2021 Lake Vermilion Fishing Reports

[MarkB]

Jamie

If you saw my boat on a lift then the dock right beside it has a really big musky living under it. I've seen her on and off most of the summer. Actually, I think it's where she goes to digest baby ducks, big walleyes, and unsuspecting wave runner operators

We have found the walleyes to be moving around quite alot. Here today, gone tomorrow seems to be whats happening. One thing for sure is that when they're on the reef, they're feeding on something and when they move, they're still looking for something to eat. Check out your chart and look for similar structure close to where you've been catching them. Yesterday, to my surprise, we found them in deeper water adjacent to the reef instead of right on top. I figured they would be shallow with the fierce wind and rain but they weren't. Just have confidence in the area you're fishing and fish it . Oh, and by the way, forget about the garlic

Good Fishing,

MarkB

[james_walleye]

That's funny Mark, when I pointed out your boat I said I bet that area would be good for muskys. 3 weeks ago we saw multiple fish under our docks, almost every day. This week we saw 1 just briefly.

As far as the walleyes, its hard to go out and really pound it when I only get short stints in the boat. Either the kids don't want to fish very long, or I can't go to long because the kids want to ski, or tube, all that kind of stuff. And then I spend half my time trying for muskys. In only about 10 hours casting this week I had 5 fish hit or on and my brother in law got a 48". That was all middle of the week when the boat pressure was down.

[esoxrocks01]

Sorry for the late report, but here it is! Over the weekend, the largemouth and smallmouth bass have been sticking to the shallows and under our boat launch dock like crazy. So I hit two nice largies (9 and 12 inchers), and what may be my biggest smallmouth ever at 17 inches on Saturday! I also caught a jumbo 11 and half inch yellow perch off the dock when I arrived at the cabin. After that big bass bonanza, I think I'm gonna target other fish species for a while, like catfish, pike, and muskies!

[cb north]

Had a nice weekend with a little fishing. My son had a couple buddies up and they had a blast together. I tried to get them up with me to fish in the a.m., but no dice. I went out and caught a walleye and a nice 18" fattie smallie near the cabin. When they finally got up we had some lunch and hit the lake about one O'clock. One of my son's friends had never caught a walleye before, and he caught two eaters the first day (photo below), had his first fish fry, and he was hooked. He bought some new floating jigs, and we got out again about 5-7 pm the next day and he got another couple and we had 4 eaters for another fresh walleye meal We were off some reefs in 20-25' using fat crawlers with lindy setup with floating jigs, and also regular lead jigs with silver spinners. Great getting the kids some fish and seeing them pumped up about fishing!

[PSU]

So for walleyes, is it worms #1 and then leeches?

thanks coming up thursday

[Casey Sunsdahl]

Casey's Crawlers

[PSU]

Bumping this thread up again for the trip in the am. Thanks in advance

[MarkB]

Today was the first morning out since my last post. Wicked wind, the weather report called ENE 10-15mph, was closer to a 20mph steady blow. Water temps were 71 degrees, due to the heavy wave action. We didn't leave the house until 8:30 and finally got blown off at ~11:30. We saw very few boats today most likely due to the huge rollers in Big Bay. The fishing was excellent but it was a constant fight to maintain proper speed. Once again, I had to head the bow into the waves and set the i-pilot at 4.5 to try to maintain a .7mph speed The walleyes were scattered from 15'-28' with the majority of the hits coming right in the rocks. Big smallmouth are right down there with the walleyes now and they can sure fool you when you expect the doubled up rod to have a walleye on . We are finding that the big walleyes are showing up more frequently and that makes me extremely happy. 1/2 crawler is still our bait of choice.

Good Fishing,

MarkB

My wife with the big one she caught today.

This one fooled us both.

[airnuts]

Heading up to Vermilion this friday, hoping the weather cooperates. Lots of reports of using crawlers when fishing for walleye, just curious if leeches are still available. Any reports deeply appreciated!

[MarkB]

Why would you want leeches when the walleyes are, according to the reports, gorging on Casey's crawlers? I have seen leeches at the Y Store and in my refrigerator in my garage .

Good Fishing,

MarkB

[Cliff Wagenbach]

I dumped 1/2 pound of leeches last week!

