Fishing was great!!!
Jigs and shiners, 7ft to 12ft, Bowens, Highbanks, and Stony Point. The last two years have been fantastic! Our 2.5 day total was 109 walleyes. The new owners at Highbanks get two big thumbs up!!! They are great people and I highly recommend their services.
fishermanpepin,
It brings a huge smile to my face reading these guys write to you as friends. I’m in my twenties and it wasn’t that long ago I was expirencing a lot of the same thoughts. I know a lot of advice has been shelled out, but it’s time tested, some might even call it wisdom. I hate to do it but my two cents reads like this…. You only get one chance at this thing we call life. Make the best of it. Don’t forget that your dad is a person. He makes mistakes just like you and me. I don’t know him, but I’d be willing to bet he is doing his best to teach you grow. I have made a lot of mistakes the last ten years and I still don’t like other people pointing them out. But sometimes thats what it takes……. If I had listened to my father a little more often I may not have had to listen to a judge.
I try and make it your direction every fall, next time I’m in your neighborhood I’ll drop you an e-mail. 
You guys planning on talking on at particular channel?
Thanks for the responses guys.
I’ve got a buddy up there with some secret crappie mud-hole that I think we’ll probably fish Friday. But depending on the wind and the bite we may have to investigate some of the other leads….Thanks again.
Sean, we’re staying at Highbanks and most likely fishing from there to Stony (if we have to). I’ll keep an eye out for ya. I can’t wait. I’m just sick with anticipation. We’re in a 18ft. Blue Pro-V, Merc 90hp tiller, with four guys.
Good Luck to all and try to respect others space!!!!
Most of the time I have spent fishing LOTW on open water has been out of Sioux Narrows. It’s about an hour, hour and a half North of Ft. Francis. I have stayed at Totem Lodge for a three day trip for the last ten years. It is expensive, but the guides are the best and the accomadations are great. I don’t really know much about the other reasorts in that immediate area. I can tell you that the fishing out of the SN is incredible that time of year. You will have to travel a ways to really get into the best areas but the walleyes bite like bullheads. You might think about checking out Wiley point, I know they are more reasonable, more remote, and the lodge is located a real short distance from great walleye fishing.
Riggy,
I have fished Lura through the ice and it can be great. Despite what TGIF said Lura is not that infested with other people. The lakes around Fairbault and Madison Lake are definately worst. Your going to want to be at the lake with plenty of sun light so that you can identify the areas of the aerators, but you can drive around them. There is an access on the North end, through Daily park (requires some walking), and on the South West end. Some of the best fishing is in the middle channels between the North and South basins.
Another place to check out is the pool below the Rapidan Dam. I’ve never done it, but supposedly this is the time of year to be there. I’ve heard a few people boast of some real pig walleyes coming out of there.
Good Luck.
In years past Jakes, depth-raiders, Believers, and Slammers have all been great fall baits. I’ll be out trolling next week (probably Tues. and Thurs.). I like perch and crappie (can pass for white sucker) any time of the year on tonka. In the fall baits with a lot of white seem to work the best for me. Casting with braided line this time of year can be really painful because your hands get soaked (I guess some guys go to mono this time of year). But if you get some warmer weather the biggest suicks and reef hawgs can’t be beat. If you get the weighted versions you can fish them slower and they have a little more neutral bouyancy
In years past Jakes, depth-raiders, Big M’s, and Slammers have all been great fall baits. I’ll be out trolling next week (probably Tues. and Thurs.). I like perch and crappie (can pass for white sucker) any time of the year on tonka. In the fall baits with a lot of white seem to work the best for me. Casting with braided line this time of year can be really painful because your hands get soaked (I guess some guys go to mono this time of year). But if you get some warmer weather the biggest suicks and reef hawgs can’t be beat. If you get the weighted versions you can fish them slower and they have a little more neutral bouyancy
10/25/03
My fishing buddy was out yesterday fishing deep edges for about four hours. He had a couple of rookies with him and they didn’t move a damn thing. The weather was terrifically crappy and once again stingy old Tonka shut us out again. If I had more time to try and put a pattern to those fickle monkeybutts this season might have been a little different story. It seems like most of the muskei fishermen I have talked to on the water had a grear season . Not me, I caught four Muskies on Tonka this year. I know the whole ten thousand cast nonsense and it’s crap. Although this season my fish/hour for Minnetonka Muskies is getting up there. If anybody has a tactic for this time of year that they are willing to share, I’d love to hear it. In years gone by I have boat some of the biggest fish of my career this time of year trolling the outside edges with the biggest baits on the market.
It’s funny that you ask that question now. I caught the first two bass of the year last Tuesday. One of them (3.5lbs.) hit a black and orange harraser. The other hit a rotating tail bait boatside. The second fish was also a real dandy. Every year we boat about a half a dozen, usually huge bass fishing muskie baits. Tuesday is the first time I have caught one on a bucktail.
I don’t know much about the lake. I’ve only fished it twice and I don’t really remember the names of any of the structural elements. BUT…. My buddy, from forever ago, his parents live on the lake and I know that as recently as last weekend they were still catching walleyes in the morning and evening. I also know they are catching them on leeches and crawlers off sharp breaks. Hope this helps.
CCoops
Well fishing on the Big V was good. We saw lots of fish and managed to boat a couple as well. I hadn’t been on the lake for three years and some disturbing things I noticed were, the presents of Eurasian Milfiol in two unrelated areas of the lake, the poor cabbage growth in many of the bays that formerly contained great cabbage at this time of year, and the presents of some kind of dying, grass-clipping looking, thck, matted, weed. I named it “Poo” and joked with my buddies that I was going to write an article Titled MUSKIES ON THE POO. If any locals would care to comment on these phenomena I would really appreciate it.
P.S. I’m pretty sure I saw Ace fishing rocks Thursday figure eight-in’ like a mad man.
Thanks for the feedback guys. I to will be up in a week. I plan on pounding the water for muskies from Mon day till Thursday. I’ll give ya a report when I get back.
CCoops
What were you fishing for on the 2nd and how’d it go?”Aside from the obvious”
That is a truely awful story. It really doesn’t suprise me though. I fished tonka the morning of the fourth and the Yahoos were in rare form. I am shocked more accidents didn’t occur. Not to mention I ran into some guy at about 6am who had a major chip on his shoulder. Had the weather conditions not been perfect for Muskie fishing, He’d of had more problems than just a bad attitude. When the sun came out at 1pm the boats hit the water and I have never seen such a circus in my life. It was dangerous!!!! 99% of the pleasure boaters on tonka are rude morons with no respect for anyone else anyways, but the 4th was unbelievable.
