Reports?

[Pulling-M-In]

how has fishing been last weekend, and how are the acesses? I will be heading up this weekend, and am wondering where there are open landings and such.

thanks in advanced for any info

[Gail]

Pulling-M-In, anglers staying with us say their having better luck in the afternoon. Their still small, between 16 and 19 inches. One group said they boated between 60 and 70 one day. So looks good. Frontier doesn't have far to go, they'll probably be lauching small boats there in the next day or two. Rumor has it Birchdale will be plowed today!!!

[Pulling-M-In]

Does anyone have any info if they did plow birchdale, because if they did there will be some huge crowds. We are heading up there with a small 14ft and would have no problem launching over the ice, so if they did plow birchdale i think we will be trying another access like frontier to get away from the crowds of big boats. 60-70, man that a hell of a days catch, i hope we get into them like that up there.

thanks for the info Gail, let me know when someone finds out if they plowed birchdale

[Gail]

Birchdale was plowed out today, and Frontier is braking up even had a couple boats put their boats in over shore ice today. Seen lots of anglers in the open water there, haven't heard how they did yet.

[Royal Dutchman]

Bite improved today with several mid-20's and a couple of 29's reported here. Glad to see Frontier is available to take some pressure off for the W/E.

Guys who hit the river without live bait did not do as well. Rainbows & shiners doing about the same.

Good Luck!

[Northlander]

Thanks for all the good reports Gail and Royal Dutchman. Gail we will see you Monday the 27th. By the way Rob B. says "Howdy".

[Captain B.R.K]

Thanks for the Reports Dutch and Gail!

I'm wondering what size jigs you are recommending we come up with?

Also

Another question, I know you want to keep the jigs vertical, so in order to do that is it key to have a smaller jig and use the trolling motor to keep the lure vertical or upgarde the size of the jig to keep it vertical?

[Northlander]

BRK bring 1/4 to 3/4 oz. You never know what you will need. Make sure you pack all those sizes in all these colors. White, Glow, Gold, Chart, Pink, Orange, Glow Red, Glow Blue, Glow Chart, parakeet, salimander, treebark, lemonade, silver shimmer and black. Oh and dont forget your stingers, blade attatchments and rattles.

Of course you need plastic minnows, shiners, thumper tails, twister tails, ring worms, salamanders, flukes, double twisters and of course your live shiners and rainbows.

I hope you got all that and a big tackle box to put it in.

Seriously though do as I said with the jigs you just never know. I would guess I use more 3/8 than any other size on average.

[Captain B.R.K]

I think I got it all Northlander

I should have plenty of those Angel Eye Jigs in 3/8oz for those eyes' to chew on!

[Royal Dutchman]

BRK,

Sorry so slow with a reply. Looks like you're not leaving till PM so hope in time.

I use almost all 3/8. I just can't keep a 1/4 down in that critical 4 inches of bottom water. If I'm taking someone who hasn't fished current for a while (or ever) I have them tie on a 1/2 oz. Some get the feel soon and some use the 1/2 all day.

A good graphite rod is critical for feel. About the time I think everybody has graphite, someone shows up with an ugly-stick & can't figure out why they can't find the bottom with out draggin' & snaggin'.

I feel that with a lighter jig you have more line bow & current effect which gives you less bait contact & control.

Small diameter line reduces current effect also. I use 8 lb. Trilene or 10 lb Fire-line or Power-pro.

M says I spend way to much time thinking about this stuff. I beg to differ.

The bite has remained consistant with many 50+ boats. Some 29's, 28's & lots of 27's.

Keeping my fingers crossed that Frontier will get cleared today. Would sure help for the W/E.

Good Luck!

[Captain B.R.K]

It isn't to late so no need to apologize. Roger that with the jig size! I have plenty of 3/8oz jigs and some 1/2oz just in case.

Sure hope it turns out to be a nice weekend. Should make it interesting with the increased traffic

[WB make the CUT]

Just got back last night, 2 days of fishing we probabaly boated about 40 fish only 3 over 19" Not great, but I'm not complaining.

