some fish.
some days, especially cloudy windy days you might want to go right up in the shallows in search of those walleyes. Hope this helps a bit and have a fun trip!! Paul

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Paul Rohweller
Pine to Prairie Guide Service
218-962-3387
http://fishingminnesota.com/pinetoprairie

[Guest]

Dead lake is loaded with pan fish and you can catch them all day long. The bowling alley's are located on the south side of the East lake basin, west of Indian bay. Pull into the middle of the reeds and go to town. slip bobbers work well, so does dropping a hook over the side of the boat with a split shot. Walleyes are tough in the summer. Ottertail is the better walleye lake, never fished star.....good luck.

[Guest]

Dead lake is also loaded with bass by the way,one of the better bass lakes in the state and not alot of people are aware of that fact.

[Guest]

Snook (or other bass nuts),

I'm a bass-a-natic and have fished on 29 lakes in Ottertail county over the past few years, but Dead has not been on my hit list (yet)...more details please? Also, I'm posting a ? on the forum (Ottertail County smallmouth action?) to try to gain a little insight on the smallie situation on Clitherall and Ten Mile (+ others). Thanks in advance.

Freckled Lady Bucket

[This message has been edited by Freckled Lady Bucket (edited 07-31-2001).]

[Guest]

Paul,

Thank you very much for the info. on the spinners; it's funny that you suggest hammered gold colorado blades with red/orange beads. My dad swore by those, made by a guy named Hans, when I was a kid. Now, I have two other questions, if I may. First, is there a general average length? I like to tie my own when I can, and knowing a standard length will help a lot. Secondly, what type of weight system would you suggest? We always used keel wieghts, but these don't seem as ideal as either a 3 way rig or a bottom bouncer. Actually, if these are OK, then I am wondering if my equipment is suited for this. I just bought a 7 1/2 foot medium-light IM7 spinning rod, which I figured would be good for live bait rigs and slip bobbering. Would a large ( 1-2 oz.) bottom bouncer be a little too big??

Thanks again for the help, not only to you but to all who have offered it; it is most appreciated.

David

[Guest]

Dead is a big lake with lots of bays and islands. there is a large shallow area in the middle of the lake where the north arm intersects with the other two there are also a couple islands near by. I have had good luck with Buzz baits and spinners in this area, Northerns as well as bass.The east arm has lots of point and some lillie pads wher i've caught bass. Also try the weedline in Indian bay. Once your on the lake you'll see what I mean lots of good bass areas. It's a big lake so take your time and watch out for the sunken island and the rock bars.

[Paul Rohweller]

I like my spinners to fall into the 4 to 5 foot range. I tie most of my spinners for walleyes on 12 lb trielene xt in the green shade. I move the line test up when I'm in pike country. I also still use those trolling sinkers, bead chain type. I like them because they dont hang up in the weeds as much as a 3 way or bouncer. Funny you should mention Hans. He tied alot of spinners (thousands)and is one of the unsung pioneers of spinner fishing for walleyes. He was doing it a long time before lindy little joe came out with the mass marketed stuff. If we had a local fishing hall of fame he deserves to be in it.
It sounds like your dad has been fishing with alot of the oldtimers around here, I bet hes even got a pool cue for a pole about 4 feet long with an old abu garcia ambassadeur on it and strung with at least 17 pound test.
Your rod should have the ratings on it just above the handle. I think you will be fine tho, probably no need to go all the way up to two oz. If you mark fish and can only catch one or two mix it up a bit and try a lindy rig and slow your presentation down, it might trigger the less aggressive fish. I have also had decent luck with a hammered gold blade with chartruse beads. Paul

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Paul Rohweller
Pine to Prairie Guide Service
218-962-3387
http://fishingminnesota.com/pinetoprairie