Fishrapper Fishing Report Archives For September 2016
Fishing Report September 29, 2016 - Exploring The Explorable
There's a certain time every season when I'm overcome by an uncontrollable urge to pretend I'm Amerigo Vespucci.
It's the time when I feel like I've visited too many of the same lakes too many times; the notion of finding "fresh" water becomes a primary concern.
Researching lakes using fisheries surveys, fish stocking reports and test netting results definitely helps get an angler into the ball park. It's not perfect though and on Wednesday, I picked out a zinger for stop number one.
After 3 hours of fishing on the 350 acre lake, the only thing I could prove was that it had a population of 1 sunfish, 1 pike, 1 bass and 300 million, billion, gazillion tiny Perch. Of course that's just an estimate, an anecdotal representation provided by an unskilled user.
Luckily, lake number two worked out better, it was a decent Crappie fishery, especially in terms of numbers. Size structure was on the smaller side though and we had to work at finding 20 fish above 10 inches. In fact, some of the fish we gathered for dinner were more like 9-1/2 inches, good enough for us guys, but definitely not wall hangers.
That meant that the luckiest break of all came in the form of the fish' location. Despite offering a deep water basin depth of 35 feet, the fish had not yet moved out that far. At first, that threw me for a loop, I had started my search too deep and couldn't find fish. The first sign of fish came in the 18 to 19 foot depth range and once we found them, the action was actually very good.
Finding fish in the relatively shallow depth allowed us to do some selective harvest, something we could not have done if the fish were found deeper.
Our fishing presentations were straightforward; 1/8 ounce Live Bait Jigs tipped with small fatheads worked and so did a #6 size Lindy Ice Worm tipped with a morsel of night crawler. I like using the ice worms best because I’m more likely to catch Bluegills when they are in the mix.
On this day they were few, but the small jigs did capture a couple and Crappies were happy to take the bait.
On the horizon, changes are heading our way fast. Surface water temperatures have fallen rapidly, not only on this lake, but on all of others I've fished this week as well. Now in the 56 to 58 degree range, the term "fall turnover" will be popping up on a daily basis.
I don't think we'll see many lakes turn over this weekend, but I'll be surprised if some of them don't turn over before the following weekend; more or less on schedule, I think.
For today, more exploration and hopefully, more good luck. 
!!
Fishing Report September 28, 2016 - Pokegama Lake Late Fall Walleye
Q) Pat Bradley wrote; "Hi Jeff, I plan to spend a week on Pokegama (10/19) walleye fishing and was wondering if you have some ideas? I'm thinking jig and minnow and or live bait rigs with large red tails. Ideas on depth, areas of lake, etc. would be appreciated. Thank you.
A) Pat, My daytime game plan for Pokegama during late fall is simple; find green, healthy weeds on points that lead into deeper water. Pay particular attention to weed flats that lay adjacent to areas that contain Bulrush, especially if you can find some that have rocks mixed in too.
By the time you arrive, fall spawning Tulibee will use these shallow flats during the night. During daylight, they move back out and suspend near, but not on the breaklines.
Predators, primarily Northern Pike, but some Walleyes too will set up shop along weed patches that have access to the deeper water. That gives you the advantage of targeting predictable, shallow water ambush points.
For me, night crawlers seem to work better for singling out Walleye and they will also help encourage some bonus Bass to strike too. Jig and minnow presentations will work, but they will encourage more Pike than they will Walleye.
Either way, I like to tackle the weeds using small, 1/16 ounce Live Bait Jigs to present the bait naturally, above the weed tops. If you haven’t read them already, you will find several references about “wiggle worms” throughout these reports. Here’s a link that will help get you started; Read >> Wiggle Worms 101
By now, somebody is reading this and thinking to themselves; “I’d be fishing deep water, using rigs and live bait”.
Unless you plan to kill every fish you catch, then don’t do it. Like it or not, there is no such thing as catch and release fishing in water depths over 30 feet. In fact, I believe that this is one of the primary reasons that Walleye populations have declined in Pokegama over the past several seasons. Northern Pike have declined too for that matter, particularly larger specimens.
