Cleaning out my computer favorites menu and found Lake State Fishing and Fishing Minnesota links. Last update comment 6 years ago and 2 1/2 years on the other one. Funny how things change. I think both crashed because the owners did not care about the site once it got popular and went down hill. Hope that does not happen here.
I used to be big on lake state fishing. I know it changed ownership a few years ago…about the time people stopped posting on it.
Funny that is where I started on forums to, wasn’t it Mike that was the owner and never did anything to help it stay a float?
FishingMN was super popular and my go to a long time ago until lmtout took over moderating and everyone left. Then I found this site.
Lakestate was my go-to as well back in the day. If I remember correctly, it seemed like there was a pretty definitive time when all of a sudden traffic tanked. Then I found this place.
Obviously IDO has changed a lot too since then, but hopefully it sticks around. If for nothing else than nostalgias sake.
FishingMN was super popular and my go to a long time ago until lmtout took over moderating and everyone left. Then I found this site.
My only Fishing Minnesota memory is “Craigslist” and “Ebay” both autocorrecting to “HSO-List” 
Anyone remember the old DNR outdoor forums hosted by the MN DNR? I think I got started there, migrated to Fishing Minnesota, then here.
marine_man
I started out on Fishing Minnesota, where I met “IDA MAN” aka Brian Klawitter.
FM is still there..not near as active. in certain areas only.
i check LSF…….not sure why that one doesnt go away……
the main 2 i always go to are….MNO and IDO!!!!!
Let be honest, Facebook was the giant killer of fishing forums, not just here in the Midwest, but across the Nation. Like it or not, they swept the majority of the traffic.
The big forums were/are supported by their ad revenue and ad revenue is generated by traffic. When there is no traffic,the ad revenue follows in step. Servers and hosting sites aren’t free, you can either ask for ways to subsidize that loss (subscription fees), or sink. Most are sinking or have sunk.
FishingMN was super popular and my go to a long time ago until lmtout took over moderating and everyone left. Then I found this site.
I dont recall names but that guy was a grade A dbag. I used to be a member there and enjoyed it until they moderated all the fun out of it. Forum nazi comes to mind.
My household still has never signed up for facebook or any other social media site. Hoping to keep it that way unless I am forced into it somehow.
The Facebook forums are filled with retards that can not respond with a real answer. Example from today, guy asked what depth he should go to Red Lake this weekend. Guy responded with 135′ other says stay home ant no fish in Red, sh!t like that.
Guy responded with 135′ other says stay home ant no fish in Red, sh!t like that.
Or may favorite – something like “….deep enough for your mom.”
-J.
Walleye Central was great in the early years. Kind of a LakeErie.com site now.
OutdoorFirst – Just checked and they are still around. Liked the Musky content there and pretty good place to look for used boats and track musky tournies.
Fishing MN – They deleted pretty much every link that was not to something they sponsored. Should have just disabled links inside posts. Maybe they did eventually? Didn’t they have a pay forum for the “special” posters? Not sure how that worked out? Agree, over moderation killed that forum.
-J.
Let be honest, Facebook was the giant killer of fishing forums, not just here in the Midwest, but across the Nation. Like it or not, they swept the majority of the traffic.
The big forums were/are supported by their ad revenue and ad revenue is generated by traffic. When there is no traffic,the ad revenue follows in step. Servers and hosting sites aren’t free, you can either ask for ways to subsidize that loss (subscription fees), or sink. Most are sinking or have sunk.
i go to facebook……not sure the fascination outdoor people would get there over fishing forums like these. videos get cut short, stupid comments and arguements. some of the scenery 
is pretty good…then there’s Calvin and hobbs! 
HSO had a Mississippi north section that was good when I first found online forums. Pool 2 and south just fishes different good to get some good pointers there. Always fun to watch the king of cats as well.
Other than that not much else for this guy.
Somebody tried to resurrect LSF a year ago. The site looks nice, but nobody posts anything on it.
Somebody tried to resurrect LSF a year ago. The site looks nice, but nobody posts anything on it.
Trust me, it’s because the majority are all on Facebook, Instagram, or Tik Tok. Good or Bad, it’s just the way it is. 
The forums of old I used to frequent:
Musky Nut forum. Died…RIP
LongTale Tackle. Died…RIP
MuskieFirst. The site is still active though traffic seems way down from the peak and heard it was sold not too long ago for a very modest number. I still check it once every couple months, though quit posting there years ago.
FishingMN. I only look at/post in the ‘Lake Vermilion’ section which is still alive, though on life support.
IDO…self-explanatory.
About five years ago, I got on Facebook and Instagram to keep in touch with the fishing world. I ‘friended’ and signed-up for every Fishing page that was a relevant to me. I lasted for probably a year and then deleted all my accounts, having found that following guys who fished for a living was making me – a desk-bound weekend warrior – feel jealous, envious, and inferior as an angler. Figured it was best not to expose myself to it.
OutdoorFirst – Just checked and they are still around. Liked the Musky content there and pretty good place to look for used boats and track musky tournies.
Funny I got a Facebook message yesterday from a guy looking to buy a bait that I posted for sale on MuskieFirst in 2013. Impressive detective work and a little creepy too
Screenshot_20240220_111223_Messenger.jpg
I am on Book of Faces but hate trying to find prior posts or doing searches there. Just really prefer forums type of layout.
Fish The River was the best, idk what happened to that site
HSO was my go to. The best ice section hands down! The build posts were phenomenal but again, everything faulted to HSO list when you asked about a specific product and the dbag monitor would kick you off for different periods of time if you didn’t follow the rules to a t. Anybody know if Lip Ripper Guy is still lurking anywhere under a new name? I used to check HSO many times throughout the day. As Glenn can attest to they had a great bird feeding section too.
I just tried to check out HSO for the first time in months, maybe years. Same dbag running it, you can’t even check it out without signing in or signing up. Pretty arrogant for a site that has nothing going for it.
HSO was my go to. The best ice section hands down! The build posts were phenomenal but again, everything faulted to HSO list when you asked about a specific product and the dbag monitor would kick you off for different periods of time if you didn’t follow the rules to a t. Anybody know if Lip Ripper Guy is still lurking anywhere under a new name? I used to check HSO many times throughout the day. As Glenn can attest to they had a great bird feeding section too.
yes they did!
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