Mille lacs report

  • crappie55369
    Mound, MN
    Posts: 5757
    #2228759

    I dont fish mille lacs much and when I do I usually don’t do too well. Today was maybe the 6th or 7th time I’ve fished it. We had a blast and had what I would consider success! We were targeting walleye but I’m a fan of smallmouth too and that proved to be what was biting today. In total we boated around 20 fish and probably lost that many more including a nice sized pike that bit my friend off at the boat. I caught a 19″ & 20″ smallie. Just footballs.

    Water temp was 59 degrees. I launched out of the garrison public launch. We fished reefs and the flats. All our fish came off of several reefs. Didn’t mark anything on the flats we fished. Jig and sucker minnow fished vertical proved to be the ticket today. We spend a fair amount of time dragging spinners but didn’t catch any fish this way. The morning started out cold – around 38 degrees with a steady chop. As the day went on it slowly warmed up and the wind died down. We caught fish all throughout the day.

    Princes bait had a nice selection of minnows and the gentlemen who helped me was very nice and gave me a good tip. Shout out to bigwerm for some tips too.

    Was nice to have some success on mille lacs. I’ll be fishing it more

    crappie55369
    Mound, MN
    Posts: 5757
    #2228761

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    crappie55369
    Mound, MN
    Posts: 5757
    #2228764

    Attachments:
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    biggill
    East Bethel, MN
    Posts: 11321
    #2228770

    Nice work! Bonus points for the derp smallie!

    AK Guy
    Posts: 1390
    #2228772

    Looks like you caught the One Eyed Smallie…

    Mike W
    MN/Anoka/Ham lake
    Posts: 13294
    #2228801

    Nice fish. Pretty sure I’ll be back out there next weekend.

    Craig Sery
    Bloomington, MN
    Posts: 1204
    #2228829

    Was up yesterday also, water on west side was 61, bite was on fire! We boated probably 40 fish in 5 hours, only a couple were under 17” with two slot walleye too. Big fish was a 20.5” slob that went 5.66

    BigWerm
    SW Metro
    Posts: 11624
    #2229619

    Nice report, and glad it worked out for you! No better place to find some footballs this time of year than ML!!!

    Bass Pundit
    8m S. of Platte/Sullivan Lakes, Minnesocold
    Posts: 1772
    #2229800

    With the wind blowing out of the East yesterday I thought I would have a pretty good shot at getting some eyes at my shore fishing spot. I didn’t get there until just before 10pm. First cast, fish on, and a keeper to boot. I got it on a Powerbait Agent E 3.75″. The fish totally inhaled it. About 5 minutes later I lost a good one about 3/4 of the way in. Didn’t get another bite until 11:30. I landed 3 in the final half hour on an X-Rap Shad Shallow two on Firetiger, one on Hot Steel. Also had one swipe and miss right at the rocks as I was pulling the firetiger out of the water. I had one good trip around this time last year, the rest sucked. There was a lot of eel grass in the water and the water is even lower than I remember it being in 2021.

    gimruis
    Plymouth, MN
    Posts: 17348
    #2230102

    the water is even lower than I remember it being in 2021.

    I don’t remember how low it was then, but I can confirm that the lake level is definitely very low. Some boats were using their bow mounts to get out from the access to the main lake on Wednesday. I’m guessing its a foot or more down just from the spring. If anyone is planning to head out there, trim your lower unit up as high as it will go while still operating.

    Maybe the rain will help some, but that area needs A LOT of it.

    crappie55369
    Mound, MN
    Posts: 5757
    #2230112

    I don’t remember how low it was then, but I can confirm that the lake level is definitely very low. Some boats were using their bow mounts to get out from the access to the main lake on Wednesday. I’m guessing its a foot or more down just from the spring. If anyone is planning to head out there, trim your lower unit up as high as it will go while still operating.

    Maybe the rain will help some, but that area needs A LOT of it.

    I thought we were almost out of drought stage? Why is Mille Lacs so low?

    gimruis
    Plymouth, MN
    Posts: 17348
    #2230118

    I thought we were almost out of drought stage? Why is Mille Lacs so low?

    Some areas have greatly improved on their drought status in recent weeks. The area along the north side of the lake was in pretty severe drought most of the summer and did not receive the “monsoon” type heavy rains that other places did recently.

    I guess I am not that familiar with how all the creeks going into the lake work. Maybe Jon Jordan or someone else that spends more time up there knows more about how the hydrology of that lake works. I know the Rum River flows out of it on the southwest corner of the lake and the Rum River has been low for months all the way down to Anoka.

    Jon Jordan
    Keymaster
    St. Paul, Mn
    Posts: 6019
    #2230121

    Correct, small creeks and rainfall are the only source of water for Mille Lacs. There is little to no flow in those creeks. The Mississippi river north of Aitken is as low as it gets. It’s been dry! I only had to move like 4 times since opener this year. Fishermen’s lawn at the cabin – brown and dead!