If you’re a night owl, then you can most likely count on shallow water, night action for Walleye. Depending on the weather, the action can be very good and in your case, the light of the Hunter’s Moon that occurs on 10-16 should still be an asset.
Your favorite shallow running crankbaits will produce fish at night, I particularly like the 2-1/2 inch Wally Demons. They run true, have good rattles and are run at the perfect depth for night fishing.
I may have a few readers with more ideas, so you may see a few more tips between now and your arrival date. Either way, good luck and have a fabulous trip!
Fishing Report September 27, 2016 - Weedline Walleye, Hiding In Calm Water
Well okay then, you caught me, I was hiding out on the calm side of the lake.
I admit that creativity wasn’t exactly the term I’d use for my fishing strategy on Monday. Despite having some really good ideas about where to fish and doing my best to visit them, strong winds kept forcing me back to the calmest, most comfortable water I could find.
Fortunately, we did find some fish in calm spots and by days end; we’d assembled a respectable catch of Perch and Walleye. There were 7 good keepers, 2 slot-fish and a dozen more small fish that we flipped back.
The two slot-fish, well above average size, provided a highlight reel that includes Karen Hommedahl’s 28-1/2 inch Walleye and my cute little 26 incher too.
The eater Walleye were very nice too, 16 to 17 inches in length. The Perch that we added to our larder ranged between 9 and 11 inches; nice size, but not monsters.
Water temperatures had fallen a lot due to the cold rains that fell overnight. At the landing, the Humminbird showed 56 degrees and off shore, temperatures ranged between 58 and 59 degrees; we did not see a single reading above 60 degrees anyplace.
The key depth was weedy, 6-7 feet breakline water; that’s where the best school of fish I found was holding. Live bait jigs tipped with the largest fatheads I could find was the only presentation we used and for Walleyes, I’d expect that to be the feature for the rest of the fall season.
For today, I’ve got my fingers crossed that the wind will allow a modicum of freedom to explore further out onto the lake. With luck, I can treat my crew to a bit more creativity and hopefully tomorrow’s report will provide more detail.
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Lake Winnibigoshish, Joe Thompson, September 26, 2016 Four Seasons Resort
"Walleye fishing this past week was the best I had all year. We caught quantities of fish in the shallow water on jigs and fathead minnows. Most of the fish were between 16 and 18" and were very healthy. The whole west side of the lake was productive. My prediction of the water temperature cooling down would trigger the walleye bite was spot on. Aggressive jigging or rip-jigging was by far the best method. If your wrist wasn't sore at the end of the day you probably weren't catching walleyes.
Northern fishing is still outstanding. Trolling, casting, and bobber fishing are all catching big numbers of Pike. Trolling the schools of baitfish with spoons in 12-16' has been very productive. Casting big baits in 6-10' has been productive. This will continue until ice-up. We should start to see some really big pike in the next couple of weeks.
Perch fishing is still awesome. If you just target the perch, you should be able to get your limit of 20 over ten inches! Those are really nice fish. The Mississippi River mouth is still okay, but the larger perch seem to have moved up the west side.
We plan on staying open through the 9th of October, so there’s still plenty of time to get in on the action. Hope to see you before we close.
This will be the last fishing report of the season. I want to thank all of you that were guests at the Four Seasons Resort this season. I look forward to seeing you next year. If you are in Arizona, look us up this winter." Joe Thompson, Four Seasons Resort 218-665-2231
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Walleyes are still holding in the deep weeds too, but these fish have responded better to rigging night crawlers. Mixed bag enthusiasts will like the Pike and Perch that can also be caught using jigs and minnows.
If you’re looking at the weekend weather forecast, it should cheer you up. If the predictions of cloudy skies and breezy conditions come true, then this could be a very good weekend on the big pond for Walleye fishermen.
