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Posted

What's URL got for eelpout? I've been meaning to ask this... We pulled one up in the middle of the night. We didn't think there were any in the lake! Not a good surprise eek.gif

Posted

Red Lake used to have a very strong eelpout population. In the 80s it was common to catch a couple everynight. As the lake crashed they followd the same fate a few years later down the road. From what the fisherie biys told me they went about the same time the whitefish did for the same reasons. Although they have always been present and hopefully making a comeback, they to are an important part of the balance.

Posted

We used to catch a few every winter from '99 - 2001. But then again we were able to target the Whitefish back then. Then the warm water hit and... *BOOM*... Whitefish and Eelpout gone! The 1st fish I caught on Red was a Whitefish... back in '99 we came looking for crappie and I kept marking fish right under the ice... finally I got one to bite and it was a good size whitefish! I wasn't sure what to think about that! But we got into the crappie that night and eventually we learned that the Whitey's were good to smoke and actually good to eat too, so a couple mid-afternoon forays were spent chasing them around...

The Eel'ers we caught in Red were all quite skinny and only weighed 2-3 pounds... nothing like the chunky LOW or Cass Eelpout that I'm used to.

Good Luck!

Ken

Posted

Late 90s was really a fun time to fish up there.

Drive out, this looks good, set up the house, auger 4 holes, and proceed to catch fish all night.

Fun part was catching Crappies, Whitefish, Pike, Perch, Eelpout, and the very young Walleyes all using the same jig & minnow on the bottom. Too bad the Whitefish disappeared because that was a hoot! Every line in the house would go down at the same time when a school moved through and they would tangle each other up. \:\)

Posted

I remember in 2002 I caught a couple whitefish and wonder what the heck they were doing in red lake. I never knew they use to be plentiful in Red. Just like you guys said they were only a couple of feet under the ice, I just thought they were real high suspending crappies. \:\) Ahh the good old days when you caught your limit of 14-15 in crappies in less than half a hour.

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • leech~~
    • smurfy
      🤣 did your nose just grow a bit!😏🤭
    • Wanderer
      I hope to be fishing….  It’s so rare that I get to go, I hate passing up the opportunity. 😉   
    • leech~~
      Since the Vikings are never in it. We use it for an excuse to make some fun stuff!  Last year was a bit light. Hot cheese bean dip, hot wings and pepperoni cheese bread! 😋
    • Hookmaster
      That snow and the 15-25 mph winds on Thursday with higher gusts will be nasty drifting. I didn't go to LOW (can I say that in the this thread?🤫) this week because of it.
    • smurfy
      Who's watching the big game Sunday? More importantly what's ya'all cooking!   I like good football si I'm tuning in. Food... yea no clue yet 
    • Wanderer
      Hard to see em well enough to tell.
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the South Shore...  Ice fishing is strong across the south shore of Lake of the Woods out on Big Traverse Bay.  Most anglers are targeting deep mud with others fishing structure if available where they are going out of.  There are fish in both areas.     Some ice roads are now extending more than 16 miles out, with over two feet of ice reported in most areas. Resorts and outfitters continue increasing weight limits. As a rule, fishing continues to be very good with consistent action for anglers.  Most fishing activity is taking place in 26-32 feet of water.  Anglers are finding a healthy mix of walleyes and saugers, with plenty of opportunities to enjoy fresh fish frys and bring fish home.   On the jigging line, jigging spoons with rattles tipped with a minnow head have been consistent.  Lipless crankbaits and jigging rap style lures also doing well.   On the deadstick, a plain hook or a small jig with a live minnow 6 inches to a foot off of the bottom.    You never know when the fish will move through.  Anglers fishing the entire day normally have success.  Electronics are a big help as well. On the Rainy River...  The morning and evening hours are the best for fishing walleyes. A jig and minnow combination has been a good presentation.  A jigging spoon tipped with a minnow head is also producing some fish. Catch-and-release sturgeon fishing is still producing some big fish through the ice.  There are two sturgeon seasons on Lake of the Woods and the Rainy River, a catch and release season and a harvest season in which you can keep one fish per calendar year.    The harvest season runs from April 24th – May 7th and July 1 – Sept. 30. The catch and release season runs May 8th – May 15th and Oct. 1 – April 23rd.    Although ice conditions on the river are good, they can vary significantly due to the current, so anglers should always consult local resorts or outfitters for the most up-to-date safety information and fishing advice. Up at the NW Angle...  Ice fishing remains good at the Northwest Angle.  Resorts continue to move their fish houses staying on fish.  Some fish houses are set up on structure while others are targeting deeper mud flats.    Anglers are catching a nice mix of walleyes, saugers, jumbo perch, pike, and tullibees.  Good numbers of big crappies are still being caught in select areas and hard sided fish houses are available to target them.  Check with a NW Angle resort for info.   Jigging one line, deadsticking the second is effective.  Some days the jigging line is hot, other days the deadstick.  Some good colors have been gold, glow red, glow white, wonder bread, pink, chartreuse and orange. Lake of the Woods enjoys an extended ice fishing season with fish houses on the ice through March 31st and walleye and sauger seasons open through April 14th. Perch, crappie, and pike seasons remain open year-round.  
    • JerkinLips
      Same story, different day (Monday).  Caught several small walleyes (biggest were 14 and 15 inches) with the best bite from 2-5pm.  Caught my record walleye this winter at 6½ (inches, not pounds).  Was wondering why the bobber kept going down a couple inches for several minutes until I finally reeled it up.  Fortunately it was just hooked in the lips.  Having a lively minnow definitely improved the action.  I put down a pike sucker for the first time this winter and got an immediate hard bite.  When I went to set the hook, the line broke just above the hook.  Don't know if it was a northern bite-off or just weak line by the hook.  May try some pike suckers next trip.   Ice conditions were very good except for heavy drifting (even with very little fresh snow).  Didn't see any vehicles traveling off road except for snowmobiles and a tracked SxS, although there weren't many people out on the lake.  Water came up around my house about 1½ inches but froze very quickly with the cold weather and no snow on top.  Will probably have to block it up again next time up.   Good luck fishing and be careful of severe drifting of snow, especially with the 3-5 inches they are predicting for Wednesday night.  
    • leech~~
      Why, do they all only wear Sitka camo over there? 😏
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