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Posted

This is kindof a re-post from earlier this year. Will be staying at Northstar Lake Resort and fishing the lake for the first time ever July 1-8. Can anyone give me some pointers/favorites on presentations/depths to start with for muskies & walleyes on this lake during this time of year? I've searched archives and found very little info. While I've read the lake is very clear, does it tend towards green or brown stained water? Thanks in advance for any tips!-E-

Posted

A bit of non-specific info for you. I have fished the area lakes for over twenty years, and it's usually during JUN-JUL. I've checked it out, and North Star appears typical of the other medium sized area lakes, with excellent weeds. It's one of the more challenging time periods due to good water clarity, and bluebird skies of summer. I never waste an overcast, breezy and/or rainy day. The fishing is typically FAR, FAR, FAR better then. Come equipped to fish through all weather except lightning. Other than the typical livebait presentations, I have caught a lot of walleye trolling the weed edges and bumping rock flats with small to medium crankbaits.

Hopefully this thread will get more attention from guys with actual North Star experience.

Posted

I apologize for not sending you the email I promised when you posted the first time. I have the notes I was going to send you in my back pocket. Someone deleted your email address. Send me it again and I will send them to you ASAP. If you have follow up questions, ask away. Send email address to

cbranson at mn dot rr (Contact Us Please)

Posted

Have stayed at that resort before...nice. Fishing, I was there in the later part of August so it wasn't that great but did get into some decent Northern/bass fishing. Primarily trolling the deep weedlines with little joe spinners, sucker minnows, chucking spoons and bucktails produced a few also. Had the kiddies out on their pontoon a couple times fishing for sunnies and got some of them also. Had the biggest Muskie I've ever seen following a northern we had on the stringer that was trailing behind the boat as we were working this weedy point...very cool. good luck.

Posted

Take a ride up to frontier sports in Marcel. They should have some up to date info.

Posted

Erik,

Here's all I know about North Star. Say hi to Carol, Dan, Nancy and Eric. Tell Eric that "Brunch" said hi. Post how you do.

Panfish

Potato creek-north end of the lake

Small sunfish, bass and northern in the creek from the lake to the first corner that has an old beaver lodge so the corner has some deeper water; it’s a fun area for the kids to get action and see fish with polarized glasses

Go through the channel. In the southwest corner of the bay (behind the big island), there is an old beaver lodge up by shore (to the left of the cabins). The water is deeper there and sometimes sunfish, bass, rock bass are there. Fish with bobber and worm. It’s really weedy getting back there.

Crappies will move into the weedlines in the evening. Try the bay to the north, maybe around the channel to Little North Star.

Walleyes

Hopefully they are more prevalent since they started stocking it again. Lindy-rig the deep weedline (cabbage) at low light with leech or nightcrawler; sometimes a jig and minnow will turn a few. The following areas have produced,

· Sunken islands just south of North Star

· Point with bar that sticks way out before you get to the channel; fish from the tip of the bar up to the resort on the east side

· Point across from the North Star Resort point; fish the east and south side

· The corner to the left of the beach. Off of the end dock it drops quickly.

· Bar on east side of the big island in southwest part of the lake.

· North Star Resort point; fish the flat at dark with bobber and leech

· I never tried it but you might want to try pitching some of these weedlines with a plastic worm or pig and jig during the day. Might get bass, walleye or northern.

Muskie

In the southeast bay of the west arm, troll around the sunken islands for muskie. Troll with medium to large baits that dive to 10-12 feet, max 15. A dad, son and grandson did this and landed a couple of nice ones. You can use this method around any of the sunken islands.

There are a lot of nice cabbage beds to cast. I only tried it a few times since I’m not the biggest muskie fisherman. I just needed some exercise on my vacation.

General Info

You can troll the weedlines for northerns if you have any kids that want to enter the kid’s fishing tourney. Many times a kid fishing from a dock with worms win’s it. Nice smallmouth have been caught this way on the south side of the point on the docks closer to the tip of the point.

I’ve marked big hooks relating to the drop to the north of North Star Resort’s beach. I fished them but never caught anything. Didn’t have my Aqua Vu then so they could be suckers too.

Northernmost bay

2 humps on either side of point on west side; never fished them but look fishy.

If you go to the south past the public access, go between the two pipes/poles sticking out of the water. They are stuck in old pilings for the railroad track that used to cut across the lake. I never fished much in the southernmost bays but it’s nice for an evening boat ride.

There’s usually a small northern or muskie hanging around the boat landing. My son caught and landed it by himself when he was 7. Black and silver floating Rapala. It’s one of my favorite pictures.

Posted

WOW-Thanks to ALL of you for your helpful insights and suggestions! The detailed notes (fantastic), local shop info (I always try to find the mom & pop baitshops in the areas I visit--you never know where a hot-clown colored skitterpop or other discontinued producer will show up!), and general info are all greatly appreciated as I'll be the "newbie" on the lake next week. Very excited about an entire weeklong getaway, and all of your tips are sure to be used. Last time out fishing for an entire week was 7 years ago on Rainy Lake--way too long! With all the info that's been given to me, I'd be happy to share some "spots" I've frequented the last couple years on Minnetonka's west side, and Lake George (Oak Grove) has been a "home" lake for me for 25 years as has some prime smallie water on the Mighty Miss from Ramsey up to Elk River. With scores of other north/east-metro lakes visited, along with some marked spots on the USA side of Rainy. Glad to help those who help others! I'll be sure to post the results. Thanks again! -E-

p.s. my six year old caught her first "real(non-dock related, non-sunfish)fish" last weekend, a nice 12" crappie, and is now requesting fishing BEFORE going to the beach, so we should have some fun with the kids contest next week--special thanks to you for the detailed notes Hookmaster!