If I was heading that way, my game plan would focus on finding Walleye along both the North and West shorelines of Winnie. I’d avoid the “popular” Crappie spots and cruise the lake watching my Humminbird for schools of fish that haven’t been pressured; yet.
OH and by the way, anybody who likes catching Northern Pike should be happy this weekend too. They are very active and can be found in the weeds in both Cutfoot and Winnie. Casting the big hardware, especially Suicks will produce some nice fish for you.
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Lake Winnibigoshish, Joe Thompson, September 22, 2016 Four Seasons Resort;
"The water is starting to cool down and the walleye fishing is starting to heat up! Aggressive jigging with fathead minnows has been the ticket. Shallow water 7-10' has been the best. The entire west side has been good this week.
Look for turns in the shoreline breakline for the best action. Today, I caught 15 for three people and the size was amazing. Almost every fish was 17 1/2 inches. We caught none in the slot. Probably the first day I've had in the last 13 years since the slot was instituted that we didn't catch one in the slot.
Northern fishing is still red hot. All of the same methods are working. Perch are not slowing down. It seems harder to find a concentration of large perch in the mouth of the Mississippi River. There are some schools of larger perch along the west side. A little hunting will get the job done.
We are going to be open until October 9th this year. There is still plenty of time to get in on the action! Give us a call and see what is available as we will start to fall clean and shut down cabins in the next week or so. Hope to see you soon." Joe Thompson, Four Seasons Resort 218-665-2231
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Fishing Report September 18, 2016 - “Lake Winnie Update”
If you’re heading out to the lake today, Good Luck!! Here’s a quick update about conditions from our trip to Winnie on Saturday.
Surface water temperatures held steady at 62 degrees on the big lake and slighter warmer, 63 degrees on Cutfoot Sioux. Traffic on the lakes, both of them was fairly heavy, particularly Cutfoot where anglers pursuing Panfish were parked on almost every one of the “popular” fishing spots.
During the morning, cloudy skies and breezy conditions meant that generally speaking, Walleye fishing on Winnie was good. The problem for many is that the action was spotty and knowing the handful of “right spots” made all of the difference between a great day and a mediocre one.
For me, shallow water, depths ranging from 5 to 7 feet where rocks and weeds met was the ticket. There were several other boats fishing in the same area and we saw multiple catches by many of them.
We used 1/16 ounce Lindy Live Bait Jigs tipped with Golden Shiners. From what we observed, most of the boats out there were also fishing jig and minnow combinations.
After the sun came out, we headed for Cutfoot to try and bag a few Crappies ourselves. We did manage to catch some, but it was very apparent that most of the better schools of fish had already been worked really hard. This uptick in the traffic is an annual event and is my cue to enter mid-fall exploration mode, looking for fresh places to fish that have slipped under the radar of the masses.
For today, a one man trip with Mr. C offers a calmer pace and a chance to test out some fresh territory. Something in a nice manageable size, maybe even with an island in it; yes, that sounds nice.
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Hoping for an accurate weather forecast of cloudy skies and light winds, I steered us out to Winnie where the search for our 2 Walleyes would begin. The wind lasted just long enough to start a drift, but died soon after we started fishing. Still, there were enough fish on the deep weedline to allow completion of the mission. Two good keepers along with a handful of larger slot-fish, some Pike and Perch kept us busy for a couple of hours.
We fished in and around the deepest weed edges in 12 feet of water. Fish were very easy to see on the Humminbird and they were suspended 3 to 4 feet above the bottom.
There's more than one way to target those suspended fish, but for us, simplicity seems to work better than elaborate battle plans. A 1/16 ounce jig combined with a quick, .8 to 1.0 MPH trolling speed kept the jig and minnow combinations up high in the water column where at least some of the fish could be triggered.
Later, when I checked my messages, this note from Brad Person explained how his fishing party approached the same suspended fish on Winnibigoshish. "Just thought I would throw you a message about our trip to Winnie this week. We were looking for walleyes and the bite was tough until we pulled out the lead core on the north shore in 14 to 16feet of water.
