Opener

First time fishing Mille Lacs in about 5 years. Was thinking of heading North to the sand.

Any recommendations? Hoping the wind stays down a bit. Not taking the largest boat out there

Tight lines everyone!

That would probably be a wise idea given that the wind appears to be from the NW. Let us know how you do, what you used, and what the water temps are.

gimruis wrote:

That would probably be a wise idea given that the wind appears to be from the NW. Let us know how you do, what you used, and what the water temps are.

Takes me awhile to respond to these things, sometimes I forget that i do it

Planning on jigs and shiners! You going out?

Brad Muckenhirn wrote:

You going out?

Yes, but probably not Mille Lacs. My boat isn’t big enough for that ocean if there’s wind lol

I’ll eventually get out there a few times this spring though.

I would think water would be low 50s by the weekend. Could be wrong but should warm up relatively quick looking at the weather.

Go out at midnight and long line troll husky jerks shallow. 60% of the time it works every time!

Mike wrote:

I would think water would be low 50s by the weekend. Could be wrong but should warm up relatively quick looking at the weather.

Is there any way to gauge water temp before Saturday? Obviously you can look at historical data, but that only provides an estimate.

gimruis wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Mike wrote:</div>
I would think water would be low 50s by the weekend. Could be wrong but should warm up relatively quick looking at the weather.

Is there any way to gauge water temp before Saturday? Obviously you can look at historical data, but that only provides an estimate.

Call resorts or bait shops.

Saw one of the guides posted last week it was mid forties on the main lake. Rain tomorrow probably will knock back what todays heat does, but id think for sure by the weekend it would be over 50.

thanks

According to social media, the owner of Johnson’s Portside figured low 50s for water temps…and was predicting a real good bite lake wide.

buckybadger wrote:

According to social media, the owner of Johnson’s Portside figured low 50s for water temps…and was predicting a real good bite lake wide.

Shocking! How can there be any fish left after the pounding the lake took this past winter?

Is it still considered “Comanagement” if one side is deathly afraid of the other and is always a victim of whatever they tell them?

JC fellas, it’s opener, let the excitement stick around for once and not get dragged in the hole of biatchin about management.

Small boat, big boat, or a charter, tight lines fellas

Warm enough last Sunday that a boat hoist was put in wearing swim trunks.

I fished from midnight to 2:45 AM at my traditional shore fishing spot on the Westside. There were no other fishermen for the first two hours. But the frontage road had a lot of people stopping to look at the northern lights. I lost a bite about 10 minutes in on a Havoc Grass Pig Swimbait. Between 1:00 and 1:40 I got 5 eyes between 18 and 23 inches on a loud stickbait. The bite started when the northern lights got brighter over the Eastern sky. On my way home on 27 they were the brightest I had seen to the South from east to west, just magnificent. The two guys that showed up at 2 AM both landed a walleye.

Me and the kiddo went out of twin pines at midnight, 15 anglers boated over 100 eyes, add in the epic northern light show, spectacular night.

That must have been epic!

Morning bite was solid…jig and shiner…see what the afternoon brings

What did you guys see for water temp?

52~54 by 11am today

53-56 this afternoon. Pretty good bite tonight.

Anyone chase smallies on opener?

60-62 degrees back waters of Mississippi above dam in Brainerd.

I had lunch on the deck of the bar on Cove Bay. I can honestly say I never have seen so many boats in the bay at one time. Lots of guys working the shoreline and weedlines and a few working the rock bar. I never saw a fish boated tho.

Dutchboy wrote:

I never saw a boat boated tho.

I’ve never seen anyone boat another boat either.

I fixed it for you.

“I’ve never seen anyone boat another boat either.”

I have on opener.

We fished the Saturday from 12:30 AM to 5 AM, boated around 40 and probably lost another 30. We were bobber fishing with leeches and it was a super light bite but lots of action. Largest was a 23.5.

Took my girlfriend out yesterday. From 9-3 we boated 18 and missed another half dozen, rigging leeches from 6-17’. Biggest was 23”. Surprised we caught that many with the record harvest this winter…