L.O.W or Vermillion?????

[Scott K]

I have a free long weekend coming up the second weekend of feb. looking for your opinions on where to go, Lake of the woods, or lake Vermillion, I have fished l.o.w. before but havent been to Vermillion, been hearing good reports. Has anyone been to either of these lakes this year? I have had the best fishing of my life on l.o.w., but I like to try new lakes also. Any input is welcome, thanks!

[Team Otter]

Is there a reason you're limiting yourself to those 2 options?

[Scott K]

The only reason i picked these 2 lakes are the consistant good bite. I have been to l.o.w. and have done really well. I know several people that go to Vermillion, and they do very well. I am open to other sugguestions, I like to be adventurous, always open for new places. If you have a place that your willing to share I will consider it? I dont like Millacs in the mid winter, because the bite is inconsistant, I like action, slot limits dont effect me, I only catch and release, at least most of the time. I like a fair priced resort, with nice acomadations, I have 3 days and nights to fish. Thanks for any nice spots anyone wants to share!

[Team Otter]

I would recommend Winnie. Solid perch and 'eye action throughout the lake and plenty of resorts to chose from. Some that come to mind right away are The Pines, Tamarack Lodge and High Banks.

[fiskyknut]

The bite on the LOTW has been reliable and quite good for the most part till the weather throws us a curve. West end of the lake has been really shining as of late. Lots of Jumbo Perch to be had over on the westend too. This past summer/fall were fantastic as far as numbers of BIG Walleye being taken, and it's looking like this winter will go down in the books as a super one for the BIG girls too....Many, many 10 to 13 pound+ fish have been taken so far this season.

fiskyknut

[Team Otter]

Coming from a guy on the home page...

Had to Fisky!

[fiskyknut]

Did you see the pics of the 2 Whales caught out of Sportsmans they have posted on their website? WOW!

[Team Otter]

Yes. "Killer".

[Scott K]

Thanks fiskynut, 10-13#, if your trying to pursuade me to go to l.o.w., thats the way to do it!

[Scott K]

Where do I find this website I want to see these fish? (whales)

[Team Otter]

www.sportsmanslodgelow.com

Select the link to the Fishing Report.

[fiskyknut]

Don't get me wrong there are 10 gazillion wee ones fighting for your bait in this pond too! Seriously though it's been an exceptional year for catching big fish, best I remember in my life and most folks in the know would probably say the same. I pulled 2 31 inchers 6 days apart this past summer. Had another day with 5 over 28 while running just 2 lines. Fish in the mid twenties were so common we did'nt even bother with measuring them things!

[james_walleye]

I would go too Red if it were my choice. Walleyes are on a good bite and if your willing too drill a few holes, you can still get into a pile of those HUGE slab crappies. I've never been up there and not caught alot of fish. 3 weeks from now i'll be up there.

[eyepatrol]

I just got back from River Bend on LOTW. Me and a buddy caught around 25 walleyes and missed probably as many. Fishing was pretty good Friday, but slowed tremendously when the cold front blew through Friday night. Most fish were between 14" - 18", but we did end up with a 21.5", 22", 25.5", 28" and 29.5".

Check out the Lake of the Woods forum for a more detailed report.

[harvey lee]

Nice to hear you caught some eyes. I went to the Bash and those lakers are a rush. Pound for pound you cannot beat them.

I dont know if there is a eye that can fight like a 25" laker!

[eyepatrol]

I have never caught a laker before, so I have nothing to compare. However, I did have one fish on yesterday that just couldn't be stopped! Fought it for 10 minutes and never gained an inch...more like lost 75yds. Got all the lines tangled and oh what a mess. Line snapped so I never got to see it, but it would have taken quite some time to even get it close enough for a peek.

[harvey lee]

Probably was the fish of a season, to bad it got away. I had a laker I believe break me off this weekend. I reeled him up approx 20-30ft and he made a sudden heavy run and the line snapped and that was the end of the game. I do believe my drag was set a little firm.

