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Lake Alex ice...


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Anybody been out on Alex lately? How's the ice doing? Unfortunately I've been too busy to get out there since early Feb, but have heard that some lakes just south of there are starting to show signs of giving away and was curious about Alex.

Thanks guys!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Figured I'd bump this and see if any of the locals have any input...

I'm looking to help my buddy make his Maiden Launch on April 14th, and I'm wondering how close Alex will be to Ice out, with all these cold temps about to pound in on us in the next week.

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Am going up on Friday to Alex for the weekend...anybody seen the lake lately to report?!

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Sorry I can't help, havn't been out there since the end of Feb.

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Am going up on Friday to Alex for the weekend...anybody seen the lake lately to report?!


I'm curious to know what shape the ice is in myself... As the maiden voyage of 2007 for me is tentatively scheduled for next saturday on Alex!

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Sorry it took me so long to report, but I was up at Alex last weekend. I actually got some crappie fishing in Saturday night, but unfortunately it was with a chair, sitting over a foot-thick hole in the ice out in front of the cabin. The ice was making a LOT of noise out there too...sounded like people were playing bass drums all around! Ice was stable around me though, and it was a beautiful, quiet evening to sit outside and get one last jig in the water.

Now it's time to bring on the open water!

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Sorry it took me so long to report, but I was up at Alex last weekend. I actually got some crappie fishing in Saturday night, but unfortunately it was with a chair, sitting over a foot-thick hole in the ice out in front of the cabin. The ice was making a LOT of noise out there too...sounded like people were playing bass drums all around! Ice was stable around me though, and it was a beautiful, quiet evening to sit outside and get one last jig in the water.

Now it's time to bring on the open water!


Glad you at least salvaged a good time...

I've currently rescheduled to hit the maiden voyage next Saturday up at Alex... I've got to imagine the ice will be out by then!

Hope to see you on the water this summer!

Take Care Bro!

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Report from the mother-in-law at the cabin this weekend...lots of ice and even a few ice fisherman out there STILL this past weekend. I'm beginning to wonder if we'll be able to get the dock in this weekend as scheduled!

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Report from the mother-in-law at the cabin this weekend...lots of ice and even a few ice fisherman out there STILL this past weekend. I'm beginning to wonder if we'll be able to get the dock in this weekend as scheduled!


(Contact Us Please)... So unless some other local has a report, I might have to take a little drive on Friday night to make sure the ice is out, before I head up on Saturday... I would hate to tow the boat up there, and then be staring at an ice sheet!

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This morning I noticed the ice on North Long and Round was really starting to pull away from shore and it was getting very dark. I would think they will be open pretty quick...

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This morning I noticed the ice on North Long and Round was really starting to pull away from shore and it was getting very dark. I would think they will be open pretty quick...


Yeah I'm hoping... I'm trying to think of an alternate plan, for if I get up to Alex on Saturday and it's still Iced... I wonder what the Crow Wing River looks like around Pillager... Or Lake Slyvan... ?

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Danceswith Walleye, The river is wide open. No ice at all. Above and below the damb. Ill be out this weekend chasing some crappies. Ya I know maby still a little early for the river bts I need to gets out.

Northlong 371 side is out

Let it melt, let it melt, let it melt!

Duck

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Danceswith Walleye, The river is wide open. No ice at all. Above and below the damb. Ill be out this weekend chasing some crappies. Ya I know maby still a little early for the river bts I need to gets out.

Northlong 371 side is out

Let it melt, let it melt, let it melt!

Duck


My friends actually have a place up on Lake Placcid... So I suppose I could go there... But I gave my heart to Lake Alexander last summer...

If you have something that takes you down The Alexander way for a peek, keep an eye out for me...

Thanks!

E

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I launched at 2:00 pm on Alexander on Saturday... According to the Locals I spoke with, the Lake Iced out at 10:30 am...

Fishing was the worst I've ever experienced...

I searched every shallow structure I could find... Nothing but a Dead zone... Rocks and waterlogged timber... Only structure worthy weed growth, was a couple spots on the north side, and in thoroughfare bay.

Water temps in the shallows were around 46 degrees... Main Basin was around 42...

I finally found the fish when I put some small Crappie spinners on and started trolling... They were suspended between 10-20 feet over 40 feet of water... If I even got near a sunken island or hump that came up over 40 feet deep, they vanished.

Lake was windy the first 20 mins, then DEAD CALM... Water was like Glass... With the slight fog, and heavy gray clouds the Dead silence was kind of Erie.

