Lake of the Woods South Shore & Oak Island Fishing Report – 5/22/20

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Feels like Summer
Several days in the 70’s continue to be in the forecast for the week ahead.

GREAT NEWS!
Charters can now have up to 6 passengers starting June 1! Up to 2 per boat now through May 31. Give us a call to make your summer reservation.

Anglers have been catching some nice walleyes and pike this week. Walleyes have been found in 10’-24’. Anchored and jigging a jig tipped with a chub or shiner. Good old Lake of the Woods gold, as well as pink and orange, have been popular colors. A variety of sizes being caught. Water temp is in the upper 50’s. Pike, pitching dead bait with on a quick strike rig on the bottom or just 6 inches off bottom with a bobber along shorelines in weedy bays.

Nick reeled in some nice fish! Thanks for visiting and sharing your pictures with us.

Guest and staff safety is our priority. From increased cleaning protocols to online food ordering options and social distancing practices, we are committed to providing you with a safe environment during your visit. For additional information about what we are doing to keep you safe, please visit our website.

We are open!
We have lodging and guided trips available now. Curbside and on-property delivery food options, dock slips, gas, bait, thousands of great fishing spots, and awesome views. Nightly camping and outdoor dining open on June 1 and we are hopeful dine-in services will start shortly after that. Give us a call to plan your trip 800-862-8602.

Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge

Walleyes are biting!
Walleye bite continues to be good in shallow 10’-22’ along points. Anchored, jigging a jig and a minnow. Gold is the hot color. Pike fishing continues to be good in bays and creek openings. Trophy pike have been reeled in casting artificial baits or using smelt or large sucker minnows on a hook and a bobber. Openings available give us a call 800-772-8411.

Border Update
It was announced this week that the Canadian government has decided to extend its border closure through June 21 to help in reducing the spread of COVID-19.

This closure unfortunately does not allow non-resident citizens of Canada to drive through Canada to the Northwest Angle or fish in Canadian waters. We are saddened by this news. HOWEVER, we do have options for you to get to us and we are open! We have shuttle service options from our south end resort or you can take your own boat across the lake to get to us. Ample parking is available on the south shore for vehicles and trailers. The shuttle service also is offering free follow boat options during an already scheduled trip or for a fee at your specifically scheduled time for anyone who prefers to not head out on the lake alone. Our services available now include lodging, guided fishing, to-go food, off-sale, gas, and bait. And of course, incredible views and excellent fishing awaits you. We will have outdoor dining options starting June 1 and we are hopeful for dine-in services to start shortly after that. If you have a reservation and have any questions, or if you are interested in booking a trip please give us a call 800-772-8411 or contact us online here. We hope to hear from you soon.

One of the nice fish Garrett reeled in!

Lake of the Woods South Shore Fishing Report & Oak Island Update – 5/12/20

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Sportsman’s Rainy River

Opening weekend weather was cool but some nice walleyes were caught.

Check out some of the pics.

It sounds like the weather is going to warm up as the week goes on. Mid 60’s this weekend!

We are open for lodging, dock slips, curbside, and on-property food delivery. Lodging starting at $89 through May 20. COVID safety measures and extra cleaning protocols are being practiced and we look forward to opening more services as soon as we can.

A decent bite has been found in 12’-18’ along the sandbars jigging with a chub or a shiner. Gold and pink were notable colors. Water temperature is in the mid 40’s.

Sturgeon season winds down May 15 and reopens July 1.

Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge

We open this weekend!
Lodging, dock slips, and food delivery to your cabin or dockside will be available. We will start cooking Friday at 11:30, open until 8:30 pm and daily starting Saturday, 7:00 am – 8:30 pm. We look forward to opening more services as the Governor lifts restrictions. COVID safety measures and extra cleaning protocols are being practiced. The Canadian border is currently still closed until May 20. You can reach us by passenger service or boating across the lake at this time.

Fishing for walleyes has been good in shallow 10’-16’ along shorelines using a jig and a minnow. Vertical jigging gold has been hot. You don’t have to go far to catch a nice limit. Pike fishing is also excellent in the spring. Bays and creek openings to the lake are a great place to check out. Casting artificial baits or using smelt or large sucker minnows on a hook and a bobber.

Weekly Specials
Starting at just $2,195 for a 3 bedroom cabin in a quiet area just 1/4 mile from the main lodge at Sportsman’s Eagle Ridge. Check it out for your spring, summer, fall or winter getaway.

Lake of the Woods South Shore Fishing Report & Oak Island Update – 5/6/20

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Sportsman’s Lodge

Minnesota Walleye Opener is this Saturday, May 9
The Minnesota walleye fishing holiday and long-standing tradition is finally here! Fresh walleye for supper on Saturday night can’t come soon enough.