    -J.

    empty_stringer
    Wahkon, Mn
    Posts: 258
    #2230156

    She’s wet and blustery up here today. Heard some shooting from the lake just before sunrise, thought of my younger years sitting out in that crap.
    We have gained some water in the last month but still way down.

    LabDaddy1
    Posts: 2440
    #2231434

    Correct, small creeks and rainfall are the only source of water for Mille Lacs. There is little to no flow in those creeks. The Mississippi river north of Aitken is as low as it gets. It’s been dry! I only had to move like 4 times since opener this year. Fishermen’s lawn at the cabin – brown and dead!

    -J.

    Fishermen’s lawn. Lol, I like that.

    Empty_stringer- I think I know what you meant there but it brings up a question for me just out of curiosity:

    Is there anywhere on Mille lacs where it’s possible/legal to hunt waterfowl? I would assume not, just because of how developed its shoreline is. On the neighboring lakes? Again, just curiosity as I (unfortunately) don’t duck hunt.

    Ripjiggen
    Posts: 11586
    #2231435

    I have seen duck hunters on the northwest side before.

    LabDaddy1
    Posts: 2440
    #2231437

    I have seen duck hunters on the northwest side before.

    Oh nice. Shore hunting or open water? I don’t know much about waterfowl hunting and it’s rules/regs

    gimruis
    Plymouth, MN
    Posts: 17348
    #2231460

    I’ve seen duck hunters in Isle Bay. They bury in the longer vegetation along the shore.

    I’ve also seen them in Garrison Bay along the same type of cover.

    Netguy
    Minnetonka
    Posts: 3173
    #2231545

    From the 2023 MN Waterfowl Regs:
    Lake Pepin, Lake of the Woods, and Lake Mille Lacs: open-water hunting is allowed from boats that must be anchored.

    Ripjiggen
    Posts: 11586
    #2231569

    I have seen them in waders, in boats, and even a guy with a duck blind at the end of his dock.

    Bite has been good to great this week. Walleye and smallmouth. Rigging jigging and cranking. I have been fishing rocks and weeds primarily.

    lindyrig79
    Forest Lake / Lake Mille Lacs
    Posts: 5797
    #2231591

    I have duck hunted Mille Lacs and it’s probably more wide open than you think

    Last year we launched in Garrison and just hunted out of the boat near a rocky shore. We had several dozen diver decoy spread. Actually did decent on divers, this was later in the season.

    lindyrig79
    Forest Lake / Lake Mille Lacs
    Posts: 5797
    #2231592

    And to counter Rips report, the NE corner has not been good for fishing this week. I would go elsewhere.

    LabDaddy1
    Posts: 2440
    #2231607

    Interesting. Thanks for the replies

    Joe Jarl
    SW Wright County
    Posts: 1926
    #2231745

    I drove up the west side on Friday and down the east side yesterday. Looked like fairly full accesses and quite a few boats fishing the first breaks. Awful nice weekend for it!

    gimruis
    Plymouth, MN
    Posts: 17348
    #2231749

    I bet it was 4 footers out there Saturday. It was blowing like a hurricane. Friday and Sunday were lovely tho.

    Jon Jordan
    Keymaster
    St. Paul, Mn
    Posts: 6019
    #2231759

    Mother nature is flippin’ the switch for this weekend!

    Friday Night A 10 percent chance of snow before 7pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 26. Blustery, with a northwest wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph.

    Saturday A 30 percent chance of snow. Cloudy, with a high near 35. Northwest wind around 10 mph.

    Saturday Night A 40 percent chance of snow. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 25. North wind around 10 mph.

    Sunday A chance of rain and snow. Partly sunny, with a high near 35. Northwest wind 10 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%.

    Ripjiggen
    Posts: 11586
    #2231763

    I bet it was 4 footers out there Saturday. It was blowing like a hurricane. Friday and Sunday were lovely tho.

    Fished Saturday. Not bad. At least where I was. I’m sure South end was rollin. Actually trolled cranks at night as well.
    She is rolling today.

    empty_stringer
    Wahkon, Mn
    Posts: 258
    #2231783

    Was out for a bit Friday afternoon, smallies cooperated on the south end. Saturday was a no go down here, Sunday was in the field. Might give it a try this afternoon and then pull the boat but wont tuck it away quite yet.

    I don’t know a lot about duck hunting on the lake but am thinking about doing some next season.

    DaveB
    Inver Grove Heights MN
    Posts: 4469
    #2232107

    Mother nature is flippin’ the switch for this weekend!

    Friday Night A 10 percent chance of snow before 7pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 26. Blustery, with a northwest wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph.

    Saturday A 30 percent chance of snow. Cloudy, with a high near 35. Northwest wind around 10 mph.

    Saturday Night A 40 percent chance of snow. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 25. North wind around 10 mph.

    Sunday A chance of rain and snow. Partly sunny, with a high near 35. Northwest wind 10 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%.

    Does that mean Pool 2 or are you going up???!

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