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I was just wondering what lakes are good on opener? What depths, what kind of bait, what colors? I am going to be fishing Osaksis on Saturday night but I need a spot to go Saturday morning. Any suggestion would be appreciated. Thank you

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Good luck on Osakis! For a change you could try the Chain of Lakes in Alexandria. Depending on how the weather cooperates between ice out and opener, Carlos and LeHommeDieu can be very good choices, with Geneva a solid third. Jig and minnow in about 12-14 ft should do the trick when you get on the fish. Trolling cranks up shallow...6-8 feet...in turbid water or near dark should pull some fish on the chain as well.

Reno and Mary tend to be the hot waters on opener. They are shallow bowl lakes that warm early and the bite is usually on...but so are the crowds! You'll find a fair amount of traffic on Osakis as well. If you want to 'get away' from the crowds, try a couple smaller lakes, like Louise or Victoria...even Latoka would be a quieter option. Good luck on the opener...

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Northeast Outfitters
915 Hwy 29 N NE
Alexandria, MN 56308
(320) 763-9598

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Miltona and Ida are also very good lakes for walleyes. These lakes will also be crowded on opener.
Farther to the northwest, Otter Tail and Walker lakes are also good choices.
There is no shortage of great lakes in the Alexandria Area. You know the old saying, "so many lakes, so little time."

Good luck on opener, be sure to post how you did!

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Good Fishin'
Skeets
[email protected]

[This message has been edited by Skeets (edited 04-16-2002).]

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I've heard that Big Chippewa can be good also. My parents owned a lake home on little Darling for over 20 years and we would walk down the beach from the house and fish the channel from little Darling to Carlos after dark. It was definitely a hit or miss situation. There are numerous humps in big Darling worthy of fishing for walleyes.

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bigfishin..

try a jig and minnow in the 14-18 foot range. The weedline on most of the area lakes runs about there, and you can cover some water quickly to find the active fish.

------------------
Northeast Outfitters
915 Hwy 29 N NE
Alexandria, MN 56308
(320) 763-9598

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Hammer...trolling plugs is a great way to fish 'eyes on Ida. I've got a buddy on Pilgrim Point...a few times we'll get a couple guys on the pontoon and pull plugs under a full moon....always a good bite. Should work just as well on Latoka and Carlos as well. Miltona is a great lake for trollin cranks, too. Again, full moon night bite on the flats.

Stop in when you come through again!
We'll start summer hours soon...basically daylight, we're open! (6:00am- 7pm...later as the daylight grows...after opener)

------------------
Northeast Outfitters
915 Hwy 29 N NE
Alexandria, MN 56308
(320) 763-9598

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ghotierman,

Drove by your place this weekend. I didn't stop because it was snowing and couldn't tell if you were open. I will stop in the future since I come in to town that way.

Got a question. Do many guys pull plugs on a "few" of the area lakes for eyes' over deep water? I have three lakes I'm really curious about fishing this way. Latoka, Carlos and Ida. This works well here and only guess it might work well there.

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