Fishing Report

Good morning from the Quiet Lakes, looks to be a pretty nice weekend with temps around 50 both days.  That may not be very conducive for hunters seeking to harvest deer though, as it seems the warmer it is, the less they move.  I had a very nice 8 pointer come within 30yds of me Friday morning which was great, however he came about a 1/2 hour before legal shooting light so I had no chance at a shot.  Monday and Tuesday look to bring rain and then we look to really start making ICE with temps below freezing during the day and even some single digit lows at night towards next weekend.  It appears we have some chances of snow next weekend as well and I am seeing 1-3 inches of snow next Saturday and Sunday.  

This week’s report is not going to be the standard format as lakes are icing up and there are very few anglers out fishing.  I got out onto the Spider chain on Wednesday, but we could not launch down on Little Spider lake as that landing was solid ice probably about an inch thick all the way out to the main lake.  We managed to get the boat into the Clear Lake launch, but had to break ice to get to a spot I thought had fish, and we were only able to fish a very small section as probably half of the lake was covered.  I just got a message from a buddy who said a boat out on Clear yesterday was struggling to get through it.  I also know some of the smaller bays on Lost Land Lake have a good amount of ice on them as well.  The big lakes such as Round, Lac Courte Oreilles, and Grindstone should still be accessible.  

Anglers should focus on the hardwater season as it is fast approaching.  Now is the time to re-spool reels and tip-ups, go through tackle and make sure jigs/spoons are stocked up.  First ice (although it can be dangerous) is some of the best fishing of the season.  If you are an angler who chooses to be the first on the ice, please be safe and check the ice every few steps.  Ice can change rapidly until it gets set up for the season, especially around any moving water, shallow rocky areas that are holding heat from the sun and deep areas where the water takes longer to get cold.

Open water fishing is about done, and most folks are in the woods chasing white tails.  Good luck to everyone trying to harvest a deer this season!!  Have a great weekend and we will talk soon.

Greg

Good morning from the Quiet Lakes, this weekend looks to stay pretty nice weather wise with a high of 50 and sunny today and 40 and sunny tomorrow.  The week looks to cool down and bring some rain late week. We look to stay above freezing during the day until around the 27th and then we really start to drop in temp.  Plenty of fishing to be had for anglers that want to get out!  Not many folks out fishing anymore so the report may be pretty thin.

Musky–I was fortunate enough to get out all day Wednesday on an area lake to chase some fall fish, but we got skunked.  Had a couple of fish come up and harass our suckers but nothing eating any baits.  Such is musky fishing….  We were throwing bigger rubber baits, dive and rise jerkbaits, and minnow baits.  We mostly fished deep edges and steep shoreline breaks.  Suckers should really be the best over the next couple of weeks as we wind down the open water season.

Pike–Nothing to report on any pike catches, but pike should be in and around any weeds that are still green in shallower water.  Look for pike anywhere from 5-12 FOW and throw everything at them.  Smaller crank baits, live bait, and even spinner baits slowed down on the retreive can all catch pike right now.

Walleye–Not many folks targeting walleye right now either so if that’s an anglers preferred fish to chase they will likely have good spots to themselves.  Walleye suckers jigged around deep structure or worked under slip bobbers is a good place to start.  Deeper rock transitions from hard to soft bottom, or deep weed edges in roughly 10-14 FOW should be key locations holding walleye.  At dusk those fish should move up onto shallower flats chasing baitfish, so anglers should work those shallow transitions as well.

LMB–Still no reports on a largemouth bite.

SMB–Nothing to report on a smallie bite, but targeting them should be very similar to targeting walleye.  Look for smallies on those same deep rocky transitions as walleye and use the same live bait or jig/plastic combos as well.

Crappie/Bluegill/Perch–Nothing to report on a panfish bite either, although from what we saw on Wednesday panfish are schooled up in basins right now.  Find the shcools and use jigs and minnows or plastics to target fish.  

That is all I have for this week’s report.   They will probably get shorter until we get some ice!  Have a great weekend and we will talk soon.

Greg