Tag Archives: ice conditions

11/27 Ice Report – Rainy River

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We have found inconsistent ice conditions on the lake, 4-mile bay (the bay we use to get out to the lake) and Rainy River along with some open water spots.  Based on the conditions and forecast for the week we won’t be starting the ice fishing season this week. It looks like colder temps are in store for next week. We will update you as soon as we make some progress! Safety first! It will be here soon!
Get your reservations in! An average ice fishing season starts between 8th and 15th of December and runs through late March. Lots of time to get into some good fishing!

Cooling down again!

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This morning we are at 18 degrees with a feel like temperature of 7. We made some progress at the beginning of last week, then had a few warmer days but we are back to cooling down again.  Several bays are frozen over, shore ice and some sheets of ice have formed on the main lake. Water temperature is just a hair above 33 degrees, ready to freeze!   Based on the forecast and Mother Nature willing, at this point we are taking reservations to start ice fishing in our day houses at our Sportsman’s Lodge Rainy River location DECEMBER 1
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When we have 8-12 inches of safe ice and can get the houses and trail ready we will be off and running.  Once we start, the sleeper houses and our Oak Island locations usually start about a week or so after. We are doing our ice dance! Ice fishing season will be here before we know it.
View from Sportsman's Oak Island Lodge 11-15-2017

View from Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge 11-15-2017

Get your reservations in and stay tuned for updates!

Opener is right around the corner!

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Temperatures are up and the fishing is heating up too!  With water temps scratching 50 degrees, pike are in full swing and aggressive.  Casting spoons and spinnerbaits in the tributaries and at any shallow weeds that may be beginning to grow is the best and most efficient way to target them.  Sturgeon have begun to spawn and are stacking up in rapids and fast flowing shallow water. Best areas to target these monsters is to concentrate on deep holes adjacent to these spawning areas.

Walleye Opener
With the walleye season beginning this weekend, great places to begin the season is just outside the Lighthouse Gap, the north side of Pine Island and Four Mile Bay.  A jig tipped with a shiner is always the best bet to kick the season off.  As far as colors to start with, chartreuse, pink and gold are great choices!

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Sturgeon fishing has been hot! 3 days left of the season until July. Get into the action!

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Unreal! Two hours into these gals sturgeon careers they haul in a 68″ monster!

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Take a Mom fishing
Mother’s Day is May 14.  Treat mom to some great fishing, relaxation and Mother’s Day Champagne Brunch at Sportsman’s next weekend.  She will love our cozy accommodations, indoor pool, hot tub, beautiful views, excellent fishing and delicious food.  Click here for our spring lodging and fishing packages and here to check out our Mother’s Day menu.

Get on the fish with a Guided Trip
Whether you are looking for sturgeon, pike or walleye we have trips available this spring. Contact us for more information 800-862-8602.

Wheeler’s Point landing just a mile away from the lodge is open and the fish are biting!

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Six landings now open!  Wheelers, Timebermill ( Baudette), Vidas, Frontier, Birchdale and Pelland. We have water at our docks and the forecast looks warm for the week, perfect for spring fishing! Lodging and guided trips available now. Dock slips and boat rental available within a few days as soon as the shore ice is gone from the docks. Click here for a Rainy River boat landing map.

The bite has been great! Check out the pics of the week!

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Water temperature has been hovering between 36-38 degrees the past few days. Clarity is an excellent  4’-6’. Drifting with current in 12’-22’ using pink and gold ½-3/4 oz. jigs has been working well tipped with a rainbow or shiner minnow.  Anglers are reeling in lots of nice walleyes (50-100 fish days) 14”-30”+ and some lunker sturgeon. Sturgeon anglers have been anchored in or near river bed holes using 1-2 oz. no roll sinker, size 5 hook and a gob of minnows.

Open season dates
Walleye now through April 14, reopening May 13
Pike season open all year. With more bays opening up the soft water bite is really going to get good. Ice anglers the past few weeks have been killing it!

Sturgeon catch and release open now through April 23, keep one within size limits season is April 24-May 7 and catch and release again May 8-15 before the season closes for a short time May
-June 30.

Spring Specials
$99 Lodge Rooms & 20% off cabins/villas now through the end of March.
Lodging starting at $42 per person per night April 1 –May 24 and up to 20% off lodging/charter packages May 12-May 24. Click here to book now or give us a call 800-862-8602!
*plus tax and based on double occupancy

Hungry? Thirsty?
Food & drinks available 7 days a week.
Click here for our current hours.

Last week of ice fishing

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Fish house rentals available for 6 more days! Give us a call! Relax in a warm fish house and get in on the late season bite.  March 21 will be the last day we will have houses out for the winter season.

What’s hot
Walleye and sauger bite has been good jigging gold and pink jigs, plain hooks and spoons tipped with a chub or shiner in 25’-33’ outside of Pine Island.  An early morning and late afternoon bite has been best.

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Ice Conditions
Currently  we have 27-30 inches of ice in the areas we fish and travel.  For conditions in other areas check with local resorts and outfitters as conditions may be different.

