Help- I've never been to the BWCA

[Guest Kyle]

I've never been to the BWCA and I'd really like to catch some walleyes. I have heard many stories of success, so I know they are up there. On JUne 5 through the 10,I will be about 20 miles from Ely going in on 30, and then canoeing through lake 1, 2, and 3 and then into Insula. I havent had alot of experience with walleyes in general. Can anyone give me advice on where when to catch them, and on what? I heard a rumor that you cant even bring live bait in to the BWCA. Is this true? What do I need to do to catch some walleyes?

Thanks

[Great Outdoors]

hunter4life,

If you are going into Insula through the numbered lakes, you shouldn't have trouble catching fish. Use light jugs (1/16th or 1/8th oz)and/or plain hooks (#'s 4 or 6), tip with part of a crawler or a leech. Use the lightest sinker possible with the plain hook, about 20-30 inches away. Yes, you can take live bait into the BWCA.

[Guest Kyle]

Thanks for the advice, but being that I dont know much about Walleyes, how deep should I fish for them at that time?

[Mudcutter]

5 to 15FOW. Using only 1/16 to 1/8, it's tough to fish any deeper outta a canoe. Maybe a tad deeper during the day with a 1/4 OZ, but during peak times, you should have to fish no deeper than 12-13 FOW and likely even shallower. Once on a good spot, have a spare rod rigged with a slip bobber and a leech or minnow if you can get them in. Insula is about a 5-6Hr jolt for most paddlers from Lake One.

JEff

[Surface Tension]

As you found out, yes you can bring live bait. Crawlers and leeches are worth hauling in.

Get on those main lake points, reefs and wind blown shorelines. Evening is going to be your best bet. Anchor up and use slip bobbers and jigs.

[eye_point]

Bounce jig and leech off the bottom, drifting slowly, paddling slightly if necessay. I prefer flourence yellow/green Mr Twisters, with a leech. When you get one, drift a little farther, then paddle back up and drift over same area again. Best of Luck.

[Powerstroke]

Jigs are usually the easiest method to do, bobbers and slip bobbering next. Last year I found the best way was trolling. Try some different things. With the route you're taking there isn't that much portaging so I would say bringing in leeches in a must and maybe some crawlers too.

[Guest Kyle]

so when you are all talking about jigging, you mean take a jig head and just drifting with it right down on the bottom, or do you sit stationary and just bounce it up and down? Sorry if this question seems fundamental.

[nofishfisherman]

Quote:

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so when you are all talking about jigging, you mean take a jig head and just drifting with it right down on the bottom, or do you sit stationary and just bounce it up and down? Sorry if this question seems fundamental.

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You can do it either way.

1. Anchor up and verticle jig a specific piece of structure. Just put your leech on and drop the jig to the bottom and bounce it up and down.

2. Drift with the jig, lifting your rod now and then so that the jig bounces off the bottom as you go.

3. Anchor or drift and cast your jig out aways and let it sink. Reel it back in raising and dropping your rod so that it bounces the jig off the bottom now and again as you reel it back in.

Options 2 and 3 will help you cover more water faster. If you know there are fish in one spot vertical jigging is a good option, or at that point throw out the slip bobbers. Option 3 takes a very small amount of practice to get the right retrieve technique but after a few casts you'll get the hang of it.

[palisade1kid]

Quote:

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Bounce jig and leech off the bottom, drifting slowly, paddling slightly if necessay. I prefer flourence yellow/green Mr Twisters, with a leech. When you get one, drift a little farther, then paddle back up and drift over same area again. Best of Luck.

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Exactly or we use white split tail mister twister tails on a 1/4 oz jig tipped with rainbows.

Be carefull on that last 180 rod portage into her.It's all up hill and the trail is rooty.You better have fresh legs.

We beat it in there from the put in on the Kawishiway below lake 1 and it's a killer to do it all in 7 hours.Pack well my friend and may the winds be on your back.

When you get into Insula go to the north end to fish where it goes into Mary.

I've done that trip and on the south side before you get to Mary there is a great camp site,the best one of the lot.

There are a few islands to fish through that are killer.

Here's a tip.Get a rod holder and J stroke slow as in a stroke every 3 seconds on a calm day or fast enough to stay off of the bottom.

