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Lake Minnetonka Fishing Reports


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are the walleye still shallow on minnetonka? I would like to go try tomorrow night from shore but I don't know if that would be any good for walleyes

Thanks

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Been about a week since I've been out there. I couldn't find them shallow last outing. Weeds are up so its starting to be a pain. Talked to a few people who bagged some 16-20" walleyes out on the weed drop. I tried that but only found northerns. They seem to love them rapalas.

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moving deeper......I was out on Thursday with little luck....looks like they are in 20fow. Lots of weed growth in the last couple weeks, forcing them out of the shallows.

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I have never fished Minnetonka and would like to chase some northern.

Mid week where would be the best place to launch if coming from Coon Rapids?

I have a smaller 14' Lund 15hp.

Thanks in advance.

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Maxwell Bay off 51. Go through the bridge (not the close one to the left when looking out from the landing, but the one to the right about a half mile down) to Crystal bay. Coming out of the channel into Crystal, either shoreline to the right or left offer nice trolling runs for pike.

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Thanks Kt...much appreciated!! I think I will give it a try in the AM.

Do you launch at Noerenberg Park?

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I don't believe there's a laucnch at that Park. There's a really big really nice public access in the SW corner of Maxwell bay, that's what KTroller was referring too.

The spots he mentioned in Crystal Bay are good spots to try, there's also some nice trolling runs in North Arm which is just through the bridge to the west of the access in Maxwell.

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Thanks Perch...I think I have it now!! I assume 51 is Northshore/Shoreline Dr. off of 12.

Just curious what baits you are pulling? I had some luck on Big Marine last week w/ spinner baits. Should I be just outside the weedline... etc?

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We were out today and the floating foil was horrible. We tried three way rigging spiners and pulling traps but nothing could get by the floating foil. Saw a bunch of eyes and northerns in 17 ft on a sharp breakline. If its this windy I would pitch big Gene Laure White colored baits on weedless heavy jig heads And cast right up along the foil and pop it back to the boat. Usually the pike cant resist., Last year it was dinomite . We usually set them up with braided line and do a foot leader from a swivel with seven strand wire, so the toothy critters get in the boat. Good lcuk!

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You could head south on 494 to the Minnetonka Blvd exit. Take MTKA Blvd west (about 1.5 mi) to the lighted intersection of Mtka Blvd and Hwy 101. Take a right on 101 (now you're northbound) follow it through a sharp right curve, and as you come out of the curve prepare to take a right into the Gray's Bay launch. This is a great launch right into Grays Bay which is small enough for your rig, but big enough to keep you busy for hours. Lots of pike in here.

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Greys bay (grey's landing area) would work well for your rig. And there are plenty of pike to keep you busy. North Arm might be another option, a smaller of the "lake sized bays" with good wind protection and weedlines.

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  • 2 weeks later...

came across 2 of these bouys maybe 200 ft apart (apprx). MN DNR stickers on the sides

South of diamond reef on a real nice break line, anyone know what they are ? survey nets? isnt some sort of trap used too? I know they wernt millfoil bouys.. I did mark a ton of fish on the shallower side of the markers... Anyone have info on these?

IMG_0093.jpg

IMG_0092.jpg

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They are the bouys used for gill nets. I did an internship with the MN game wardens for 2 summers, and I spent a few days with the fisheries dpt. and we set out and retrieved gill nets that had bouys just like those. They will assess the lake's fish populations with the results after enough net loads.

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Lucky for me, I have a house to use on Tonka this week/weekend (East end). Hopefully that luck will extend to fishing! I have done my homework in terms of reading these very helpful posts, knowing to fish early and late in the day, and buying a detailed "Hot Spots" fishing map (link to this great map is below). If only all I needed to catch fish was the spot, right? In soliciting advice, I should point out that I have fished a lot for walleyes, etc. in my younger years, so I am familiar with all techniques; I am just not that good at choosing which technique to use. And as much as I'd like to catch some walleyes, I am thinking I should focus on easier pray. Ultimately my goal is to have a fish fry! Below are my specific questions. And,

I promise to report back next week with the what's and where's of my fishing experience. Thanks in advance for the help gang. Talk to you next week.

1) Is it too late in the year to find/catch crappies with the bobber, flu flu and minnow combo? Where can one find crappies this time of year? Crappies is tasty!