Cliff

[delcecchi]

But you are East and We are West and ne'r the twain shall meet.

[Cliff Wagenbach]

But you are East and We are West and ne'r the twain shall meet.

Correct!

Cliff

[Casey Sunsdahl]

I have been bringing a nice selection of leeches for sometime.. Even the bass have been showing a crawler preference and they are usually crazy about leeches... I try to always bring them but haven't been great for me. CC's have been great.. Caught all our fish today pulling plugs.

[MarkB]

My wife and I tried fishing the evening bite today, for a change. We left the house at~4:30 and headed for home at a little before 8:00. The first place we tried showed lots of fish but very few biters. We managed only 2 small(12") walleyes and a jumbo. The second place was a repeat of the first minus the fish boated. By the time we got to the third spot it was ~6:30. This time, when I marked the fish, they were ready to go . I dropped a marker and we never got 20 yards on either side. The depth was 27' on the deep side and 20' on the shallow side. We caught 8 beautiful walleyes to 21" in a little over an hour. I kept a 15" and 2-16" for dinner tomorrow. They were full of 3" perch minnows. Since we pretty much "never" fish afternoons and evenings, I can't say if this was typical of the evening bite or not. We used 1/2 of a big fat juicy Casey's crawler The water temp when we left was 75 degrees and zippo for wind. A friend of mine called earlier and reported that he caught them this morning in 35' close to where we fished together this spring.

Good Fishing,

MarkB

[airnuts]

I have never had any luck using crawlers fishing for walleye but it sounds like these babies are the way to go. I have read that Caseys Crawlers can be purchased at Shamrock and Fortune Bay. Hope you can get them without having to buy a whole flat.

[shamrock7]

My supplier was out of leeches last week. Not sure what this week will bring but would expect the same. Lots of Caseys Crawlers though.

[airnuts]

Sell them by the dozen or what?

[muskie-mike]

Great fishing last three days got 33 walleyes all on crankbaits. Ten of them were 20 to 24 inches. Only 6 for the frying pan. 20 to 24 feet deep..

[shamrock7]

Sell them by the dozen or what?

Normally by the dozen (14) but can do it however the customer wants. 1/4 flat, 1/2 flat or full flats are also possible.

[MarkB]

A couple of months ago, my neighbor/friend told me a story about a GIANT walleye that he had hooked, fought, and lost beside the boat, getting only a glimpse of the fish before the hook pulled and it sunk out of sight. He was fearful that he had killed the fish because it all happened in 40'+ of water. The basis for the "dead" worry was because he indicated it had literally stopped fighting and came up from the depths as dead weight. Flash forward to today (sorry I keep breaking into tears)My wife and I have been trying some different spots of late and, this morning, I decided to try a nasty, snag-infested, rock ridge/reef that rises out of 35'+ of water all around and tops at 12'-15' in two different places. It is located just ~1/4-1/2 mile north of where my friend lost his BIG fish and I don't fish it much because of the snag problem. Anyway, I pulled in this AM and dropped a marker on the 15' hump. Almost immediately, my wife caught a small walleye. The fishing was, actually, slow and over the next hour, she caught a 16"walleye and I caught a huge rock bass and a 16"smallmouth. The only reason I didn't leave was because of the quantity of marks in adjacent 20' water. Now, occasionally, when I get hook snagged, I can lift my rod then drop it quickly and the hook will pop off. I was day dreaming when I became aware that my rod was snagged. I felt no hit. When I started to lift the rod and pop it, the other end thumped. Instead of setting the hook, my brain slipped into neutral, and I merely kept pressure while trying to raise the rod. It didn't raise. For the next 10 minutes or so, this fish just kind of layed there. She didn't run, no headshakes, just a constant massive weight whenever I tried to raise her up. Occasionally, she would thump her tail but, other than that, I really don't think she ever knew she was hooked. I got her up 3 times, partway. I never saw my sinker and every time it seemed she was almost within sight, she merely thumped her tail a couple of times then ran out the 10' or so of line that I had gained and then just laid there. The fourth time I got her up off the bottom, nothing changed except, this time, I saw my sinker which meant she was ~7' down assuming 4'visibility. In one simple flip of the tail, she went back to the bottom, WITHOUT MY HOOK . I did see her tail, I saw the white spot, and, I can tell you, if the body size fit the tail size, this walleye was really really big! I can say this without reservation, I have never had a walleye on that gave me the sensation of that tremendous weight! Mike, I hope that was your fish. If it wasn't, then there are two of them patrolling pretty much the same water. Everything after that was pretty much anti-climactic. We ended up catching 8 walleyes, 2 smallmouth, and the rock bass. I cleaned a 16.5" and 2-16" for supper.

