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First Timer LOTW


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I can't believe I've been fishing Minnesota for 5 years now and finally found this site last week! Great site!

I've done a lot of searching (especially on the LOTW forum) for information/tips for my first trip to the LOTW next weekend. We are renting a house out of the Baudette side of the lake and although I think I now understand the important points (Beer smile.gif), I just have a few more questions. Are ice houses pretty spread out due to the lake size or is everyone crowded in particular spots? Also what pound test would you recommend for the walleyes? Does anyone use tipups up there or stick to just 2 lines/person in the house?

Thanks!

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Welcome to FM!! the houses are pretty spread out over a couple of miles. The lake is so big that it's pretty hard to feel crowded. If you have multiple houses rented from a resort, they usually are in the same area, maybe a 5-10min walk apart.

I don't fish tip ups on LOTW, but I usually only use tip-ups for northerns though so.... I use 6lb test for the wallys. Good luck fishing!!

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With a little time you can answer just about any fishing question you might have with this site.

House spacing is for the most part quite comfortable. At times when the snow depth limits traffic I have had inconsiderate individuals drill right in the plowed driveway of my permanent. One jerk set up his portable like 10'1" from my door and flooded me out so I had to relocate. Luckily his type are few and far between.

I'm with Bart on the 6 lb. line. Some use 4 but I believe the stained water gives us a little edge on line visibility & 6 is a bit more forgiving.

I usually fish 1 jigger & 1 deadstick but if I have more people than holes we set out tip-ups especially if we go shallow in the evening. Have had times when they did better than rods.

Please! Do not minimize the importance of Schnapps and other spirits in the sport of ice fishing!

Good Luck!

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Thanks for the info... That's what I was figuring - just wanted to double check. I'll post a report on my return - hopefully favorable smile.gif If nothing else I'm sure I'll be able to report successful catches of the daytime buzz laugh.gif

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Here is another tip I learned on my last trip up there, pick up some emerald shiners from the local bait shop. We had twice as many hits our second day compared to the first when we were using fatheads only. We also caught a few on "Gulp" - shad color. Good luck. wink.gif

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SalmonJedi... Dont judge the fishing at LOW by the catch rates that have been reported this season, you really have to experience the lake in winter as well as summer.The Big Lake truly is amazing. I started fishing it 88 and have been hooked ever since. I am amazed how well it sustains the fishing pressure. Good luck and welcome to Fishing Minnesota! wink.gif

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well - I'm back. It was a great trip this past weekend. Fishing was slow (from what I hear) but enough to keep us busy. Fished Saturday and Sunday in 35 fow. I'm not really familiar with the lake but I believe we were 5-7 miles N of Pine Island? Saturday was the better of the two - about 17 walleyes between three guys / 8 keepers - big fish was 16". Didn't really identify a hot jig - just kept switching it up to get bites between jigs. Fatheads outproduced the emeralds. All fish we abou 15-17 feet down. Sunday we were still marking fish (more than Saturday) at 15-17 but threw the whole tackel box at them with no luck. The only takers were on the bottom with bare red or green hooks deadsticked only. Ended up keeping 4 walleye and 2 saugers. All in all a fun trip and has us thinking about next year smile.gif (hopefully with a real winter).

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SalmonJedi, If you go back up there again bring some waxworms with, those fish that use saw 15-17 down in 35feet of water were most likely tullibees(ciscos). They tend to suspend like crappies. They have very small mouths and its hard for them to take big minnows. I have had trips up there and caught 50 of them in a day when they are feeding and they are a blast to catch and also taste very good smoked.

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