Minnesota's Statewide Weekly Fishing Report

The Most In-Depth Statewide Fishing Report in Minnesota!
By John Wester

© 2008 Outdoors Weekly - Copyright Info

May 16, 2008

Minnesota's Opening Weekend Report:

ANNANDALE - B.J.'s Bait & Tackle, Bill, west side of Clearwater Lake, between the two public accesses, www.bjsbait.com (320-274-3730) Opener weekend was tough, the walleyes were tight lipped. They were getting some crappies in the bays, Greenshed and Turtle. Plain or colored hooks with crappie minnows seemed to be working for them. The lake temp was about 53-54 degrees. We didn’t hear much on the northern bite either. The crappie bite was pretty much the best thing going on.

BATTLE LAKE - Ben's Bait & Tackle, Josie, Junction of Hwy 78 and 210 (218-864-5596) For walleyes, the only real good reports we heard were from Ottertail in shallow and the inlets and outlets of the rivers fishing with shiners. The other lakes we heard some descent reports from were Rush and Walker, in shallow there too, with a jig and shiner. East and west Battle, Clitheral and Ten Mile Lakes were good for crappies. The northerns are biting on East Battle and Turtle on shiners and suckers. Molly Stark, Deer and Battle Lake are your best bets for sunnies.

BEMIDJI - Bluewater Bait & Sports, Mark Cook, 1 mile north of the Hwy 2 & 71 Intersection, www.bluewater-bait.com (218-444-2248) Fishing was good last weekend, a lot of the lakes cleared off of ice. Guys are finding them shallow with a jig and a shiner, anywhere from 2-6 feet deep. The rivers have been good too. Upper Red Lake was very good too. Plantagenet, Andrusia and Wolf got hit hard too for walleyes. Not much word on northerns and crappies. We have spot tails in the store.

BLACKDUCK - Timberline Sport & Tackle, Carl Adams, Junction of Hwy 71 and Blackduck Lake Rd. (218-835-4636) ) It was a pretty slow opener up here, not a lot of people around due to the weather. And the water temps are still very cold. Most have been trying for walleyes in the shallower water and getting a few. Rabideau and Gilstad for the panfish bite have been good.

BRAINERD/NISSWA AREA - S&W Bait and Tackle - Home of Nisswa Guide League, County Road 77 just west of Highway 371, www.sandwbait.com (218-829-7010) We don't have to tell you it has been a cold and literally snowy spring. The ice on many of the larger area lakes did not go out until the Monday or Tuesday preceding the opener. This resulted in colder than average water temps with many lakes sporting surface water in the low to mid-forties. Therefore, the walleye and northern action on the main bodies of area lakes was quite slow. Most of the walleyes caught were caught in water from 4- feet. Spot tail shiners were the bait of choice. Due to the boats spooking fish in the shallows many people long-line trolled cranks slowly over shallow flats or pitch small jigs tipped with fatheads to shallow rock covered structures. The good news is that the crappies are on fire! Check out the shallow bays or shallow dark bottom flats on practically any area lake and you'll find crappies. Small jigs tipped with crappie minnows or waxies seem to be the ticket.

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CHISAGO CITY - Frankie's Live Bait and Marine, Brad, Corner of Hwy 8 and CR 77, www.frankies.net (651-257-6334) The walleye bite has been tight to the shoreline on sand in 2 to 10 feet of water and mostly at night with a jig and a fathead. They have not been aggressive and have been biting very light. During the daytime, the guys having any luck have been Lindy rigging on the bottom. The best lakes have been north and South Center and Chisago. The crappie action has been hot though. Sunrise has opened up now and guys are getting a lot of nice crappies and sunnies.

CROSBY - Oars-N-Mine Bait and Tackle, Jesse Williams, 22640 Hwy 6 N (218-546-6912) It was kind of a slow opener as far as walleyes go. We hit Serpent at midnight and the bite was very light. Some of the fish you could barely tell they were hanging on, but if you just held it there eventually you could feel them chomping the minnow. Another week of warm weather might do wonders for the bite. As far as reports overall, the trout fishing was excellent in the mine pits. It wasn't so much whether the groups caught limits, more how long it took to get them. A couple groups claimed they had their limits within the first half hour for 5 guys and threw a few back too. Pike were fairly active just about everywhere, walleyes were sluggish. The best walleye bite seems to be in 3-4 feet of water on cranks. Looking forward to some warm weather if we ever get it!