From what I saw, checked both landings, I was the second boat on the lake for the year, and was only 1 of four...

Of all the boats and shore fisherman I talked to, only 1 guy caught a fish... He foul hooked a walleye.

My guess is that it's going to take a week or two for the shallows to warm up, to allow the lillys and weeds to grow up to the point where they attract the pan and bait fish.

The Slop bays that are normally impassable with weeds behind the Crow/Geens island were nothing but rock and water logged timber.

We had a couple of light bites at random intervals, but nothing that made the hook up.

So the lakes open... It's just way behind the curve temperature wise...

I'd almost say it has yet to over-turn?

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I knew you made it out there this weekend! Mom-in-law was out at the cabin and reported that not only was the ice out, but she saw 2 boats, and I just knew one of them had to be WD. Great job man!

I'm chomping at the bit to get up there and get some lines wet. Have a good one, and thanks for the report!

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There was one guy out there water skiing!

I'm guessing it's going to be another two weeks before the pan fish action in the shallows really gets going... At least on the south side There's just nothing to draw them in...

I'm just shocked at how little vegitation there is right now compared to this time last year

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This time last year the vegetation had 2 more weeks of sunlight and warmth by this point! If I know that lake though, you'll go out one day here and it will look like a July-jungle down there!

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I'm headed up this Sunday to see how things may have changed...

****

Something I forgot to mention in my previous post... On the way back, we drove past a field on the north side of Alexander, and there was a herd of 30-50 deer forageing in the field...

It was quite a site to see... Makes me think I should take up deer hunting and get some land in the area!

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There's about 10 acres or so for sale to the north of the Blue Port bar that might be nice deer country!

That would be quite a site to see up there. I am always on the lookout and can usually see one along 3 over by Fish Trap, but I have never seen numbers like that before. Awesome!

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Is it 10 acres with no split-deed... Any info on Price?

Probably out of my range, but you never know until you ask!

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I'm not quite sure...there was a Brainerd area realtor that was sponsoring the Brainerd Area Forum, but now they aren't, and I can't find it. I remember it being a lot more expensive than I thought it would be though!

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I'm not quite sure...there was a Brainerd area realtor that was sponsoring the Brainerd Area Forum, but now they aren't, and I can't find it. I remember it being a lot more expensive than I thought it would be though!


\

My Fiance's 90 year old Grandmother sold her place on the Northside to her son, for a steal of a family discount...

One of my "Loose Goals for the Future" is to someday get a place out on Alexander... Whether I retire there or move there... Something about that lake that I just love.

I night fish it a lot in the summer, and then fight the fatigue making the hour long drive back home.... I don't know how many decades I can keep that up!

LOL!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hey Dances.......How was the water level looking? Is the lake still down pretty good? Thanks

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Hey Dances.......How was the water level looking? Is the lake still down pretty good? Thanks


I was up there on 4/29... Got into some nice Crappie and Sunny action... Saw a pair of Musky sunning in the shallow bay... They actually came up about 3 feet from the boat... Female kept staring at us while the beat up male just kept nudging her

Pretty cool sight.

As for the water level... It's not down that much at all...

Based on the rock on the north end of Hay Stack island... I'd call it a foot lower than where it was when I last fished Alexander on open water on September 15th 2006.

****

Say I'm thinking about taking my Dad up that way around Father's Day...

(My Dad's ever reducing mobility and memory has him not long from the nursing home... I took the whole family out for dinner yesterday, and my Dad told me he wants to get out on one last real fishing trip one last time while he still can.)

Does anyone know if that Shady Inn is actually a cottage rental... Or is it just a time share deal?

***

Also on the north end, it looks like there's a Camper park... Is that an actual campground/Camper time share... Or is it just some guy who lets a bunch of his buddy's keep campers there?

Thanks!

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I don't believe the Shady is renting out any more. If I understand correctly, they sold all the individual cabins off a few years ago. I am not sure of the camper arrangement on the other end either.

Sorry I couldn't be more help, but best of luck to you though. That's great that you'll be able to get out with your dad like that!

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Look into the new resort that is down in the SE corner of the lake. They turned the old Bible Camp into a resort. Not sure of how many cabins, etc. but it is a viable choice.

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As for the water level... It's not down that much at all...

Based on the rock on the north end of Hay Stack island... I'd call it a foot lower than where it was when I last fished Alexander on open water on September 15th 2006.


A foot is a LOT of water! shocked.gif The water level should be at its highest right now, it will only go down from here. If it is starting out that low, then it will probably be really low by Fall.

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Quote:

As for the water level... It's not down that much at all...

