Tag Archives: Lake of the Woods Fishing Report

Sportsman’s Lodge River Update 4-3-2022

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Took a drive east again today. Birchdale is open to all boats now. Here are some pics of Frontier Landing. Water is flowing past Frontier to the west about a mile or so. Still lots of ice at Frontier today but it is currently 40 degrees and 40’s are forecasted all week. Should see quite a bit of progress this week. After Frontier opens, Vidas Landing will be next followed by Timbermill in Baudette and Wheeler’s Point out by the lodge.

Lodging is available starting at $99* a night for 2 people. Give us a call to make your spring reservations at 800-862-8602. *plus tax

Sportsman’s Lodge River Update 4-1-2022

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Birchdale Landing is open!
**County came out and plowed the landing but an ice shelf still remains. It is deeper on the east side of the landing than west as of late afternoon. Could all be gone within a few hours or could take a little longer. Small boats are being pushed out.
Open water is 4 miles to the east of Frontier Landing this afternoon and lots of black ice within 2 miles. Won’t be long!
The parking lots are nice and plowed at Birchdale, Frontier, and Vidas Landings, ready to go.

CLICK HERE FOR A MAP OF THE PUBLIC LANDINGS

Sportsman’s Lodges Fishing & Ice Report 3-18-2022

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Walleye caught at Sportsman's Lodge

Warmer Week
It looks like Mother Nature is loosening her grip on winter. We have had nice sunny days here this week which has been great but the long-range forecast tells us it is time to hang up our ice fishing rods for the year. We have decided our last day of ice fishing will be Sunday, March 20. It is time to put away the winter gear and start shining up the boats. Spring is in the air. It has been another great winter season. Thank you to all our loyal guests and followers. We enjoyed seeing you, chatting with you, and serving you.

The Bite
The current bite this week in 16’-25’ in the mud. Mainly walleyes and saugers are being caught, eater and throwback sizes. An occasional trophy walleye and a pike are also coming up the holes. Bright orange, gold, and pink have been hot colors, 3/8 oz or less for jigs and spoons tipped with a minnow. A mix of jigging and dead sticking is the way to go. A plain hook tipped with a partial minnow is a good tactic for the dead stick. We still have over 3’ of ice and snow. Melting is going on but we have a long way to go.

Spring Fishing
Up next, the river bite. River fishing on the Rainy River is a blast. The walleye season here runs through April 14. Sturgeon catch and release are going on now through April 23. April 24-May 7 you can harvest a sturgeon, (be sure to get a tag with your license) within size limits and then one more week of catch and release May 8-15 before the season closes until July. Walleye will close after April 14 and re-open on May 14 for the year. Pike season never closes and Lake of the Woods is home to thousands of trophies. A fun way to spend a few days. Right now the river is open 64 miles east of the lodge. If we continue to get warm temps and especially rain, it can get chewed up pretty quick. Stay tuned for updates starting next week.

Time to book your spring and summer trips
Dates are starting to fill. Check out all the options at www.sportsmanslodges.com Lodging starting at only $99 a night for two people April 1 – May 25. Guided trips are available through early May and charter trips start May 14.

Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge

Heigh-Ho Heigh-Ho a Fishing we will go
For another weekend that is, before we take a brief spring pause. Our restaurant and bar will be open until 9 am Sunday. We have had a great winter and lots of fun seeing and serving you. We are looking forward to seeing everyone again in May. If you haven’t made your reservations for summer yet, give us a call at 800-772-8411 or find us online at www.oakislanlodge.com. Our office will be open through the breakup season.


The last few days the sun has been melting some measurable snow. The fishing has been pretty good. A mix of walleyes and saugers, mostly walleye have been caught. Macho minnows, Rippin Raps, and 3/8 oz jigs have been hot tackle in colors of orange, yellow, gold, and glow in the dark. Minnows are the bait of choice. The trails are still open. Lots of snow. Midday gets a little soft. Good luck fishing!

Sportsman’s Lodges Fishing & Ice Report 12-22-2021

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Walleye Lake of the Woods

Sportsman’s Lodges Fishing & Ice Report 12-22-2021

12/22/2021

Sportsman’s Lodge Rainy River Fishing Report

Merry Christmas from the Sportsman’s Crew!
We wish you all a safe and happy holiday season and look forward to seeing you soon.