CROSSLAKE - Holiday of Cross Lake, 35610 Cty. Rd. 66 Crosslake, Lee (218-692-2708) Weather played the key roll, a cold & wet Saturday did little to stop walleye fisherman. Walleye were found in 12 to 20 feet of water with jigs and shiners worked slowly in the shallower areas. Lindy-rigs with longer snells and shiner minnows produced fish in the 20 feet of water. Pelican Crosslake and Whitefish all gave up fish. Crappie action was hot Friday then cooled off Saturday along with the weather and then turned on Sunday again. Try a jig and a minnow working the shallow areas of bays and points. Pine River Crosslake Dam was open with a full flow making fishing difficult; some Walleyes were caught there too.

DULUTH - Fisherman's Corner, Scott, 7 miles north of Miller Mall on Hwy 53, www.fishycorner.com (218-729-5369) The St Louis River has been producing some big walleyes. Lots of big males are being caught. Anglers have been using leeches, crawlers, and a jig and a minnow. Fish Lake was fair up by where the river comes in, using a jig and a minnow. The main part of the lake was slow. Rice Lake was producing the best overall for the inland lakes with a jig and a minnow by shore.

DULUTH - Marine General, 1501 London Road, on the edge of Lake Superior, www.marinegeneral.com (218-724-8833) Big walleyes are being caught on the St. Louis River right now bouncing a jig and a minnow off the bottom in 8 to 10 feet of water. Lots of over 30 inch walleyes were caught opening weekend, the biggest being 32 inches. The coho continue to bite on the big lake and the lake trout bite is picking up on the bottom. There were some limits of walleyes on the inland lake too with a jig and a minnow working the best.

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ELY-Babe's Bait and Tackle, 451 W. Sheridan St., Ely, MN, first business on the left as you are entering town of Ely from the west on Hwy 169, www.babesbait.com (218-365-6930) For those who were fortunate enough to take part in the opener up in Ely, they were rewarded with some of the best fishing here in a long time. Fall Lake seems to have led the list followed closely by White Iron. The fish were all over the flowing water and most fish were taken in relatively shallow water with a vertical jig presentation. Orange was the most popular color on Fall Lake with a rainbow minnow trailing behind it. Most fish are being caught in less than ten feet of water. Here's hoping that the trend continues for a while longer.

FOREST LAKE - Mikes Bait on 8, Rich, 1/2 mile east of 35 on Hwy 8 (651-464-5150) Opener weekend wasn’t that great because of the weather mainly, it kind of shut the fishing down. But this week has been good as the weather got nice again. Green Lake produced some nice walleyes on shiners and fatheads. We have lots of shiners still in the store. Lindys with crawlers, leeches or shiners worked the best with a slow presentation, in shallow water. Clear Lake will turn on here soon as will the rest of the lakes as the weather gets warmer.

GREY EAGLE - Nancy's Bait & Tackle, Rex, 4 miles east of the Rock Tavern on Big Birch Lake, 4 miles west of Upsala (320-285-2405) Mound Lake at night was the best for walleyes. Also, above and below the Blanchart Dam on the Mississippi River was also good for walleyes. The crappies were biting on Pine and Big Swan Lakes too. We have all sizes of leeches available by the pound; we also have rainbows, shiners and redtails.

HACKENSACK - Swanson's Bait & Tackle, Jim Tuller, Hwy 371 on the north end of Hackensack, www.swansonsbait.com (218-675-6176) Fishing has begun for the year. It was kind of a cold, slow opener. There were Walleyes caught, mostly large females. The open water parts of Leech Lake produced a number of 22-25" walleyes, not too many "eaters." Pine Mountain Lake had a lot of people fishing on it on Saturday and only a few walleyes caught. Stony, Pleasant, Birch, and Ten Mile Lake all gave up a few walleyes and a lot of Northerns. The walleye fishing will improve with warmer water. Crappies and panfish are moving into the shallow water. The shallow, dark bottomed bays on the north ends of the lakes are the place to be. Good Luck!

