First Time Devil's Lake Advice

3 of my buddies and I are heading to Devil’s Lake for our first time this year from Feb 1st to Feb 6th. We are all from Colorado, so it’s going to be quite the hike. I’m just looking for some advice on what to bring with us. We all have quite a bit of ice gear, so we should be set there. I’ve read that light braided line is a must. What kind of ice braid does everyone recommend, and what lures should we stock up on? We will be bringing 1 possibly 2 snowmobiles with us and staying at a cabin on Sixmile bay off of Sandy Lane. Any recommendations for this area? We will be targeting walleye,perch & pike.

Thanks, Kyle

for your first time, i’d suggest taking a guide service.

I went by myself for the first time last year. I used Suffix 832 6lb braid. I used small Gold Tungsten Jigs tipped with minnow heads for Perch. I also used Northland Tackle Fireball Firetiger jigs 1/8-1/4 oz jigs tipped with a whole minnow for Walleye/Pike. The Navionics Phone App was awesome for getting me where I wanted to go. I fished near Budwierser Point and Six Mile Point and did decent. Started out deep and moved until I found fish.

Shady Lane is east of town,on east bay,but there are some decent spots close,Woods rutten rd,Black tiger bay,Stromme addition,there s a baitshop real close that should be able to dial you in a little better,when you get here.
I prefer 1/8 oz jigging spoons,jigging raps,slab raps,etc.When the perch are biting aggressive I like the spoons but will downsize to teardrop and noodle rod when perch are finicky,which is often.
Good colors,are chrome/blue,firetiger,rainbow trout,gold and glow

Be prepared to fish up to 50 foot deep. It’s usually windy. Bring a couple of good shovels. Have a couple rods with mono for outside days when it’s cold. Gold n silver are usually better colors. I have one rod with a gold Northland macho minnow w/ minnow head for my search bait. Don’t overlook full minnows under bobbers. Not kidding, there’s been days when I’ll catch 50-1 using minnows n bobbers vs my buddies jigging everything they own. Spare auger blades are handy. I’ve hit dirty ice that ruined a blade in 1 hole. Plastics that resemble shrimp or bloodworms. Have fun, n Good luck.

Excellent tips, thank you!

Live in Grand Forks and have been to Devils 5 times so far this winter. Buckshots and flutter spoons have been solid for us so far for walleyes. I’d recommend gold or UV green for the color. Have also had some success on size 4 UV green rippin raps for eyes. Make sure to make use of your 4 lines as well by throwing out tip ups and using dead lines. Gold tungstens with wax worms and small gold buckshots with waxies or a small minnow head have been working for perch. In terms of line, I find that 8lb braid or mono (depending on if your inside or outside) to a 6 lb fluoro leader is more than enough to handle bigger fish out of that lake.

Good info, thanks for the tips.

There are plenty of Pike in the area. Some bigger ones on DL itself and more numbers in the lakes to the North. Run tip-ups with frozen Smelt or even hot dogs. Jig with a large spoon and a whole minnow. They can provide lots of action and be a blast to catch.

It is much easier to get info on where to catch them than it is for other species. ND Game and Fish has directions on their site on how to clean them and get the bones out.