Forecast 3-15-2017

Trail Conditions
We have minimal snow on land and the lake.  Grooming is done for the year.

Ice Fishing beyond March 21
Will there be good ice after March 21 this year? Chances are their will be some good ice on the lake for another week or so.  If you interested in venturing out on your own, we have lodging available and some great specials too! $99 Lodge Rooms and 20% off Cabins and Villas March 22-31.  Conditions change often this time of year so be sure to check with the ice road maintainer before venturing out.  Adrian’s Resort and Morris Point Resort both have ice roads nearby. Check with them for the latest conditions.

Rainy River Spring Fishing start soon
From fish houses to boats. It is that crazy time of year when the lake can still maintain 30 inches of ice and the river starts to open up to our east. When temperatures start to increase the river opens up from the east and will continue to open up moving west.  The spring bite is an aggressive sought after bite by many anglers looking to reel some nice walleye, pike and lake sturgeon.  Walleye season is open until April 14, pike season is open year round and sturgeon season is catch and release through April 23, open season April 24-May 7 and catch and release again May 8-15. Derik checked river conditions yesterday and found it pretty locked up with ice for the most part still but with not much snow and warm temps coming up later in the week we expect it to change soon.  Chances are we will see a few boat splashing around the Manitou(38 miles east of Baudette)/Birchdale (26 miles east of Baudette)  area sometime within the next week.  Open water spots were spotted 23 miles east of Baudette (35 miles east of the lodge) and Manitou area is wide open except for but 20 feet of shore ice on either side located 38 miles east of Baudette (50 miles east of the lodge).  The Pelland Kuttes boat landing 57 miles east of is open. Click here for more information about spring fishing and a boat access map.  Watch for inbox and our Facebook page for updates!

Bring on the cold!

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It looks like the brief winter warm up is finally going to end after today and boy are we excited!  Enough of the warm weather, what was Mother Nature thinking we still have a month of ice fishing left! LOL!

Currently we have 23-27 inches of ice in the areas we travel and fish. We have made some changes to where we are accessing the lake and have been playing in some sloppy conditions the past few days but other than that we are still fishing, checking ice often keeping safety #1 and looking at the forecast we plan to keep fishing until late March.

If you are looking to venture out on your own we can’t stress enough to please work through resorts and outfitters. Check conditions before going out and stay on the trail.  The conditions are not the same over the entire lake and now with very little snow left on the lake many people may think they can go anywhere.  That is not the case.  That is not the case even in the coldest of winters and the winters when we have 4’ of ice.  On a good note once we start to cool down we should build ice quicker without the snow.  So stay safe and come join us for some great late season fishing!

Fishing Action
Gold and pink spoons jigging or dead sticking with a plain hook tipped with a minnow has been working the best in 26-32’.  Overall some anglers doing better than others depending on the day, hour, weather, depth, approach and mother nature.  Electronics users seem to do better than those without. Still seeing some suspended fish in various depths from a foot off bottom to 15 feet.  Bite has been mainly made up of walleyes and saugers for the pan or throwback with an occasional slot walleye (19.5”-28”) or larger.  Best tip is to try some different techniques and talk with your guide for the best approach for the day. March usually considered an active month for fishing. Come visit us!

Check out what some of the guests have been reeling in this week!

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Winter pike
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Trail Report
Due to the warm weather we recently been having most of our snow has melted. Trails are marked and groomers will fire back up as soon we get another shot of snow!

Check out these nice walleyes!

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The afternoons have been favoring the mornings this week. Gold and pink jigs and spoons have been working well tipped with a minnow. Anglers have been having good luck in 23’-29’ on and off the reefs. It has been a 60% walleye/40% sauger bite. If you are looking to increase your catch rate we highly recommend using a fish flasher. They really help you pin point at what depth the fish are at. If you don’t have one, call us ahead of time to reserve one to rent.

23 inch walleye caught by the Prudhomme Group Sportsmans Oak Island Lodge

23 inch walleye caught by the Prudhomme Group Sportsmans Oak Island Lodge

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Kevin Coye 23.5 inch walleye caught on a gold jig and minnow Sportsmans Oak Island Lodge


Ice Conditions
Currently we have 20-24 inches of ice in the areas we fish and travel. We run a groomed  trail to our houses. Forecasted highs this week are a little warmer than we like to see this time of year but with the lows below freezing we should only lose some snow.  I am sure Mother Nature will be blowing in some subzero temps again soon.

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Trail Report
Area lake and land trails are being groomed weekly. For more information on the NW Angle & Islands area click here. For the Baudette area click here. The NW Angle club will be hosting their annual Snowmobile Rally March 4 in the NW Angle area. Check out their Facebook page for more information.


Ice Road

The ice road is open. Take the 9 mile drive out from Young’s Bay to the lodge. Signs are posted.

Glow, Plain Hooks & Vexilars!

