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Posted

So far mine has been pretty good. I have caught some nice walleyes when I have targeted them and also some big sunnies.

I havent been on a real hot crappie bite yet and I hope to change that this weekend. So far no northerns to brag about. I suppose the biggest sunnie has been 11 inches and walleye right around 25.

Posted

Mine has been pretty much the same mostly eyes. I fish a lot around the Pelican Rapids area. The bite has really been up and down, hope to find a good crappy bite soon.

Posted

My season has been very productive so far! Nice combinations of gills, crappies,pike, largemouth bass,eyes and perch, oh the perch! I've been fortunate enough to fish all over so far this season, starting on Thanksgiving in the Detroit Lakes area and most of December as well. The end of December, I made a trip to LOTW and a week ago, I made my first trip to Devils Lake. I've had great numbers on all of my outings so far except for one but I wasn't expecting much that day anyway. This weekend will be making another trip to LOTW. Good luck all!

Posted

Catching lots of perch, sunnies, walleyes and a few pike and crappie thrown in. Just wish I was out more often.

Posted

can not complain, have not got into a walleye bite yet but this to will happen

Posted

I strictly chase crappies...quantity is down from last 2 yrs which were way above average to the 5 yrs previous to that. Earlier snow killed off the weeds sooner this yr than previous 2 yrs. I can say I have caught larger crappies this year but have had to find new water to do so and those have been backwoods places N of DL where very few travel and ponds are not even on Lake Maps. The normal crappie lakes I have fished in the past like Lida, Star, Franklin, Melissa have not produced as many crappies for me this year....maybe because I have not put in as much time there...but also because the pattern seemed to change with the early snow. I will say the previous 2 yrs were unbelievable and my pattern was shallow in green weeds for a while, then followed them along their way out to the basin for a couple weeks, then caught them in the basin till melt started, then followed them along their way back into the shallows during spring melt. That pattern has not been as prevalent this year for me....but still a ways to go and my favorite time is late, late ice.

Posted

Very happy with my season to date.

Iced many eyes but nothing huge.

Gills have had size and numbers also very good.

Crappie, iced some of the nicest sized slab's this winter in a long time.

1 bad outing for this winter out of probably 20 outings.

  • 'we have more fun' FishingMN Builders
Posted

It's been crazy for me at home and work and I have not even drilled a hole yet this winter. Un-heard of! cry

Posted

It's been crazy for me at home and work and I have not even drilled a hole yet this winter. Un-heard of! cry

I hear yah leech I have only been once once so far this year. My kids are at the ages where it seemd like we are running to an activity pretty much every day, including weekends. And when I have had time the weather has just plain sucked...

Posted

I am glad everyone is doing well. I am sorry to hear that for you BB. But a friend of mine has also told me he has had switched his tactics to find crappies right now.

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • JerkinLips
      Went back to Burntside on Tuesday and I got "skunked again" (LOL).  Looked like the lake was a mess over the weekend, but it was all frozen solid by sunrise Tuesday when I arrived.  The new ice cleats I got worked very well on the glare ice.  Was a beautiful sunny day but cool and quite windy.  I had a nice view of my tip-up from my warm fishhouse but the flag never went up, and I didn't mark a fish while jigging.  May have to try North Arm next, or go back into the BWCAW if the ice conditions improve.
    • JerkinLips
      Yes, eagle swoops are awesome.  Had one happen when I was duck hunting one year in Stuntz Bay.  Stole the only duck I got that day.   Vermilion got very wet over the weekend.  Tower Cafe posted a video of a SxS driving into McKinley Park landing going through water that went over their floor board.  Burntside Lake was frozen nice and solid Tuesday morning when I was there.
    • Wanderer
      Or the other book that said: The bitterness of poor quality outlasts the sweetness of a low price…   Dang, what a mess to have to deal with.
    • leech~~
      When it said. "The foolish man, builds his house upon the sand"? 🫣   Just got back from 10days on the golf of America.  By Panama city Florida.   
    • smurfy
      Venny backstrap and the fixins!
    • SkunkedAgain
      Running on empty at dark on a sled is definitely stress-inducing. Been there, done that. Glad that you made it out.
    • SkunkedAgain
      Eagle swoops are always a hoot to watch.   The snow is mostly gone on the lake. Ice melt made things pretty wet but the ice is obviously still very thick. 
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the South Shore...  The big question:  "How is the ice up at Lake of the Woods?"  That is for each individual resort or outfitter who operates an ice road or trail to answer, but overall, ice conditions are still very good and ice fishing is going strong!  As always, stay on the marked ice  roads and trails for safety.     Being up on the Canadian border, the colder temps Lake of the Woods enjoys vs much of the region combined with three feet of ice makes a big difference.  Fish houses are allowed unattended overnight through March 31st and it sounds like a good number of resorts will be fishing through the month, but ultimately, Mother Nature will determine that.     Regarding the fishing, overall, very good reports for walleyes, saugers and perch.  There is a strong population of smaller walleyes and saugers in the lake which bodes well for the future, but in the meantime, anglers are sorting through them to catch their keepers.   The one-two punch of jigging and deadsticking remains the most effective technique. Jigging spoons with rattles tipped with a minnow head or a lipless crankbait on the jigging line is the ticket.  On the deadstick, a live minnow a foot off the bottom on a plain red hook or medium sized ice fishing jig is catching a lot of fish.   Using electronics is super helpful.  Many nice walleyes are swimming through suspended, keep an eye out.   Anglers tip-up fishing for pike have had a great week and it should continue to get even better.  Suckers, frozen alewife and smelt are working well. Putting baits 1 foot under the ice or right off bottom seems to be effective this week.  Most common depths, 9 - 15 feet. On the Rainy River...  The Rain River is still frozen with no signs of open water yet.  Every year can be different, but on average, the Rainy River will start opening up around the third week of March.  The first boat ramp suitable for larger boats is Nelson Park in Birchdale.  We will keep you posted.    As of March 1st, walleyes and saugers are catch and release only on Four Mile Bay and the Rainy River.     Make plans now for sturgeon season.  Once the open water appears, the fish are super active.  Here are the seasons...   -Catch and Release Season: May 8th – May 15th and October 1 – April 23rd. -Harvest Season: April 24th – May 7th and July 1 – September 30. -Closed Season: May 16th – June 30th.  Up at the Northwest Angle...  Fishing remains very good up at the Angle and the ice is in good shape as well.  As on the south end, resorts monitor ice roads and trails daily and there are still some great ice fishing opportunities available.     Walleyes, saugers, perch, and pike are showing up in good numbers.  Those targeting crappies are reporting good numbers of fish.  Work through a NW Angle resort for ice fishing opportunities on this part of the lake. The walleye and sauger season is open through April 14th. Pike fishing never closes, and perch and crappie remain open year-round as well. Whether booking a day house rental, sleeper fish house, or resort stay, there is still plenty of time to plan a late-season ice fishing adventure. 
    • Wanderer
      Looks like a shallow lake with some potential.  Keepable crappies, decent bluegills and some nice perch according to the last survey (2015). Susan Lake   With a max depth of 10 feet, I’d want to know a little more about it before I’d start drilling holes.  Could be a nice little adventure though.  
    • Brianf.
      Jeff and I fished Saturday and half day Sunday, targeting whitefish, ciscos, crappies, and perch.  The bite was tough for us.  We ecked out a few, but nothing special.  Highlight of the weekend was the sled ride into Wolf Lake and having an eagle swoop in and eat a rock bass we had on the ice.  All in all, not a bad way to waste time.    
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