Hey guys, I’m a relative newbe to Mille Lacs. Today we hit Myr Mar and Matton flats with no luck. Would like to have tried the flats further south, but time and waves wouldn’t allow it.
So my question is this: Are there certain flats that one shouldn’t waste his time on and others that consistently hold fish?
Kind of depressing when the kid at the bait shop said he killed them yesterday on the flats with many big ones.
We were dragging spinners btw.
Just keep hitting them until you mark fish. Sometimes they’re up top, off the deep edge, or even a ways off the flat. Side imaging is your friend
The bait shop speaks the truth. It’s easy to catch them right now on the mud flats. Spinners and lindy rigs both work. Do not stay if you do not mark fish on the sonar. Move until you find a pod of fish.
Do the fish tend to hang out on the tops or bottoms of the flats at certain times of day, or is it more random?
It must be something your doing or not doing.. not sure which in this case.. Both of those flats are plenty good. I didn’t fish it on 8th but we pulled at least 50 fish from those flats and others in that area on the 6th. Things change from day to day, and it isn’t the free for all like it was at the end of June.. but you shouldn’t be getting blanked right now.
Years ago I had same issue one day….turns out my leader was was too short from my bottom bouncer…..needs to be at least 6 feet due to water clarity….go to Tutts Bait in Garrison and pick up some of her homemade spinners….they work great….
Changed my spinner success years ago.
I always keep afew on board…
Do the fish tend to hang out on the tops or bottoms of the flats at certain times of day, or is it more random?
General rule of thumb is low light periods, early morning and evening they should be on the top side. As the daylight progresses they tend to slide off and will be on the bottom side or the outside edges. That is generally speaking, the BEST thing you can do is drive around the flat and mark them on the electronics, if you see numerous fish on the top side those will most likely be feeding fish, if they are all on the outside or bottom side of the flat, those are going to generally be a little more negative, they usually move up to the top side for one reason and that is to feed. That does not mean you will not catch any when they are on the outside edges or bottom side of the flat, but if you mark them up top, they should be more aggressive. If you see them tight to the bottom anywhere, those will also be a little more negative than fish that are sitting a foot or more off the bottom. I would not fish a flat unless you mark them first and not just one fish, you should see pods or groups of fish, those are the ones to start with, look for inside turns on the flats and the steeper breaks as your target areas, also wind plays a difference, fish the side the wind is blowing into it. As mentioned before, Mille Lacs is a long snell lake due to water clarity. 6′ snell should be minimum. Prince Bait has a good supply of pre made 9′ snells. Color will make a difference as well, but this year has not been as critical. If you have a couple people in the boat, start with 3 different color combinations, bright, dark and shiny. Once you pick up a couple on one color, then change the other ones out to something similar color and you should have a pattern.
I just fished Matton on Sunday morning and we had constant fish for 4 hrs before we got crowded out and left for new ground. A LONG lindy is key on Mille Lacs. We Bobber fished, pitched plastics, and pulled spinners & slow death. Most the fish on Sunday were on the top side of the flat. Even after the wind died and the sun came out.
With that said, I’ve been out on other days and don’t catch squat on the flats. As mentioned before, find the fish before you drop down. Everything I’ve experienced these last few years is mark fish, fish them! If fishing slows, move! The lake is absolutely loaded with fish. Just gotta find em’.
Man, I want a do-over! I’m thinking now I should have looked deeper during the part of the day I was fishing. I was trying the top and the base, but not sliding out farther. I wasn’t 100 percent on my game either as this was my first time fishing in my new to me boat so I had a few things to learn.
I make my own spinners which are generally about 5 ft long, made out of 14lb green trilene xt. Perhaps I will lengthen and switch to fluoro.
Thanks for all the help guys. Hopefully I’ll be able to get out there again in a few weeks. Will the fish still be relating to the flats at that time?
Its gonna start to get tougher here now until September. Hot weather and warm water temps are not good walleye fishing conditions. Plus there will be a lot of bug hatches too. A lot of people will start switching over to lead core in the main basin. It can still be done, but it won’t be like it was in June.
Bugs is right, Saturday we marked no less then 150 pods of bugs sitting on the bottom that will make to the top soon.
Its gonna start to get tougher here now until September. Plus there will be a lot of bug hatches too.
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