Based on the rock on the north end of Hay Stack island... I'd call it a foot lower than where it was when I last fished Alexander on open water on September 15th 2006.


A foot is a LOT of water! shocked.gif The water level should be at its highest right now, it will only go down from here. If it is starting out that low, then it will probably be really low by Fall.


Yeah but a foot is (Contact Us Please) good when you consider that some of the water level reports I've caught around central and North central MN are talking about numbers like 3-4 feet down from last year.

And we're just at the start of the transpiration cycle right now... (Tree leaves increase humidity, and allow for atmospheric energy to create the late spring and summer rains.) There's going to be some delluding rains coming in the next couple of weeks.

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Look into the new resort that is down in the SE corner of the lake. They turned the old Bible Camp into a resort. Not sure of how many cabins, etc. but it is a viable choice.


Do you have any contact info?

Last I heard that converted resort went belly up, and has been sitting empty.

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I was looking at a real estate web site and came accross a bunch of assocaition cabins for sale on Alex in the SE corner of the lake. I wonder if thats the bible camp converting over to an association.

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • leech~~
      Nope not me.  May want to go nextdoor and ask around?  
    • smurfy
      Looks to me like Leech brought his chair home!!😅😆
    • Brianf.
      I'm not there, so I can't tell exactly what's going on but it looks like a large area of open water developed in the last day with all of the heavy snow on the east side of wake em up Narrows. These two photos are from my Ring Camera facing north towards Niles Point.  You can see what happened with all of snow that fell in the last three days, though the open water could have been wind driven. Hard to say. .  
    • SkunkedAgain
      Black Bay had great ice before but a few spots near rockpiles where there were spots of open water. It looks like the weight of the snow has created a little lake in the middle of the bay.  
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the south end...   Thanks to some cold spring weather, ice fishing continues strong for those still ice fishing.  The bite remains very good.  Most resorts have pulled their fish houses off for the year, however, some still have fish houses out and others are allowing ATV and side by sides.  Check social media or call ahead to your favorite resort for specifics. Reports this week for walleyes and saugers remain excellent.   A nice mix of jumbo perch, pike, eelpout, and an occasional crappie, tullibee or sturgeon being reported by anglers. Jigging one line and using a live minnow on the second line is the way to go.  Green, glow red, pink and gold were good colors this week.     Monster pike are on a tear!  Good number of pike, some reaching over 45 inches long, being caught using tip ups with live suckers or dead bait such as smelt and herring in 8 - 14' of water.   As always, work through a resort or outfitter for ice road conditions.  Safety first always. Fish houses are allowed on the ice through March 31st, the walleye / sauger season goes through April 14th and the pike season never ends. On the Rainy River...  The river is opened up along the Nelson Park boat ramp in Birchdale, the Frontier boat ramp and Vidas boat ramp.  This past week, much of the open water skimmed over with the single digit overnight temps.   Areas of the river have popped open again and with temps getting warmer, things are shaping up for the last stretch through the rest of the spring season, which continues through April 14th.   Very good numbers of walleyes are in the river.  Reports this week, even with fewer anglers, have been good.  When temps warm up and the sun shines, things will fire up again.   Jigs with brightly colored plastics or jigs with a frozen emerald shiner have been the desired bait on the river.  Don't overlook slow trolling crankbaits upstream as well.   Good reports of sturgeon being caught on the river as well.  Sturgeon put the feed bag on in the spring.  The bite has been very good.  Most are using a sturgeon rig with a circle hook loaded with crawlers or crawlers / frozen emerald shiners. Up at the NW Angle...  Ice fishing is winding down up at the Angle.  Walleyes, saugers, and a number of various species in the mix again this week.  The bite is still very good with good numbers of fish.  The one two punch of jigging one line and deadsticking the second line is working well.   Check with Angle resorts on transport options from Young's Bay.  Call ahead for ice road guidelines.  
    • CigarGuy
      With the drifting, kind of hard to tell for sure, but I'm guessing about a foot and still lightly snowing. Cook end!
    • PSU
      How much snow did you get on Vermilion? 
    • Mike89
      lake here refroze too...  started opening again yesterday with the wet snow and wind...  very little ice left today...
    • Hookmaster
      A friend who has a cabin between Alex and Fergus said the lake he's on refroze. He texted me a pic from March 12th when it was open and one from 23rd when it wasn't. 🤯
    • SkunkedAgain
      I don't think that there has been any ice melt in the past few weeks on Vermilion. Things looked like a record and then Mother Nature swept in again.   I'll give my revised guess of April 21st
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