Fishing Report - Current, Reliable Northern Minnesota Fishing Reports for Leech Lake, Lake Winnie, Cass Lake, Red Lake, Vermilion, Lake of the Woods, Bowstring and more MN Lakes

Fishing Report May 17, 2012 Jeff Sundin - The early season roller coaster ride continued on Wednesday. Except this time we discovered how much more fun it is to be experience the peak, instead of the valley!
We knew that the forecast of calm water and sunshine could be a problem, so I thought maybe it was a good day to pay Upper Red Lake a visit. Red Lake has a reputation for being better on calm days and the dark water helps on sunny days. I'd made some calls ahead of time and hadn't been givien any really glowing reports. But I thought that as long as I needed to "scrounge for fish", my odds were higher here than on some of the clear lakes closer to home. No matter how you look at it, we weren't expecting to find any bonanza when we got there.
Guess what? It's nice to have a really good surprise sometimes. It turned out that we just happened to hit the right lake on the right day. After an hour of searching for the right area, I stumbled into a stretch of water about a mile long, where fish were active for the rest of the day.
Spot Tail Shiners were moving onto the shallow sand in huge numbers, in fact I was snagging them with my jig all day long. As long as we were near the Shiners, we were near Walleyes and they were hungry! According to my friend Jonny P, who traps and wholesales minnow in Washkish, the Shiners were running like that all day long, in a variety of locations around the lake.
Our presentation was really simple; 1/8 ounce jigs tipped with Shiners, snapped agressively on the shallow, shoreline break. My crew stuck with the live bait all day, but around noon, I tied on a Blue-Glow 1/8 ounce Lindy Jig and added a generic plastic minnow. It's Black-Silver and has a horizontal, Whale Tail. The fish gobbled them up just like they were real.
Locations that offered patches of rock were betrter than plain sand, but there were fish on the sand too. If you're heading that way, watch for the clouds of minnows on your electronics and let that be what guides your decision about where to fish.
For today, the wind is back and fishing with the same crew, we'll be looking for a new adventure. With any luck at all, we'll find some calm water to try our luck at Crappie fishing, maybe some Jumbo Perch. I'll let you know how that plays out in the morning.
(5/17) On Lake Winnie, Brian Castellano checked in with a report; "We had our Law Enforcement fishing trip today on Winnie.
While we couldn't have asked for a nicer day to be on the water, the lack of wind made it a tough bite.
My boat ended up w/ a couple of nice keeper walleyes, a half dozen jumbo perch, and 3 nice northerns in the 4-5lb range We also let 5 slot fish go........17 1/4, 17 1/4, 18, 20 1/2, and 23".
We caught the majority of our fish on hump that was just off the main shoreline structure. Our best depth was 12-17' of water with an 1/8 oz jig (pink or blue and white) and shiner. With the sluggish walleye bites, I was really wishing I would have had some leeches or crawlers along. We were just creeping along w/ the electric trolling motor.
I think the fish are ahead of schedule a bit and some of them are already pulling out of the shallows to the 1st structure off of the main shoreline spots.
A buddy and I were also out on Winnie Monday and it was flat calm. We caught a couple of keepers in 10.5 feet (shoreline) of water trolling Salmo Hornets. The only bad thing was that a pass or two over the fish would shut them down.
LOTS of keeper sized perch biting right now, so that's an added bonus for sure. - Brian
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Fishing Report May 16, 2012 Jeff Sundin - On Tuesday, the wind was back, but this time, a cold, Northwest wind was included in the package. There's no doubt that it was better than the 80 degree, flat calm weather we had on Monday. Improvement, yes, but the fish are still missing the message that this is spring and that they're supposed to be HUNGRY!
Knowing that it would be windy, we decided that heading across country in the truck would be easier than heading across the lake by boat, so we put in at the Third River Landing on Lake Winnibigosh. That was smart, the ride out onto the main lake was easy and as it turned out, our best action would come from the Nortwest corner of Winnie, near .... Read full Lake Winnie Report here.
(5/15) Ryan Peterson checked in with a quick report; "Well what a big change on Winnie today, after good fishing Saturday and Sunday calm and sunny made things kind of tough Monday still lots of bait in shallow 6 to 8 fow but the fish there where not real willing and the ones that did bite where tough to get a hook in. We did find a decent bite out deeper 13 to 17 fow jigs and shiners seem to be working best." - Great dates still available for guided trips. Ryan Peterson
(5/15) On Bowstring Lake, Erin at Geiger's Trails End Resort - "Let me tell you...the fish that were brought in were BEAUTIFUL...if that's possible. All our guests went home with fish this weekend! Shiners were the trick. Calm waters caress the shoreline as we say good night to another successful fishing opener." Erin
(5/15) Bemidji Lakes Area, Paul A. Nelson, Bemidji Area Lakes Guide Service says; "The walleye season is finally open, with a busy weekend on the lakes in the Bemidji area. The conditions were better for fishing on Saturday, with heavier winds on Sunday and many less anglers on the lakes.
Surface water temperatures in most lakes in the Bemidji area are now in the mid to upper 50s, so the bite should be very good for walleyes this week, with the peak spring bite usually occurring about the time the lakes can hold 60 degrees overnight for the first time.
Surface temperatures on the lakes can soar on calm hot days, but the most accurate measure of surface water temperatures is in the mornings, before the sun has had a chance to warm the water.
Anglers are beginning to see some midges hatching on the lakes, which are usually the first of the fish fly hatches in the spring. The early ice out and the warmer water temperatures will likely cause the insect hatches to occur earlier this year, with a good chance the “mayfly” hatches will actually start in May this year.
Spot tail shiners are moving into the shallows to spawn in most of the larger lakes. Walleyes often stay on shoreline structure as long as the shiners are in the shallows to spawn. Walleyes usually begin to move to mid-lake structure about the same time the shiners are finishing spawning and the mayfly hatches are beginning in deeper water.
Crappies, sunfish and bass are all members of the sunfish family and will begin to spawn when water temperatures reach the upper 60s to low 70s.
Crappies and sunfish in many lakes are in the shallows to feed right now. Anglers will hopefully practice selective harvest on the panfish, with the spawn coming up in the next couple of weeks. Paul A. Nelson, Bemidji Area Lakes Guide Service, 218.759.2235
(5/15) From The Iron Range, Greg Clusiau; The weatherman was dead on, as it was in the mid-30ºs, when we headed north. Meeting Bruce at the public access, we took our time in getting things ready. It was cool and we had all day to fish. Each rigged with something different, we hit our favorite spots and after four hours of steady fishing ... Read Iron Range Fishing Report

