Minnesota Fishing Report from Sportsman’s Lodge
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| 28.5 inch walleye caught by Nick. Fun father son weekend. It was his first fishing trip. Caught and released in house #17 on a gold macho minnow. Way to go buddy! |
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| Chad Veer reeled in and released a nice 23 inch walleye. Nice one! |
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| Hunter reeled this nice 19 inch walleye on a gold angel eye. Nice catch! |
| Lake of the Woods South Shore Current Ice Conditions & Fishing Report Sportsman’s Lodge Baudette, MN www.sportsmanslodges.com 800-862-8602 | ||||||
12/27/2013
Ice Conditions Currently we have 18-21 inches of ice in the areas we fish and travel. We are building more every day! Trail Report Lake Trails We currently have 12-15 inches of snow on the lake. The trails are in fair condition. The plan is to start grooming early next week from Wheeler’s Point to Oak Island for sure. Ice checks from Wheeler’s Point to Warroad and Wheeler’s Point to Baudette will be done over the weekend to determine when grooming can start on those trails. Everything is staked and has sufficient ice for snowmobiles; we are just waiting on a few more inches of ice for the groomer. Like always, watch for caution areas especially during days like today when the temperature fluctuates a wide range. Land Trails Most of the trails are groomed. Get out and take a ride today! http://www.lowdrifters.org/trail_condition.htm Four Mile Bay Ice Road Report The ice road out of Four Mile Bay near Wheeler’s Point is open to full size vehicles and fish houses up to 21’. Currently there is 14”-15” of ice just off the trail and 18”+ on the trail. Get out and enjoy the winter! Give us a call today to reserve your winter ice fishing vacation 800-862-8602 or online at www.sportsmanslodges.com |
5/13/2013
Walleye Opener Weekend 2013 Results are in! Walleye Opener 2013 was a cool and windy one, giving anglers a challenge, but some nice ones were found! Check out this nice 25 inch walleye Kelly Moore caught guided by Captain Alan “Flip” Phillippe! Sunday, the weather cleared with 5-15 mph winds and sunny. Still a cool 55 degrees but much nicer and boy did Captain Alan “Flip” Phillippe and his crew get into the walleyes! His group caught a 30”, 27”, and a 28” for big walleyes along with 18 other slot fish (19.5”-28”) and lots of good eater size. What a day! Check out the pictures! It is walleye time!
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| Jim Jorissen from Little Canada, MN pictured with his 28 inch walleye he caught and released 5-12-2013. Guided by Captain Flip. | James Jorissen from Little Canada, MN pictured with his 27 inch walleye he caught and released 5-12-2013. James also caught a 30 inch walleye too! Guided by Captain Flip. |
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| Kelly Moore reeled in a nice 25 inch walleye opening day! Guided by Captain Flip | Lake Satellite picture 5-12-2013 |
Anglers are finding some nice walleyes in 12’-16’ of water right now along shorelines and areas with some current. The technique of choice has been anchoring and jigging with a 3/8 oz jig tipped with a minnow. The lake ice is starting to disappear more and more. More hot fishing spots are opening up daily. Check out the latest satellite picture.
Get in on the spring bite. We have a spring lodging special that runs through May 23. Lodging rates starting at only $39 per person per night. Don’t miss out on our Memorial Day Special too! Stay 3 nights and get the 4th night FREE! This offer won’t last long. www.sportsmanslodges.com Give us a call today 800-862-8602!
5/4/2013
Day 2 Winners of the 7th Annual Sportsman’s Lodge Sturgeon Tournament are:
#1$ 1900 Cash – Hunter Deziel from Grand Forks, ND with a 58 1/2 inch length and 24 inch girth
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#2 $820 Cash – Tommy Riggs from Shevlin, MN with a 56 1/2 inch length and 21 3/4 inch girth
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#3 Custom Rod – Nick Simonson from Marshall, MN 56 inch length and 21 1/2 inch girth
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Thanks to all of the particpants! We look forward to seeing you again next year! May 2 & 3, 2014
5/3/2013
7th Annual Sportsman’s Sturgeon Tournament Day 1 Results
It was a cool, 45 degree clear and sunny day for day one of the 7th Annual Sportsman’s Lodge Tournament. It is a full tournament, 50 boats and over 100 people participating. The tournament is a two day catch and release tournament. The three longest sturgeon of each day receive prices. First two receive cash and the third a custom built rod. Despite the cool spring, the Rainy River in front of Sportsman’s Lodge where the tournament is held has plenty of open water. Live Entertainment, food and drinks will close out the day. Day 2 starts at 8:30 am and finishes at 3pm. 6pm is the prime rib dinner banquet where the prizes will be given. Fireline Live Band will then take the stage one more time Saturday night to close out the 7th Annual Sturgeon Tournament.
The sturgeon season is open through May 7 and May 8-15 is catch and release season before closing for about a 6 week period of time. Lots of nice sturgeon have been caught this spring and their is still plenty of time to get in on the action. Give us a call to make a quick trip and reel in one of these monsters! 800-862-8602
Official Day 1 Results Sportsman’s 7th Annual Sturgeon Tournament Prizes awarded to the 3 longest fish of each day.
Thanks to all participants we look forward to another exciting day tomorrow!
