US vs. Canadian side

I hate to be the guy who’s going to start an open water post when ice fishing is just getting started, but…..I just need a little help. I always take one “big” fishing trip each year to northern ontario. I was thinking of staying closer to home and giving Rainy a try. With my job, I have to request time off and book a trip at least 6 months in advance(it’s a pain). Is there any advantage to staying at a resort in canada? Crossing the boder is always a pain, but sometimes worth it…..is it worth it in this case??

BTW-I hope I can hook up with Chris…your posts are amazing all year long.

Absolutely go to Rainy ! Stay at the Thunderbird !
You won’t be disappointed.
Go the first week or two in June and fish the Canadien side. You can get your license and Border Water Crossing Permit on line, so you don’t have to mess with customs, etc.
Chris can help you with all that.
WKW

Hi Trapsht

Fishing is fantastic on both sides of the border as far as Rainy Lake is concerned. I carry a work permit to guide both sides of the lake, yet I spend 95% of my time here in on the US side. I’m not sure of advantages or disadvantages with the fishing other than Musky fishing which takes place on the canadian side for the most part. Many of my customers are groups of anglers whom have fallen back from Canada to the United States for their own reasons. I suspect limiting miles on the road, and potential border hic-ups could weigh in on decisions. Both areas offer pristine beauty with endless miles of undeveloped shorelines, and absolutely massive fish. Love to fish with you. If you would like to PM me I will gladly help you plan your trip, and help align your favorite fishing techniques and target species with timeframes as best I can. My open water dates begin to fill up earlier each year, so as soon as you pin your groups dates down give me a shout! As a last thought for you…….Have you considered capturing one of the last Houseboats in our Rainy Lake Houseboat Excursion?? Awesome time, and fantastic deal. Not sure how many openings we have, but I know things are filling up fast. Those dates are in the middle of September. You can sign up as a group or individual for that.

I also can help you with Resort ideas if you would like.

I spent all last summer working on Crane Lake in Minnesota with the Canadian border being only 2 miles away. I had terrible luck on the US side, after about a 2 min check in at customs (while never having to leave my boat) we had much better fishing on the Canadian side.

On the 4th of July a buddy and I got off work early and counted over 80 boats going back and forth on Sand Point Lake on the US side while we were the ONLY boat on the Canadian side. We would routinely come back with nice fish and people would ask where we were fishing, soon as we said Canada, they didn’t show as much interest.

Now this may not apply to other lakes, but up there on Sand Point, Namakan there seemed to be a definite difference between the US side versus the Canadian side. After 2 weeks on the American side, I almost exclusively fished the Canadian side. I was so regular at the customs office they just waved me on by if they were busy.

Like I said before though, this probably doesn’t apply to all lakes on the border.

I fish the Canadian waters of Lake Of The Woods regularly in the summer and fall. I get an RABC (Remote Area Border Crossing) from ontario by mail each year – this works great – but everyone in the boat has to have one – it was $35 (if I remember correctly) last year. The first time you apply you need to send a copy of your passport. I love Canadian fishing – it is just more remote and more beautiful with fewer boats – on Lake of the Woods, they do great in the US as well.

Yeah in some cases that may very well be the case. I can boat 37 miles east from here to Kettle falls, and remoteness isn’t a factor here!! LOL!! More water than most anglers would be able to cover/navigate in a lifetime let alone in a trip. Fishing is outstanding in the US as most whom fish here will agree, and pressure seldom is ever an issue unless your anchored in front of your resort. We are home to Voyageurs National Park here on Rainy Lake which means you have miles and miles of simply undeveloped shorelines, and over 2500 pine studded islands. With that being said you won’t see me taking anything away from Canadian fishing either. Very awesome fishing NO DOUBT!!

One thing that I will point out is that many many many anglers that have fished with me point out they have seldom if ever seen the quantity of Large fish that they see here on the US side of Rainy Lake, and most have fished the far reaches of Canada on many remote fly in trips in the past. Still each angler weighs out the pros and cons of their upcoming fishing trip destinations.

Some very good points…THank You!! I think I’ll spend my money on the US side this year.

I fish both sides of the border on Rainy. The paperwork is no big deal but RD has a good point if you do not have to cross the border to catch fish then don’t. Live bait “minnows” are not allowed to be transported across the border but they can swim back and forth all day long! Go figure!
“going north” under the causeway is the same as “going east” the farther away you get from I Falls and the Fort the less people will be around.
My best advice would be to save up some nickels and hire RD for a day to get you on some patterns and then grab a map along with your GPS and go for it!

I think that advice is fantastic!!