May 15, 2012 - On Lake Winnie and Cutfoot Sioux, the 2012 Walleye Fishing Opener started off strong for our guests. Large crowds are typical on opening weekend and as expected, there were plenty of boats out there on Saturday. The weather was nearly ideal, light breeze, sunny skies and fairly good Walleye action. Perch action was good too, and depending on the location, some anglers found a nice supply of bonus jumbos to round out their bag and provide for a great fish fry. By Sunday, strong winds convinced many anglers to stay off the water or to seek shelter on smaller lakes. Naturally, the stronger winds kicked the Walleyes into high gear and folks who were out on the lake, discovered that it was time to .... read the >> Bowen Lodge Walleye fishing report

(5/15) On Lake Winnie, Scott Glorvigen checked in with a report; "Winnie we caught our walleyes in 8-9 foot adjacent to the big shoreline flats on 1/8 oz. Northland Fireball jigs tipped with shiner minnow. Lime Green/Chartruesse best color. Seemed to be if you found the Perch the Walleyes were close by. Most of our fish were overs 17 inches plus. "
On Bowstring on Sunday, Scott says it was "windy as heck!!! But the fishing was good. Caught our walleyes in 5-7 foot of water dragging ¼ oz. Northland Stand Up Fire Ball Jigs tipped with a shiner minnow. Yellow/Orange best color. If you hopped the jigs to much the little Northern Pike would eat it in a second. Also got on to a bunch of nice Perch in 10-12 of water off underwater point going into deeper water. Water Temp 57-58 degrees.
Over the next week big shoreline flats should have plenty of Shiner minnows spawning on them and the Walleyes should be on the feed. Best to fish the windswept areas on those flats and try to avoid motoring over the schools of walleyes when making another drift." Remember to be respectful of your fellow anglers and enjoy the day. Overall it was a good opener in Northern MN, Scott Glorvigen.
(5/15) On Lake Winnie, Jason Green, UPNORTH checked in; "I hope everyone had a fantastic MN Fishing Opener and Mothers Day weekend!  Our weekend on Winnie for the most part was pretty much the same as years past.  Do a lot of poking around using the electronics to find schools of bait fish.  Once found, fish that area hard with a 1/16oz jig tipped with a shiner.  The problem was we seemed to only get 2 or 3 fish to bite each time and then we would have to go into search mode again.  High Skies seemed to have fish scattered also.  We found fish as deep as 11' and as shallow as 4'.  Many of the fish we marked were up off the bottom so using a lighter jig helped keep the presentation in the strike zone.  It looks like over the next few days we are going to have to put the miles on to stay on top of active fish." Jason Green.
(5/15) On Lake Winnibigoshish this Sunday, Reed Ylitalo Found lots of nice size perch on the East side of Winnie in 6 to 8 foot of water. Acoording to Reed, their best presentation was an orange long shank, 1/8 oz jig. Reed said that the Walleyes that they boated were caught in deeper water, 12 to 15 feet of water using 1/4 oz jigs tipped with small spot tails. - Reed Ylitalo, Wings and Walleyes
(5/15) On Lake of the Woods, Jacki LaValla, Sportsmans Lodges; "It was a windy opener making it challenging to get to just the "right spot" but the guides were able to find some good fishing expecially on Sunday. Looks like is is going to be a spectacular week of weather here in the northland. Outside of Pine Island and Lighthouse Gap are producing some good walleye fishing in 18'-24' using jigs tipped with a minnow. $39 per person per night lodging special continues through May 24. Don't miss out!" - Jacki LaValla
(5/15) On Lake of the Woods; Mike Kinsella, Border View Lodge says; "It was a windy start to the 2012 walleye opener, but the fishing was excellent. South shore is producing nice walleye s in 19 to 25 feet. There are still some nice walleyes in the river. The river bite is not as fast, but those with patience brought in some nice fish. Live and frozen shiners are the bait of choice. Others had success drifting with spinners and crawlers.
Looks like a beautiful week coming up weather wise. Highs will be in the low 70s with lots of sunshine. Our cu rrent water temperature is 55 degrees. We have some midweek and our guides are ready to put you on the fish!
Finally, I have more reports coing in right now, but I'm up against the clock. See you on the lake, and remember to check in tomorrow for more.