2) Am I correct in my assumption that trolling crack baits on weedlines and around humps (e.g. Diamond Reef) could yield both pike, walleye and even bass? Or are walleyes done chasing cranks?

3) In terms of dragging a lindy for walleyes, what depth should I focus in on? Thinking 17 - 25 feet next to deeper water near a reef. Is a shinner, fathead or leech best? I will also likely parlay this into slip bobber fishing.

4) Any other thoughts on pike? Thinking bobber with a sucker on the weedlines. They eat real nice too.

5) Are there any sizeable sunfish on Tonka? They too are tasty tasty.

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My kid has been catching lots of crappies and sunfish in 5-6 fow near inside weedlines. Not huge fish but plenty of decent sized ones you could clean if you wanted too.

Trolling cranks can be good, it can be tough on Tonka though due to weeds - growing weeds and floating weed debris. If you're going after walleyes I would think live bait on the weedlines or off the weedlines would be a better way to go. Check the 20-25 foot depths.

Been catching lots and lots of pike over deep weeds and on the weedlines, 12-15 fow for instance.

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For bass and pike, just stick to any weedlines you can find. A white/yellow spinnerbait is a good way to go if you're after either. Eyes can be tough out there, it's obviously best in the evening. Not sure on what's going on w/ the panfish, but there is a ton of 'em out there

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Tonka is starting to get annoying. The warmer weather calls for big pleasure boaters. You will really have to work for walleye now, since the weeds are making their way up. Troll 15+ feet on weed edges. I've been trying the west end and doing ok. Try find those prime depths away from the shore, almost midlike type structure which will help you untangle less floating weeds. Pike will be almost too easy right now, just find channels and troll around the outside in, gurantee will they dig your rapala. As for crappie, nite time has been better for size. Find 8-12ft of water near drop offs, spots like that have produced nice crappies for me. Spinner rigs with fatheads will nab the bigger pounders+ when you find them present.

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mcbeef, dont bother with the walleyes...it is just plain tough right now. if you insist, fish low light periods...really early am is best. i would not try for them with cranks, that bite is over for the most part. try around echo bay off the weedline maybe 25-35 feet w/ a spinner/crawler. if you move slow with a leech, it will get picked apart by tato chip sunnies all day. the shallow crappies are gone, spawn is long over. they are suspended off weedlines and very catchable if you find a school. for northerns, troll an xrap size 10 or 12 around 2mph on most any weedline... two good ones are the long point coming out from the swimming beach in excelsior bay and the west shore of crystal bay from the entrance to maxwell south to the end of the point. you'll troll up some bass as well. i'd troll over soaking a sucker, cover much more ground. as for the sunnies, they are pretty much all small, lots of work for not much meat. if you happen to land a musky pike fishin please dont eat it.

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yea there all over tonka and millacs. the wardens i talk to at spring park said there worried about declining walleye numbers and severely damaged northern pike numbers. Also the panfish have shrunkin to half the size that were there in 1960s-80s. There also said milfoil is there bigest worry about the lake. Along with rising carp numbers, rich home owners poisionig the lake. the futeure looks pretty bleak for tonka, the muskies appera to be booming but will not be able to susstian the pressure for long.

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After reading this thread, I don't wanna go to Minnetonka to try to get a few walleyes now...

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ok, thanks, any laws about fishing around the nets?

Are they still using a "kill" type of net, or are they the "safer" type? How far under the water are the tops of the nets?

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going out to tonka on friday. havent been out to tonka in over 4 weeks. Going in my buddies boat and would really like to troll some leadcore in deeper water but dont want to bring my trolling rods if the floating weeds are bad out in the main part of the lake. How bad is it now?

Thanks

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It was pretty bad last Saturday when we went fishing on the East End. We got tangled in the weeds alot while trolling.

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thanks, might have to hit indy instead. Tough call

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I an new to the forum and have never fished Minnetonka before, but I have access to a boat docked on the lake whenever I want and I am a teacher and have the summer off to get fishing. Any advice on a place to start looking for some Walleyes. The lake is very overwhelming for a newbie.

Thanks

Steve

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Just don't troll between the two ends and you'll be fine. They sit on the bottom 6 feet of water. Otherwise you'll be donating your shad raps to some fish counter geek.

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Where is the boat docked at?

Walleyes at this time of year can be a real challenge on tonka, your best bet is probably to work deep weedlines and off the deep weedlines with something like a jig and minnow --- you'll catch fish, most of them probably won't be walleyes though.

