2020 Lake Osakis Fishing Reports

[DrRodey]

Thanks for the tips guys.. My dad's coming up thur/fri and I was planning on taking him over to Osakis for a little while one of the days... Probably Thursday evening. I'll let ya'll know how we do.

With the weather what it was.. we never made it over to Osakis.

[wannaeye]

How's the sunfish bite going? Thinking about taking the kids out there this week, not looking for any hot spots, just wondering if they've started biting yet?

[blue2cry]

We fished today and got 4 walleyes over 25" each in 21 feet off the weed lines. WOnderfull day. Will post photots shortly.

[JIvers]

We caught a few nice bluegills just over a week ago on Osakis while fishing live bait for walleye. The people at Idlewilde who were targetting sunnies seemed to be doing well.

[mnhunter79]

Any new reports from osakis? Comin up thurs a.m. through sun. Will be targeting walleyes, then bass, pike, and sunnies. most interested to know if the eyes are biting?

E-mail me if you prefer.

[email protected]

Thanks.

[GrizzlyAdams]

2020 Lake Osakis Fishing Reports - Click Here. Show us your pics!

 

We will be stayin on Lake Osakis in a week and a half and was wondering what to expect for fishing. We would like to get into some pan fish and walleyes. What areas should we focus on in order to target these fish. Have never been to this lake before and was hoping any of you could share some tips and tricks in order to help us find some fish. What techniques and colors are working the best. Thanks in advance for any and all help. Also I do have the lakemaster chip and will be bringing it with. Grizzly

[Finlander]

Try Johnsons bar using Lyndy Rigs you'll catch walleyes and you can locate blugills at the same time!

Check out the rock piles for sunfish!

[Musky_Madness]

Anyone know if the bass are biting? Might head over tomorrow to scope it out.

[Big_Mike]

They were biting today---last time up they were shut down. Thanks again for your previous reply. I fish in a 16 ft Blue Fin with a 50 Merc---hope to see you up there sometime. Mike

[GrizzlyAdams]

Thank You Finlander. Do you use spinners on your lindy's or with out? What color beads seem to work the best? I have recently learned how to tie my own snells and am curious what color beads and/or spinners are working. Thanks again for all of your assistance. As stated I have never fished in this area before and starting points are very helpful. Will be up with 3 other people so I want to pretend I know what I'm doin. LOL.

[Finlander]

Small gold Colorado blades like they use on Little Joe Spinners. Orange/white beads 8 minimum.

Then tie on a #10 treble for short strikers. Catch alot of the short strikers that you would miss otherwise. Whole crawler. 3/4 ounce bell sinker!

I also use a bait casting rod and reel with 10# test Fireline tied to Vanish on the snell! U can feel the little spinner rotating with this!

5' snell length is the length I use. The same rig on opener on Mille Lacs I caught a 28", 2-26", 1-27" and alot of 20-25" eyes!

Half were hooked on the trailer hook in the corner of the mouth!

[GrizzlyAdams]

Finlander,

Thanks again. Do you put the spinner in between the beads so it is just touching the top of the first hook? Are you alternating the bead colors i.e. 1 orange, 1 white, or 2 orange and 2 white etc? I am guessing you are using a single snell hook and then the treble hook a couple inches below as your last hook. Love tying my own snells and am learning so much about it from this wonderful and helpful site. Thanks again. We will be in an older white and yellow glastron with huge 65 hp johnson on the weekend of the 25th and 26th of this month giving it a try.

[Finlander]

I tied some with two orange, three whites, then three orange next to the hook.

I use the pearl white beads as they seam to glow more than regular white beads.

I tie my snells with the stinger using 10# vanish one continuous line. I use the same knot they use where the line on the main hook is in line going to the stinger. I put the stinger 4" behind the main hook. Also I use orange colored Gastigumo #6 size for the main hook.

4 inches seems long but those big crawler can really strech out and they will almost every time bite just behind the treble if you short hook the crawler!

Been fishing Osakis since 1968 and the next door neighbor to my unckles place was a guide and they always came in with alot of nice walleyes, so I looked to see what they were using and they were using Little Joe Spinners with gold hooks and crawlers behind a 3/4 ounce bead chain weight!

Killer rig for Osakis!

[GrizzlyAdams]

Once again thank you very much Finlander. I will tie some up and give it a try. Can't wait to get up there. Has time stopped??? Will let you know how we did when we get back. Really appreciate all the info.

[ogrejce]

I will be up the same weekend, am wondering about lake conditions, shallow spots that might take out a prop or lower unit, sudden rock piles that are not marked by bouies. This will be my first time up there, normally fish otter tail area and down in the cities. Any advise appreciated. Feel free to say hi to the guy in the black and orange Bayliner who looks like he doesn't know what hes doing.