We are now 11 days into our ice fishing season. The season is kicking off well. Day houses started on the 11th and sleepers last weekend. We currently have 11-18 inches of ice in the areas we fish and travel and guests have been catching nice fish. On the ice, we just have an inch or so of snow. As for hot tackle, gold, glow red, glow green, and bigger baits to get the fish worked off the bottom such as Rippin’ Raps are working the best. Bait of choice is chubs or shiner minnows. The best approach for a successful day of fishing is to jig with one rod and dead stick with the other until you find what works best for you. Anglers have been sorting small walleyes and saugers for keepers with a few big guns in the mix as well as an occasional sturgeon and pike. The best depth has been 18’-23’. We now have rods/reels available to use in our rental houses. Contact the front desk to check them out.

Trail Update

The trail from the south shore to Oak Island was marked last Friday. The trail from the south shore to Warroad is being marked today and the trail from Warroad to the island was marked last week. We have a light base of snow with some drifting, areas of bare ice. Could use more snow. For more information on the trails check out the Drifter’s Snowmobile Club and Northwest Angle Edge Riders Club pages.

Going out on your own? 

All of our rentals include transportation to and from the fish house. If you are looking to venture out on your own, there are several ice roads in the area you can choose from that other resorts and outfitters maintain and offer for a fee to use. We encourage you to check with them on their ice conditions before venturing out and stay on the marked areas only. The lake never freezes equally and they have the most up-to-date information on conditions in their area. 

Join us for our New Year’s Eve Party

Dec 31 Dinner and drink specials, party favors, live entertainment by the classic rock band, Cold Shot, and a champagne toast at midnight. Give us a call to make your dinner reservations at 800-862-8602.

Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge

The houses are out and we are ready to open up for our winter season! The lodge opens at noon on the 26th.
We currently have 12 inches of ice, 3 inches of snow on the lake, and 5-6 inches on land in the areas we fish and travel. What to stock your tackle box with? Gold and glow-in-the-dark 3/8 oz jigs and small spoons are always popular early-season tipped with a chub or shiner minnow. We look forward to seeing you soon!

Transportation The Lake of the Woods Passenger Service will start making trips across the lake from Sportsman’s Lodge to the islands after Christmas and Lake Country Air is also taking reservations now for flights throughout the winter too. The ice road is plowed out a few miles fromYoung’s Bay now with plans to plow to the island soon. We should have another update on the ice road today. Check back on our website here for updates.

Driving to the Northwest Angle
Americans who are fully vaccinated and have a 72 hour negative covid test are welcome to come across the border now. Download and fill out the ArriveCAN app and fill out the information to cross. For more information click here.

Trail Update

The trail from the south shore to Oak Island was marked last Friday. The trail from the south shore to Warroad is being marked today and the trail from Warroad to the island was marked last week. We have a light base of snow with some drifting, areas of bare ice. Could use more snow. For more information on the trails check out the Drifter’s Snowmobile Club and Northwest Angle Edge Riders Club pages.

Join us for New Year’s Eve Dinner
We are planning food and drinks specials! Give us a call to make your reservation at 800-772-8411.

Aerial Footage of our Ice Check Lake of the Woods 12-10-2021

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✈️ Check out the aerial footage of Lake of the Woods from the Rainy River, Pine Island to Garden Island during Friday, December 10th’s ice check flight we captured. 🧊 Looking pretty good overall. Please remember if you are venturing out on your own, the ice does not freeze evenly and some areas are never safe. Go out through a resort or reputable outfitter and always stay on the marked trails. Stay safe!

Sportsman’s Lodges Ice Report 12/10/2021

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Our season starts tomorrow!

The ice has been coming along over the last few weeks and we are ready to kick off another season! We start our season in our day houses at our Rainy River location followed by sleepers next as soon as we get a few more inches of ice (usually a week or so) and our Oak Island locations just after Christmas.

