Correct me if I’m wrong but I think I’d have an extra week (closing Oct 7) to fish lakers on Superior -vs- inland lakes — so maybe if I’m patient I can find a nice day with favorable conditions and give it a shot inside the ore harbor.
The closing for lakers bounces around from year to year but for the last couple years its been extended a week or so. That’s to your benefit since the later into October it gets, the better the trouting.
If the water is fairly flat don’t hold yourself inside the harbor. Take a look at a lake map and locate the nice hump not far off the outside corner of the wall….3/8 mile maybe. This is doable in a 14 on nice water. Locate it and drop jigs straight down and work the top and around the edges where the drop offs are. Easy fishing. Easy to identify as it comes up to about 52 feet from 100+ feet of water. Super, super main lake structure that very doable.
Also, run the trough that parallels the outside wall of the breakwater from beyond the point at the elbow to a couple hundred feet past the end of the wall using dipsies or lead core. This trough is real consistent 70 footish water and can hold a ton of fish at times….its real close to structure created when the breakwater was constructed which holds tons of small laker. The small fish are prime food for the big fish. And anywhere you come to a corner, turn out into the lake and swing back for the next pass….these moves tend to speed up and slow down the dipsies and lead core and these shifts in speed drive any coho or kings bonkers. Keep the boat about 100 – 150 feet off the wall and you won’t make enemies with the casters and you’ll still be in the midst of some very good fishing water.
At the very end of the breakwater on each corner you’ll find a rock ridge that extends out from the corners. The one on the lake side can come up to about 45 feet fairly quickly and drops off again just as fast. The one on the harbor side corner is a better ridge because it stays deeper at about 60 feet. Straight off the end of the breakwater right now with higher water levels you see about 70 to 75 feet of water, maybe an 80 foot, between these rock outcroppings. Off the very end of the lake side ridge the water will drop into 110 or more feet fairly fast. On the harbor side you’ll come up from the deep center water to the 60 or so feet on the ridge top, then drop into 65or so feet as you move along the wall or into the harbor basin. Again, lead core or dipsies will put you in the zone fairly fast. Dipsies are harder to fish than the lead and maybe consider this when you opt for rigging from a smaller boat.
Color patterns are a dime a dozen that work, but always have a gold/orange something on one of the two legal lines. Always.
Here’s a little tid bit to consider too. The fish aren’t fond of rough water either. They seek shelter in two ways: find deeper water or find water where the wave’s surge is not as stressful….as in inside the harbor. So if the lake isn’t behaving look for you fish where you can fish safely and find fish there to get out of the ugly themselves.
The big lake can intimidate you if you allow it to. Know your personal limits with your craft. Stay acutely aware of what’s happening around you as far as weather and especially wind. Keep your fishing techniques simple and avoid clutter in the boat. Use at least one gold/orange bait and have a good time.
And if you still are tentative, I see 12 footers out there often enough. And Kayaks. And canoes.
Probably a lot harder than fishing Superior. Congrats!