The ice as far as we can see is gone and the big pond is ready to go. The weather is looking fair, a little on the cool side but common for the big day. Wind 5-12 and partly sunny. So where is the best place to find the early season walleye on Lake of the Woods? Shallow sandbars are usually a good place to start. 12’-20’ on the windward side. Rig up a jig and shiner minnow or a chub and do some jigging.

After a day of walleye fishing, don’t count out the sturgeon. Sturgeon “catch” season is going on now through May 7 and you can enjoy catch and release May 8-15 before closing for 6 weeks. Deep holes in river and bay are usually great spots to reel in one of these monsters. Drop a 4/0 or 5/0 hook with a gob of worms and a no-roll sinker to the bottom and give it a try. Check out some of the photos from this past weekend.

Rooms Available
We have a few rooms available for the weekend. Give us a call 800-862-8602.

Our Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge location opens May 15 for the season. For summer reservations call 800-772-8411.

The staff has been busy deep cleaning and increasing cleaning protocols as well as practicing and implementing new social distancing to serve you. We will kick off our new online food ordering option at our Rainy River location on Friday too for curbside pick up and delivery to your room, cabin, or villa until we can open for dine-in. We look forward to having you visit. Good luck fishing everyone!

Hello from the Island!

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Hello from the Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge! We are starting to see some more open water out in front of the lodge. Still quite a bit of ice on the main lake yet but it is softening up.

We are looking forward to seeing you this summer. At this time, we plan to open for the season May 8 for the MN walleye opener May 9. Your health and safety are important to us. We will be using enhanced cleaning protocols and safety standards to help keep everyone safe. Please watch our website for more information about those coming soon. As of right now, the Canadian border is closed until May 20, so until then you can get to us by boat across the lake. A passenger service with a follow boat option is available too.
For more information and reservations, please contact us at 800-772-8411 or via email here
https://sportsmanslodges.com/contact/

Good news!

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We are planning to open up May 4 here at Sportsman’s Lodge.
Our staff is working hard at deep cleaning and preparing the resort now for the upcoming season. We will be using enhanced cleaning protocols and safety standards to help keep everyone safe. In addition, we plan to start takeout food service on May 8. Check out our website soon for more information. For reservations give us a call 800-862-8602 or email us here https://sportsmanslodges.com/contact/
We are available daily 8am-4pm now and expanded hours coming soon. We look forward to seeing you this summer ☀️.
www.sportsmanslodges.com

Our Sportsman’s Oak Island and Eagle Ridge locations are planning on opening May 8. As of right now, the Canadian border is closed until May 20, so until then you can get to us by boat across the lake. A passenger service with a follow boat option is available too.
For more information and reservations, please contact us at 800-772-8411 or via email here
https://sportsmanslodges.com/contact/

Hello from Sportsman’s!

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April 14, 2020

Hello from Sportsman’s!  

We hope this message finds everyone safe and healthy. We just wanted to let you know we are thinking about you and are still here.

Last week we decided to extend our closure to May 4 at this time and awaiting information to move forward. We have also rescheduled our May sturgeon tournament to October 30 & 31. If you had a reservation during this time, our staff is working on contacting you or please contact us when it works for you to make alternative arrangements. Due to the change, we now have some openings for this popular tournament. If you are interested in signing up or learning more, click here or give us a call.


We are hopeful for May at this point. We are busy working on changes to keep you and our staff healthy and safe in the days ahead such as electronic check-in options, increased cleaning protocols, online food ordering option, social distancing practices and more.  When it is time we are ready, we’re all in this together.  

 

We are welcoming the open water, more by the day. Water has been flowing in front of the lodge for over a week now. At Oak Island we still have an “ice view” but getting softer by the day. 

 

If you have any questions our front desk staff is available 7 days a week 8am – 4pm. Contact us anytime at Rainy River Location:  800-862-8602 or by clicking here.  Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge and Eagle Ridge 800-772-8411 or by clicking here.  We look forward to seeing you soon.

Our current view of the Rainy River from our Sportsman’s Lodge location.

 

Our current view from our Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge location.

March 24, 2020

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Hey Anglers,

We hope you are all healthy and making the best of the circumstances we all are dealing with during this time.  We wanted to take a minute to say hello from the Northland and update you on a few changes that have come up.

This morning, the Lake of the Woods County Board of Commissioners met via teleconference with the Koochiching County Commissioners. The Koochiching County Board voted unanimously to close the Kooch County owned Rainy River accesses which include the Upper Sioux landing, Frontier landing, Nelson Park landing and Vidas landing with concerns about a large number of anglers coming into the area in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. This decision will be reviewed on April 14th at their next board meeting.

In addition, the Lake of the Woods County Board voted to close all county controlled right away landing that provides access to the Rainy River until further notice. This will be reviewed weekly.