I can usually keep my cool when a big fish is on for someone in my boat. This fish was the exception. I have absolutely no way of knowing how big she was, but based on the pull, the "dead" weight, and what little I saw, she was the biggest walleye I have ever had hooked.

Good Fishing,

MarkB

[delcecchi]

That happened to me, only it turned out to be a musky. Bit a leech our from hoover island. I also watched a guy fight something for like 45 minutes near the "osprey nest" a few years ago, while the rest of us were catching walleye. I don't think he ever saw it.

I presume it was another musky, perhaps foul hooked.

[Birch PT Mike]

Mark, I really hope it is the same fish,my nightmares may go away. When i had her on it was similar at first and then just enormous weight. I didnot see a tail,but two of the biggest eyes ever. Fishing was pretty good for my buddy and I this AM. We fished till around 10:00 and boated 14. Six really nice ones and the rest smaller. Caseys crawlers,of course

[MarkB]

I saw you out there on the west side of the island as we were going out. I almost went over but I figured you had things under control . My biggest disappointment is that I didn't get to see the whole fish and then, of course, get a picture. I'm sure you realize that the reef I'm talking about runs east from the 1st island north of where you lost your big one. Guessing 1/4 mile perhaps, certainly within reason for it being the same fish. Last year, I cut off a hook in a 20+" walleye in June and caught it again in August on the same reef, so it is definitely possible. If THAT was your fish, it's every bit as big as you thought.

Good Fishing,

MarkB

[PSU]

Coming up today through sunday and looks like a fairly significant cold front is coming through. Still crawlers number 1 and leeches 2 for walleyes? Any minnows working yet?

Thanks

[Scupper]

Love reading your experiences MarkB.

I only get up to Vermillion once a year (June) for a week long trip and I truly look forward to my yearly visit.

I have no doubt your hook up was a trophy walleye. Several years back, while fishing the flats on Mille Lacs I had a similar experience. First thought was that I was snagged. My partner assured me that we were in the mud and chances of a snag were unlikely. It did seem to move a little and I did feel I was gaining although it was minimal. I suggested it was a Muskie and my partner said no way. I then thought out load that it could be a big northern and my partner laughed.

After what was 10 minutes or so I was gaining ever so slightly and it did indeed feel like a snag of some sort except that it would firmly, but gently, pull back. After a few more minutes, my sinker was coming into view and we could see the silhouette of a fish. At this time, I surly thought it was a Muskie or large Northern as the magnification of the water made it look huge.

As I wrangled it to within two feet of the surface my partner identified it and exclaimed rather loudly "Walleye"! I got so excited that I pulled hard and out popped the hook. The big walleye just idled there beneath the surface for us to watch. My partner slide the net into the water and the big girl slowly meandered away. We laughed and joked that she smiled and winked as she made her departure.

I would of wrote it off as a Muskie or Northern if we wouldn't have seen her. Your description of events truly mirrors mine. Thanks again for sharing.

Scott

[airnuts]

Heading up tomorrow for a week of R&R. Looks like its gonna be a nice week for fishing, maybe a bit too cool for watersports though, which is fine by me. Gonna pick up some of Casey Crawlers and try my luck. How deep and what about the reefs?

[MarkB]

Thanks Scott, I enjoy sharing them with people such as yourself. It sounds like you know first-hand the utter diappointment in losing the fish of a lifetime. I didn't even get the pleasure(?) of seeing the whole fish like you did. The only way I know for sure it was a walleye is the tennis ball sized(or so it seemed) white spot on the tail. Good luck on your next visit.

Good Fishing,

MarkB

[BartmanMN]

Great story Mark. I know where you are fishing again today, tomorrow, and the next day.

Go get her.

[megaslam]

I agree! Great story Mark. I believe every word. Biggest walleye I had the pleasure of meeting face to face fought like a snagged log for the first 10 minutes.