PELICAN LAKE WALLEYE POPULATION

[mrjigger]

I am going to be spending some time up in Orr for work sometime after the opener. I know Pelican lake is more known for bass and panfish, but I was just curious how good of a walleye fishery it is?

Any other lakes in the area that are better for walleye?

thanks.

[mrjigger]

BEUHLER, BEUHLER....

Come on guys, I am not familiar with the area or looking for specific spots. I can find the fish.

I am just wondering whether or not it is even worth my time to fish for walleyes on Pelican.

I will be staying for a couple days right in Orr and fishing after work in the evenings. How far of a drive is Vermillion?

thanks.

[thedeadsea]

Jigger, there is never much talk about Pelican on this forum even though this is the dedicated board for that lake. Try posting your question on the Kab-Nam board as well.

There are some eyes in Pelican but the guys I know hit it primarily for panfish and pike. No experience on either of these lakes but know people have had good luck on both Elephant and Echo for eyes.

Depending on how big of a boat you have and how far you want to drive, learning Crane-Sandpoint-Little V-Nam-Kab would be worth your time. Lots of water up there. My personal favorite of the aforementioned is Little V. It has always been good to me. Just know the slot limits and where the international border is.

Hit the local bait shops when you get up here and ask some questions, you wont always get what you are looking for but some of the guys will help get you on the fish.

Steve

[Casey Sunsdahl]

I don't know much about the pelican fishery but there should be some info on the MN DNR website. The West end of Vermilion is probably 20-25 minutes from ORR and the East end of Vermilion is 35-45 minutes..

[MinnesotaBoatman]

I have not caught any Walleye in the two years I have fished Pelican but I know guys who have. Here is what the DNR analysis in 2007 said:

Quote:

Walleye gill-net abundance of 2.13 was well below most class 7 lakes, but twice as high as the investigation in 2001 (1.08 fish/set). Average length was 19.8 inches with a range from 11.6 to 27.7. Nine year-classes were present, which was the most year-classes ever observed. The mean number of year-classes observed in Pelican Lake from 1989-2001 was 5. In 2007, age ranged from 2-21 years. Growth was slightly higher than the area mean. Mean weight was well above what is seen in most class 7 lakes.

[SledNeck]

I catch walleyes all the time there when I fish for bass.

They look really good and healthy out of Pelican too.

we also found a dead walleye about 10 lbs floating in Orr bay last year.

[Cliff Wagenbach]

I have not fished Pelican but hear lots of reports in this forum about the nice walleyes that are in the lake. Someone who does fish Pelican will give you a report as soon as they read your request.

Cliff

[Grey Wolf Lodge]

Cliff-

We have had clients and friends catch nice size fish, but usually at night or early AM.

My friend goes out specifically for the wallie. He gets two to four/day. They average 1.5-3 lbs.

It seems that the wallie fishing is improving with the slot size limits for Northern Pike. I wonder if there is a correlation.

Grey Wolf Lodge

[mrjigger]

thanks so much everyone. I did look at the DNR reports, but sometimes those don't always tell the whole story. Sounds like it would be decent, but I might give Vermillion a try to improve my odds.

[Casey Sunsdahl]

It might be just as easy to catch some fish on Pelican as West Vermilion the way it sounds.. Vermilion isn't always a slam dunk! There is a lot of water out there and if you have never fished it it can be a humbling experience. I'd fish them both if you have the time.

[pauljpollock]

My experience on Pelican is limited to crappies...While fishing crapps during the spawn, we've caught the occasional walleye...nothing too spectacular.

Keep your eyes peeled on this forum and ask around...someone may have some solid information about Pelican.

If you're staying in Orr you can also try fishing Elephant (a hop, skip, and a jump from Orr) or one of the smaller lakes further up the road...Marian or Franklin...or head to Vermilion.

By the way, "Buehler? Buehler? Anyone?"....One of the all time classics!

Paul.

[Swimstein]

The closest good walleye fishing is probably at Elephant and Blackduck Lakes about 10 miles more or less down County Road 180. I have been fishing Elephant for about 50 years, always caught enough walleyes, so don't bother packing off to other lakes in the area. Some of the locals think Blackduck, a couple of miles past Elephant, is better.

Last summer and fall the eyes ran a little smaller than normal in Elephant but we picked up a few 15-18 inchers daily to eat and threw dozens of small ones back. Check out the photos on Melgeorges web site; I'll be the one standing in the fish cleaning house with a coupla of nice eyes. In recent years, Lindy rigging crawlers has worked best for us, but others prefer still fishing with leeches or jigging w/leeches. When the water warms a bit try sandy bottoms near reeds in 4 to 7 feet of water.

[SledNeck]

If it were me and I was in that area and wanted to catch walleyes Id fish the east end of Vermilion, You can catch more off shore there than u can in other lakes in a boat.

[BobDaniel]

I fish Pelican for bass in Aug., and do well but haven't caught any eyes yet, sorry.

[SledNeck]

why aug over may or early june?

[fisherdog19]

I know it's off topic but are the crappies decent sized in Pelican?

[SledNeck]

I know it's off topic but are the crappies decent sized in Pelican?

on avg?

no

[side_laker]

was up on Pelican today water temp was 45. did not seen anyone out fishing today. I was up at the cabin doing some spring chores very windy

[pauljpollock]

The last time I fished Pelican the crappies we caught went from 6 to 11 inches...We kept a nice mess of 9 to 11 inchers.

Paul.

[side_laker]

is anyone going up to pelican for opener. let me know I will be at the cabin and would like to make contact with anyone who will be up there. more people fishing together the better the chance of finding the good spots.

[riverrat13]

I fish pelican for a week in June every year and have found the

walleye fishing improving . At times they can be hard to locate

but are very nice in size, the same holds true for the crappies.