Look for tips of rocks protruding from the water and work around them too.

Once you tag one go back through that area.

My son & I have fed our group of 9 many times with eyes doing this.So much so that's it's our job now.

No more greasy dishes to do at the end of the day our job for the team is to catch dinner.

Big pike and awesome smallie action will be found too.

Look for Iguana rock on your way into Hudson .It'll be on your left right on the water.Way cool!It looks like a big lizard head.

[Guest Kyle]

Thanks CrappieKeith

[palisade1kid]

Trust me on this.

Bring white split tail twister tails (bigger) 3" I think and get a 4 lbs. of rainbows if you are going in for a week.

Make sure you oxygen pack them in a plastic bag and portage them in your minnow bucket. Do not take them out until you get in there.As you paddle put the bucket in the water to keep them cool ,but do not open or they'll die off from the portages.

I was supposed to go there June 23 rd but my boy can't make it.So I'm soooooo bummed.

I'm gonna have to see how you did.

Good luck & God's speed.

[palisade1kid]

1 more thing,

The water in there tastes great!

[Guest Kyle]

Oh, I was also going to ask about trout. I heard there were lakers up there. Is this true? How would one go about fishing those? I imagine it would be hard to do out of a canoe.

[palisade1kid]

I've never fished for them in Insula.

[Great Outdoors]

I've never heard of trout in Insula!

[palisade1kid]

That;s what I thought.

What about Mary?

[Guest Kyle]

I dont mean just in Insula, I mean in that area of the BWCA period. Or better way of asking, is there any lakes in the region I will be in that produce trout? I have only heard that there are some lakes in BWCA that have trout. Thats all I know.

[Mudcutter]

closest laker lake to Insual is likely Thomas through Kiana.

Thomas also holds nice eyes. Big and deep-clear and a bit tough to fish from a canoe but less people and bigger fish in my mind. your just getting to the real wilderenss when you hit Thomas and Fraser.

[Surface Tension]

Thomas has lake trout. You'll have to figure out what depth they're at. I'd bring some 1/2 - 3/4 oz jigs along in addition to your 1/4 oz jigs. I'd also have a sounder to find some breaks and benches out in 50 FOW. If you bring leeches you'll have your bait covered for eyes, now you need bait for lake trout. Minnows at that time won't last unless your very diligent about keeping them in cool water. Half a day with warm water blowing into your shoreline and the minnows will be dead. I'd get preserved shiners for tipping your jigs for trout. If your sitting around camp a ciscoe laying on the bottom will get you trout too. You'll have to drag your lines out to get into a those depths.

Get yourself a 2 liter insulated water jug. When you get to Ely buy your frozen ciscoes, take them out of the out of the nice foam tray and tightly package them into a ziplock.

In the water jug they go, then fill the rest of the jug with dry ice. Leave that in your pack out of the sun. Don't peak inside till your ready use them.

[palisade1kid]

That's some great info Surface tension.

[Surface Tension]

Thanks CK, you all have provided some very good info.

hunter4life, will be well prepared.

[Guest Kyle]

No kidding, Thanks guys!

[palisade1kid]

I did want to mention that the only folk you'll see are scooting to other areas. The day trippers will not come that far.

I do enjoy Insula as it's not that much of a push to get away & there's some dang fine walleye fishing there.

It would depend on how much time you'll have.

You'll have to burn 2 days,1 in & 1 going out.The rest can be spent fishing.

The bugs are picking up so you'll want to get a campsite with the wind blowing in on you.

Make darn sure you have at least a head net.Those black flies are nasty & bug dope has nil effect.

Have a great trip! Kevlar canoes rock!

[palisade1kid]

Oh 1 last tip.

Spend a night at the Holiday Inn in Ely once you come out. Hit the hot tub,enjoy a dinner from the menue and have a nice bevy recalling your trip.

Have fun!

[nofishfisherman]

One tip I have found to help when dealing with the bugs is to not wear any deodorant or anything with an artificail smell. It seams to attract those little buggers. My last trip was in late july and I made it the entire week without a single drop of bug spray and I only counted 1-2 bites all week.

