|
|
Member
Posts: 5
| Scout troop 7, Columbia MO, will be going to the boundary waters for a pack and paddle trip. We have all degrees of fishing skill along, but no one going has fished the boundary waters before (two have been before, but they are not fishermen). Some of us are fishing fanatics, and I myself am a professional fishery biologist, but none of us are coolwater specialists. I've caught a few dozen walleyes before, and maybe half a dozen pike, and I'm not sure if anyone else on the trip has done even that. Can anyone give us some useful tips? Are there likely to be smallmouth and musky as well? What about perch?
Looking for any information that will help - lures, techniques, depths, habitat types, times of day. I doubt we will have any live bait, since we will be backpacking. Thanks in advance for any info, especially info specific to the boundary waters. Baits I probably will take, at a minimum, will be some ringworms rigged on chartruese jigheads, maybe some hair jigs for smallies, some deep diving crankbaits (styles and colors??), maybe some tiny jigs for perch. What about packaged scents?
Thanks |
|
| |
|
Member
Posts: 43
Location: DeKalb, Illinois | Depending where you are at on the BWCAW there are many multispecies opportunities. Walleye, smallies,pike, lakers, some lakes have splake, brookies and rainbows. Vermillion and a few others have muskies. I grew up going to Snowbank Lake every year with my family and fishing some of the surrounding lakes such as Dissapointment, Parent, Boot, and others. Where are you planning to go? Techniques for walleye in June I have found successful include pulling lindys with #3 gold, orange or firetiger colorado or indiana blades with crawlers or leeches. Sometimes slip bobber fishing the reefs with leeches can produce some nice fish. If there is a Mayfly hatch it can be tough, but you cant beat a gold blade with green or brown beads with 1/4 crawler. Spots to check out are narrows between islands and mainland, mid- lake reefs, and wind swept points. For the smallies small husky jerks and floating rapalas, and small inline spinners such as rooster tails and mepps have worked well for me as well as live bait fishing. Many times nice smallies are a bonus when you are walleye fishing. De[ending where the Lakers are there are different techniques. trolling spoons or stickbaits in cisco like colors ( silver, blue, purple or green) with snap weights work and verticle jigging large bucktail jigs or large blade baits work. When jigging the large bucktail jigs usse a heavy stinger hook and a power grub teaser, and drop the jig to bottom and reel it up quickly. These fish hit like a semi truck. If you have any specific questions feel free to drop me an email at [email protected]. I may have some specific lake info that may help you out. Good Luck and enjoy!!!! |
|
| |
|
Member
Posts: 5
| Thanks - The plan is to camp out at gull lake, with one-night possible coming and going at Bald Eagle Lake. A lindy Rig is those bottom bouncing things with a spinner and some beads on a leader and you stick a crawler on the hook, right? Do you troll (paddling) or drift those or cast them? I don't know about taking bait at all - seems a bit difficult for portaging, but I do realize it might help insure success.
Duane |
|
| |
|
Member
Posts: 43
Location: DeKalb, Illinois | Lindy rigging is using the small walking sinkers or no snapp sinkers and letting it freely slide on the main line and then tying on a swivel and then the leader with 3-6 feet of line to the spinner beads and hook or hooks. Take different size lindy weights from 1/8oz-3/4 oz depending on how deep you fish them. instead of paddling try drifting with the waves and slowly work fish holding areas. As for bait try berkeley GULP!!! crawlers and leeches. if you can get a good crawler box that is small and holds up well try taking that remembering to keep then out of the sun and cool. I hope this helps out. |
|
| |
|
Member
Posts: 86
Location: Byron, IL | Lemme talk to my next door neighbor and get back to you carptracker...he works for the Forest Preserve out here and he takes 2 trips every year similar to what you are doing. I believe he goes around the same time as well...The last couple years, he has done decently...I'll find out where exactly he goes and what he uses... |
|
| |
|
Member
Posts: 5
| Thanks for the info. I'll definately try the GULP. We'll see if I can find some way to get some crawlers or leaches transported. Do you have to put leaches in water to transport them? What about catching leaches there? I guess on an earlier trip one of the people got leaches on them. I don't want to use myself as leach bait, but the scouts might have as much fun catching leaches as fish. |
|
| |
|
Member
Posts: 5
| I keep a life list of fishes that I have captured on a line. I am up to 218 species now, but there are NO coregonids on the list. Is there any chance that these lakes would have lake whitefish or ciscos or something like that? Any other oddball fish that I might catch? I did once catch a burbot, ice fishing, so I don't really want one of those, although I wouldn't turn it down. Any tips on how to catch a whitefish in June? |
|
| |
|
Member
Posts: 43
Location: DeKalb, Illinois | Yes carptracker there are some oddballs up there. ciscoes and whitefish are abundant in some of the deep clear lakes. Also there are some lakes that have "silver" pike, a mutated strain of pike I believe. To keep leeches transport them in a sealed bag with water and air (kind of like pet stores do for fish). Change the water regularly and keep them cool in a cooler. A leech locker or similar bait keeper is also a good investment that works well. |
|
| |
|
Member
Posts: 5
| Thanks Petros. I really hope to catch at least one of those ciscos or whitefish. Sounds silly, but any new species is really important to me. Even a new species of sculpin or minnow, caught with a very small hook, turns me on as much as a 5 pound walleye.
I doubt I will pack a cooler in there. We've got nearly 15 miles of portages on the way in. Less on the way out. Any idea how dense you can pack the leeches, especially if they are not in a cooler? What are my chances of keeping some alive without a cooler?
Duane |
|
| |
|
Member
Posts: 43
Location: DeKalb, Illinois | Keep the leeches out of the sun and keep them wet. invest in a leech locker or similar bait container found at bait shops and change the water a couple of times a day. the cool water up there will keep them lively. I have never caught a cisco, but it can be done. I am not too sure how one would go about it. Good luck and have fun in the BWCAW. |
|
| |
