Panfish Bite is on

[LawlerMinn]

Nice sunnies and crappies are hitting late afternoon (after 4 pm). Rat, Fleming, WIlkins and Portage are all producing. Sunnies like panfish leeches, worms, or power bait on lite jig heads in 6-8 feet of water adjacent to the weeds. Around 6-7pm, the crappie start to come in and is time to switch to small jigs (1/32 oz) with white or yellow twister tails and slip bobber set just above the weeds (3-4 ft down); cast to deeper water and slow retrieve in. Later on, cast parallel to weed line and slow retieve in. Great time to take the young ones out for some fast action...and a cooler time of the day. Good Luck

[UdeLakeTom]

Excellent, it's nice to see a local give us some info on this forum....

[Eyehawk]

why do you say that?

[UdeLakeTom]

It appears that when I scroll down the forums, there are always 4 or 5 viewing the McGregor/Aitkin forum, but very few are commenting or replying. Just my observation over the last couple of years.

[Eyehawk]

Well I have a reasons why off the top of my head Ude.

[83walleye]

Once again Eyehawk, it appears the center of your universe is Aitkin county. I suppose that right there explains a few things...

Take a step back and knock off the ownership attitude. If you can find fish - great - don't try to cop an attitude on users of this forum. It's all about working together, sharing info.

[Eyehawk]

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I suppose that right there explains a few things...

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So what does that explain then?? Aitkin County is not center of my universe, but I do love it up there, and I am planning on living there someday. Like I stated in the Big Sandy thread I do have buddies that live around there, and they have taken me fishing to some of their lakes and I in turn promised to keep my mouth shut. And I’m not copping an attitude here its how other people feel towards others, being from different parts of the state.

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It's all about working together, sharing info.

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83walleye if it was all about that then I would be for it, but sometimes on this website there is too much info put on this website, and not for the best of the fishery of the lake for the size of the lake. Aitkin County does not have that many big lakes except Big Sandy and maybe Bay Lake. So all I’m saying is try to keep the small lakes info to a minimum, because you may want a "hot" report and go out and catch a meal or limit of fish, but then so does everyone else that travels up north, and if that happens to a small lake even the size of Big Sandy can't handle it. I've seen it done to lakes in the Brainerd and Bemidji area, where the bait shops and even on here a guy posts a hot report and the lake you were fishing the day before or week before is jam pack with ice houses or boats. I really don't care if I show an ownership attitude because I do know I don't own the lakes I am just saying use your own intuition and fishing knowledge to catch them or watch and observe to see what other fisherman use. Don’t just go by reports or where people tell you to fish or what to use. It's ok to try new lures or methods or to get skunked cuz that is fishing. Learn from your mistakes, keep trying and move on. As for helping a guy sure I will in person if I think their a true and honest fisherman, but not on here, to many people can read your posts/reports because it is the internet, and I really don't trust people in general, especially guys looking for an easy way out to catch fish. No offense to any of you guys on this thread, like 83walleye, or CJ...I mean I just took your question the wrong way thats how I responded to it..sorry for being a smart with you, its just how I responded and felt at the time.

[bigsandyguy]

I just wanted to take the time to reply to these posts. I am in total agreement with eyehawk. I have been going to Big Sandy for about 15 years now, and I have seen what these boards have done to this lake. I think anyone who has been up there over this span can say the same. I spent numerous hours looking for crappies and walleyes on this lake, trying this and trying that. Once I found them, I would have my fun, then look for new ways, and new places to fish. I keep MAYBE 5% of the fish I catch. I can now go to this lake on any given weekend and catch as many crappies as I could possibly want, and can usually catch walleyes if I take the time to work at it. However, many of the spots I fish are now heavily fished, whereas 5-6 years ago, they were not. Word has spread, and people who have no idea on how to catch fish on their own, are POUNDING LIMITS AFTER LIMITS and keeping all of them. Maybe part of that was my fault, I let someone know, who let someone know, etc..... I took a client from work up there, who now takes his friends up there, for the sole reason of bringing a limit of fish home. I read this forum to see if I too can pick up a new trick or two, but it makes me ill when I see some of my favorite spots come up on this board. As someone once told me on one of my first trips up there...........if you spend time on this lake, you too will find fish. Isn't that the fun of fishing? The fun of the hunt, and finding them on your own? If that isn't fun for you, you might as well call it "catching" and not "fishing". I for one, do not tell a sole where I catch fish on this lake anymore. I take my wife and kids, and maybe a few people who like to fish, but don't have the money to own a boat. I will let all on this board know a little secret.........there are a lot of places to catch fish on this lake without having someone tell you where. It only takes a little time on the water, and for me................THAT IS WHAT IT IS ALL ABOUT!