#1 $1900 Cash – Jim Benson 61 inch length, 23 inch girth approx 53 lbs
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#2 $820 Cash – Mark Capouch 60 1/4 inch length, 24 1/2 inch girth approx 56 lbs
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#3 Custom Made Rod – Mark Capouch 56 inch length, 21 inch girth approx 41 lbs
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5/1/2013
It’s PRIME TIME STURGEON TIME!
The sturgeon fishing has been incredible! Several nice sturgeon were boated the past few days especially monster size 50 inch plus! What a blast! Sturgeon “keep one” season lasts until May 7. You can keep one within 45”-50” inclusive or over 75”. Licenses and sturgeon tags are available at the lodge. May 8-15 get in on one more week of catch and release before the season closes May 16.
Anchoring and working deep holes of the river bottom has worked best. The best tackle to use is a 5/0 or 6/0 octopus or circle hook, a couple of ounces of weight and 2-4 crawlers.
Our 7th Annual Sturgeon tournament is this weekend!
The tournament is always a good time! Over $4500 in cash and prizes to be given away! Come on out and watch the boats from our docks, hear good fish stories and listen to the live entertainment. At this time, this year’s tournament is full but we are taking names for a waiting list in the event we receive last minute cancellations and we are now taking reservations for next year’s tournament, May 2 & 3 2014.
Don’t just take it from me, read what other recent guests are saying….
65″ 31.5 girth 115 lbs!! Great cabins great food and great people!!! You rock!!! Especially Jennifer!!! Thank you!!!! We will be back for sure, best fishing weekend of all time!
Don Gregerson
We had the best success employing a run and gun approach giving each spot a ½ hour before moving. The heads of deep holes seemed to be holding the most fish but keep eyes on the electronics as fish are easily spotted. Our rigs consisted of large Water Gremlin Dipsey Swivel sinkers with 12” leaders tied to 5/0 circle hooks. 4- 6 night crawlers sprayed with Berkley Gulp Minnow spray was our bait of choice. Freshen scent often. When fish hit simply point the rod at them, lift tip, and reel in. Please handle these prehistoric giants with care!
Water Gremlin Pro Staffer Garett Svir
Thanks for your support of Wounded Warrior Guide Service! Our stay was great! You guys are AWESOME! Here is Brandon and Darius with one of the fish from our two day trip! These guys had a great time!
Jake Flaa
As usual, we had a great stay at Sportman’s plus few nice fish! Can anyone think of a lake that gives you a better chance to catch an so many different kinds of trophies?
Bill & Jyothi
Had a great time fishing at Sportsmans Lodge sturgeon fishing at its finest! Great food, great accommodations, great people and of course GREAT fishing
Steven Wintemute
Hooked Magazine
Limits & Seasons
Sturgeon “keep one” season is open through May 7 within size limits of 45”-50” or over 75”. One sturgeon per angler per year. May 8-15 is catch and release season. May 16-June 30 is closed. July 1-Sept 30 is keep one sturgeon.
Pike season never closes. You can keep 3 only 1 over 40”. All pike between 30”-40” must be released.
Walleye season opens May 11. Limit of walleye is 4. Walleye/Sauger limit is 6, no more than 4 can be walleye. Only 1 walleye over 28” and all walleye between 19.5”-28” must be released.
Catch the spring action! Lodging as low as $39 midweek and $43 weekend per person plus tax. We have it all! Docking, Restaurant, Bar, Entertainment, Indoor Pool, Guided Trips and more!
Pike
The pike bite is heating up. Anglers have been finding some nice ones in Four Mile Bay the past few days.
Let us Guide you to the action!
Guided sturgeon and pike trips are now available. Walleye trips available starting May 11. Let our professional guides guide you to the action. No equipment or experience required. Click here for more information.
12/26/2011
Happy Holidays Everyone! We hope everyone had a nice Christmas! Fishing has been great!
We had another great week of fishing last week here on Lake of the Woods. Many excellent and over the top action days! 50-100+ fish per days, not bad, not bad at all! Some of the best fishing we have seen in years! The past few days we have seen the bite slow a bit but still very good! A nice pail of walleyes by the end of the day is still a great day! We are seeing about a 60% sauger and 40% walleye ratio right now. The best depth has been in 22’-27’ of water just outside of Pine Island. Stop signs, Buckshots and the glass pink and orange jigs have been hot this week. A little shine to your tackle in our waters tend to really do well. Anglers using Vexilars/Fish Finders have had even better luck. Vertical jigging with a minnow has been the best technique at this time.
Ice Conditions
We currently have 14-16 inches of ice in the areas we travel and fish just outside of Pine Island at this time. If you plan to venture out on your own please remember, ATV’s and light vehicles only are advised at this time and allowed out on the trails and roads. Please check with local resorts before going out as the entire 950,000+ acre lake does not freeze equally or at the same time.
Trail Report
As of today we only still have just a dusting of snow and not a whole lot in our forecast at this point maybe a little shot on Wednesday. It is a strange start to your season here in the northland. The land trails are closed and only the trails to fish houses are marked at this time.
Looking to rent a Vexilar or hot tackle?
Check out our gift shop open 6am – 11pm daily located next to our front desk. Vexilar rental is in high demand, we suggested calling to reserve prior to your arrival.