More ways to connect! Sign up to receive the Free "Insider Newsletter". Don't forget, you can always catch up with Jeff Sundin on the radio program too! Listen every Thursday at 6:20 AM and get additional fishing reports and information. KAXE 91.7 FM Grand Rapids - 105.3 FM Bemidji - 89.9 FM Brainerd. Want even more? Book a Guided Fishing Trip and get HANDS ON fishing tips!

Fishing Report May 15, 2012 Jeff Sundin - The kick-off of the 2012 fishing season has definitely had its ups and downs. In just three days of fishing, the weather has already changed three times! After the strong winds that churned up the lakes on Sunday, Monday's exhibition of flat seas and sunny skies was just what the doctor ordered .... to put the fish to sleep!
We started our day on Bowstring Lake which had been good for most of the weekend anglers who visited. When we arrived on Monday, surface temperature was 58 degrees and the wind was flat calm. The North landing was loaded with bits and pieces of debris that had been tossed around the day before. Bulrushes, seaweed, snails and assorted odds and ends were laying all over the glassy surface.
Walleye fishing was a struggle to say the least, we managed to capture a couple of marginal keepers, but most of the fish we did catch, were in the 10 to 12 inch range. As always, small Nortrhern Pike were ready, willing and able. For someone that had a fish fry in mind, Perch fishing might have been the way to go. There were a few areas where we caught decent size Perch as we searched for Walleye. If we'd been interested in those on this trip, we probably could have gathered a nice meal.
Late in the day, we decided that we couldn't make things any worse by trying an experiment, so we headed down the road and gave jessie Lake a couple hour whirl. The results weren't a lot better there, except that Craig did bag one nice 18 inch Walleye on a jig and minnow.
On Jessie, we marked some fish in 18 to 24 feet of water, but when we attempted to catch them, they gave us only a couple of of half-hearted bites.

Fishing Report May 14, 2012 Jeff Sundin - West winds and warm temperatures perked up the Walleye action on Sunday.
On Lake Winnie, the jig and minnow bite was on, as it was on Leech Lake where only a day earlier, the Walleye acted like all they wanted to do was take a nap.
When we arrived at Winnibigosh, the surface water was at about 56 degrees, the skies were mixed and the breeze was already blowing at about 15 MPH.
During the first couple of hours, fishing started slow, in spite of what seemed to be ideal conditions. As the morning chill wore off and wind kicked up some whitecaps, the Walleye turned on and by around noon, there was a full-scale action bite going on.
Our best fishing was in 8 feet of water using a 1/8 ounce jig and minnow, mainly Shiners, but provided that they were large enough, we caught fish on Fatheads too. There are tons of minnows in the shallow water right now, so I think you can plan on the jig & minnow presentation to hold up for a while.
You'll be able to find a full scale Lake Winnie and Cutfoot Sioux report on Tuesday morning.
(5/14) An email from Jim Jurvelin; "I found your article on how to keep your live bait after a day on the water to be very informative. I would like to do the same,but have a couple of questions".
How do you mount the aerator tubes so you can close the cooler lid without crushing the tubes? What is the make of the coolers you are using? Does the cold well water that you keep in the truck shock the leeches or minnows after going from water that maybe a lot warmer after a day of fishing ? You mentioned aerating the cooler in the truck. Do you plug it into a cigarette lighter and if so does it drain your battery or do you have a separte deep cycle battery in the back of your truck just for the aerator?
A) Jim, There's no problem shutting the lid, I drill a 1/4 inch hole near the top of the cooler which allows me to run the tubing inside the cooler just under the lid.
The cooler that I'm using now is a Rubbermaid, 10 Gallon beverage cooler. You could use a smaller one, but I like to have lots of room for extra minnows, especially later in the summer when we use Redtails and Creek Chubs. In spite of the fact that this cooler has a screw on lid, you'll need to whip up a gasket that fits tight to the lid, this will prevent water from splashing out on a rough boat ride. The alternative would be to go with a more expensive cooler that has a tighter latching system.
Temperature shock isn't a problem because the water in the boat is kept amazingly cool during the day. I've been holding my minnows this way for several years now and my fishing customers and DNR CO's have been amazed by how well the water temperature is controlled. Take it a step further, even if I loose a few, it's still better than losing all of them.
One of the 12 volt batteries from my ice fishing flasher runs the pump for a couple of days. They have a very, very low current draw. You could easily hard wire one in the truck if you wanted to, but it's really not necessary.
(5/14) Zach Dagel, Grand Rapids Guide Service. Fishing on Winnibigoshish was good for Zach on Sunday too and he picked up some info about Leech Lake too >>> Read Zach Dagel's Fishing Report here.
(5/14) On Ball Club Lake, Gus' Place Resort. Gus says; Happy day! Lake surface temperature is 56! Water clarity is stained due to the large volume of Mississippi river water entering the lake.
Although I haven't seen limits of any one species in the live wells; all fishermen are bringing in fish, good mixed creels; Walleye, Perch, Crappie & Northerns. Everyone is catching fish.
Work slip bobbers and jigs with Shiners or leeches in 4-10 feet on the South end of the lake along the east shore and at the mouth of the Ball Club River.
Down-size to Fat Head minnows for the Crappie, wish are now moving in and out of the shore line weeds.
Several fishermen commented on the fact that not only have the Crappie not yet spawned, but that many of the Perch were still holding their "row". Gus' Place Resort
(5/14) On Bowstring Lake, Robby Ott, Otter's Guide Service checked in: "Opening weekend has come and gone. My predictions were pretty dang close. These smoked suckers came from a top secret creek. The catch is that when these fish were in full blown spawn so close to fishing opener, in this particular creek. I was pretty dang confident that history would repeat itself. Opening day would yield some pretty positive #'s. I started off on Big Bowstring and didn't half to venture too much further. My best depths were any where from 4 - 8 feet. 1/16th and 1/8th oz were the preferred weight unless that wind picked up which it did. We bumped it up to to a 1/4oz. Rainbow glow fireball jigs by northland tackle was my go to choice. Other colors in our arsenal were parkeet and bubblegum. Tim and Chris at the The Bowstring Store are loaded for bear (fish) when it comes to live bait. There are plenty of shiners, rainbow chubs, crappie minnows and fat heads. We did best with the rainbows. Any one interested in a fully guided and furnished fishing trip to any of the Itasca or Cass County Lakes, I have some openings. Otter's Guide Service

