Where to start looking?

[Ears]

I am coming up to Winnie in a week. I have borroed a friends gps that has the Navonics Chip with 1 ft contours and want to get out and find some pearch. What types of structure would be the best to start with. Sunken islands, rock piles, deep or shallow water?? Just a gereral starting point would be great.

[bmc]

I would start out by finding some mid lake structure close a underwater shoreline point. I think people usually start out on the shorelines and work their way out deeper to the mid-lake structures. Your best bet would be to stop in at Fred's Bait in Deer River and talk to Bill and Mary, they'll know what's going on. I highly recommend using a resort's access roads, not only for safety, as they're checked often, but you'll get some good info. from the resort owner's on where the bite has been. There's tons of spots out there, pick out something that looks promising and start looking. In the morning/evening the perch are on top of structure and tend to be at the base of the drop offs during the mid-day. I always laugh at the people that "gravitate" to where the groups are fishing, no need to do that!

Brian

[Ears]

So something like the old river channel or the island near little muskie? How about center bar? Not sure how the ice is out there either

[SFBOY]

I agree with using the resorts. They are very helpful and can kinda get you on fish fairly quickly. Some years a guy can find a school and sit on it but last year was a run and gun situation. We would catch one or two from a hole and then move to the next one. Start shallower and be prepared to get deeper. The shallow fish have always tended to be much wormier than those that we caught in 25 to 30'. I think there are populations of fish that live almost exclusively shallow or deep for the majority of their lives.

One interesting thing that I have noticed on the lake is suspended perch. It doesnt happen often, but from time to time I have had the Vex light up halfway up from the bottom in 30 to 35 FOW. I thought it might be a rogue school of crappies or maybe a group of eyes. Every time though it was a school of huge perch. Reel up to them and they ablolutely hammper the jig. All fish that I have caught in this scenario have been 13" pushing 14". The problem is that they come and they are gone. I can always get one, but by the time I am up and back down, they have moved on. Those are the largest perch that I have caught up there. Not sure why the big ones would suspend, but they do on occasion. Kinda disproves some people's notion that the depth finder has little use for fish that are supposed to hug the bottom. Has anyone else experienced the suspended perch on Winnie?