Advice: First time trip planning

[Missouri Mark]

I am seeking advice for a fishing trip next summer for 4 mid-50s guys from Missouri. None of us have fished Minnesota waters. I have done some research but, of course, all places tend to make their place seem ideal. I would prefer advice from personal, unbiased opinions.

First, we are looking to target walleye, pike, and smallmouth. We want a nice place right on the water so we can walk out our door and fish.  Each of us wants our own bed. Not a tiny cabin but we are not spoiled either so don't need a luxury home. We will need to rent motorboats if not provided. We would like somewhere off the beaten path and not a busy resort unless the resort is big enough that we have a place away from the vacation crowds. We intend to stay as long as a week. We will consider hiring a guide the first day to show us the ropes.

I have spent time in Minnesota working but did not fish - big mistake but years ago. I am looking for specific places and rentals. It doesn't help me to say "Check out the boundary waters area" as I have done my research. We are not interested in going into Canada and getting passports.

If you have a specific place in mind and don't want to put it out there on the world wide web, let me know and I will give you my email address. This will be a one time trip.

 

[ANYFISH2]

The first place that comes to mind is Silver Rapids on White iron lake near Ely mn.  It is part of the White iron/farm and garden chain of lakes all are accessible from the resort.

I have personally caught smallmouth up to 20.5", walleye up to 26" and pike >30".  The time period from mn opener (2 weeks before memorial day ) through the end of June was always borderline great fishing for all three species.  And you have a great chance of BIG fish of all three species right from their docks during this time.

The next place to come to mind is Pioneer resort in Bemidji mn.  A great little RUSTIC resort, run by GREAT owners.  Cabins are not large and do not have T.V.  but the place is quiet even when full and have great rates.

The fishing for walleye, northern and panfish is very good, once you figure out weed relating walleyes. Northern pike tend to run small, although there are many with a decent 7-8lb fish here and there.  Walleyes are numerous when you find the right presentation.  Bluegills are of very nice size but can be fickle in mid summer, still very catchable but they change daily.

There are no smallmouth bass that I know of in the lake.  There is a population of big largemouth bass however.

[papadarv]

I suggest my favorite, Ottertail lake. Its about 3 hours NW of the Twin Cities via I94, than north on Hwy 78. The lake is 8 miles long, 3 miles wide max depth 150+ft. a great rustic resort is www.vacationlandresort.net/ Owner is Trevor a fantastic person. He has 8 cabins rents 2 pontoon and one 16' Lund w/25 hp 4 stroke. I suggest June if he has space available. Walleye are good eaters 18" to 20" with great chance of landing something in the range of 28". For Pike, Lake restriction is one over 31" and you will most likely limit. Buddy and I got 37" and 34" last trip. There are a lot of bass, only I don't fish bass. They are usually found near shore by the Bull Rush beds. Last June a group from MO at the resort same time I was got lots of 11" to 13" perch. (60+ one evening). The owner Trevor will give you great direction where the fish are active on the lake. He has a small store sells primarily bait and beer. If your need supplies or a place to eat, Battle Lake is about 10 miles south on Hwy 78. There is also a good chance you will hook into a 5" sturgeon. Cant keep it, but fun to catch and release. 

Go to Navonics open the Web App and find Ottertail lake. The contour on this map is very good, nearly identical to Lake Master, Contour Elite, etc. You can order a hard copy for about $10 from Lake master if desired. Another option would be the Navonics Boating app (same as the web app) that runs on your iPhone. Cost is $9.94 annual and your iPhone GPS will track your location on the lake.

Good luck and welcome when and where you go in Minnesota.

 

[delcecchi]

I  would consider someplace on Rainy Lake.  And passports are not a big deal, if you have the time. 

Vermilion is another choice.

[Missouri Mark]

Thanks guys. All good advice. I will continue researching based on your advice. One thing that caught my eye - Anyfished mentioned the prime season as Mid May until end of June . does the fishing slow down in July enough to rule July out. I was actually thinking a mid July trip unless you all advise earlier. 

Still, we would like some solitude and wondering about the resorts. For instance, we want to be able to sit around a fire and have a few beers at night without bothering others.

[ANYFISH2]

Missouri mark, by no means, did I mean fishing is poor.  Just that for me that time of year borders on great.

We have stayed at pioneer resort in Bemidji the last two Julys, both years around the 18th.

Last year was fantastic! This year was good, just took more time to figure out(more than just one evening).  And that could have been more because of me catering to others more than the fish.

July can be awsome as well!

Good luck.

[Missouri Mark]

Point taken, Anyfish. I've been researching the lakes mentioned this evening. Rainy Lake has really caught my interest. I will still take a look at any place mentioned.Thanks guys. I'm a regular on Ozark Anglers Forum and appreciate how valuable these fishing forums are for getting the straight scoop. Fishermen all over are generally willing to help out with advice. It's appreciate.

Mark

[Missouri Mark]

Has anyone ever done the houseboat thing at Rainy Lake? I'm thinking it may be as cheap as renting cabins and renting boats after all is said and done.

[ThunderLund78]

Mark,

I've heard the houseboat thing is a VERY good time, but i can't speak from experience.  it's on my list to get some friends together to try.  I've heard very few negative things about them.

