Burntside Lake Fishing Reports---Lake Conditions

[Steve Foss]

Miners has 8 pound Brookies hitting!!

Minnesota record brook trout is a bit under 6.5 lbs. But hey, not everyone who catches record fish cares to record them.

[Steve Foss]

We fished eight hours yesterday with three lines and a variety of lures. Only one hit, on a Walker diver and gold/chrome Sutton spoon trolled 35 feet down over 65 FOW, but that fish did not hook up. We had only about a half dozen fish come up to check out the downrigger balls, and there was about half the usual number of suspended fish. The lake definitely had a case of the slows yesterday.

Weather started out nice, with light westerlies and clearing skies after the weather front moved through the night before. Ended up getting sprinkled on late in the morning when a squall line went through, and it stayed cloudy until clearing off for good about 3:45. Winds remained westerly. Surface temp was about 65 degrees. Still lots of cotton suspended in the water.

[Steve Foss]

I was out on Burntside on other matters this morning, but knew I'd have time after to fish for lakers, so brought the gear. Ended up catching three lakers in an hour, all on a #44 gold/chrome hammered Sutton spoon trolled 30 to 50 feet down over 40 to 80 FOW.

Not that I think the spoon was hot, per se. With one line in the water, it was the only thing the fish had in front of them. Could easily have done just as well on a hot pink Cleo, a black Doctor or a chartreuse Finn spoon.

Smallest was a 5, and there were twin 9s to go with it. The 5 came home. Fresh laker on the barbie!

[Improvedarock]

What's the mayfly hatch 20 on burntside? I haven't been fishing lately! Trying to figure out how much coin to blow on fly patterns.

[Steve Foss]

What's the mayfly hatch 20 on burntside? I haven't been fishing lately! Trying to figure out how much coin to blow on fly patterns.

Now that right there is interesting. I don't have any info on a current mayfly hatch location, but yesterday surface temps were in the 67 degree range, and I'm wondering whether you get lakers on dry flies when the surface temps are that warm, or if you're using wet flies/sinking line.

We had a major hatch of some mayfly-looking bugs about a week ago, but that's all gone now. The surface was filthy with them in the main basins, but they were absent up the North Arm.

The 5 lber I cleaned yesterday had nothing in its stomach.

[Improvedarock]

I never caught a Minnesota inland laker on a dry fly, but walleyes do hammer topwater mayfly patterns. I'm going to start with sinking line with a mayfly larvae pattern if I can find any. I would think on a thick topwater mayfly bite the lakers could be had on the steep drops. I've caught SM bass, walleye, pike, bows, Brookies, spake, on top water in northern minny no lakers though. I've tied into lakers on sinking line with woolly buggers, muddler minnows, and Knarly looking streamers.

[Steve Foss]

I never caught a Minnesota inland laker on a dry fly, but walleyes do hammer topwater mayfly patterns. I'm going to start with sinking line with a mayfly larvae pattern if I can find any. I would think on a thick topwater mayfly bite the lakers could be had on the steep drops. I've caught SM bass, walleye, pike, bows, Brookies, spake, on top water in northern minny no lakers though. I've tied into lakers on sinking line with woolly buggers, muddler minnows, and Knarly looking streamers.

Cool!

Let us know if you get into some lakers on those sinking flies.

[finnbay]

This post comes with a caveat - I did not see the fish caught myself. On Snowbank one early summer met some guys coming off the water about the time we were putting in. I was taking a guy in to catch some smallies with top water and these guys said they had gotten some nice smallies throwing a hex pattern in the shallows on the north end of the lake. They showed us their live well and all they kept were three smallies - actually 2 1/2 pound lake trout.

Never ceases to amaze me what you run into sometimes. Passed some guys on Fourtown who were amazed at the number of brown trout in the lake. They showed us a fish basket they were dragging behind the canoe with about a dozen 8-10 inch smallmouth.

[Improvedarock]

Browns in fourtown lol sweet Jk. I can't find any flies I need before tomorrow. Does anyone know who has a good variety of muddlers, mayfly patterns, caddis patterns, and streamers? Not driving down to Duluth or spending my money at that one guys anti-ranger shop.

[Great Outdoors]

We have two boxes of flies in the shop, about 20 or 30 different types.

