Questions about Big Sandy Lake

[1forwalleye]

I am considering purchasing a home on Big Sandy Lake and was wondering what lake is like for fishing (I have never fished the lake before). I primarily fish for walleye and was surprised to find out the lake is not stocked by the DNR. Furthermore, based on the 2005 survey, it appears that the walleye run pretty small in this lake. If you fish this lake or live on it, what have your experiences been lately? Any decent sunfish or crappies for the kids? Any information you can share with me would be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

[spotter]

Big Sandy lake can be tough for walleyes at times like any other lake but have had many great outings for walleyes. As far as size of eyes can't complain to much, caught many different sizes no wall hangers yet! I think it has great crappies in it which are fun to chase when the eyes don't bite. Big Sandy is also connected to Aitken lake which has huge sunfish in it. One bad thing is water clarity of big sandy, it is a bog stained lake and can only see a few feet at most.

Good luck

[PierBridge]

Nice.....what part of the Lake are you looking at?

Yep! the average size is not great but you can pick up few in the 16-22" range......

[1forwalleye]

thanks spotter and pierbridge.

thinking about Webster Bay or Bell Horn Bay.

Keep coments coming.

[PierBridge]

Both good place's Bill Horn Bay is a neat bay with water up to 80 feet it's a great recreational area for sking and tubing a lot of places on Bill Horn "we call it bell horn also" are up on a steep hill so getting to the lake can be some work.

I really like Webster bay it's nice seeing the sunset's.

Over all it's a great area with quite a bit to do they have a championship golf course, lots cool restaurants and bars, decent public hunting area's the holiday weekends can be a zoo at times but overall I think you'll love the area.

Good Luck keep us posted if your going to be fellow BigSandyon..

[Bigbartguy]

I've found fishing difficult, but havent tried enough either. Smaller walleyes definitely, and very shallow (alot more shallow than youd think) Great lake to be on - restaurants/bars fun to be had for recreation.

[farmfishing]

I have had very good luck on this fishery and it is a beautiful lake. Fish it like a river and you can get lots eyes and some big gills and crappies. Just stay away from the crowd. Good lake for the whole family.

[ole matty]

There r a lot of northern pike mostly small with some good sizes in bell horn bayi had caught them 4 to 6 fow.

[1forwalleye]

Thanks to everyone who has replied so far.

[fisherdog19]

A friend of mine's dad owns the huge log cabin on the south point in Bellhorn that leads to the big part of the lake. Fished it a couple times, and had good luck. Definately a day bite, and shallow <10 fow. Crappies under docks were nice sized as well. Beautiful area, you can't go wrong purchasing up there

[General Montgomery]

Great lake for fishing plus lots of room for the recreational boaters. Property values constantly on the rise. A good, supportive community with typical small town values.

Plenty of fishing spots with lots of structure and islands. Once you find a few spots, you can catch as many of the 13-15 inch eater eyes as you want. In the Spring, many people never leave their dock and catch Walleyes, but you will have to sift through some smaller ones. There are big ones, but not in the numbers you will see on some of the other famous Walleye lakes. I consistently catch the bigger ones (18+) in the winter. I've seen pictures of 8+ lb. pigs at the local bait shops but haven't personally witnessed anything of that size taken in close to 20 years.

Plenty of hammer handle pike in the lake but there are some monsters as well.

Good Crappie opportunities. Bill Horn was made famous by its winter Crappie fishing on the north end although that has significantly slowed down since the cat got let out of the bag. But you should probably expect crowds in the winter if you are on the north end.

A good change of pace is heading up to Aitkin for panfishing or duck hunting and it is quite the scenic boat ride.

I find that most people on the lake really aren't serious fishermen and so you will probably get varying reports from prospective neighbors. It takes more than 8 hours per year to cover some ground and learn how to fish the lake. You can really see this on opener where congregation syndrome is in full effect.

If you are in Bill Horn you'll be protected from the wind, but once you come out of the bay, that side of the lake is often hit pretty hard by the wind. Not much different than any other large lake I guess.

[1forwalleye]

Thanks General Montgomery and to all who have replied to my post. It is good to hear that you can catch some fish on Big Sandy.

[Mark Christianson]

My name might not say much for fishing walleyes, but this is the one lake I fish hard every year for those bottom feedin' muck suckers.....

I LOVE Big Sandy for walleyes. Don't bother fishing any deeper than 8 to 10 ft from opener to freeze up for them. PERIOD!

PS - don't go tellin my bass buddies I posted this...

[Bigbartguy]

fisherdog - that's the monster "cabin" on the point? nice place!!!!

I think it's a great lake to be on. Just fish shallow. Going to Golf on Ice at Hillcrest Resort this weekend. Finally some snow!!

[Mark Christianson]

Fisherdog,

Are you talking about the Ponderosa Point "cabin" that burned down several years back and was rebuilt?

Thats about the most beautiful lake lot and cabin a human could ever imagine visiting.... Much less owning!

[PierBridge]

No doubt the pictures don't do it justice.

[UdeLakeTom]

Was there a resort on that point at one time??? Late 60's or early '70's???

[JBMasterAngler]

Is that how big the beach is or is that just how low the water was this past summer?

[Moses2531]

Not sure, but I did hear the water was a bit lower.. Thats a great picture, in fact its the same view I had when I caught a nice northern (4lb) fishing that sunken island right there? Is that a fluke, or is it a decent spot, we were tryin for 'eyes that day... Didnt muster anything else but the one pike... Kool to see the picture though and know where its at!

[PierBridge]

Although the lake is down 18" thats the beach they brought in tons of sand, rock, their property stretches around whole the point.

I'm still aways away from the sunken Island but yes that can be a good spot especially in the winter.

I don't believe there was ever resort there.

[General Montgomery]

Didn't Ralph John Fritz used to own that place?

[Twangmaster]

I started fishing Big Sandy in about '65. Went every year until about '74. Hadn't been back unit 2001, and was amazed! Looks like half of the rich suburbs of Minneapolis moved up there! Anyways, we always had good luck for eyes up the prarie river in June, but you got to get way past the shallow water stuff. Davis Bay, right next to where the river comes in (or is it out?) is a good spot for big northerns. I've got several Northern in the 10 to 20 pound category, including a 14 pound in 2001.

That cabin on the point was always my favorite on the lake! Yeah, the new one is nice, but I still miss the original!

Is the forest service Fire Tower still there?

thanks!

twangy

[Macgyver55]

Quote:

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Is the forest service Fire Tower still there?

thanks! twangy

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Yes it is! I still climb it every year....slower and slower!

[CrappieAttitude]

My granparents used to have a mobile home lot on Big Sandy. We spent a lot of time up there. Had quite a few burgers at Duchaines Point (the name of the campground bar/resturant back in the day) I believe that it is called the Eagles nest or something on that order. I don't know if that picture was the same point I am thiking of, but I know that Ralph John Fritz owned the place on the point just north of the resturaunt. I remember as a kid seeing a helicopter land there. I haven't been back for probably about 10 years. I know that my grandparents had to relocate because they were selling the mobile home park to put up condos or something. It is bringing me back to memory lane talking about this.

CA

[PierBridge]

Thats not Ralph's old place.

[CrappieAttitude]

After looking closer at the shoreline, I know that isn't the same point that I was referring to. I know that the point his old house is on was a site of a resort. We as a family had rented one of the cabins many years back. We used to swim off of that point before he purchased the lot and there was a nice beach that extended all the way to the end.

[fisherdog19]

That's the cabin, and it's even more impressive on the inside. I'll be up there again this summer for a long weekend .