Lake Minnewaska Fishing Reports - Ice Conditions

[ParaPro]

DROVE BY YESTERDAY AND THERE ARE SOME NICE PLOWED ROADS TO DRIVE ON.. i THINK YOULL BE OK

[Greenhornet84]

Gonna give waska a shot tonight. Anyone still picking up afew eyes at night still? Last time up we did ok in about 17 feet but it's been a while. any new reports?

[123fish]

We fished from Friday noon until Monday at sundown. That was by far the slowest fishing we have experienced in the four years that I have been going there. Did not fish walleyes although we did catch one with a tip up. The fish we caught were extremely nice (bluegills and crappies) but they were few and far between. There were seventeen of us fishing and we figured we had maybe a hundred bluegills and twenty crappies total. Far below our totals from previous years. Not near the houses on the lake as there has been in the past either. Could not believe the amount of three inch perch that we came across.they were virtually every where we stopped and tried. First time we came across that also. I saw one car on the lake and he was parked right next to the main plowed road. Don't think fora second that you are going to take a car on waska and be able to go wherever you want. Not happening. I pulled two different four wheel drive pickups out of rock hard drifts that a couple of our guys had gotten stuck. Didn't catch a lot of fish but we had the usual good time. Looking forward to next year already.

P.S. The ice was 30 plus inches thick.

[b123]

Has anyone been out lately? Haven't fished out here on the ice in years, but my brother convinced me to go try waska so were giving it a try. What's travel like? Just trying to get the kids on some panFish action so travel will be limited, any general ideas?

[mnvikes32]

Over a hundred sunnies / 20 crappies sounds pretty successful in my fishing handbook.

[russ]

I'd get a different handbook 120 fish for 17 people? That's only 7 fish per person over 3 days or 2.4 fish per person per day.

[wetaline1]

Has anyone been out lately? Haven't fished out here on the ice in years, but my brother convinced me to go try waska so were giving it a try. What's travel like? Just trying to get the kids on some panFish action so travel will be limited, any general ideas?

[wetaline1]

Gonna give waska a shot tonight. Anyone still picking up afew eyes at night still? Last time up we did ok in about 17 feet but it's been a while. any new reports?

Still about same. Day/weather dependent; few to some in that depth area. Nothing like it was.

[123fish]

Russ is right. It was pretty poor fishing compared to the previous three years I was there. The first day fifteen of us fished from noon to 5:30 p.m. In the last hour and half of fishing I caught a perch, crappie, and six sunnies. The other fourteen guys had exactly zero. That's pretty poor fishing in my book. We had about forty five minutes of decent fishing the next morning at sunrise and that was pretty much it for the rest of the trip. It's been terrible down here in southwest Minnesota also.

[Rookie13]

Just got off the lake after 1.5 days of fishing. Saw lots of fish sunnies and crappies on the camera but, couldn't get them to bite. I tried everything from bare hooks to jigs with minnows , wax worms, euro larva, and mouses. They would come right up to the bait and just look at it. I even had a 1-2 lb. northern try and pull the minnow off the hook.

[Rookie13]

If you go to Minnewaska bring an auger extension. I barrier mine right up to the motor and was just able to punch through.

Anyone know a place that still has an extension for a Strike Master. I stopped at 8 places and they were all sold out.

[creepworm]

I just ordered one from reeds. Only place I could find one.

[pushbutton]

Just got off the lake after 1.5 days of fishing. Saw lots of fish sunnies and crappies on the camera but, couldn't get them to bite. I tried everything from bare hooks to jigs with minnows , wax worms, euro larva, and mouses. They would come right up to the bait and just look at it. I even had a 1-2 lb. northern try and pull the minnow off the hook.

Your not alone. Got my behind handed to me this weekend in a nearby lake. Worst fishing all year a week after some of the best….it happens

[clayton08]

Bite has been tough lately gotta keep moving if you actually wanna catch fish. Good week for it though.

[coolhand]

Do I need a extension? Coming up in the morning.

[LandDr]

Yes you do

[coolhand]

Even if I am using a portable?

[ParaPro]

coolhand an extension is necessary!

[coolhand]

Thanks guys. They are hard to find now.

[wetaline1]

Fished Wednesday and Thursday this week on Glenwood end, no extension needed! Its at the knuckles... you have to kick snow and slush away... but, drilled 20+ holes and never came up short

[ParaPro]

Cool, check with dj's in montevideo or Arties bait in Ortonville

[Greenhornet84]

Any crappie or gill reports? Haven't heard much lately with all this nice fishing weather we have had. Thinking about trying out the glenwood side ths weekend.

[wetaline1]

I wouldn't. I'd go just about anywhere else with a plowed road. It's been awful out there as far as panfish on Glenwood end.

[BLACKJACK]

I wouldn't. I'd go just about anywhere else with a plowed road. It's been awful out there as far as panfish on Glenwood end.

You think maybe Minnewaska is getting over fished?? Been a lot of fishermen and houses out there the last few years. Its a big lake but that kind of pressure has to affect the panfish population.

[LandDr]

Over fished...not at all. You put the camera down and they are all over down there...just extremely slow at biting.

When the temps got up to 29 a week or so ago, the fish got really active where I was at. I dropped some shrimp down the hole and it was a frenzy. But when it got cold again...they would just sit there and look.

Maybe because Waska is so shallow that it responds to temp and pressure faster and longer than other lakes...I don't know.

Also...the fish have these fins...they swim around. A couple weeks ago the fish disappeared where I was fishing...so out we went drilling holes and looking for them...found them about 100 yds away. A couple years ago they moved and I would them at the other end of the weedline I was fishing. Clayton moves around a lot and finds a lot of fish...just gotta find them...and then also sometimes you have to find active fish, especially with these cold temps and pressures.

It's still called fishing.

[dspohn]

Does anyone know how much ice there is? Don't have an extension wondering if i can still drill a hole.

[wetaline1]

You dont need an extension. Its close though.

[Greenhornet84]

Tried waska over the weekend ended up with 10 nice crappies. Not much of a bite during the day under our shack. All at night. 17 feet

[BLACKJACK]

Over fished...not at all. You put the camera down and they are all over down there...just extremely slow at biting.

When the temps got up to 29 a week or so ago, the fish got really active where I was at. I dropped some shrimp down the hole and it was a frenzy. But when it got cold again...they would just sit there and look.

Maybe because Waska is so shallow that it responds to temp and pressure faster and longer than other lakes...I don't know.

Also...the fish have these fins...they swim around. A couple weeks ago the fish disappeared where I was fishing...so out we went drilling holes and looking for them...found them about 100 yds away. A couple years ago they moved and I would them at the other end of the weedline I was fishing. Clayton moves around a lot and finds a lot of fish...just gotta find them...and then also sometimes you have to find active fish, especially with these cold temps and pressures.

It's still called fishing.

I understand fishing is fishing. I also heard people say that the crappies would never get fished out of Red Lake, but when the fisherman flocked in there, they did. Lots of fisherman are flocking onto Minnewaska.

[Greenhornet84]

42" where we were