(There were) lots of bait pods out beyond the weeds and we got into a very good bite of 16-20 inch fish. Had to deal with a northern or two and some eater size perch, but the lead core with chrome shiny flicker shads and shiny shad raps (bleak color) definitely made a tough trip much more enjoyable."
Perch fishing has been good on Winnie too and although there are millions of small fish, sorting will allow you to bag some decent eaters in the 9-1/2 to 10-1/2 inch range. An occasional larger fish comes to the boat, but be prepared to settle for eaters, don't expect too many "magnums". We spent a couple of hours fishing for them and bagged a couple of dozen fish for the ride home. We did not get any fish larger than 10-1/2 inches, and our bottom limit was 9-1/2 inches, good enough for this day, at least it was for us.
Surface water temperatures were 62 to 63 degrees and stable. Water clarity is moderate and the sunshine encouraged an Algae bloom that will help with the clarity problem for a day or two longer.
So that's it, “Fun With Dick and Paul, IX-MMXVI is entered into the captains log and until next June, we'll all be re-living the giggles and shenanigans that come when you blend serious fishing with some "Added Hipness!"
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I have not fished Cutfoot myself since Sunday, but when we were there, the surface water was 66 degrees and we noticed Crappies beginning to move away from steep, shoreline structure and into slightly deeper, open water. There were small pods of catchable fish in water depths of 24 to 28 feet and they were being heavily pursued by fishermen. In fact, it was a lucky break for me that I stumbled into one decent school of fish that hadn’t been pestered by anybody. That single school of fish allowed us to bag 15, 5 short of a two person limit for my crew.
Little Cutfoot showed no sign of any significant migration. There were some small packs of fish in open water, also heavily pursued by anglers, but the big schools, if they were in the lake at all, were still buried in heavy vegetation.
Out on the big lake, spinner fishing continues to produce results for some anglers, but I’ve turned my attention toward jigging.
On Monday, my 5 day stint of Fun with Dick and Paul began with some very encouraging jig and minnow action on Winnie. By Tuesday, the Walleye action fell flat, at least for me. Probably caused by the sudden cold snap, Walleyes were unresponsive and it was Perch that rescued me from a tough bite.
Even though we caught a reasonable catch of quality Perch, they were not really jumping in the boat compared to the action that’s been reported over the past week. That returned me to my original theory about the sudden temperature drop; I think the fishing will improve as soon as the fish adjust to their changing environment.
Weed growth remains lush and it is filled with baitfish. We caught Perch ranging in size from 3 inches all the way up to 11 inches and everything in between. All of those small fish are attracting predators which are easy to see on the Humminbird, so I’m confident that there will be good action when the timing is right.
Not everyone agrees with me, but I believe that the entire key to success for Winnie Walleyes is timing. Low light, breezy conditions encourage Walleye action, but they do not guarantee it. When the weather is stable AND ideal conditions present themselves, then I catch fish consistently. Throw any one element out of whack, and it’s anybody’s guess how the day will turn out.
Some Walleye fishermen have turned to night fishing on the big lake and for them, catching Walleye has been easy. Almost all of them are trolling with crankbaits; some over the tops of deep weeds, others over the shallow rocks on the lakes north and west sides.
For today, Winnie isn’t on our play list, but I’m sure that there will be reports over the next couple of days, so stay tuned in and have a fabulous trip!!
Fishing Report September 12, 2016 - "Chilling the Chillable"
64.9 degrees was the surface temperature on Little Cutfoot Sioux yesterday. That was the first surface temperature reading that I’ve seen dip below 65 degrees so far this fall.
Trending downward, slowly, that’s the ideal scenario for Walleye fishermen. With any luck at all, the temperature drop that’s headed our way will arrive gently, encouraging Walleye, Perch and Panfish to start their fall feeding runs in earnest.
The Harvest Moon, my favorite full moon of the year will arrive this Friday. Often the catalyst for change, it appears to be on track to usher in seasonal changes this week. The weather forecast for tomorrow includes brisk northwest winds and overnight low temperatures dipping into the 35 degree range; coincidence?
