Arvid's Fishing Report

Diane and I were in Phoenix for Thanksgiving. We had a good time and really nice weather. I even played golf for the first time in at least 15 years and got my butt whipped by my ten-year old grandson, Scott. Even as much as Scott loves golf, he still likes fishing. He took us to a little man-made lake near his house where he likes to fish. He says that corn and hot dogs are the preferred baits. He had only two fish on that day, a small, white colored, rock bass looking thing that fell off and about a 20″ carp that broke the like as we tried to lift it to the deck.

I was sure that there would be plenty of ice by the time we returned home, but that was not the case. I saw the sheriff down town on Saturday and asked him if the Lake had ice and he said no, only a couple hundred yards out from shore. The river only has two or three inches, even though there is very little current. The Baudette Bay by the house has ice and a few guys are fishing pike. I’ve heard one resort closed this week because of no ice. We have no snow and this morning it’s near zero; that should make a little ice.

Scott playing a big carp

The third annual Frost Fest to kick off the holiday season was held on Saturday that included a huge craft & vendor extravaganza, fish house parade, tree lighting, magic show, and a short fireworks. There was also a presentation of a scarf for Willie Walleye made by the “Stitch & Bitch” group to help him keep warm during the upcoming winter months.

We have had some very nice weather this Fall, but winter isn’t far away. The river froze over Saturday night and I heard that Red Lake is froze over. The ice might not last as temperatures are supposed to reach the 40’s over the Thanksgiving holiday, but it won’t be long and we’ll have ice. The little fishing shanty is in position to move onto the ice and it won’t take long to set up once it safe to go.

Here we are, it’s November; where did September & October go? Deer season begins in two days and and that means that the end of the open water fishing season is near. I haven’t fished for a few days and reports are mixed. The best river bite appears to be just before dark. There has been another late run of shiners, so maybe there will be more fish to follow. I think that more current in the river would help bring them in. Fishing during deer season can be good.

Don and I spent Wednesday in the Forest walking a few trails looking for ruffed grouse. There are not as many birds as a year ago. Drumming counts were good this spring, but that didn’t develope into birds this Fall for some reason. We got three birds and for this late in the season wasn’t too bad.

We don’t know what to expect this deer season. We are not seeing many deer and everybody has their own theory.  Like too many preditors (wolves); last years somewhat hard winter with lots of snow and too liberal of limits the past few years. We’ll still go out and see what happens.

Late October sunset on the Rainy

This was supposed to be the weekend that Jonathan and Rachel were to come to Baudette for father, daughter fishing over MEA School break. Allison and Britta were to have a weekend together, but when Britta found out what was going on, it was “me fishing too”. So, it’s the three of them up here and Allison is spending time with friends.

The wind blew hard for seven days in a row and I had no idea what fishing might be like. There were several boats fishing the river during that period and reports were mixed, but I think most of it was that they were trying to find a place to fish that was out of the wind. There are fish that have moved into the river and the best report was a late afternoon bite.

Jonathan and the girls came late Wednesday night, so it was decided to wait until mid-afternoon on Thursday to fish. We put the boat in about 3:00 and headed up river toward Hattie’s. We anchored up and it wasn’t long before Rachel caught a nice walleye and then another. A short time later Jonathan caught one and then Britta catches one on her little Scooby Doo rod. Fishing got interrupted for 15-20 minutes while Diane caught a 52″ sturgeon which created some excitement. With the little one getting tired, we quit after two hours. We had nine walleyes and two saugers; most were 16″-18″. It was great to get a break in the weather and we are looking forward to another day on the river.

Britta with her first walleye

Rachel with one of her four nice walleyes

Jonathan with a nice 18″ walleye

Grandma Diane’s 52″ sturgeon, her biggest

On Monday morning, Scott, Steve and I put the boat in across from the house and trolled up the river pulling crankbaits along the weed line hoping to catch a pike or smallmouth. We didn’t have a strike, so we moved out and anchored up in the middle of the river. The most excitement we had was feeding a couple of seagulls as Scott caught the only fish; a little sauger. After lunch we went for a 4-wheeler ride and a walk out to the deer stands with hopes of seeing a ruffed grouse. We did see one in the little field, but he was spooky and flew before we could get close.

Tuesday was supposed to be the nicest day of the week, so we put the boat in late morning and headed downriver to the Lake. We pulled crankbaits along Pine Island for a short time and got nothing. We anchored up in 22′ of water and caught a walleye and two saugers; nothing fast. We then went to shore, had lunch and skipped a few rocks. Back to the Lake;  we anchored up in 24′ in front of the Morris Point Wash Out for a short time and got nothing. Pulled anchor;  went to 26′ and that was the spot. Action was steady and we ended up with 11 nice walleyes and 7 saugers and must have released at least that many. Scott and Diane had the hot baits although Steve and I were not completely shut out. The weather and fishing made for a great day.

Scott & Diane with a walleye double

Scott with a nice sauger

Steve and Scott are in Baudette for a few days; it’s Scott’s Fall school break and we are happy  to have them here. They arrived early Sunday afternoon not much before the pancake breakfast was finished at the senior center. It wasn’t long after that and we were in the boat heading upriver for a couple of hours of late afternoon of fishing. There have been reports of heavy minnow runs, but river fishing remains spotty. For every good report, there is one that’s not so good. Everybody talks about all the little walleyes (5″-6″) that are biting and stealing bait. We fished for a little over two hours and were pestered constantly by those little walleyes, but did manage to catch and keep three nice walleyes and three saugers. Diane also caught two small pike that we released. There was an awful wind the past few days and if we can get a day with light wind, we may head for the lake. Fishing on the lake has been consistently good.

Scott with one of those little walleyes

Steve with a nice walleye

This past weekend there was a fishing tournament hosted by the Break on the Lake Resort on Cass Lake for the benefit of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. It’s a one day tournament held on Saturday and preceeded by a fund raising dinner, auction and raffles for the benefit of CF on Friday night. This was the 10th annual tournament, but I’ve only been aware of it for a couple of years. Jodi and I have talked about fishing in the tournament, but schedules haven’t worked out. This year Diane and I decided to go to the dinner, so we took the camper, bikes and combined that with a couple of days enjoying the Fall colors. The dinner was good, well supported and we met some nice people. On Saturday we drove over to Itasca State Park, rode bike for a few miles and enjoyed a beautiful day. We didn’t get back to the resort in time for the weigh-in, but were told that fish numbers were not as good as some prior years. The winning team had 17 lb. 9 oz. for six fish. I have never fished a tournament, but it’s on the bucket list for next year; the good Lord willing.

Fishing continues to be excellent on Lake of the Woods out in front of the Gap and Pine Island. With the continued nice weather, it’s a must to go fishing. Monday afternoon Don, Sue, Diane and I took a ride down the river to the Lake, out through the Gap to 24′ and dropped anchor. The fish have moved in closer and hopefully they will come in the river in earnest soon. We fished for less than two hours and the action was non-stop; many times it was two on at a time. The fish were really nice, both walleye and saugers, with some saugers up to 15″. It was mostly a catch and release trip, but we kept enough for a nice meal. It was a great day on the water.

Sue & Diane with a double

Fall Colors