Looper Help?

[BFD2100]

I have been going up to the north shore for the past 5 years and have yet to catch a looper:( Does anyone have any advise on what to use at what depth ect. ANY advise will help. THANKS

[upnorth]

I normally fish with one or two of the three.

1. A worm on a slip sinker rig, about 2 foot leader, and a good shot of air in the tail of the worm.

2. A spawn/marshy bag on a slip sinker rig.

3. A waxie on a looper bug or another hair jig about 3 to 4 under a casting bobber.

How far out depends on the wind, the waves, how much sun, how dirty the water is. Clear, calm and sunny, as far as I can cast, over cast and windy I caught fish 40 to 50 feet out at the edge of the mud line. Nothing works under every condition.

I have also caught fish on small spinners, but the only time I have had luck with that is right in the river flow and it can get unbearably crowded there, especially at the French.

I am sure other will have a few tips too.

[traveler]

I would add casting spoons to the mix, especially this time of year. 1/2-5/8 ounce in blue/silver, orange, chartruse.

[fish_4_fun]

can we fish with live bait in the rivers like the lester and the knife? and are their any small trouts in the rivers besides loopers and salmons? and lastly, do all loopers and steelies have to be clipped in order to be kept in the knife, lester and talmadge? thanks.

[hound32]

yea in the rivers alot of people fish with spawn bags tho. And in the summer months you can get smaller rainbows in the lester up above superior street. If you go up by jean duluth road there are some spots where you can get brookies too.

[LoonASea]

All unclipped steelhead need to be released,,,,all the loopers Ive seen are clipped

LAS

[smeltUniv]

Are they catching them yet?, I was thinking about heading down there this week, I was hoping for a nice rain before I went but if their biting I might go during the day Friday.

[Northlander]

Pretty slow now. A good rain will really help. I hate to say it but we need rain.

[upnorth]

A good warm rain would really bring the fish into the rivers too. I usually like to wait until after the 1st good rain after ice out to make a trip down. When I used to live down there I wouldn't even wait til the ice went out before heading out, the drive early, early in the am is not high on my priority list.

[DeathRoe]

yea in the rivers alot of people fish with spawn bags tho.

Spawn is illegal to use in Minnesota.

[leech~~]

Spawn is illegal to use in Minnesota.

[smeltUniv]

Is the best time to fish right at sunrise or sunt se, or do they bite throughout the day, Id hate to make that trip for 2 hours of fishing.

[fish_4_fun]

spawn bags are illegal in mn. man i see people use it all the time. an nightcrawler and minnows too. but its ok to use them in the lake right?

[upnorth]

I remember this discussion from last year. I don't think spawn in bags are illegal, if it is there are a lot of outlaws fishing the North Shore streams.

[spivak]

The Sunday Duluth News and Tribune had an article in it about proposed angling changes for the North shore. One of them is to allow the use of spawn in streams from where the fish with spawn was taken. The intent is to make legal a practise which is currently illegal. That would be a hard one to enforce. The feeling I get from reading that is no one is going to get in trouble for fishing with spawn. If VHS ever becomes an issue in Lake Superior I'm sure we'll be done using spawn.