The river is in good shape, temps are about 36 as of late Sat. Friday we had no sun at all, but it was nice yesterday afternoon.

The birchdale ramp is in great shape, double ramps.

It would be my guess that the next launch west will allow for big boats very soon, if it has'nt already.

Most of our fish came on 3/8 oz fireballs, multi color

The Lindy Munchies were very helpful also, they outperformmed the gulp.

The river is being patrolled by both the OPP and US, pay attention to your location on the river, and be prepared for game checks at the landings, the CO's were very courtious and working hard!

[pelicanlanding]

Anyone having any sturgeon action?

[Royal Dutchman]

No sturgeon in my boat but many reports of fish in the 40"s.

Saw a boat yesterday fighting a sturgeon double. Thought they were crossed up for good but they did a very nice over/under rod pass and got them straightened out.

Frontier landing and Vidas landing are both open to over ice boats. Hope County will break them out today.

Open water past Clementson Bay/Rapid River. Should have open water within site from home by tomorrow.

Reports of up to 200 fish/boat per day. My luck nowhere near that. One 30 3/4" fish yesterday.

Water clarity 3-4'!

Good Luck!

[walleyes12]

are the little fork and big fork river still frozen over. I heading up this week. I know from past experience once they open up walleye fishing really slows down

[Royal Dutchman]

I haven't been that far up and couldn't really tell you anything if I went & looked. No way to tell till it happens. In fact the little fork blew out under the ice last year & did some pretty nasty stuff to the river.

My theory is that most of the bog never really froze up this winter so no major water backed up there to blow out. Temps are just about perfect with mid to upper 30's and 20's at night to firm things up again(including my parking lot). Last year we had temps in the 50's and 68 on 3/31 leading to the blow out.

Best thing is for everyone to be extra curtious to everyone one the river and ramps, not violate regs., not throw garbage in the river, and not anger the River Gods!

Good Luck!

[Scoot]

I just got back and have a few things to report. Overall, fishing was decent. Not what I'd hope for by Rainy River standards (this time of year), but decent. Three of us caught 45 fish per day. A handful of fish in the 24-26 range, but mostly smaller males. The big gals doen't seem to be in in great numbers. That being said, my buddy caught one 10 lb. 13 oz. However, it was the only really big fish I saw caught all weekend.

At the landing I heard reports of 120 - 130 fish per day from two groups. However, I believe they were hugely exaggerated. One of these groups fished near us for most of one day and they didn't catch any more fish than we did.

Second hand info- talked to a group of sturgeon fisherman who had been out all night. They reported constant action with a couple fish topping 60 lbs. They said fishing was really great. Again, this is second hand info.

Lastly, on your way to or from the landing, please stop and give those who are walking a ride. Most people do this, but some don't. Let's all help each other out.

[Willy]

If you find a good spot it is entirely possible to have those kind of numbers. We were up from Tues-Fri last week and the numbers were spectacular. We kept count and between three guys is one boat, we had one day with 200 fish. The bigs aren't there in huge numbers, but there are still a decent amount being caught and I imagine it has only got better since we left. The action seemed to double each day we were there.

[Scoot]

Willy,

Apparently you're going to argue and be difficult with every post I put up (I'm thinking back to posts from last week). Have I wronged you in the past somehow? Are you just generally grumpy?

I didn't say those numbers aren't possible- I've had those kind of numbers many times up there in the spring. Fishing was generally tougher this weekend than last week though. I've got several buddies who have been up there for over a week and they did much better earlier during the week than Sat and Sun. I also witnessed one group struggle all day and claim they caught 120 fish. We caught 45 that day and outfished them 2:1.

I agree with you, those numbers are possible. I doubt that many people actually achieved them this weekend though.

Have a nice day!

[Willy]

Scoot, I'm sorry. Wasn't trying to be a dink.

I actually talked to a friend that stayed up until Sat. and he said that they caught only around 20 fish all day whereas before the numbers were far greater.

