Have a chance to fish Mille Lacs for the first time Friday-Saturday. Forecasts show WNW winds 10-20mph. How does that translate to waves on this body of water? Am I going to be OK in a 15ft tri-hull?
Thinking of spending the night in a tent at Barnacles — other camping ideas? Figured I should target the north end of the lake with the WNW wind?
Thanks!
It will be rocking on the ESE side. Honestly I would try and stick to fishing the WNW side of the lake. You shouldn’t have to go that far out to catch fish. That lake can get nasty real quick.
It’s all about buoyancy. If you’re not over loaded and have good bilge pumps and splash guards you will be plenty safe. I grew up back trolling MilleLacs in a 14′ lund 20hp. I fished 9 mile and the Boot in extremely strong winds.
I also saw boats that were twice my size sink. If you’re motor is underpowered or if you’re not comfortable with big water I’d recommend staying close to shore on the calm side as Brad110 recommended.
Thanks guys. I’m not underpowered for my size (50, hull is rated for 70 max). I have experience with rough stuff on the river but less so with rollers on big lakes.
If I am stuck in the NW corner of the lake, is it worth the drive for 1-2 days of fishing?
Thanks guys. I’m not underpowered for my size (50, hull is rated for 70 max). I have experience with rough stuff on the river but less so with rollers on big lakes.
If I am stuck in the NW corner of the lake, is it worth the drive for 1-2 days of fishing?
Ahhhh Yes it’s worth it
fyi – in the 70’s I fished it quite a bit in a 14′ with a 6 horse.
the bite is hot don’t miss it we were on 7mile boot and a few others pm me
Everyone has a different level of comfort. 15-20 mph on a body of water that size makes for some rough water. There’s lots of good fishing in the Garrison area of the lake. I would go enjoy the calmer side.
Even if catching is tough, fishing is always worth the drive. ????
Pool2fool,
I would agree that it is worth the trip. I have been out there a bunch in my 16′ boat with a 25.
EIU
The north sand break 20-25′ of water is still producing a lot of fish. If you can get to the mud, even better.
I guess I am different, I absolutely would not try getting to the mud with a 15′ trihull in that wind. The lake will be rolling really good with that amount of wind. With little big water experience you don’t want to be caught on this lake with high winds. This lake is nothing like the river. It’s big and relatively shallow so the waves grow fast and stay big. Not trying to scare you, just trying to keep your expectations realistic.
I would definitely go to the lake and fish, but stay by the northwest side. There are plenty of fish still close to shore. I will go out in big waves with my boat and I didn’t go more than a mile out last Friday-Sunday. No reason to, my arms are still tired from pulling in fish. Go and have fun, but be safe. There have been enough drownings already this year!!
Thanks everyone for the good info and advice.
It looks like the trip is a go. I was supposed to take my son to Kabetogama for the long weekend but the forecast is for rain the whole time, so we’re putting that off for later in the summer and trying to cobble together a different trip to save the weekend. I could tough it out but I want it to be a fun trip for the 10-year-old, too.
I’m hoping to find a place to camp on the west side of the lake but not having much luck.
Just make sure the dock you want to load/launch from is protected from the rollers… Boat rocking up/down can be a real arm breaker.
Did that once on the E side public launch, glad I wasn’t worried about scuffing the boat 
Just make sure the dock you want to load/launch from is protected from the rollers… Boat rocking up/down can be a real arm breaker.
Did that once on the E side public launch, glad I wasn’t worried about scuffing the boat
Thanks — I’m planning on using the Garrison public launch which should offer good protection from WNW winds. (I think?)
Just make sure the dock you want to load/launch from is protected from the rollers… Boat rocking up/down can be a real arm breaker.
Did that once on the E side public launch, glad I wasn’t worried about scuffing the boat
And this may be true for the Garrison public access as well. Not sure, however you could pay the $10 and put in at Phil’s Myr Mar Marina. Totally protected harbor and they used to have limited campsites available. At least they did last year. Could maybe call and find out. Phil and Co may come across somewhat gruff, but it may fit your needs.