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Glow jigs, plain hooks tipped with a minnow and Vexilars, Marcums or whatever fish flasher flavor you like are the hot tips this week.  Anglers using these tactics in 23’-33’ of water along with a mix of jigging and dead sticking realized an increase in their catch rate. Many reports of nice walleyes and saugers being found all over the water column  4-6 inches, 2’, sometimes 8’-10’ off bottom.  If you don’t have a flasher and would like to give one a try, we have a few for rent. They do go fast so it is a good idea to call ahead to reserve.  Travel time to the fish houses is about 30 minutes. The guides are moving houses daily to stay on the best bite.  What are you waiting for? Come get your fish on.  Ice fishing trips available through late March!

Look what the Swenson Group reeled in!

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Ice Conditions
We have 22”-25” of ice in the areas we travel and fish right now.

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Trail Report
Area lake and land trails are being groomed weekly. We received about four more inches of snow this week. We have 16-24 inches of snow on the ground. For more information about the trails click here for the Baudette area or here for the NW Angle & Islands. The NW Angle club will be hosting their annual Snowmobile Rally March 4 in the NW Angle area. Check out their Facebook page for more information.

25% off Ice Fishing trips March 19-31
Hook a hot deal! 25% off ice fishing at Sportsman’s Lodge Rainy River location.

 

Treat your sweetie to a couple days of fishing this Valentines Day.
Two nights lodging in a lodge room or cabin and one day ice fishing $196 per person. Fish, relax and enjoy three nights of Valentine’s Day dining specials Feb 12-14.
*plus tax and based on double occupancy.

NW Angle/Oak Island Lake of the Woods, MN Fishing, Trail & Ice Report 1-18-2017

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Steady Bite
The guides at Oak Island report a steady bite of mostly walleyes,  few saugers, perch and northern pike. Nice 14” walleyes, few large ones and plenty of small ones to keep you reeling arm in shape. A good indication the lake is healthy!  A gold, glow in the dark or pink 3/8 or smaller jig or buck shot lure tipped with a minnow or minnow head is working the best in 20’26’ of water. Best technique is to dead stick with one rod and jig with the other.  Really pounding the bottom 4-8 inches off bottom has been successful.  Morning and evening is best but some houses have been reporting a steady bite all day too.  Don’t let winter pass you by. Give us a call to get a winter trip in. We are open for ice fishing until late March 800-772-8411.

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Ice Conditions
Currently we have 20 inches of ice in the areas we travel and fish.

Trail Report
We have a couple feet of snow on the trail and they are in great shape.  Trails are marked and groomed. Click here for more information for the Northwest Angle & Oak Island area. Click here for the Baudette area.

Ice Road
The ice road is open. Take the 9 mile drive out from Young’s Bay to the lodge. Signs are posted.

Sportsman’s Lodge South Shore Lake of the Woods Fishing, Trail & Ice Report 1-18-2017

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Fish in the Bucket!
A steady bite of walleyes and saugers this week.  Anglers are reeling in a mix of walleyes and saugers. Real nice 14”-18” and a few 24”+ walleyes along with a steady bite of small walleyes and saugers.  Pink and gold jigs, plain hook with a little weight, blade and rattle spoons tipped with a minnow or just a minnow head has been working the best in 20’-31’. If you get into a finicky bite try downsizing your lure. Another tip is to try dead sticking with one rod and jigging with the other. The one you use to jig with really pound the bottom stirring it up and jig up 4-8 inches.  Some anglers have even had success jigging upwards of 2’ off bottom to draw attention to your bait.  Flashers are a good idea to bring along or rent. They tend to really help your catch rate. Vexilars and Marcum’s are good choices. We rent Vexilars at the lodge; give us a call ahead of time to reserve if you would like to try one.

A nice eye!

A nice eye!

Missy reeled in a nice walleye on a pink jig and minnow!

Missy reeled in a nice walleye on a pink jig and minnow!

A fun way to spend a day with no school!

A fun way to spend a day with no school!

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Thanks John and Kate for visiting us!

Ice Conditions
Currently we have 20”-22”of ice in the areas we fish and travel.  We travel on a groomed trail.  If you are venturing out on your own, Adrian’s Road out of Wheeler’s Point is a good one to access the lake.  They are now allowing out all size trucks and wheel houses up to 28’.

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Trail Conditions
The lake trails are marked with black stakes and groomed from Baudette on the Rainy River and across Lake of the Woods to Oak Island. They are also marked from Wheeler’s Point to Warroad.  It is about 50 miles from Baudette to Oak Island or Baudette to Warroad via the lake trails. We have a nice base of a  couple feet of snow and the trails are in great shape. Click here for more information about the Baudette area.  Click here for more information for the Northwest Angle & Oak Island area.

Ice fish with us until March 31!
Ice fishing packages available through March 31. Click here to learn more and book your trip today.

Short on time? Take a quick trip!
One night/one day trips available including lodging, ready to go fish house, transportation to and from the fish house, use of jig sticks, jigs bait and fish cleaning starting at only $144* per person. Available: Jan 22, 26, 29-Feb 2, 5-9, 12 & 22.  One day fishing only trips $115* per person.  Available: Jan 22, 23, 26, 27, 29-Feb 2, 5-10. Click here to reserve or call 800-862-8602.
*plus tax and based on double occupancy.