Arvid's Fishing Report

Sunday afternoon, three of the Bosch boys, Jim, Mike, Rick and I went to the lake to fish the last hour or so before dark. We went out of Morris Point and set up in 21′ foot of water with hopes of catching  a walleye or two. It was snowing, but the temperature was decent. The bite was not just poor, it was very poor. Jim caught a sauger and that was it for our efforts. They could have done almost that good sitting in the shanties on the river.

Jim with the only fish caught

It was a clear, cold night on that last day of December and it was a pretty Blue Moon. We have had plenty of good ice making weather and now have about 18″ of good ice on the lake. Travel conditions on the lake are pretty good with lots of plowed roads. I’ve heard that the river has water on the ice so shanty’s need to be blocked up. I didn’t put my little shanty on the river this winter; I’ll just use my portable house when I need to.

Wednesday, Don and I went to the lake. We went out of Adrian’s and took the plowed road a little over three miles past Pine Island to about thirty feet of water. We had his hard sided shanty and had no trouble getting off the road and setting up. We started fishing about 11:00 a.m. and the first two hours was nothing. We used frozen shiners and live chubs with a number of different jigs. We were not even marking fish on the flashers. Over the next couple of hours we caught about a dozen fish. We kept eight; five nice walleyes and three saugers. We released a nice walleye that was right at the 19-1/2″ slot and a couple small saugers.

What we did is pretty much the same as other reports I’ve been getting. Some days are better; other days not so good. I’ve heard that Red Lake is spotty, also.

New Year’s Blue Moon       Photo by Doris Knutson

Don with a nice walleye

Watching for a fish

Typically, the best ice fishing of the year is the week between Christmas and New Years and judging from the activity on the outside of the Lighthouse Gap, Pine Island and Morris Point Gap, that is no secret.

Don’s son, Brad and his two boys, Jacob and Caleb were up for a couple of days fishing. They fished the outside of Pine Island Monday and caught some saugers fishing deep; nothing great. Tuesday, I went with them and we went out of Morris Point Resort. We set up the portables in 26 feet of water and experienced painfully slow fishing. In about three hours of fishing, Brad had caught three walleyes; Don and I didn’t catch a thing. We could mark fish on the flasher, but couldn’t get them to bite. About one o’clock, I packed up and Don took me back to a road where some early morning and late afternoon fishing was producing a few walleyes in about 21 feet. They decided to hang tough where they were for another couple of hours. I found fishing better than where I was and fishing picked up for them, also. All together, we ended up with 16 walleyes and saugers; pretty good considering the way the day started.

Jacob and Caleb with nice walleyes

Jacob with a nice eater

Tuesday Don & I loaded up the snowmobiles and went to the Lake. We unloaded at the Wheelers Point landing and followed one of the marked roads to the Lake. Travel is pretty much limited to snowmobiles, ATV’s, and small Tracker/Geo type vehicles.  It was quite a site as we crossed Pine Island; a small city of fish houses for as far east to west as one could see. The resorts have been busy getting their houses out using small vehicles. Being mid day we decided to go deep and drilled some holes in about thirty feet of water. Fishing was slow to start, but picked up and we caught lots of fish; mostly small saugers that we released. We kept eight saugers and two small walleyes; caught and release a 20″ walleye and a pretty good size burbot. At least the action was much better than the river, where it’s one fish a trip and that’s what everybody is doing.

A city of fish houses in front of Lighthouse Gap and Pine Island

With the cold weather that we’ve had the past couple of weeks, we now have ice; good ice with very little snow on top. I understand that the lake has a foot and the resorts are using small, tracker type vehicles to move houses. Reports I’ve heard is that fishing on the lake is “HOT’. The river has about eight inches of ice, but as always at this time of the year, there are spots that don’t seal up right away, so one really needs to watch and know where you go.

I have fished the river the past couple of evenings trying to determine if I should even put my little shanty out  this winter. Wednesday I had one bite; caught about a 22” walleye I released. Thursday I had three bites; missed one; caught a nice eater and had another half way up that got off. Others I’ve talked to are doing about the same. For this time of the year; that is down right poor.

It’s that time of the year, but we have not had that much cold weather and the ice is not safe. Sometime on Saturday a couple of snowmobiles tried coming across the Bay in front of the house and one didn’t make it. I saw where there was a trail of broken up ice, but didn’t know until Sunday when a group of guys started fishing out the snowmobile that one didn’t make it. It took a couple of hours to get the snowmobile out and I haven’t heard of any injuries, etc. I think somebody’s pretty lucky.

Fishing for a snowmobile in about 7-8 feet of water

The snowmobile is out of the water

It has taken until November, but finally some time and a couple nice days to take a walk in the woods and look for a grouse. I did that Thursday morning and got two.  Finished the day by fishing near the airport for a short time before dark. It was a bit chilly at 35 degrees and I wasn’t too encouraged, getting only a couple of perch bites the first hour, but then in fifteen minutes I caught two nice walleyes and two saugers. We may have a deer season bite on the river after all.

A kind of neat sight, is to get a somewhat close-up look at the Tundra Swans that stop on their migration south. They like the rice paddies south of town.

Two ruffed grouse

Two nice November walleyes

Tundra Swans making a stop on their way south