Last night, the Baudette City Council voted to close the two river accesses in Baudette, Peace Park, and Timber Mill Park, until further notice.  Basically what this means is all public accesses between Baudette and International Falls are closed at this time. We are hopeful with all efforts being made across the country this will change by soon and we can get back to fishing. We will update you on April 14th or if anything changes prior. If you have a reservation this affects, please contact our front desk staff at 800-862-8602. Our office is currently open from 8am to 4pm 7 days a week.

We appreciate your business over the years and look forward to seeing everyone soon!

The Sportsman’s Family

 

Sportsman’s Ice Fishing Update – 3/11/20

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Sportsman’s Lodge
3/11/2020

 

Cool temps! 20 days of ice fishing left, you still have time!

A decent bite this week. Catching a variety of walleyes, saugers, and few eelpouts. Anglers trying some different things if the bite isn’t hot for them are getting the best results like different lures, jigging speed, dead sticking, on bottom vs a few inches off the bottom, minnow head vs full minnow and using electronics like a Vexilar. The bite continues to be in 29’-34’ out about 45-55 minute ride from the lodge. Hot jigs have been 1/4 oz gold, pink or chartreuse or a plain hook tipped with a minnow. Come have some fun!

If the weather starts to warm up we will be moving our houses to stay away from the slush and to allow a longer season with safe ice. With the bombardiers and groomed trails, we have many areas to fish. Check out the pictures of the week and make plans to come wet a line.

Trail Report
Trails are open. For more information check out these links.
South Shore Lake of the Woods
Northwest Angle Lake of the Woods

23rd Annual End of the Season Mardi Gras Party is March 28
Our end of the season bash is coming up! Visit us for great fishing and a whole lot of fun! Entertainment, beads, free hurricanes, food and drink specials, costume contest win $200 CASH and much more. Click here to check out all of the fun we have planned and book your stay and play package today!

 

Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge

Fishing Away

This week depths in 22’-27’ around structure using plain hooks, gold jigs s and small spoons tipped with a minnow has been the best approach for catching walleyes and saugers. An occasional perch, tullibee, perch, pike, and eelpout too. A mix of vertical jigging and dead sticking has been the best approach and electronics help! We have 30-32 inches of ice.

Trails
The trails are open. Click the links for the latest reports.

South Shore Lake of the Woods
Northwest Angle Lake of the Woods

Ice Road from Young’s Bay to Oak Island
The ice road is open. Follow the signs and take a ride. It is about 10 miles out.

Time to book your spring and summer trip.
It is never too early to start planning your spring trip! Come visit the islands this spring and get into some hot soft water action. Spring lodging specials available May 8 -25! Contact us today 800-772-8411.

Sportsman’s Ice Fishing Update – 3/4/20

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Sportsman’s Lodge
3/4/2020

March Fishing is in Full Swing

Walleyes, saugers, and a few perch, pike, eelpout and tullibee have been caught this week. Walleyes and saugers predominately but it’s March, which means a greater chance to catch a variety of species. The best bite continues to be 29’-34’ using a combination of dead sticking and jigging. Hot tackle has been plain hooks and jigs/small spoons colored green glo and pink tipped with a minnow.

We are still out about a 45-55 minute ride to the fish houses and have over 3’ of ice. The ice is in good shape and no slush. When the weather starts to warm up we will be moving our houses to stay away from the slush and to allow a longer season with safe ice. With the bombardiers and groomed trails, we have many areas fish. Check out the pictures of the week and make plans to come wet a line.

Trail Report
Trails are open. For more information check out these links.
South Shore Lake of the Woods
Northwest Angle Lake of the Woods

23rd Annual End of the Season Mardi Gras Party is March 28
Visit us for great fishing and a whole lot of fun! Entertainment, beads, free hurricanes, food and drink specials, costume contest win $200 CASH and much more. Click here to check out all of the fun we have planned and book your stay and play package today!

 

Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge 

Glow in the dark is hot!
Jigging glow in the dark jigs and small spoons have been hot this week tipped with a minnow. A mix of walleye, saugers, and a few perch and pike are being caught in 22’-30’ of water around structure. We have 30-32 inches of ice and plan to keep fishing through the 22nd here in the islands at this point.

Trails
The trails are open. Click the links for the latest reports.

South Shore Lake of the Woods
Northwest Angle Lake of the Woods

Ice Road from Young’s Bay to Oak Island
The ice road is in good shape. Follow the signs and take a ride. It is about 10 miles out.

Time to book your spring and summer trip.
It is never too early to start planning your spring trip! Come visit the islands this spring and get into some hot soft water action. Spring lodging specials available May 8 -25! Contact us today 800-772-8411.