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • Brianf.
      I'm not there, so I can't tell exactly what's going on but it looks like a large area of open water developed in the last day with all of the heavy snow on the east side of wake em up Narrows. These two photos are from my Ring Camera facing north towards Niles Point.  You can see what happened with all of snow that fell in the last three days, though the open water could have been wind driven. Hard to say. .  
    • SkunkedAgain
      Black Bay had great ice before but a few spots near rockpiles where there were spots of open water. It looks like the weight of the snow has created a little lake in the middle of the bay.  
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the south end...   Thanks to some cold spring weather, ice fishing continues strong for those still ice fishing.  The bite remains very good.  Most resorts have pulled their fish houses off for the year, however, some still have fish houses out and others are allowing ATV and side by sides.  Check social media or call ahead to your favorite resort for specifics. Reports this week for walleyes and saugers remain excellent.   A nice mix of jumbo perch, pike, eelpout, and an occasional crappie, tullibee or sturgeon being reported by anglers. Jigging one line and using a live minnow on the second line is the way to go.  Green, glow red, pink and gold were good colors this week.     Monster pike are on a tear!  Good number of pike, some reaching over 45 inches long, being caught using tip ups with live suckers or dead bait such as smelt and herring in 8 - 14' of water.   As always, work through a resort or outfitter for ice road conditions.  Safety first always. Fish houses are allowed on the ice through March 31st, the walleye / sauger season goes through April 14th and the pike season never ends. On the Rainy River...  The river is opened up along the Nelson Park boat ramp in Birchdale, the Frontier boat ramp and Vidas boat ramp.  This past week, much of the open water skimmed over with the single digit overnight temps.   Areas of the river have popped open again and with temps getting warmer, things are shaping up for the last stretch through the rest of the spring season, which continues through April 14th.   Very good numbers of walleyes are in the river.  Reports this week, even with fewer anglers, have been good.  When temps warm up and the sun shines, things will fire up again.   Jigs with brightly colored plastics or jigs with a frozen emerald shiner have been the desired bait on the river.  Don't overlook slow trolling crankbaits upstream as well.   Good reports of sturgeon being caught on the river as well.  Sturgeon put the feed bag on in the spring.  The bite has been very good.  Most are using a sturgeon rig with a circle hook loaded with crawlers or crawlers / frozen emerald shiners. Up at the NW Angle...  Ice fishing is winding down up at the Angle.  Walleyes, saugers, and a number of various species in the mix again this week.  The bite is still very good with good numbers of fish.  The one two punch of jigging one line and deadsticking the second line is working well.   Check with Angle resorts on transport options from Young's Bay.  Call ahead for ice road guidelines.  
    • CigarGuy
      With the drifting, kind of hard to tell for sure, but I'm guessing about a foot and still lightly snowing. Cook end!
    • PSU
      How much snow did you get on Vermilion? 
    • Mike89
      lake here refroze too...  started opening again yesterday with the wet snow and wind...  very little ice left today...
    • Hookmaster
      A friend who has a cabin between Alex and Fergus said the lake he's on refroze. He texted me a pic from March 12th when it was open and one from 23rd when it wasn't. 🤯
    • SkunkedAgain
      I don't think that there has been any ice melt in the past few weeks on Vermilion. Things looked like a record and then Mother Nature swept in again.   I'll give my revised guess of April 21st
    • leech~~
      As I get older it's really not just about sending bullets down range.  Some of it's just the workmanship of the gun and the wow factor. The other two guns I have really wanted which I'll never have now because of their price, is a 8mm Jap Nambu and 9mm German Luger.   Just thought they always looked cool!  
    • jim curlee
      I had a guy hit me with a lightly used 1969 BAR, he wanted $1650 with an older Leupold scope. More than I think they are worth, I made an offer, he declined end of story.   You know if you look at the old brochures, a grade II BAR sold for $250 in the late 60s, $1650 would be a good return on your investment.    Why would anybody want a 50 year old gun, they are heavy, have wood stocks, and blued metal.  I guess mainly to keep their gun safes glued to the floor. lol   You can probably buy a stainless rifle that you never have to clean, with a synthetic stock you never have to refinish, is as light as a feather, and for half as much money, perfect.   I'm too old for a youth gun, although I've shrunk enough that it would probably fit. lol   No Ruger 10/44s.   Jim      
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