There are already signals that the action is about to improve and even though the “hot bite” hasn’t kicked into high gear, it is definitely going to happen soon. Some varieties of weed growth are beginning to die off, and yesterday the screen of my Humminbird was filled baitfish moving toward the outer edges.
Crappies that were holding in small packs, tight to the shoreline, have begun breaking up into smaller schools, moving away from the steep edges, advancing toward open water. Perch are showing up in shallow water, feeding heavily on young minnow-size Perch. Birds are feeding actively now too, moving along over shallow weeds, devouring minnows whenever they find them.
I think that the next cold snap will force a migration of baitfish and “weed dwelling” gamefish. Colder water temperatures push them away from shallow water weeds, and out toward the deeper edges where water temperatures are more stable. Patches of green weeds like Cabbage and Coontail will become more important as other, more delicate weed varieties wither and disappear.
Yes, I think that this little cold snap will be good news and luckily for me, it arrives at the very beginning of my 5 day adventure, “Fun with Dick and Paul, IX-MMXVI”.
I’ll be able to range more freely this week, exploring the explorable and discovering the discoverable. Whatever we find, you will be the first to know!
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Walleye fishermen are also targeting stretches of lakes "main bar" and catching some fish in water depths of 14 to 22 feet. Big Musky, Eelpout and the Long Bar are all areas that have produced fish recently.
If there's a good wind, shallow water fish will turn up at Raven's Point, Stony Point and at Little Stony Point on the south shore.
Until now, Cutfoot Sioux hasn't kicked into "Fall Fishing Mode", but with all of the turbulence we've experienced, some fish could get shook up enough to begin moving toward the gap and into Cutfoot. If that happens, we might be pleasantly surprised by the action that a "fresh school" of fish can provide, especially at this time of the season.
One more thing that I know for sure is that there are good numbers of ideal eating size fish in the system and as soon as water temperatures, wind and timing come together, there is going to be a good fall bite. I hope it arrives in time for you both to enjoy a great weekend, if you see me drive by, be sure to toot your horn!
Thanks Jeff and you can call me on my cell if easier that answering this email.
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 Photo courtesy Mike Nolan: Northern Pike, if you let them can provide that bountiful harvest right now. |
Frequent visitors to this page may recall words of caution though, describing a period of transition between summer and fall that make finding Walleye challenging, even for "Big Time Pros". The period of transition that we are enjoying right now doesn’t mean that we can’t catch any Walleye; it only means that for a while, we have to work harder and smarter, for less.
Bowen Lodge has the transition, and what anglers should do about it fairly well nailed in their most recent Lake Winnie Fishing Report. So instead of me covering the same territory again, why don’t I just tell you how lucky I’ve been to fish with folks who love catching and eating Northern Pike?
I AM really lucky to have spent the past few days pursuing primarily Pike!! I AM really lucky to have spent the past few days eating them too, baked pike, blackened pike, boiled pike … they’ve all been fantastic and according to DNR fisheries, we’re probably doing the lake a favor while we’re at it.
There’s an overabundance of young Pike in the system right now and that means that gathering fish to eat is easy. Trolling, casting, still fishing, crankbaits, spinners, jigs … they all work and they’re all fun. That means that you can pick your favorite presentation, find some decent looking weeds and start fishing. Odds are that you will enjoy Pike for dinner the same night.
As long as we have this windfall of nice size “eater” Pike, I’ve taken advantage of them and I don’t think that I’m alone in urging to you to follow suit. So don’t be surprised when you see more stories extolling the virtues of these scrappy, delicious and plentiful fish.
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| And ... did you know that Jeff's Thursday Morning Program is available for two weeks after the air date? Yes, you'll never need to miss the show. Click the image and then select the 6:00 hour on Thursday. Scroll in to about 6:20 AM and you're in business! |  |
"The Early Bird Fishing Guide" Jeff Sundin - Fishing Blue Books, LLC 715 Byington Ave, LaPrairie, MN 55744 218-245-9858
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