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KABETOGAMA-NAMAKAN - Gateway Store, Phil Hart, US Hwy 53 & Co Rd 122, 30 miles south of Int'l Falls-Canadian border, kabfishingreport.com (218-875-2121) Anglers were greeted with March type weather, cold rain, snow showers and sleet. Fortunately the winds were down. Dividends were paid in fish to the anglers who toughed it out. Reports of incredible numbers were common, the norm was 6-12’ for a strong steady bite, however most of these fish were in the protective slot between 17”-28”. Depths of 28-32’ steadily produced smaller walleyes, 9-14”.Northern pike were aggressive and either desired or a nuisance depending on your liking. They were hitting offerings intended for walleye. We photographed on at 18# - 39”. Sauger were scarce and very few fished crappies. Jig and minnow, or Lindy rig and minnow lead the way. Red, white and blue jigs used shallow or deep, was the favored jig. Lindy rigs with floaters or a floating jig head did well, both shallow and deep. It appears that the smaller male walleyes haven’t yet moved into the shallows, meaning we could have another great week providing more harvest size fish coming up. Incidentally Kabetogama was ice free Thursday afternoon contrary to news reports that stated Kabetogama was still froze over and would be on opener.

LAKE OF THE WOODS - Area Tourism Bureau, Denelle Hovde , near Junction of Hwy 11 and Hwy 172 in Baudette, www.lakeofthewoodsmn.com (1-800-382-FISH) It was another great opener here at Lake of the Woods! Despite some chilly weather the fishing action was fast and furious. Limits of nice 16 - 19 inch walleye are being caught within an hour, and anglers report releasing several 25 - 30 inchers as well. The water temperature is at about 44 degrees and the walleye are still spawning. There's still ice on the big lake but the Lighthouse Gap and Four Mile Bay are open. Limits are being caught in a variety of depths, anywhere from 4 to 13 feet of water. Anchored and jigging, using a frozen shiner, seems to be working the best. Over by the Morris Point Gap anglers are finding the fish in about 5 feet of water, with anchored and jigging working the best. Up at the Northwest Angle the inlet is open and there is a clear channel to Flag and Oak Island. Resorts on the inlet are up and running and the island resorts are anxiously waiting for another great summer season to start. Remember you DO NOT need a passport to visit the Northwest Angle and Islands.

LEECH LAKE - Anderson's Resorts, Tim, www.andersonsleech-lake.com (1-800-516-0077) Leech Lake is open and ready for everyone to come enjoy! Opener was different this year, we had ice on the south side of the lake so it limited people to fish the north shores. Even with the weather people did great. Many fish in the protected slot. Jig and a minnow was the ticket in green and gold. Hardwood Points, Sand Point and Minnesota Island were all very hot spots. Federal Dam and Boy Bay were very active as well. With the ice off ever wear the tried and true spots will be good too. Come enjoy Leech Lake this Year!

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METRO AREA EAST - Blue Ribbon Bait & Tackle, Oakdale, Josh, www.blueribbonbait.com (651-777-2421) White Bear has been good for the walleyes in the evening and also on Bald Eagle. The Mississippi and the St. Croix have been fair. The northerns are also biting on White Bear.

MILLE LACS LAKE – Chris Kuduk’s Guide Service, www.kuduksguideservice.com (320-630-1761) This year’s opener was a little slower than the past few. The water temps are still really cold and that is making for tough fishing. The shallower waters that might be a little warmer seemed to produce a little better, but overall fishing was tough. We need the water to warm up a little to get things going. The crappie bite still continues to be good in the bays.

MILLE LACS LAKE - Malmo Market, Lynwood Elliott, State Hwy 47 and 18 East, NE corner of Mille Lacs (320-684-2295) We'll it wasn't last years opener. Cold wind and rain/snow kept many anglers from putting in the time they would have liked to on the big lake. The anglers that did get out seemed to be having their best luck early and shallow. The east side seemed to be the best place to be. Bobber fishing with minnows or leeches in 4-6' of water, or dragging Lindy rigs in the gravel seemed to be working the best. Most reported having their best luck in less than 11' of water. Anglers also caught fish pulling raps in the shallows and bays. Anglers fishing the North sand didn't have much to say. Water temps. On the sand were between 42-45 degrees. We need sun and warmer temps for the fish to bite on the sand. Expect better fishing in the weeks to come. Good luck and hope to see you soon.