Fishing Report May 13, 2012 Jeff Sundin - The Weather for the Walleye fishing opener couldn't have been better! Bright sunshine, a Westerly breeze and gently rising water temperatures.
My long time fishing buddy Tim Higgins joined me on Leech Lake where we spent most of our day, looking for a "hot bite" that never materialized. Instead, fish would come in sputters and spurts. Not that it was a bad day, it was really pleasant and almost everyone on the lake was catching at least some fish, it just wasn't reved up to high gear either.
Surface temperatures were about 56 degrees whan we arrived and by days end, I was seeing readings up to about 58 degrees. The sunshine is predicted to continue for the next couple of days, so I'd expect to see temps reach the 60 degree mark early this week.
Traffic on the lake was moderate, crowds of 20 to 30 boats were gathered on the more popular spots. From what we saw, boating manners on the lake were really, really good. With just enough wind for a drift, most everyone found a little stretch of territory to fish with tripping over each other.
Our best fishing came from areas with shallow sand and light weeds. Baitfish, probably Shiners were on the shallow breakline in water depths of 7 to 9 feet. Scattered, small pods of Walleye were mixed in the same areas. The fish were biting light and we missed more than we hooked, but we did manage to get hooks into some of them. Sizes varied, we caught a handful of "slot fish" ranging from 20 to 26 inches, some keepers and a couple little guys too.
Fishing with 1/8 or 1/16 ounce jigs, we discovered that for us, Fatheads worked just as well for Walleye as did the Shiners. In fact, we caught all of the largest fish on Fatheads.
(5/13) On Lake Winnie: Just accross the highway, anglers on Lake Winnibigosh were reporting similar experiences. Almost everyone on the lake was catching fish, finding them in scattered, small groups.
Judging by reports, heavy traffic probably encouraged fish to scatter even more. With light wind and bright sun, fish would bite whenever they were first discovered, but after a couple of passes, fish would disperse.
According to Joe Thompson, Four Seasons Resort the fish were tricky to pattern. Some were caught in shallow water, 6 to 8 feet, while others were caught out on deeper flats in the 10 t0 12 foot range. Joe said that their best action occured early in the day, before bright skies and heavy traffic had a chance to make fish spooky.
(5/13) Zach Dagel, Grand Rapids Guide Service. Delivered the best fishing report that I heard all day long. He and some friends had a great morning fishing for Walleyes in their waders. In recent years, water flow at the Winnie Dam has been too low to produce the really good current that's needed to attract numbers of Walleye. Finally, shoreline anglers have good water conditions and it paid off yesterday.
Waders on, Zach and his buddies hit the water early in the morning and by the time I talked to him at about 11:00 AM, they'd already caught dozens of fish.

(5/13) What about Crappie Fishing : Yes, remember the old addage; if the Lilacs are blooming, the Crappies are biting? Well, guess what? The Lilacs are blooming and .... I think you better get out there. Good Crappie fishing is taking place right now, male fish are dark black and gathered in shallow weeds near spawning habitat. Bulrush with mixed sand/marl bottom in 2 to 5 feet of water are ideal. Same thing goes for you Bluegill fishermen, panfish are getting interested in the shallow bays and with 60 surface temps, spawning activitiy will start up really soon.