[Improvedarock]

Ok thanks Jim see ya tommorow if your around.

[Improvedarock]

Got spanked by burntside sat and sun. A couple eyes and a eater laker. Otherwise was nice to be on the lake. Didn't see many mayflys just a humid east wind and not a hot bite.

[Steve Foss]

No fish today, but we were only out about an hour and a half before we got chased off the lake by a whopper of a fast-moving storm that's still picking up steam now in the afternoon and beating up on Lake Superior.

We were up off Dollar Island when we realized just how big and fast moving the system was. Pulled rods/riggers in a hurry, went full throttle and made it to the Burntside Lodge dock with 3 minutes to spare. We'll be back at it tomorrow.

[snoozebutton]

Cool pics Fossman!!! We were in Hayward earlier today and the tornado siren was going off. Nothing came of it, just some heavy rain and lightning.

[Wanderer]

Those storms are cool to watch but NASTY! Been chased off B-side like that before in July and should've run off some others!

Hopefully we don't see that kinda stuff next week.

Thanks for the pics!

[sheephead2]

Was up on Burntside for a week Fishing WAS SLOW .

Steve that wall cloud was something else we took pictures also

My DAD got this nice walleye 28 inches

[waterfowler85]

One of the most difficult lakes to fish that I have ever been on. One of the most scenic ones too. Surface temps at 72 in the morning. Up to 77 in the afternoon. Tried about every spoon in the box for 3 days with nothing to show but some pretty beat up divers. Tried stick baits one day with no result. Marking lots of fish 50-80 feet down with a lot sitting right on the bottom. Spinners and bottom bouncers will pick u up some bass in around 20 foot of water. Thermocline looks to be about 25 with lots of small fish which I assume are small bass or smelt

[Great Outdoors]

One of the most difficult lakes to fish that I have ever been on. One of the most scenic ones too. Surface temps at 72 in the morning. Up to 77 in the afternoon. Tried about every spoon in the box for 3 days with nothing to show but some pretty beat up divers. Tried stick baits one day with no result. Marking lots of fish 50-80 feet down with a lot sitting right on the bottom. Spinners and bottom bouncers will pick u up some bass in around 20 foot of water. Thermocline looks to be about 25 with lots of small fish which I assume are small bass or smelt

I cannot believe that the thermocline is at 25 feet already, 15-18 feet would be more like it, if that deep.

If you're trying for walleyes, you have to change your methods because Burntside isn't like other lakes you have fished.

Use a plain hook with a leech, and no sinker if possible. If not, use the lightest sinker (BB) that there is, about 4 feet from the hook.

Troll very slowly, almost at a stop on reefs in about 14-16 FOW.

The large Bass have been nonexistant for some reason to this point, and I don't think that many (if any) spawned this year due to cold water temps and late ice out.

[sheephead2]

The Walleye my Dad caught was not spawned out yet thing had a huge belly. Picture does not do justice on the fish..

G.O. I try the plain hook leech method over several spots with no success.

No Laker's either . I normally come up in August for a weekend and Wife and I always catch trout. This year was up for a week and NOTHING.

My Dad had a Laker on with a jig and leech but she rolled and snap his line..

[waterfowler85]

Yes 15 not 25. I was trying for Lakers with my diver at 60 feet. When I threw the bottom bouncer and spinner on that was a desperation move to try to lift my spirits. Will try to give er one more morning.

[Steve Foss]

The last week and a half for Burntside lakers has been tough all around. A few scattered fish being caught, but quite a few fishless days. We've been fishing from 20 to 100 FOW using a variety of methods.

I've marked significantly fewer lakers the last couple weeks than I did the first month of the open season. No one I've talked to has a sense of why that might be. August tends to be a bit slower, but with our late spring and cold water temps, I didn't expect a period of doldrums so soon. But these things happen.

My last two gigs (half days), we put no lakers in the boat, but I did catch two of my own before one of the half day gigs started by vertical jigging. Walleyes, on the other hand, have been OK (as shallow as 7 feet, out to about 20), and the smallies and largemouth are going strong on rocky shoreline points and other structure.