MILLE LACS LAKE – Johnson's Portside, Kelly or Steve, 1 mile north of Isle on Hwy 47 SE side of the lake, www.johnsonsportside.com (320-676-3811) Cold water and nasty weather greeted the opening day anglers on Mille Lacs this year. Water temps in the high 30’s and low 40’s made for some sluggish and tight-lipped Walleyes. Action all over the lake was as expected (sluggish). The better reports came from the shallow warmer water both on the rocks and the sand breaks. Reports from Friday night to Saturday mid-day were worse than the afternoon when the rain and “colder front” came through. It sounded like the majority of the fish caught were outside the slot (18 to 28”) and were released. Males caught were still blowing milk when brought in the boat. Leeches seemed to be the better bet for the opener with Minnows on rigs coming in a close second. More anglers should learn how to fish with minnows; it seems to produce all year long. The story should be the same through Memorial weekend unless we get a major heat wave. Shallow water will be the ticket for you.

LAKE MINNETONKA - Wayzata Bait & Tackle, Tim or Bob, half mile west off I-494 on Hwy 12 (952-473-2227) Guys have been getting some limits of walleyes in 10 to 15 feet of water with jig and a minnow or leeches. Fish slow and keep the trolling speeds down, as the fish are slow with the cold water temps. The main lake water temp is about 48 to 50 degrees right now. The crappie bite has been hot though. They are having the best luck on pink and white jigs in all the north bays in 5 to 10 feet of water and Black Lake. The northern bite has been spotty.

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NISSWA - Dave's Sportland Bait & Tackle, Jason, 2 miles south of Nisswa at the Intersection of Hwy 371 and Cty Rd 77, next to Schaefer's Foods, www.sportlandbait.com (218-963-2401) The hustle and bustle of the Minnesota walleye opener is in the books.  We had mixed reports for the weekend.  The best reports came from anglers fishing shallower than normal.  Walleyes were biting pretty well in 6-8 feet of water.  To reach these shallow fish anglers were casting small jigs tipped with shiners or Rapala Shad Raps.  Some anglers also trolled with Rapalas after dark and connected with some decent walleyes.  But overall it was a slow opener for most fisher-people.  We had the Governor out on Pelican Lake and he managed to boat a nice 17-incher.  The best lakes over the weekend were Gull, Whitefish, or Round.  Many anglers tried for walleyes but switched over to fishing for crappies.  It proved to be a smart move since the crappie fishing has been outstanding on most of our smaller lakes.  Most crappies are feeding up in less than 10 feet of water.  It is a great time to be fishing crappies. 

LAKE OSAKIS – Buck Point Resort on the N.W. corner of the lake, Brad, 115 miles west of Twin Cities on I-94W, take Hwy 3 North out of Osakis to Hwy 10 West, www.lakeosakisresorts.com (320-859-2530) A few northerns were caught out on the north end, but the walleye bight wasn’t very good. The water temp is still too cold.

PELICAN RAPIDS - Park Region Sport Shop, Lee Brenna, Intersection of Interstate 59 and 108 in downtown Pelican Rapids (218-863-5740) A few walleyes were picked up on Lida and the crappies were biting too. A lot of northerns were caught. Lizzie was okay too. The walleye bite should pick up as the weather gets warmer.

RAINY LAKE - Rainy Lake Tourism, www.rainylake.org (1-800-FALLS-MN) Rainy River saw the most opener action for walleye anglers, however, a fair number continue to fish the river for sturgeon. Walleye have been in areas of 16-20 feet of water and minnows on jigs are working best. Look for areas of heavier current. Below the Dam at International Falls, near Manitou Rapids and below the Sault at Birchdale are all likely spots. Rainy Lake has open water in bays and along the south shorelines and people have been using the launches and getting out. Word is walleye can be caught but you might spend a little time finding the right spot. Large northern pike are fairly active in the shallower waters; their spawning may have been delayed by the later ice conditions this spring. Many migrating birds are nesting and marking out territories. The Minnesota DNR has noticed some mortality in songbird populations though; apparently the late spring has shortened the supply of food immediately available to migrating birds. Meanwhile, native species like ruffed grouse appear to be doing well. Each spring, researchers follow specific routes and tally the number of drumming grouse heard. This drumming count gives a rough estimate of population, and so far, the figures show a growing number of grouse.

