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Fully Kraeusened

Down riggers in Voyageurs

By Fully Kraeusened, in Crane Lake Kabetogama-Namakan Fishing Reports - Hunting

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Fully Kraeusened    3

Fully Kraeusened
Posted

That’s makes a ton of sense. Thanks guys! Wish I just asked right away. I wasted an hour on google. :crazy: I know way too much about aspen trees now. 

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Sushilicious    11

Sushilicious
Posted

I maybe stating the obvious but make sure u pay attention 2 the wind report. There have been plenty of times where we have driven from crane to namakan and not been able to fish the main part of namakan.

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Fully Kraeusened    3

Fully Kraeusened
Posted

Yes sir. Nothing wrong with stating the obvious if you intent is to keep people safe. I’ve been beaten up quite a few times by Namakan. When I first started visiting vnp in the late 80’s my dad only had a 14’ Alumacraft with a 25 hp Merc. I was 10 and I was fishing with my dad so it seemed like the Titanic to me. We would take that boat from the Ash River all the way to Pat Smith. Took a little over an hour. Maybe I’m remembering wrong but I feel like more people had smaller boats back then. 

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Wanderer    761

Wanderer
Posted
7 hours ago, Fully Kraeusened said:

 Maybe I’m remembering wrong but I feel like more people had smaller boats back then. 

Oh, no; you’re not remembering wrong. :whistle:

A 16 foot boat was considered big when I was growing up too!

I’ve enjoyed reading this thread.  I hope you have a great time in VNP.

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Fully Kraeusened    3

Fully Kraeusened
Posted
47 minutes ago, Wanderer said:

Oh, no; you’re not remembering wrong. :whistle:

A 16 foot boat was considered big when I was growing up too!

I’ve enjoyed reading this thread.  I hope you have a great time in VNP.

Thanks man. Worst trip I ever had to vnp was outstanding. 

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Satchmo    21

Satchmo
Posted

We run a lot of leadcore trolling rods w/ cranks to troll for mid summer walleyes out in the main lake basins. Way easier than down riggers, and you can slow down your main engine with a couple of 18" - 24" trolling bags from AmishOutfitters.com. Very simple to do and fairly inexpensive method to get in to.

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BRULEDRIFTER    28

BRULEDRIFTER
Posted
On 2/28/2018 at 3:07 PM, Fully Kraeusened said:

Hey guys. I’m new to this site. I’ll be visiting the park early June. While I have made several trips up there I’ll be bringing a friend who never has. He is a very experienced angler, but has yet to catch a walleye. A lot of his experience comes from using down riggers on Lake Michigan. He was asking about using them on a vacation this year and I had no answer for him. I can’t recall ever seeing anyone using that method in Voyageurs. Does anyone have a thought on this? I’d appreciate any advice. Want my buddy to have a great trip! 

Tight lines!

Fully Kraeusened

No need to down-rig that early in the season.  Late summer/fall it's well worth having riggers on board.  I was on Nam late Aug last summer and we spent the first part of the day jigging with no luck. Then we drifted over some deeper water and found some suspended fish. We plucked one or 2 out on jigs, but due to the wind picking up, was impossible to stay on top of them long enough to pick more off.  Out came the boards and raps and we proceeded to put on a clinic for a few hours. Lot's of keepers and plenty of big girls. Fish were holding around 20-25ft, over 30-45' so releasing them was a non-issue. No bloated swim bladders. Good luck! 

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BRULEDRIFTER    28

BRULEDRIFTER
Posted
52 minutes ago, BRULEDRIFTER said:

No need to down-rig that early in the season.  Late summer/fall it's well worth having riggers on board.  I was on Nam late Aug last summer and we spent the first part of the day jigging with no luck. Then we drifted over some deeper water and found some suspended fish. We plucked one or 2 out on jigs, but due to the wind picking up, was impossible to stay on top of them long enough to pick more off.  Out came the boards and raps and we proceeded to put on a clinic for a few hours. Lot's of keepers and plenty of big girls. Fish were holding around 20-25ft, over 30-45' so releasing them was a non-issue. No bloated swim bladders. Good luck! 

I meant 'Out came the riggers'.... just caught my error and too late to edit apparently. 

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Fully Kraeusened    3

Fully Kraeusened
Posted

Thanks Bruledrifter. Since I’m coming early June it seems  the consensus is leave the riggers at home. Trip can’t get here soon enough. I only make it up these days every other year. 2016 the weather was miserable. Still enjoyed myself, but was my worst trip up there by far. 

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Go To Topic Listing Crane Lake Kabetogama-Namakan Fishing Reports - Hunting


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