The mosquitos aren't bad until dark so wear long sleves preferably a windbreaker type coat beucase the weave of the fabric is to tight for them to bite through. Wear a head net and go to bed early, sleep while the bugs are out and get up early and enjoy a nice morning bug free.

One more tip is the flies tend to go for the feet, they like the stinky smell, so i recommend not wearing open toed shoes, and also wear socks. I always bring an old pair of running shoes that I don't mind getting wet for when I am in the canoe and another pair I keep dry for when I am at camp.

[palisade1kid]

Great tip on the shoes.

I'd add that canvas converse high tops work great. Good ankle support and traction while portaging.

I do not know you're expierence level so excuse me if I'm being redundant.

You shoud pack your canoe so it rides level in the water. A windy day can make you do more paddling than you have too with the the canoe being effected . Going in a straight line is preferred.A good map and compass or better yet a GPS is a must.

Pack the least amount of gear nessesary. Remember you have to carry it all in.

Double wrap your sleeping gear in heavy duty garbage bags.

Laying in a wet bed is miserable.

Have a set of dry clothes and wet clothes.

Food that you only need water to add into works great.

Watch out for rocks!

Sun glasses are a must and a hat with a good brim.

Thwart bags are great for your most used items while portaging.

Tinkle on land ,not in the water.

Only platics are allowed ,no glass containers.

All sites have biffy's use them when needed.

Stay hydrated and have gorp for nutrients while underway.

You'll burn mega energy underway and doing the portages.

Keep your map visable on thwart bag if you have one.

Food packs need to be hung high and away from the tree.

Have a nylon bag with a softball in it attached to a rope.

Toss over a tree limb. Then pull up a rope and secure it. Take the sack to another tree and toss up over a limb. Drag the other end of the rope up and secure. In the middle of your rope that's going tree to tree there should be a pully attached with a seperate rope hanging to haul the pack way up into the air.

Bears will love you if you don't.

I had a list of things to bring put I can't find it so there's some tips I've laid out off of the top of my mind.

If you have ?'s please ask.

Again sorry if you already know all of this stuff.

[Guest Kyle]

My brother and I are the only ones going, and we are pretty darn outdoor savvy, but getting great tips like that will help me plan better, and in turn have a more enjoyable trip. There were numerous things you mentioned that I didnt think about. Not saying my brother wouldnt have, it is great to get others input and knowledge. Thank You!

[nofishfisherman]

If you are outdoor savy I am sure you'll be able to get by just fine with what you already know but there are alot of little things that can make a trip easier and more enjoyable. I was surprised by all the little things I didn't even think about on my first trip. To some extent there is something to be said for learning as you go, its all part of the first trip experience. With all the tips you got here I think you are good to go. Lots of great info on this thread for the first time BWCA'er.

The only thing I can tell you beyond what is already here is don't under estimate the amount of effort and energy can go into a hard day of travel.

Double Portaging

Double Packing

200 Rod Portages

80 pound food packs

Strong head winds

Full Campsites

Rocky Terrain

The list could go on, just make sure to drink lots of water, and snack throughout the long travel days to keep your energy up.

My first day on my first trip was a hellish day. We got a late start and didn't get tou our entry point until after 5pm (terrible idea by the way). We had to do 5 portages and atleast 10 miles before dark. That was a real push to get there, me and my canoe partner made it before dark but in order to do that my partner carried the canoe plus a pack, and I double portaged two food packs, and on my way back to portage the second pack I would jog all the way back to save time. It was an exhausting day, but it felt good to push myself. So moral to the story is plan to get to your destination earlier in the day so you don't need to jog the portages like I had to.

By the way the second canoe in our group didn't catch up with us until well after we set up camp and had a fire going.

[palisade1kid]

Give yourself plenty of time is right.

Looking at a map is a lot different than being on the water & trying to figure out where the next portage is.

It can all start to look the same after awhile.

Try to google up BWCAW tips and read up.

Pack light ,double duty items are great.

Roll all clothing. Stuff as much as you can into dry shoes for example.

If you are renting a canoe for heavens sake get a Mn.II.

They are half the weight of an aluminum and take 1/3 the energy to paddle.

Get bent shaft paddles too.