RED WING - Ike's Bait & Tackle, Ken, 2109 Old W Main St, Red Wing (651- 388-2111) Things are starting to pick up a bit at the head of Lake Pepin pulling shads and on the flats. Some guys are still jigging around the head of the riprap and getting a few. Panfish are starting to pick up in Baypoint Park. And we’ve seen some real nice turkeys are coming in.

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SAINT CLOUD - Stop Light Bait, 45 8th Avenue SE, St. Cloud (320-255-9689) Local anglers had mixed success in our area on the fishing opener. Horseshoe, Koronis and Browns Lakes produced a few fish. Anglers reported that fishing Mille Lacs was slow. The Mississippi River however, produced limits of walleyes for many fishermen. Some anglers who started at midnight had limits within a few hours. Saturday s hard rain produced great walleye fishing right during the rain storm. The changing warmer weather will provide better fishing for sure. Crappie anglers have had luck on Brigg’s, Julia and Clearwater Lakes. Sunfish anglers have caught some fish on Brigg’s, Clearwater and Cedar Island Lakes. We are carrying panfish, lake-run and large leeches. We should also have more jumbo leeches in stock for the weekend. We have shiners and all the other baits you will need. It won’t be much longer and Stop Light Bait will once again be selling firearms. We have a lot of new tackle in the store and we ca n accommodate any Minnesota licensing needs.

SAINT PETER - Hermies Bait, Brad, 43539 French Hill Rd. St.Peter MN 56082 (507-931-6875) The walleye bite is slow, they are getting a few on Madison and Elysian. They are getting sunnies on Shields and Roberts. The crappies are biting on Mazaska in deeper water and on Madison at the BuckMaster Bridge at night. They eyes on Elysian are in the evening too. As the water warms up, the fishing will too.

SOUTH CENTRAL MINNESOTA - Axel's Tackle Box, Axel, 2 blocks north of Hwy 60 on Hwy 13, next to Casey’s, on Lake Sakatah in Waterville, www.axelstacklebox.com (507-362-4444) This year’s opener was of course ruined by a afternoon rain on Saturday, however that did not keep people off the lakes. Lake Sakatah did the best I suppose giving up walleye in the shallows by the bridge and the narrows. Area Lakes are had a mixed bag of reviews, some people did well, others not so well. Spinners seemed to be working real well and leeches was the bait of choice. This week’s weather looks to be stable that should get things going full throttle here in the Waterville area for the upcoming weekend.

UPPER RED LAKE - White Birch Resort, Monte Sharbono, vacation@whitebirchresort.net (218-835-4552) The first break from 3-5 feet of water has been producing tons of walleyes. It’s not uncommon for a boat to land over a hundred fish in a day if you put your time in. So get up here now to take advantage of this great bite, and the walleye limit is now 3 fish too.

WACONIA - Mase's In Towne Marine, Cindy, corner of Lake and Elm, www.intownemarina.com (952-442-2096) We had some big fish caught last weekend on the opener, the biggest coming in at almost 31 inches. There were a lot caught in the 26 to 29 inch range too. So the quality was there, but not the quantity. There weren’t a lot of limits caught. Lighter baits in mostly shallow water were the best bet. We have a really good crappie bite going too, right next to shore around 2 to 4 feet of water with a jig and a minnow.

WINNIBIGOSHISH – Walleye Visions, Tom Neustrom, 21622 Airport Rd, Grand Rapids www.mnfishingpros.com (218-327-2312) Minnesota has the strangest weather on the Opener, and 2008 was no exception. Big Winnie greeted anglers with a little ice, a little rain, and even a little snow later in the day. For those that braved the elements there was pretty fair fishing for walleyes. There were a lot of fish caught, especially early on, but some anglers found it tough to catch walleyes under 17 inches (what a problem). There were reports of 30-40 fish per boat with most of the walleyes over 17 inches and some taken and released over 24 inches. All and all, except for the weather, it was a good opener. Big Cutfoot had the best and most consistent fishing of all the waters connected to Big Winnie. Northland Fireball Jigs and a shiner, or rainbow chub, were the baits of choice. Most all the points outside William's Narrows all the way to the Gap were productive. There were fair reports from the North Shore around Pigeon Creek, but again most of the fish were in the protected slot. As the weather warms, and the shiners come into spawn, the walleye fishing will continue to heat up. The best fishing is upon us, so come to Big Winnie for some of the best walleye fishing in Minnesota.

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