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(5/11) Q&A About Transporting Live Bait. On Thursday, Vern Valliant emailed this question; "I haven't found anyone that can give me a yes or no on this one so maybe you can help me. Here is a story and then the question; " I leave the bait shop with a quart of shiners in a bag of water. I head to a lake and pump my live well full of lake water and put my minnows into the live well. At the end of the day I have some minnows left. I was prepared, and in the truck I have brought 3 gallons of well water and a 5 gallon aerated minnow bucket. I put the aerated bucket in the boat and fill it with the well water. I plug the aerator into the cigarette lighter in the boat. I scoop the minnows out of the live well into the bucket. I drain all the live wells and pull the drain plug.
The question now comes up: Am I ready to travel or do I have to take the bucket with the minnows and well water out of the boat before I can leave the landing?
Answer, You must remove all of the water from the boat. Containers with fresh water must be kept in the vehicle. Click here for the full story >> Keeping Live Bait Alive, Legally!

(5/11) I got a note from my fishing buddy, Pradco's Jon Thelen announcing a new project. In Jon's words, (this is); "to announce the launch of a new project that I am working on with the PRADCO-Fishing brands. Beginning this week, I will be shooting a weekly Internet based show which will take me across the Midwest chasing some of the best bites our fisheries have to offer. "This Week On The Water" will be a cross between the most current information and a "how to" format all packed into about eight minutes! Upon shooting each week, the show will be edited and posted within just days on various fishing based websites, placing it amongst the most current information available". Luckily, you don't have to wait to see the first episode, it's already here! Click here to view >> This Week In Fishing.
(5/11) Zach Dagel, Grand Rapids Guide Service. Went out with the kids for a quick trip to find some panfish. Zach said that the water temperature had risen to 63 degrees in one of Pokegama's shallow bays. The entertainment was good! Maybe there weren't too many giants, but the Sunfish action was good and the kids were smiling. >> Read Grand Rapids Fishing Report .
(5/10) Bemidji Lakes Area, Paul A. Nelson, Bemidji Area Lakes Guide Service says; "The walleye opener in Minnesota is only days away, with the season opening at 12:01 am on May 12th. Surface water temperatures in most of the lakes in the Bemidji area are in the low to mid 50s, which is a little warmer than usual for the opener. The walleyes should be biting when the season opens, especially if the weather cooperates.
Walleyes in the larger lakes like Bemidji, Cass, Leech, Lake of the Woods, Upper Red and Lake Winnibigoshish should mostly be using shoreline structure. Any shallow areas with emerging cabbage weeds or hard bottomed areas with some rock are usually potential feeding areas for walleyes early in the season.
Post spawn walleyes will begin searching for schools of pre-spawn spot tail shiners or the schools of smaller perch as their primary forage once they recover from the spawn.
Many walleye anglers use jigs and minnows early in the season, with a 1/16 ounce Fireball jig fished on 5 or 6 pound test Bionic line a good combination for most situations.
Generally speaking, walleyes in most large lakes usually show a preference for spot tail shiners or emerald shiners over other types of minnows, because they are their natural forage.
Walleyes in many smaller lakes often don’t have as many shiners to feed on, so the walleyes aren’t as fussy about what type of minnow they eat, with fatheads and chubs working just as well as shiners. Leeches may also be good on the opener with the warmer water.
Walleye anglers learn early to bring with a variety of baits. Walleyes are notoriously fussy, so anglers need to have several presentations ready, in case “Plan A” or even “Plan B” doesn’t work.
Anglers are reminded to travel with the drain plug out of their boats and live wells and to remove all weeds from their boats and trailers, to help stop the spread of invasive species". - Paul A. Nelson, Bemidji Area Lakes Guide Service 217.759.2235

Fishing Report May 12, 2012 Jeff Sundin - Hey! Good Morning. :)!! It's the opening day of fishing! Right now, there's not a cloud in the sky and the air is calm, we're gonna get a tan today! Check in tonight to find out how the opening day action is.
(5/12) Just for fun, WDIO TV has posted some fishing tips and strategies we've talked about this week. Just hit the link and click on the fishing tips on WDIO's web page, take a peek and tuck a few ideas under your hat for the next trip. >> Opening day fishing tips.

Fishing Report May 10, 2012 Jeff Sundin - I'm back home after spending a glorious day and a half with my daughter, Katie at Lund Boat's photo shoot. Thanks to everyone at Lund, all of the fishing pro's and to the world's greatest photographers for welcoming us into the family. Oh and by the way, thanks to Katie for letting me tag along!
In about 48 hours, I'll be pulling up the driveway, getting ready to head out to the lake. I have a special treat planned for opening day, so with a little luck, I'll find a way to get creative and come up with a really interesting report for Sunday morning.
Before I load the boat, there are still a few special appearances on the schedule. This morning at 8:10 AM I'll be heading into the KAXE Studio for a live broadcast from 8:10 AM to 9:00 AM. We'll be interviewing the DNR's Regional Fisheries Manager, Tim Goeman and my good pal from Lake Vermillion, Billy Rosner. We'll get their outlook about the Walleye opener and share a couple of stories from the lake. It's a call in program, so if there's something on your mind, dial us up!
Later today, the News Crew from WDIO TV, 10/13 Duluth was in the neighborhood and we spent time together taping some segments for their fishing opener segments. They started running the programs on Wednrsday and they'll be running more today in both the 6:00 and 10:00 PM broadcasts.
On Friday, I'll be live on location in Grand Rapids and I promise to have all of the details about that, later today.