Here is a recent report from walleyevision that posted here on another thread…
Had a great Sunday on the lake. We did indeed go out of Myr Mar and spent most of our time on Myr Mar flat. We caught about 40 walleyes and 10 smallies. Most of the walleyes came from drifting across the windward side of the flat. We didn’t catch many on the bottom of the flat. Most were taken on the top transition and on the top. We were pulling spinners behind bottom bouncers and the wind was pushing us anywhere between .75-1.1 mph. It worked out well.
We also spent some time on the Myr Mar reef (east), along with just about every bass fisherman on the lake I think. The wind was out of the NW, so I think that’s why they were concentrated there. This is where we caught all of our smallies and a few bonus walleyes, including the biggest (26.5) of the trip which was caught on a Ned Rig. The smallies/walleyes that we caught on the reef came out of 8-12 ft of water.
We trolled deep diving cranks in 22-28 ft, east of the reef and caught a couple of wallys that way too. It was really a great day all around. I thought we did pretty well for never having fished the lake. But I can’t take any credit, that goes to everyone that helped me out. Mille Lacs is just awesome. I can’t wait to fish it again, so many patterns going on at the same time, lots of fun!
Thanks again guys!
Looks like the wind forecast has decreased a bit. But the lake always seems to have its own weather. My brother and I always joke. If the forecast is for 10-15, just add that together for what to expect.
Or a line from James Holst @jamesholst during his guiding days up there….
Ya know Jon, if a frog farts in Garrison, you will get those 3 footers down on Big Point! LOL.
-J.
I fought mille lacs and Mille lacs won.
We launched out of phil’s, very easy and worth the ten bucks. We were on the water around 1, headed out to myr mar reef. My kid has this thing for his #7 fire tiger flicker shad, he always wants it first so we start trolling the edge of the reef, maybe 16-18 fow. Five minutes in he gets hit hard and boats a nice 17 inch walleye. We both look at each other like, this lake is no joke. We release the fish and resume the troll but during the netting and photos etc we drift out into a flatter area, about 25 fow and i start marking fish like crazy. It’s choppy out here but nothing we can’t handle and this looks like a good spot. Fifteen minutes later a freaking gray cloud comes in, wind picks up significantly and we are in it now. Pouring rain, took a wave over the bow and in my little boat with my kid, it was time to run. Found our way back to the reef and attempted to tough it out but we never caught anything else and we were in by 4pm after another good rain shower got us. It was time to go start a fire and grill some brats and get warm. The kid did well, didn’t want to push him too hard.
Mille lacs giveth and Mille lacs taketh away.
Tomorrow looks just as windy so we may make this a short trip and chalk it up to “known your limits.”
Yes, unfortunately weather can make or break an outing particularly on a big water like that. Although others will tough it out, I decided many years ago that once I felt like I was suffering out there too much then it defeats my purpose of being out there in the first place. Last time I was up at Mille Lacs for 5 days there was only one day I could get out with storms, gusting south and east winds for 4 days. Other times I’ve had a week with being able to get out every day.
If only every day could be like this. (BTW, that’s Seth Feider out on the Myr Mar reef looking out off my deck. I identified him using my binoculars.) 
20170612_070414.jpg
I was able to get out a bit yesterday (Sat.) for a little cabin tourney. It was BUMPY to say the least, but tolerable. I can’t imagine what it was like Friday! We put in the the west side, with everyone and their brother. We fished one of the closer flats just so we didn’t have to take a pounding. (couldn’t tell ya where we were, to busy manning lines) Overall it wasn’t too bad of a day. First pass we hooked into a 26.5″ and a 25″ and a few under 20″. After that things got tough. Boat control was “work” and we just couldn’t get back on the big fish.. Our cabin tourney numbers suffered because of it. Our 5 fish ended up being 26.5, 25, 27, 22.25, and a 20″. Good enough for 3rd. Positive side of things is we saw “Fish Food” Everywhere!! Those Walleyes are NOT starving.
Walleye closes in 2 weeks.. If you have a chance to get out there before the shutdown on the 7th, I highly recommend going and getting your rod bent!! Good Luck & Tight Lines!
Positive side of things is we saw “Fish Food” Everywhere!! Those <em class=”ido-tag-em”>Walleyes are NOT starving.
This is so true, I’ve never marked baitfish like I did on Friday!
A lot of that food was bugs not minnows
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