[eyepatrol]

It's a bummer when the line snaps. I pretty much did it on purpose though. Our other 3 lines were caught up with this fish I had on, my buddy was trying to hold onto the 3 poles, so I just put my hand on the spool, pulled and let it break. We had a good'ol mess.

[mrpike]

I'm a LOTW fan been there twice this year already and headed back next weekend. its a blast!

[engfish]

Harvey Lee, I would agree. I caught my first two (and only two) on Burntside two winters ago. They are unbelievable fish through the ice and hard to find, too. I lost the first one after fishing for 8 hours over two days and threw my rod and reel about 50 yards. (Almost as good a feeling as tossing that 7-iron after a bad shot...) The next one came up ten feet and hit my jigging Rap so hard it almost knocked the rod out of my hand. I haven't been on that thread for awhile, but the FMers gave me some nice tips to catch those lakers. Tried again last year with no success, but I'd go again in a heartbeat if I had the time to get up there again.

[engfish]

Sorry, Harvey Lee got me off my game with that report of catching lakers...no doubt on my choice--LOW. I've been going there since I was in high school (a long time ago) and it's set up for ice fishing, especially for those of us who don't get up there a lot. From the pics at Sportsmen's, it looks like you need to bring your wife/girlfriend/significant other if you want a real big one! I've had great success with Border View, but I don't think you're going to get too many complaints about any of the other places. Most of them are out past Pine Island into the deeper water, and if you jig during the middle of the day you can still entice some of the walleyes instead of the sauger. Hey, wherever you go, you'll still be fishing!

[Scott K]

Thanks for the reports, l.o.w. was my lake of choice, but as I said, if there is closer action, im up to any lake. I have been to l.o.w. a few times myself, I have always done really good. Friends of mine go to Vermillion and tell me the good reports they have from there, but l.o.w. is not much further then Vermillion. U.R.L. I hear is hot also, maybe I can do a day at U.R.L. then fish L.O.W. the next couple days. When you guys fish there, do you rent cabins, or do you rent the sleepers, I have never caught anything after dark up there, but is it cheaper to just stay in the sleeper then to rent a cabin for night then an ice house for the day?

[eyepatrol]

I'm not sure if it's cheaper or not. We rented a sleeper for a couple reasons. 1) Because we didn't want to be hauled out and hauled in from day houses during primetime fishing hours and 2) We knew we were going to have "some" cold ones and knew we wouldn't be in any kind of shape to get up at 6:00am to get ready, eat breakfast, etc.

Although we had pretty good fishing from the sleeper house, most of the others in the pack of sleeper houses didn't fair well at all. Charlie at River Bend said this time of year it's usually better to fish from the day houses because they set them out miles away from the packs of houses on fish that haven't seen much fishing pressure.

[Scott K]

Thanks basscatcher, I seen your fish on the low reports, nice fish!!! where did riverbend have there houses set up? what depth?

[eyepatrol]

Out by Pine Island with the rest of the pack, but our house was closer to the pressure ridge where not many other houses were. So we were amid the pack, but off to the side which I think helped. 20fow.

[Scott K]

Hey basscatcher I see in the background of your fish pictures there are painting supplies, you guys working off the cost of the sleepers??? lol!

[eyepatrol]

I wish! Not sure what you're seeing for painting supplies, but we were supplied coffee cans with minnows and a 5-gal pale for putting fish in.

If we could have painted the house to pay for our trip, I certainly would have done it!

[harvey lee]

By the looks of the fish you guys caught Eric, I may need to hire you to guide me to some bigger eyes.

[FishinCT]

No fish on LOW after dark? Thats when the pout have always started snappin for me

[minimite]

if youre goin that far north it would be foolish not to stop at red. been there twice in the last three weeks and have had good luck with the slabs and you literally get sick of taking the walleyes of your hook ! stop at hillmans get a pass and some advice and i garauntee you won't be disappointed