Fishing Report May 8, 2012 Jeff Sundin - Okay, here we go! For me, the whirlwind is gaining strength as we head into the home stretch.
For the next few days, life is going to be a little hectic around here. A lot of it will be about cameras and microphones, with a few, nice big smiles thrown in for good measure.
Today marks the official start of the summer fishing season on the Lindy Audio Fishing Report section. From here on, expect an update every Tuesday and Thursday. The reports are usually updated by around 8:30 AM.
If you're within broadcast range, the News Crew from WDIO TV, 10/13 Duluth is heading over later this morning and we'll be taping some segments for tonight's broadcast.
After that, I'll be packing up the truck, grabbing my daughter Katie and heading for the Lund Boats Photo Shoot at their top secret location. Hopefully the weather will be good and we'll get a few pictures taken before we head back home tomorrow. Oh, just in case you never found a copy of the 2011 catalog, Katie was in it! Look Here .
On Thursday morning, I'll be heading into the KAXE Studio for a live broadcast from 8:00 AM to 9:00 AM. We'll be interviewing the DNR's Regional Fisheries Manager, Tim Goeman and my good pal from Lake Vermillion, Billy Rosner to get his outlook about the Walleye opener. It's a call in program, so if there's something on your mind, dial us up!
On Friday, I'll be on locatiion in Grand Rapids and I promise to have all of the details about that, later today. It's going to be a busy few days, but never too busy for a smile and a chat, so if you catch us cruising around, be sure to say hi!

Fishing Report May 7, 2012 Jeff Sundin - Five Days ..... Did you remember your boat batteries? If they're not holding a full charge, replace 'em now and get it over with. Oh and by the way, you haven't forgotten that you'll need to be sure that you have a system to keep some fresh water on hand for transporting your bait, right? Learn more about >> Keeping Your Bait Alive Legally.
Okay, and did you get your fishing license? I just clicked this link and bought all of my Minnesota Licenses and State Stamps for the whole year. While I was at it, I printed off a few extra copies, one for the tackle box, one for the boat another for the truck, you know just to be sure that I don't get caught short. Please, if you love Walleyes, add the voluntary Walleye Stamp, it really will help!
After a rainy, gloomy weekend, I just got done walking through the most incredible Moonset and Sunrise that I've seen in a long time. Oh, don't worry, if you know where to look, you'll be seeing plenty of pictures. Hey, in fact if you want to, I think you might be able to see one of these pictures every single minute of every single day!
Okay, folks are busy getting ready for the opener right now, but indications from everyone around the Itasca area are pointing toward a great opening weekend. If you happen to have a copy of the Minneapolis Tribune from yesterday (Sunday) you can check out Dennis Anderson's column for some fishing predictions including some ffrom my buddy Tom Neustrom and even a comment or two from me. While you're at it, check out Sam Cook's column in the Duluth News Tribune, we both added our two cents worth and my pal Billy Rsoner is there too!
(5/7) Hot Tip Puts More Walleyes In Your Boat! Just for fun, take the next 59 seconds and learn from my mistake. Even when you try, things don't always go the way you plan. Lots of my fishing buddies have already seen me make this mistake and now we got it on film so everyone can learn to be more effective with a jig and minnow. Oh yeah, go ahead and laugh, get it out of your system ...... :)!! Watch >> Walleye Jigging Video.

May 7, 2012 - On Lake Winnie, everything looks a little quiet right now out on the big lake. A tour along the sleepy looking shoreline of Bowen's Flats on Saturday reminded me of those times that you're getting that last few minutes of peaceful sleep before the alarm goes off and everything errupts into a hectic day. At this time next week, the Bowen Lodge Walleye fishing report is going to be jammed with information about the big lake and Cutfoot Sioux. At the moment, the grounds around Bowen's are quiet, but evidence of a hectic week is everywhere. New dock sections being assembled, cabin's are getting the final coat of trim paint and cleaning crews have just about everything set for the guests who will ariive in ...... Read Full Report