However, I will second ANYFISH's advice on Silver Rapids Lodge in Ely.  My friends and I used to go there every year and it's absolutely beautiful. You can fish of their docks, for sure and we've caught Walleye doing that, but they have boats to rent and you should.  Access to three lakes via a flowage that connects them.  Just make sure to bring some sort of portable depthfinder set-up.  There's a LOT of structure to fish around and if you don't know the water, you're kind of fishing blind.  They have nice cabins for rent, but if you're up for roughing it, I think camping is $15/night for the entire group.  Incredibly affordable.  One of the 3 lakes (Farm) is a BWCA entry point, there's a portion of the lake where motors are not allowed - it's marked with small buoys but not with signs so be aware of where you can and can't go.  Just ask the folks at the resort and they'll get you where you need to be.

Hope this helps.  Good luck and have fun!

[tcwin]

Rainy has lots of big Pike, Smallmouth and Walleye and I love being up there. I have done the houseboats from RainyLake Houseboats and it was a blast. If you want to be off the beaten path, that is one way to do it. When we did it, we frequently caught a lot of fish right off the boat. The newer boats have all the features you want and they have a wide selection of rental boats. The other place to look at on Rainy is Camp Idlewood, They are on the west end of the lake and do not have a restaurant or bar, so it is very quiet and peaceful,. They have recently remodeled the cabins and they are in good shape. Greg and Rhonda take good care of you and they also have a good selection of rentals.

As far as going into the Canadian side of the lake, you can get your fishing license and Outdoors card online, and then apply for a Remote Area Border Crossing (RABC) permit via mail and you can scoot back and forth across the border with no hassle. If you go ashore in Canada all you need do is call in from Bowman's landing at the remote check in.

Rainy Lake is my favorite place to fish - rarely a lot of traffic and the opportunity to catch a big fish.

[snoozebutton]

We'll be staying at Pine Tree Cove on Kabetogama next June. If you want to be right on the water, check out cabins 1 and 2. I don't think they rent out boats but there's a marina not far away that does. This June we fished it (different resort) and caught lots of walleyes but many were in the slot. We did catch enough saugers, perch, and northerns to eat and bring baclk though.

http://www.pinetreecoveresort.com/

[Tom7227]

I went on houseboat trips twice on Lake of the Woods.  Five dads and five sons all around 12 years old.  This was 20+ years ago before GPS.

Two of the dads had done it before and that was a tremendous plus.  Driving one of those rigs isn't easy and properly landing and securing it is more complicated than you thought.  We towed smaller boats to fish out of because once the houseboat is set in place you don't move it.  Having individual boats allowed us to explore a bit and also get away from the crowd if desired.  But towing boats up the where we got the houseboat meant a lot of extra expense.

One of the dads is a tremendous fisherman and he always found hot spots for walleye.  There's a lot of water up there and you can spend a lot of time searching and not having any success.

It is sort of a trade off IMO.  You will be able to find solitude if you get a houseboat, but you'll also spend a lot of time getting it to your spot, getting it back, and screwing around in other ways.

[IronDioPriest]

Mark, for what it's worth re; your June vs July question... Late May/Early June is prime season for MN Walleye. If you go to a quality lake, you'll find them in July, but they will have begun to scatter to their Summertime haunts. So if you want the best of what MN has to offer, May/June is your best bet. If July is when you can get away, then you'll still catch fish and have fun.

There's also the bug factor. In May/June, mosquitos and black flies are less likely to be a problem. In July, expect to be dealing with biting insects unlike what you've experienced in MO. They're manageable, but they are a factor to consider for folks who haven't dealt with them before.

[Missouri Mark]

Thanks everyone for replying and YEP, I've spent a couple summers working in Minnesota and it's the Land of 10 gazillion mosquitos.

Next question (and I intend to print and share with the others in my group, so all honesty is appreciated); None of us have ever fished for walleye or pike, but all of us have experience bass and trout fishing in Missouri. We are all country boys and have fished Missouri lakes and streams all of our lives. We would consider hiring a guide for a day or half day to show us the ropes, if necessary. A couple of us are teachers so May is out of the question. June or July are when we are considering, and I am leaning towards the Rainy Lake houseboat idea with the pull along johnboat and we would bring a motor. Granted, there are no guarantees when it comes to fishing and we will certainly listen to and ask for advice on how and where to fish, but I guess what I want to ask is this .."In all likelihood, do we have a pretty good chance of catching a fair amount of decent fish daily?" With any kind of new adventure, there is the apprehension about the unknown. This trip would be a retirement trip for a couple guys. From what I've read, I think we will do all right. But I would be the one to blame if we spent the money, drove 15 hours, and spent a week and didn't catch any or few fish. A little reassurance for my buddies to read would go a long way.

 

Thanks again and I plan on sharing your info with my group.

[ThunderLund78]

I would say "yes." Pike probably require a little less know-how than Walleye if you want to ensure the rods stay bent.  But Rainy lake is a borderline world-class fishery for both species and with a little advice form your houseboat rental place, you're probably going to be able to find success.  I'm sure they want you to have a good time and are willing to give you the lowdown on technique and potential hot-spots. After all they want return customers.  Check out the Rainy Lake Forum, as well.  Lots of good info on there.

[ANYFISH2]

I would echo thunderlund.  Yes, you can have a(n) expectation of catching decent numbers.and quality each day on Rainy Lake.  Hiring a quality guide for the first day or two can really cut down on.tbe learning curve of a new, big lake like Rainy.  It may not be a nessessity, but if you can/want to afford it can't hurt.