  • 2 weeks later...
Posted

Stayed at Northstar Lake Resort from July 1st-8th, would recommend a stay there to anyone--nice owners, clean facilities & cabins, nice spot on the lake, and plenty of non-fishing activities for the whole family throughout the entire stay.

Fishing Northstar was tough for the first 4 days. We arrived on the heels of a cold front and had daily sustained winds outta the north at 15-25 mph through Wednesday. Midlake fish related to humps were nearly impossible to catch during that time, tried cranks, spinning rigs, lindy rigs & jigs with very little success, only a few scattered rock bass and dink walleyes. Changed out lakes on Wednesday and went to a nearby smaller lake and limited out on sunnies (5-8ft, 2" chartruese berkely powergrub on walleye rocker tube jig head) and largemouth (same lure, depths) and even had a walleye grab that out from under lily pads in about a foot of water! That seemed to change the luck in my favor. Also picked up a tip at resort bonfire wednesday night to switch to a white Genz Worm jig rather than the gold colored jigs I'd been using and then got into some walleyes, largemouth, more rock bass, and a few crappies. All hitting that same jig tipped with leeches. Ended up going through 1/2 pound of leeches and switching to the berkely power leeches once the real ones were gone. Nearly ALL of these fish were found hanging just beyond the drops of reedy points off mainland in 15-20 ft of water. I was surprised that this was where the overwhelming majority of fish that I caught were hanging out, rather than the mid-lake reefs/humps. The water clarity was incredible, and coupled with those sunny skies to start the week I could see why some didn't even bother to fish until 7-10pm low-light conditions--that timeframe and 4:30-7:30am seemed to be consistent all week long for best fishing times. The muskies seemed quite dis-interested as well, only had 3 follows in about 8 hours total of targeting them, and one additional follow on a weedless frog coming off the tops of lily pads while bass fishing. Figure 8-ing coaxed her back up to the boat from below, but couldn't get her to commit either. Other follows came after red/black Wahoo bucktail and tiger orange/yellow Believer, again all along the lily pads & reeds where water quickly dropped from 5ft at the reed edge down to 20 ft in about 2 boatlengths.

Thanks to all for your pre-trip tips. The beaver dam spots worked well for the panfish, and the islands and channel areas were good for the musky follows. I'd also recommend the bay on the south/SE side of the resort for multiple species (and shelter from an unrelenting north wind). The point across the lake directly west of the resort docks and wrapping around that point further westerly proved to be the hotspot for the walleyes in about 12-20 ft of water depending on the light with the aforemention jig/leech combo. Also pulled a 5-6 lb northern from that area on an orange/gold j-9 rapala.

All things considered, a great trip even if it took me the better part of a week to "learn the lake".

Thanks again folks!

-ERIK-

p.s. a 16" walleye took the kids fishing contest. in one cast my daughter learned both the joy of hooking a largemouth and watching an arial display and then the disappointment of watching the spinner/jig fly from it's mouth with about 10 minutes to go in the contest!

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • Kettle
      Those kidz must learn good
    • Kettle
      It is  pretty shiny piece of equipment. I was able to purchase it on my scab job wages 😆 I don't think I'll update the electronics any time soon, 3 screens is enough?
    • smurfy
      🤣 not near as shiny and spendy as that livescope toy. Thats kinda like bling ain't it? besides i'm on a paultry union pension  🫣
    • Kettle
      I mean to catch pike you just need a shiny object...
    • leech~~
      Just another "Words matter"   Voting on school levy. This was posted on the School "education district" building door.  We had a nice cold walk all the way around the building! The arrow was added, after we educated them! 😒
    • Wanderer
      Nope!  But it’s more funner!
    • smurfy
      I don't need no livescope to catch fish....🤔🤪  It's all in how ya wiggle the worm!😜 Just sayin  🤣
    • Kettle
      Obviously this is more of a hot topic due to forward facing sonar. With that being said, I know people who have pulled crappies out of basins 40+ deep since the fl-8 and zercom flashers came out. That's over 30 years ago. I do think there's a push to ban these in MN and I could see them doing it here. They'll have to pay my livescope from my cold dead hands 😆 on days I can't catch a walleye jigging or rigging it's nice to turn it on and throw corks at individual fish
    • Kettle
      It wasn't just you, I was fishing west of you about an hour on Monday. Fished 8am-4pm, no fish, two keeper walleye and one small one from 4pm-630pm. Marked a lot of fish, they would come up to a jig and swim away. They were skittish to the dead stick too
    • leech~~
      I wonder like divers, if we let them decompress every 10' for 1/2hr. If that would help?  🤔  It would slow the bite down a bit!  🤭
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