We catch most of our walleyes either anchoring with slip bobbers or dragging live bait rigs (long pencil weights that are almost snagless, and light fluoro snells 5-6 feet long). But it's Bside, so some days no walleyes hit the boat, and other days they do. I had a laker client who caught 7 walleyes in the middle of a sunny afternoon last week fishing a leech under a slip bobber in 8 FOW off the shore of his cabin. And don't forget the low light/night bite for 'eyes on these clear lakes.

I agree there's either very little thermocline yet, or it's shallower than 20 feet. I'm also marking a lot of noisy stuff on both my electronics units at 20-25 feet, but there's a ton of pollen in the water, and that clumps up and sinks, so it's possible the readings that may seem like a thermocline are from other causes.

I went in the water yesterday and, while my neck was in 74-degree water, my toes were MUCH colder.

[waterfowler85]

I had the same thought as u about the night bite and clear water. Unfortunately I was the only thing getting bit. Bugs are unbearable at night right now

[Great Outdoors]

The Walleye my Dad caught was not spawned out yet thing had a huge belly. Picture does not do justice on the fish..

G.O. I try the plain hook leech method over several spots with no success.

No Laker's either . I normally come up in August for a weekend and Wife and I always catch trout. This year was up for a week and NOTHING.

My Dad had a Laker on with a jig and leech but she rolled and snap his line..

When using the plain hook and leech method, you must roll very slowly, and when I say slowly, I mean at almost a dead stop.

When the lake is perfectly calm, forget fishing.

[Improvedarock]

Lakers are holding tight to the bottom in 40-50fow hitting on crawlers. I personally put on scuba gear and took a look there's lakers beded into the muck pretty much chillin the f out!

[Improvedarock]

Trolling on burntside don't work if u ask me. Crawlers on bottom been outta control for me!

[Steve Foss]

Trolling on burntside don't work if u ask me. Crawlers on bottom been outta control for me!

For the 11 years I've lived here, we've had excellent success vertical jigging and trolling for open water lakers on Burntside. Some days slow, some days medium, some days fast. Best day trolling so far was a 9-fish day. In a full day, 2-3 fish is average.

Lots of ways to catch lake trout. I'm sure crawlers on the bottom is one of them.

And, obviously, as a guide it's in my best interest to say we've had success at our techniques. But anyone who has been paying attention to this forum for the last several years knows that success goes back long before I started open water guiding a few years ago. I've posted more than 10 years of pics to prove it. Not directing this last paragraph at anyone particularly, just saying. Many others on this forum have also had good success trolling Bside.

[delcecchi]

You typically troll like 8 hours and catch two or three trout?

[Wanderer]

Yeah Del, 2-3 trout in the boat in an 8 hour day is actually a good average; most inland laker guys would be really happy to be able post that. Of course we're talking lakers of 3-10 lbs with a chance at something bigger.

I trolled for about 4 hours yeaterday' and didn't even get a popped release but I'm still looking forward to putting in at least 8 hours tomorrow. It's kinda like Muskie fishing as far as I'm concerned. You get excited about SEEING a fish.

Of course some locals can stack them up like cord wood doing some out of the ordinary things. I'm just an ordinary ice fisherman first and troller second. I just rigged two good down riggers on my boat this year and can track the balls on my depth finder so I can see how many lookers I have. It's pretty cool in my book.

The fishing around Ely hasn't been great in the last week; plenty of small fish for us but the big ones are hard to come by. Haven't seen much even on the graph. Which makes a guy think they're just laying on the bottom.

We've fished pannies, bass, pike, walleyes and lakers. I'm ready to just cruise and let the equipment work.

Or not....

[waterfowler85]

I'm new to inland Lakers so how do u get a crawler to 50 feet? Just jigin or are u doing that with a downrigger? If u want to mark a lot of fish... east side of dollar island and across the bay along what I think is James rd... not sure. I trolled the [PoorWordUsage] out of this area this week. Many many fish on the bottom. Some suspended at 45. I was marking huge schools of bait fish as well on the di. Hope u have better luck... or skill than me. But there is a [PoorWordUsage] ton there. Only thing I got a hit on was a hammered gold spoon I bought at the great outdoors. Unfortunately I tie bad knots or 8lb vanish was the wrong line to pull. Put on 14 after that

[delcecchi]

Steve, I was just surprised. I must be spoiled by spring laker fishing in Quetico.

I guess if Burntside lakers were easy, everyone would be all over them.