(5/7) Zach Dagel, Grand Rapids Guide Service. Went out for a quick trip to find some panfish on Sunday evening. Zach said that the water temperature was holding at 55 degrees, down from 57-58 degrees a couple of days ago. Without a lot of time to spend, they had to hurry their search, but they were lucky to find >> Read Grand Rapids Fishing Report .
(5/7) Ryan Peterson checked in with a quick report; "The outlook for opener looks good, bait supplies seem to be plentiful around the Grand Rapids, Deer River area, the folks fishing panfish are coming in with good reports, and water temps have been rising. As always on opener it will be another good jig and shiner bite. Open dates for great fishing still available!" Contact >> Ryan Peterson's Guiding .
(5/7) On Bowstring Lake, Erin at Geiger's Trails End Resort was pretty chipper about the nice sunrise this morning too. She said; "Oh what a BEAUTIFUL morning to get that last bit of Spring Crappie fishing in. The water has a gentle drift in it coming from the Southwest. Before the rains, Bowstring Crappies and Perch had begun to move into shallow water in Cow Bay, Muskrat Bay and up in the area of the bridge. Now that the sun is back, water should warm and the panfish will be heding back toward the shallows. Fishing with small jigs tipped with medium size fatheads and suspended a couple of feet below a bobber are best.
If you're out there, Trails End is open to the public and they sell bait, gas, and snacks. Erin is also an avid photographer who would love to capture a picture of your trophy. >> Geiger's Trails End Resort .
(5/7) From The Iron Range, Greg Clusiau is primed and ready for the fishing opener. The only question is; What is he going to do? With everything from Walleye to Brown Trout on the menu, Greg is having some indecision. Why don't you check in and help him out? >> Read Iron Range Fishing Report .
(5/7) From the Bemidji Area, Matt Breuer, Northcountry Guide Service; " As we move toward opener all hands are on deck. People are rigging their boats like mad, and I see people filling the lots at the local bait shops and sporting goods stores.
Walleyes should not sway much from openers past in our area, despite the odd spring we’ve had. Look for that 9-11’ of water on sand flats or areas with good early weed growth. Pitching a spottail shiner on a Lindy jig in pink, blue, or chartreuse is a surefire way to put fish in the boat. Fish should be active, so keep on the move until you find a pocket of fish, and then hover on ‘em. Lakes like Bemidji, Plantagenette, Turtle, Turtle River, Cass, Kitchi, and Andrusia should all be busy and decent this opener.
Crappies in the area are officially up shallow. Anywhere from 1-5’ of water in mucky bays or 5-11’ of water near new weed groth. Look for nice stalks of cabbage or new growth lily pads. Fuzz-E-Grubs and Little Nippers below a float with a crappie minnow still out-fishes everything else. The bluegills are even starting to show their faces, which is a good sign that things are progressing. Water temperatures range from 53-57 in our area.
Morel season is also underway, and it’s been a great year so far. Our crew has picked over 12lbs. of the tasty morsels in the last week. A great side-dish to go with your crappie fillets.
We have some openings for guide trips starting the week after walleye/pike opener. Give us a call or shoot us an e-mail for availability! Take care, Matthew J. Breuer, Northcountry Guide Service .

Fishing Report May 6, 2012 Jeff Sundin - One week to go before the Walleye Fishing Opener and conditions are shaping up fairly well in the Itasca Area. Water temperatures are holding steady in the mid to high 50 degree range and water levels are looking good. On the Mississippi River, water is rising and as of Saturday, there is plenty of fishable water at the Winnie Dam. In fact, it looks higher than I've seen it for a few years and I'll bet this is going to be great news for the wader fishermen.
(5/5) Surface water temperatures are solidly into the high fifty degree range on most lakes and yesterday, I heard a second hand report of a 60 degree surface reading. Our recent spell of warm weather is giving way to a period of rain, but predictions are for moderate temperatures.
Predictions for the opener? My educated guess is that we'll see above average action on some lakes that are not typically "hot" opening day lakes. An early spawn has given some of the Walleyes a better chance of recovering. Looking for an easy meal, they'll be roaming the flats in search of minnows, like the Spot Tail Shiners which are just beginning to run and will probably peak about a week earlier than usual this season.
On traditionally good opening lakes like Winnibigoshish, I think there will be a better chance of finding fish already broken up into smaller schools. There will always be a few locations where large schools of fish attract big crowds, but for anglers who like to roam away from the pack, there will be a few extra spots where early arriving packs of Walleyes have moved in.
Don't expect too many really radical differences though, in spite of what started off to be a really early spring, nature has figured out a way to put us back on a more typical path. Based on the tree blossoms, water temperatures and other observations, we're a week to ten days ahead of schedule at the most.
(5/5) It is official; Minnesota Governor, Mark Dayton has signed both of the bills that we've been following for most of the past few months. The "Fish and Game Bill" HF 2171 and the Environment Policy Bill HF2164.
What that means for every minnesota boater is that as of Friday, those AIS Decals that we've been talking about for a month now, WILL NOT be required for the 2012 fishing season. I am going to save mine and get it autographed. Someday when my grandchildren find it in my scrapbook, it will give me an excuse to go off on a rant about how the legislature and the DNR can team up to wast giant piles of money!
Oh, and by the way, for anyone from the either the legislature or the DNR who might actually be listening; Now that we all got behind you and HELPED YOU get the the license fee increases passed, do you think that maybe we could try working together to prevent this kind of stupid stuff from happening in the future?
Don't worry, there's still gonna be a sticker, the next one is gonna be your reward for taking a test. The test is your reward for first taking a class and the class is your reward for electing people who are really just throwing darts at the wall, hoping to stumble into ways of solving these problems. That's just my two cents, I could be wrong.
Fishing Report May 5, 2012 Jeff Sundin - One week to go before the Walleye Fishing Opener and conditions are shaping up fairly well in the Itasca Area.
(5/5) In Grand Rapids, Zach Dagel, Grand Rapids Guide Service checked in with some news. The West End Bait Shop, formerly owned by our friend Mark Miner, has been sold to the company, "Little Stores". We'll be hearing more about the transition early this week.
Spot Tail Shiners are going to be plentiful for anglers in Grand Rapids next weekend. Zach stopped in to visit Ben Kellin, Ben's Bait and learned that ... Read >> Grand Rapids Fishing Report Here.
(5/5) On Bowstring Lake, Erin at Geiger's Trails End Resort says; "There is nothing better than being on the dock, in a t-shirt, looking over the docks and boat lifts, waiting to see them filled on the fishing opener!"
Erin said that it's been a bit breezy on Bowstring Lake these days, but warm temperatures have helped with the effort to get everything ready for the opener.
At Trails End, you are always welcome to stop at the dock, show off off your catch and get a few pictures. By the way, they still have one cabin available for the fishing opener and another for the following weeek. If you hurry, you can snap one up just in time to get up here and bag some Walleyes! >> Geiger's Trails End Resort