Earlier I was just talking about safety of the hoe operators and all that goes into cleaning the landing (I think they do a good job myself) that and it does crowd once the landings open. On the river it doesn't seem too bad, but takes awhile landing the boat sometimes.

I would agree that it was a little slower than last year for sure for the size of fish caught. Most of ours were in the 15-18 inch range.

Sorry if I came off as rude or grumpy. I'm generally only that way once in a while.

Have a nice day back and good fishin!

[Eyewitness]

Just got back late last night. Drove by the Little and Big Fork and they are just starting to thaw on the edges in few spots but nothing major yet. Current was really slow. 1/8-1/4 jigs were the norm, and had to actually run the boat upstream slowly to let the jig keep up.....Rather strange, but pretty relaxing.

I would concurr with Scoot that although a few folks may have got big numbers, most I saw were probably doing about the same as my group of three, 30-50 fish a day.

Saturday was by far a much more active fish day for us, not only with #'s but with big fish as well. We managed (1)just shy of 29", (2) over 27", and (4) between 25-1/2" and 27". We also managed (2) sturgeon, one around mid 40", and one in the 60"+ range, as well as a Pike just over 10#. All in all a good weekend. If the water stays clear I would imagine the bite will be fast and furious over the next couple of weeks. Hopefully I can get up there again before the mud begins.....I am now officially in spring mode big time.......

[Captain B.R.K]

Just got back myself and a few things to report:

Ramp Access: We went out of Frontier with a 16' Lund Rebel with a 25 horsepower engine. If those ramps didn't get any better from Sunday afternoon, I'd say the bigger boats will be a chore getting in. I helped 3 boats up on their trailers and those winches definately got a work out. Bigger boats should stick to Birchdale for now- UNTIL THE RAMPS ARE CLEARED!

Fishing Report- I thought we would do better for numbers and size. We made the trip several years ago for 2 yrs in a row and did well for both. This year was not the case. Between 4 guys in the boat, we fished 2 days hard and probably boated 50-60 fish for Saturday and Sunday total! Our biggest eye was 21" with many around the 13" mark. Those bigger fish were definately caught around us, we just couldn't hook into em'. That's fishing!

River reports, etc.: The river was around 36-37 degrees. A group we ran into did have Canadian licenses and noted the north side of the river was warmer than the south side. Hence they did a bit better as well.

We did use 3/8 oz. jigs, but if you wanted to work the boat against the current, you could get away with 1/4 oz. jigs.

The Canadian police were on the river. My buddies dad did catch a 49" sturgeon and we drifted into Canadian territory. They stopped us and made sure we knew our boundries. Luckly we didn't have a line in the water.

I didd hear of people reporting 100+ eyes a boat. But must did about as good as us, except for bigger fish being caught.

Good Luck for those headed up there.

[MLaker2]

Got back last night (Monday pm), had a slow day Sunday as did most we talked to, had a better day Monday with 40-50 fish boated. Had a few 23-26 in and 20 in but most 14-16 in. By Sunday afternoon figured out dragging a jig across sandy areas were key, vertical jigging did not produce as well for us. Throw out a jig w/ 20 yds line and wait for a pick up. Chartruese and white were our best colors. We put in at Birchdale, boated up past Frontier on Sunday with less action than what we found witin a couple miles of Birchdale. Dragging a 1/4 oz upriver seemed to produce better than drifting w/ current. Then found out on Monday the best action was upriver of Frontier. Can't be everywhere at once I guess. If you want sturgeon there was a hole upriver of Frontier a bit that was pretty hot. The river really opened up a long way from Sunday am to Monday afternnon. Although there were a lot of people using the Birchdale ramp both days there were not that many people loading/unloading at any one time so no problem. With 2 ramps, 4-6 boats in or out every 5 minutes or so. Experienced, prepared fishermen make the difference over the opening day caos we all have experienced. Have fun. Good luck.