[bigbucks]

There really aren't any rocks or bars to worry about in that lake that aren't marked & very few that need to be marked. The markers on moon bar immediately South of Battle Point might not be exactly on every rock, but any rocks of issue should be very close to those markers. The unmarked rock piles will come up to 12' or 18', nothing you're going to hit.

[ogrejce]

Thanks for the info, I hope the fishing is as good as I hear just wish I could find my good rain jacket.

[Sportfish1850]

There is one very shallow area on the east side of the lake north of Johnson's bar. Its between shore and the pencil reeds ( normally 6 ft outside the pencils, and 2.5 ft inside the pencils) You'll see a couple of the property owners there have moved lifts out to deeper water because given the Sept dryness and heat, I'm sure its very shallow there now. There are one or two stand alone rocks to watch out for that if the water is down might catch a prop. I'm guessing a lot of the areas your GPS says are 3ft deep might only be 18" now so you'll want to watch out for that.

But bigbucks is right, the only 2 or 3 areas of concern when the lake is of normal depth are marked (such as the marker on the point by 2 mile bar. As long as you don't go inside the markers south of battle point and are aware that those markers are in a straight line that reflect a shoal of rocks that extend back to the shore and becareful if the GPS chip says you're in 3ft but your sonar says 18" you'll be okay.

[ogrejce]

Thanks again for the help, and as far as the lake being low, you were right, I had to go to battle point launch to put my boat in cause it was too shallow at the resort. I also tried to out smart my gps and turned at the wrong spot cause I thought I was back to the resort (it was at night) and ended up in some pencil reeds. I was lucky I didn't get stuck. Some how my marks on it got turned off when the battery died and it was pitch black out. I saw lights on shore that looked like the resort and turned in. No rocks though. We did good fishing the whole weekend, I ended up with 9 walleyes, 3lb bass and a mess of huge crappies.

[firefish_12]

where are the crappies biting??

[Boatlessinblaine]

My wife and I will be up next week on the north end looking for some walleyes and panfish. Any thoughts on where to start, hot baits, colors, etc? Any help is much appreciated as this is our one trip of the year. Thanks in advance! we are really looking forward to finding those knucklehead sunnies!

[ogrejce]

Crappies were a morning bite, we were in 22 fow and casting to 10. They wanted a moving bait, I was using a lindy rig with shiner; Casted it into 10 fow and reeling it back in before it hit bottom. They also hit some kind of storm plastic swim bait my father in law was using. Bobber with shiner worked, but not as good. Most of our fish caught on north end sunday to stay away from winds. We got 2 10 inch sunnies on crawlers, saturday all walleyes caught on crawlers, sunday all walleyes caught on shiners. We were by Lindberg point, so were alot of other boats too. Not alot of other people by us were getting fish though. I used floating lindy rig for crappies, non floating caught walleyes. All lindy rig fish caught when reeling in slow.

[Boatlessinblaine]

Thanks ogrejce! Can't wait to get up there. This seems like the longest week of my life. Did you get anything on crappie minnows or just shiners? Was your father-in-law using something like a beetle-spin? I wonder what this colder weather will do to them.

[ogrejce]

It was a green soft swim bait with a single hook in the middle. (the size of a small shiner.) We wanted walleyes and sunnies so no crappie minnows. I would love to be up there this weekend too, but think the colder the better. Alot of fish were marked deep and didn't want to bite anything. Most of my walleyes were caught at 5 am.

[a47mlb]

Pulled the dock on Osakis yesterday. We were going to do it today. Good thing, 'cause we don't have the bucket on the Bobcat yet.

[pushbutton]

i picked this week to take off work and hit the big O, so far has not been one of the best vacation choices i have ever made. as usual the shallow walleye nightbite is still going strong but not used to the artic temps yet and hard to stay out long. most fish have been under legal and over my personal slot, crappies have left my tradtional honeyhole and must be scattered, extremely deep,or both. found some active bluegill,but really small. smallies have been the most aggressive and have provided the most entertainment.

[gregg52]

not sure where you staying

but yrs back we use to stay at buck point or holiday up there

on the north end

and this time of yr there docks were the best place to be

pound avg crappies and few walleyes

and iwoaians where killing the bullheads with a chunk of crawlers

this is all at nite

i wouldnt think it could have changed that much

[Eric Kruger]

will be up there halloween day lookin for walleyes and then pulling my buddies dock cant wait! he's been pulling in monster sunnies! hopeing to get my first walleye on this trip too!

[pushbutton]

gregg, it all changed this year! been coming up for about 10 years and the first time the crappies have not been stacked under the docks. usually the colder the better, apparently its too cold, even for the fish! was thinking of chasing the bullheads myself, at least i will have something to eat!

[alaskadreamin]

Fish still deep? Heading to Osakis this weekend, might try to get out between rain drops....got the itch for one more trip before the water gets hard!!