[83walleye]

To each, his own. Passionate fisherman want to do all they can to reap the benefits of their investment of time on the water - can't fault you for that, guys. Keep up the good work - there're still alot of fish out there to be caught - keep on keepin' on...

[UdeLakeTom]

And all I wanted to do was say "thank"

[83walleye]

All-righty then...;)

[LawlerMinn]

Did not mean to raise such a fuss!!! After all 10 crappies and 15 Sunnies is the limit and those who want to get their yougsters out for some clean fun deserve an accurate report on what is working. I think any of the lakes in Aitkin and Crow Wing County will produce panfish using similar baits and locations. Too bad there are some who think this forum is causing too much distress on the fish populations; I do not suscribe to that thinking. Good Luck catching with the youngsters and remember to return the fish you are not going to eat to the lake.

[united jigsticker]

So the 5 people reading this thread are ruining the fishing in Aitkin County?

Everyone that reads this thread will all decide to go to the lakes in the fishing report. They'll all decide to go on the same day, to the same lake, use the same bait that the fish will bite on, max out their limits, and rob the lakes dry...then tell everyone they know...and they'll tell someone, pretty soon Aitkin County will be changed to Ain'tworthfishing County, everyone will try to sell their cabins...the economy will crash....a great depression will be started....all because one guy was nice enough to share a fishing report...

Wow.

And all the fish in the lake are inside my cone angle on my transducer in the winter, and that's why everyone groups so close to me.

Yep.

I am the best. And you could be too if you read my posts. But then you'd ruin all my fishing. And then I wouldn't be very good. And then niether would you. HA HA

[Corey Bechtold]

See you up there Saturday UJ! LOL

Later,

Corey Bechtold

[united jigsticker]

This thread isn't getting enough endorsement.

I'm gonna do the ol' copy and paste to the Crappie/Sunfish forum under "Favorite Panfish Lakes", and also post it in the Open Water Main forum.

To the other 4 people browsing this thread...Get your own county! There are more then 5 counties in MN; I found this one first!

[Eyehawk]

Thanks Bigsandy, you took the words right out of my mouth. But at least you've seen what I have seen and experienced when you go out fishing. As for United, you don't get what BigSandy and I are saying. Im not talking about the 4 or 5 people that read the posts...you don't have to be a member of this site to read the reports and posts on here. It is the internet and this site can be hit by hundreds to thousands of people a day for an example. So think about it, and how many people actually view your posts/reports. I figured someone would blow what I am saying out of proportion, and it had be United. But like I said in my previous post not many lakes in Aitkin county are not that big, (Big Sandy, and thats about it, because Farm Island and Bordon are not that big, get your plat map book out or maps out and you will see) just like lakes around the St. Cloud area, they aren't that big and all it takes is a hot bite report to get guys out there and give the lake alot of pressure and then it turns back into an average lake again. All I am saying is if your going to report on a small lake just think about it first. Just because you came up one weekend and found this small lake and did well doesn't mean you have to report or what i call brag about it, because you fished it one time, and need to tell your life story about it. Thats what gets me, they don't think about the locals or others who fish the lake or live on the lake, and want it to keep it a great fishery and a quiet lake with not alot of traffic. If you read under RogerR post on "favorite panfish lakes" thread under the "Sunfish, Crappie" category, he explains it pretty well and so does Corey B. I've read many of Corey's posts and he does make alot of sense and I do follow his way of thinking, because I believe there has to be more guys like him that purposely fish for crappies and bluegills, and use his policy and methods of what to keep and what to release back. Because his style of fishing of releasing the big bull gills and big bluegills, and keeping the smaller 1/2 lbers to eat. I understand that and I believe that it works too for the overall bluegill population so the big bull gills can protect the nests and by keeping some of the smaller bluegills it gives other fish a chance to eat and so the fish do not get a year class that is stunted. Makes sense to me.

[united jigsticker]

Yep, blew it up like Woody-Woodpecker on the Thanksgiving Day Parade.

[83walleye]

UJ - great comments and I appreciate your great sense of humor!! Today's "hotspots" don't necessarily mean a thing about tomorrow's "hotspots". For crying out loud Eyehawk, take a pill and quit talking with a forked tongue - now I 'spose you'll deny you get info from this website to catch fish...LOL!