[outdoor ran]

We were next to a boat that was stopped by the fuzzy hats. They pulled out there range finder and marked the Candian side then marked way up into that creek by frontier so that they would be closer to there side. Luckly they just gave them the speech and told them if they want to fish anywhere near the middle of the river they need both license.

[SFBOY]

Those guys that think round chunks ham are bacon take themselves pretty seriously dont they? I witnessed a similar event ice fishing on LOW about 20 some miles out. Two guys in portables and snowmachines were forced to move literally 10' to get back into American waters. It just seems reasonable to assume that a guy could fish anywhere on a border river unless it separated something like North and South Korea. I have a feeling the problems with the Canadiens over invisible lines in the water is going to be nothing compared to what happens up on Red this spring. I wouldn't get caught on the wrong side of that line, but remember that I said it here first.... someone will have their boat and gear confiscated on Red this year because they are fishing on the wrong side of a line.

[Northlander]

Just got back. Lots of fish and some good size as well. Not up to last year yet but it was a blast. Thanks BDR, Dave, Vick and Jakester! Dave in our party wacked a huge 30"er and we also managed to land several fish in the 26-28" range. Lots of 17-20"ers and tons of the dinkers. No baits were consistant at all for more than a couple ours at a time. We had times where we had a hard time keeping a 3/8th down without a driftsock and others where we were drifting 1/8 oz jigs. Plastics worked well but you needed to tip them. Very few fish caught with straight plastics. River very clear.

Big boats still need to use Birchdale and pulling boats out of Frontier is a workout. Vitas is also over ice.

Remember all your safety items ( throwables, fire estinguishers, lifevests etc.) as well as every license you may need and registration. The Mn. boys were hitting everyone while we were up there. Some got warnings others got tickets.

Bring a good drift sock and move around. We found most big fish in deep stretches or pockets.

Landings are MUDDY. Crowds were big on weekend and small during the week as usuall. I hope they dont get rain and if so not much.

Little and Big Forks look ok and I doubt will be a issue for several days if at all.

Have fun and be safe.

[walleyedan]

We fished from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. yestereday and had a good day. It was nice to be back on the soft water. We sure didn't have that kind of success and the only really good report came from a couple of guys that fished the Canadian side, is that where you were? The action got better as the day went on, but we only caught about 25 walleyes and 3 sturgeon. We did however fish for sturgeon most of the afternoon. We had a 30, 45 and a 50 incher. The biggest walleyes were 24-27 inches. We used Birchdale landing and ran as far as 15 to 20 miles to the west. Overall, it was a great day.

Walleyedan

[Sportland_Bait]

Here is our report from Saturday, Sunday, and Wednesday. Fishing was pretty good on the Canadian side. Jigs and Rainbows worked best for us. We fished 13-17 feet of water, vertical jigging the whole time. Saturday my wife and I boated about around 60 and Sunday morning it was a little slower. We ended up with 10. Nothing huge but a handful up to 27 inches. Yesterday we fished all day until about 5:00 pm. We boated 80 between the three of us but only a couple over 20 inches. Overall a good couple of days. The weather was awesome and the river is still looking great. It was raining pretty good this morning, so we left for home. Stinger hooks on the jigs really helped.

Jason Erlandson

[Toby]

Fished Pelland Wed. and only wore a sweatshirt. Hilite a 15 lb muskie.Thunder and heavy rain in the falls wed. nite.The ditches were flooded to big falls. The big fork and little fork had a lot of water over the ice. They will definitely bust loose this weekend.If youre going-- go this weekend, I think the rainy river will be mud by end of next week.Sand bay on rainy was a totally sloppy mess--impassable.

[Captain B.R.K]

Just got a report from a guy (his group) I know that got back this evening. Was up on the river Thursday and only fished for 4 hours. Otherwise the other time it was raining pretty heavy. They did manage about 12-15 fish with the biggest being 26". The group stopped down to Birchdale this morning and a guy at the ramp said you could only see your jig 2" below the surface.... Needless to say they just keep the boat on the trailer and headed home.

River is pretty muddy.