Fishing Report May 4, 2012 Jeff Sundin - For the past few weeks, there's been a lot of attention paid to things that fishermen don't like to think about. Politics, regulations, ... you know stuff that makes you want to roll over and go back to bed.
Well, here's the good news then! One more short week to go, and then we'll be talking about the arrival of the Minnesota Fishing Opener. After that, for the rest of the summer, there's nothing on the agenda except fishing!
(5/4) On Thursday evening, I got word that the Governor has signed both of the bills that we've been following for most of the past few months. The "Fish and Game Bill" HF 2171 and the Environment Policy Bill HF2164.
Just to be that I don't jump the gun, I checked the hotlist this morning and they don't list either bill as being signed yet. Maybe they just haven't updated the website or maybe he didn't actually sign them? I just want to be sure before I go overboard.
If they are signed, then here's what that means for us; Those AIS Decals that we've been talking about WILL NOT be required for the 2012 fishing season. After that, everything else that passes in those two bills will take effect either next year or even later. We'll have plenty of time to talk about that as the stories unfold.
(5/4) Shiners, Fatheads and other wiggly things. Following the bait supply in the Deer River area got easier today. I just got off the phone with Bill Powell from Fred's Bait. After a slow, but steady week last week, the Spot Tail Shiners really started running over the past couple of days.
Acoording to Bill; "Fred's Bait has more than enough Shiners to last through the fishing opener weekend. The only thing I have to worry about now is a power shortage or some disaster"
That's one of the hard parts about the bait business, if you don't have enough, you worry about getting more and if you have too many, you worry about keeping them alive.
The supply of Fatheads, Rainbows and Leeches looks good too, so anglers, at least in the Deer River area can rest assured that there will be bait next weekend.
(5/4) Crappie and Bluegills are beginning to slip into some of their shallow water, spring hideouts and anglers with the itch, are finding some cooperative fish. On some of the smaller lakes, surface temperatures in the 56 to 59 degree range are being reported. Crappies, Sunfish and Perch are getting more interested in moving toward inlets, small bays and shallow weed flats. Right now, it's still a lake by lake proposition and shorline anglers who cover a lot of ground, find that about every third lake pays off.
On Thursday evening, I was waiting out the sunset on a tiny lake and as I waited, I could see fish swirling in the shallow weeds about 30 feet off shore. I didn't have a fishing rod along, but if I had, I think some really serious multi-tasking could have gone on!
For now, walking in to your spot is probably better than taking the boat. Panfish are still flighty and unless you're really stealthy, your chances of "spooking" the fish are a lot lower on foot. According to Greg Clusiau; "The shallow water Crappie action has been hit and miss, but roaming the shallows in waders has worked well at times".
(5/4) Hot Walleye Tip! Over the past few days, I've been getting some calls from writers asking for the perennial "hot tips" for the upcoming Walleye fishing opener.
I don't think that it's too hard to find guys to let you in on the little secret about using "light jigs in shallow water" or "following the baitfish" to find Walleye.
There are some things will are absolutely guaranteed to help you catch more Walleyes and here's one of them; Pay attention to your boat control! All of the best bait, rods and tackle in the world are worthless if you don't keep your boat near the fish. In fact, good Walleye anglers fish with their boat and then just train the lures to tag along.
(5/4) Boat Control Video; Okay Guess What? I spent a lot of time this spring, tagging along with Jon Thelen. We worked on a whole bunch of really cool, special projects and some of them are starting to show up around the internet. I'll be adding links to a lot of them, but this is one that you need to see right now. In a little over a week, you're gonna be out on the water trying to bag some walleyes. Keeping your boat on the fish makes that a lot easier and getting good with a drift sock is a perfect way to improve your boat control. Watch this short video and you're going to pick up a few tips that will definitely help! Click >> Drift Control Video.
(5/4) On my KAXE radio program Thursday morning, I was asked for a couple of fishing rod recommendations for someone who wanted a good quality, light rod for fishing the early season shallow water patterns. Here are a few choices that I spied during the sportshow season this winter.
TFO Rods (Temple Fork Rods) is producing an excellent line of rods that are affordable priced. Designed for TFO by the legendar rod designer/builder Gary Loomis, these rods have everything I need to present the bait and catch the fish. For jigging, look at their Tactical Series, GTS DSS 632-1 and for a good looking, jigging/rigging combo rod, I think the GTS DSS 692-1 will fill the bill really nicely.
St. Croix Rods has come out with an affordable series of light rods too and I already picked up one of these for myself. Lighter than average for most Walleye fishermen, but just the way I like 'em for shallow water fishing. The PFS70LXF is part of their Panfish Series and paired up with a 1000 or 1500 size reel, spooled with 4 pound test mono, this rod is going to be absolutely wonderful for fishing 1/16 and 1/8 ounce jigs on those shallow sand flats.
My fishing buddy, Matt Mattson already picked up one of these for himself and has been on the water using it for Crappies. He called just last night and gave this rod a glowing thumbs up!

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