Sportsman’s Lodge Rainy River Location

We currently have 10 inches of ice and a few inches or less of snow, in the areas we fish and travel. There are lots of areas on the ice with no snow right now.  Be sure to pack some ice cleats or boots with a good tread if you are heading up this week.  We start our season using light jeeps and passenger trailers. Our bombardiers will come out once we have more ice and snow. 

Going out on your own? 

All of our rentals include transportation to and from the fish house. If you are looking to venture out on your own, there are several ice roads in the area you can choose from that other resorts and outfitters maintain and offer for a fee to use. We STRONGLY ENCOURAGE you to check with them on their ice conditions before venturing out and stay on the marked areas only. The lake never freezes equally and they have the most up-to-date information on conditions in their area. 

Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge & Eagle Ridge

Making ice!

We are finding 6-9 inches in the areas we have been traveling so far in the islands up north. We haven’t ventured south of the island yet. Gregg took a plane ride today to check things out and he reports the lake looks like it froze pretty good overall considering the wind we battled within the early days of ice making. Rough ice here and there.  He didn’t see much snow on the lake at all which will help in the ice-making process. He and a crew plan to start venturing out further next week to start the ice checks for the trail that runs from the south shore to Oak Island.  Stay tuned for more information.  If all goes well, the trail could be marked in a week for snowmobiles.

Lake of the Woods South Shore Fishing Report – 11/9/20

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Our 49th soft water season is coming to a close. We want to THANK EVERYONE who was able to visit us this season and to those who couldn’t, we can’t wait to see you soon. We are now sliding into “freezing season” and fall cleaning and projects for in full swing. If you are still interested in coming up and wetting a line or just relaxing in a cabin, we welcome you with lodging available. The public ramp will continue to be open as long as mother nature allows. Our dining rooms, guide service, bar, pool, and lodge rooms are closed until ice fishing season kicks off in December. For lodging reservations for fall or the upcoming seasons give us a call at 800-862-8602 or click here to contact us online.

The river bite has been hit and miss. It has been a different fall this year. Many reports of anglers seeing fish on the graphs in the river but a light bite. Anchored using a jig or minnow in 8’-25’ on the lake or river has been the go-to approach. Gold and pink have been the best-colored jigs.

For sturgeon, deep holes in the river and bays are good spots using a sturgeon rig tipped with crawlers and shiners. The best pike bite is in bays trolling along shorelines with a crankbait.

Thanks again for a great season! Good luck to all the hunters and we look forward to seeing you this winter! 

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.

Sportsman’s Ice Fishing Update – 2/29/20

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Sportsman’s Lodge Rainy River

A little Over A Month Left Of Ice Fishing Season

The best bite this week continues to be 29’-34’. A notable more aggressive noon – 2 pm bite has been going on the last few days. A mix of 3/4 sauger, 1/4 walleye, and a few tullibee.
Stop sign lures or jigs with glitter, pink/gold or chartreuse/white tipped a minnow has been working. For the best catch rate, a little work can go a long way. It doesn’t hurt to switch up tackle, try one-rod dead sticking and jigging the other, use electronics and test right on bottom vs a few inches off the bottom to grab the attention of the fish as they are swimming by.Ice Conditions and Rally Weekend
We have over 3’ of ice and the snowmobile trails are in good shape. Trails are freshly groomed. The Annual Northwest Angle Edge Riders snowmobile rally is planned for this weekend hosted at our sister resort, Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge on Oak Island at the Northwest Angle 40 miles north of Baudette. This event is always a great time! For more information about the event, click here.Visit us in March for a fun getaway. Click here to learn more

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

Sportsman’s Oak Island Lodge

The Bite
20’-27’ on reefs and edges of reefs using pink, gold, red and white jigs tipped with a minnow has been working well. Anglers have been reeling in a nice bag of walleyes and saugers for supper along with an occasional trophy. We have 30 – 32 inches of ice where we fish and travel. Last chance openings available March 1-4, 15-22 and one 3 bedroom cabin 8-22.
Hosting the Northwest Angle Edge Riders Snowmobile Rally this weekend!
We are excited to be hosting the annual snowmobile rally Feb 29. Click here for all the info and make plans to head out on the trails or take a cruise on the ice road to join in the fun. The trails are in great shape. Click the links for the latest reports.