Everyone knows Mille Lacs lake is one of the most productive bodies of water in MN for targeting Walleyes. For me, this is especially true during rigging season when the fish are piled up on the mud flats and very aggressive. During this part of the season, it seems like catching Walleyes is as almost as simple as dropping any old hook, line and sinker to the bottom with a leech or crawler. But the Walleye mud-bite doesn’t last forever. So, what happens when it slows down or seems to vanish entirely? This is generally the time when anglers go one of two ways – either move on to fishing other lakes, or move on to other techniques.
Since I really enjoy fishing the big waters of Mille Lacs, I decided to learn new techniques, and so the search began. As a member of IDO Fishing, it didn’t take me long to realize what I needed to do and who to contact. Many of you here probably read the Open Water Trolling articles frequently published by Brad Juaire, and like many of you I also frequently read his articles. At this point, I knew I had to sign up and take one of Brad’s clinics – and wow, am I glad I did!
So, what did I learn? I learned everything necessary to successfully target fish using the open water trolling technique. It has been several weeks now since I took the clinic and I have made multiple trips to Mille Lacs lake to practice what I have learned. I can honestly say I have never left the lake without pulling in some really nice looking fish, and frankly, bigger than I ever caught rigging the flats!
This past weekend was no exception! I went out to spend some time with friends in the boat fishing for those open water trophies! So, what was the result? Thirteen fish in 5 hours! Not bad considering the time of year and a technique that I have only used several times before. What’s more is that the day was far from what someone might consider to be ideal.
The morning was anything but calm with brisk 15 to 18 MPH winds out of the South. One of the things I learned was to pick your trolling runs according to the wind direction, so this is precisely what I did. The next step was to begin searching for fish, or rather the signs that indicate active fish. I used all the techniques learned from the Open Water Clinic and, as a result, located feeding fish within 30 minutes. So I locked in our first trolling run into the Lowrance and began dropping lines. It was the kind morning that was mixed with clouds and occasional sun, so we decided to put out a variety crankbaits of varying colors. It didn’t take long before we realized that chrome colored baits was out producing darker or solid color baits. We were running 4 lines total with two lead running on the inside and segmented 832 lead out on planner boards. A higher percentage of fish came on the inside lines as expected, due to the wind, but we still caught fish on the boards as well. All in all, the day was a great success, even though winds ended up gusting 20 to 25 MPH with constant 3 to 4 footers.
If you haven’t taken the Open Water Trolling Clinic, I recommend you do. You’ll be able to take your friends and family fishing on Mille Lacs well beyond the mud-bite and put some good fish in your boat!
August 24, 2013 at 2:20 pm
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That is the very reason why I do these trolling clinics! 