marine radio and soft plastics

Planning my first trip to rainy in may and hoping to get some Intel

Has anyone used a handheld marine radio and how did it work? I’m eyeing the $50 options that are out there but will pass if they don’t work.

Live bait is obviously king but has anyone had luck with plastics for jigging and lindy rigging walleyes?

I know this next question is a hail Mary but any tips are appreciated, what methods and success can I expect near kettle falls in mid may?

Thanks for the help and tight lines,
Mike

I tried a hand held poor reception too many islands and such blocks the signal. I purchased a new full size radio for about $100.00 another $35.00 for 6′ antenna easy to install and works great.

I’ve tried plastics and had limited success, the Rainy Lake secret is Shiners they work better then minnows. I go to Rainy end of May and again in July and August. The spring trip can be the hardest. You can run into lots of Rain and wind and depending on water temps you can be early or late for the best bite. But you also can really nail them sometimes too.

You are talking big water and a lot of the time long runs and it can be rough in my opinion you need 17’6″ boat or longer and a deep V as you can run into 3′ plus waves when it is windy. My favorite jig color is gold then green. I have also had success with live bait rigs. Trolling shorelines with night crawler spinners also works. I will be up there May 27th at Thunderbird lodge if you are there email me and I can give you more help.

Buddy of mine has a hand held that we monitor the weather on. We are fishing Kabetogama & Namakin but we have always had reception.

Google Mike Williams in International Falls. He has guided Rainy since he was a kid and his family owned Kettle Falls Hotel for years and years. Very nice guy to talk to, he will help you find fish. If you haven’t been from the Hotel out to Rainy before follow your maps! Very rocky right off the channels. Go slow and you will be fine.

Thanks for the tips!

If it’s your first trip up there, I would hire a guide on day 1. It will help your learning curve a ton, and make the rest of your trip much more successful. There are a ton of good guides up there RainyDaze Guide Service, Mike Williams, Billy Dougherty and crew thru Rainy Lake Houseboats etc. We’ve been going for 6 years now later in the year (June/July), but if I went in May I would spend a lot of time shallow and back in the bays. Casting shoreline’s with raps or plastics, trolling shorelines etc. should all be successful imo. Here is some info from RLHB that has held pretty true:
http://www.rainylakehouseboats.com/fishing-calendar/

walleyehunter7 wrote:

Planning my first trip to rainy in may and hoping to get some Intel

Has anyone used a handheld marine radio and how did it work? I’m eyeing the $50 options that are out there but will pass if they don’t work.

Live bait is obviously king but has anyone had luck with plastics for jigging and lindy rigging walleyes?

I know this next question is a hail Mary but any tips are appreciated, what methods and success can I expect near kettle falls in mid may?

Thanks for the help and tight lines,
Mike

Mike,

Handhelds have limited range but they will work depending on the quality of the product. On the open lake you might get a few miles out of it.

Plastics definitely have their place Rainy. I have had excellent success with them from opening weekend until the 4th of July. But, I am almost always casting some plastic on nearly every trip. Some days they are dynamite and other days not so much…and I am talking deeper fish…not shallow fish now. Early in the season my favorite setup in an 1/8th ounce Crystaleyes jig with a Castaic Tackle Baby Jerky J Swim Bait in Golden Shiner…wow that’s a lot to write! But I am being specific because they work. Something about that Golden Shiner color…very tough to beat and I have seen 1000’s of fish caught on plastics on Rainy.

Just my 2 cents, but I don’t have a resume like Billy.

DoRight Out

It’s been stated but I would invest the money in a stand alone VHF w/ a separate antenna if it’s within your budget. They’re far more effective than a handheld. The handheld will be good for monitoring weather, but might not be a whole lot of help if you have a problem. I think the deciding factor will be how far you choose to venture from wherever you happen to be setting in. There isn’t a lot of civilization on the VNP side of the lake. Boat trouble or emergencies could be a very major headache without having a means to contact someone. If you want to use your cell phone have an international plan because you’ll likely cross into Canadian networks. Coverage is spotty at best.

I always keep a handheld radio for weather alerts…and you’ll need to know what is rolling down the lake from the North/West where you’ll be. ~$80 for a 5W submersible handheld just to monitor the weather is well worth it. If you have Verizon – add the roaming package for a few bucks per day when you get there.
There’s enough signal for me to call/text/etc.

Jig & shiner is best. Pulse R plastics, and Flat Raps are my go-to artificial baits. I usually take an obscenely large amount of shiner minnows for that trip in May….cause when you run out, you’re gonna be pissed you didn’t bring more!

Don’t drink too many Pink Things at Kettle Falls and you’ll be ok.

Cheers.

handheld marine radios typically broadcast at 5-6 watts whereas a mounted unit will broadcast at 25 watts. antenna makes a big difference in your range.