Just got back from Rogers… I have a 3/4 ton and 20ft Ice Castle… No problems at all… great landing and road was plowed a long ways out… we set up just past 4 miles from Rogers in 14ft and caught plenty of fish until the cold snap shut us down a bit but we still caught fish, just had to work for em’

HIGHLY RECOMMEND High Banks!! I was just up there and took my house out of their access… Great group of folks and the fishing was decent (Major Cold Front) but the fish we did catch were good ones… Thats what I love about Lake Winni, you never know what size walleye you’ll hook into and the perch can be the same way.. seemed like the cold snap just shut em down a bit but the ones we caught were 23″-26.5″… We wouldn’t have kept them if we could of but that’s why I like slot lakes, not every fish gets taken out… there are plenty of “meat” lakes and its always nice having a lake that doesn’t get as much pressure like Red Lake does so you can still have your 6 walleye limit (minding the slot of course) and still have the opportunity to catch big fish for a friendly picture and then back down the hole it goes

Was on Red the entire weekend from 01/14 to 01/17… Fishing was great the first two days til the cold front came through and it slowed down dramatically. Granted we still caught fish during the cold front, it just took a little more work. The first two days they were pounding crappie minnows on a bare red hook. The cold front days they were biting silver/red #2 swedish pimple with a minnow head and used very subtle movement to get them to bite.. when they bit it was very soft.. We fish out of Rogers..

The baits will vary depending on the species you are targeting!

For lakers, I tote two rods, one will have a rippin rap or lipless crank bait on it which I use to attract and mark fish. If they chase and don’t commit, Ill immediately grab my other rod with a smaller spoon type bait and drop it down, a lot of the time those fish are still lingering around and when they see that smaller bait flutter on the drop, they’ll smash it, but if they chase and don’t commit again, Ill tip it with a minnow head and that seems to entice the fish that just need a little bit of convincing!

For Bows, I use smaller baits and I’ve found that rainbows are a lot more tricky then lakers.. If they are shallow in the column and moving only a few feet under the ice, I use a fly with a bead shot weight a foot above it and tip the fly with a waxy or wiggler. If the fish are deeper in the water column I’ll use a small spoon and go through a few colors til I find what they are pouncing on! It takes a little time with Bows but once you find the right combo, it’s lights out!

Good luck to you and your buddy this season, I’m sure you’ll do great!

DH built me a rod last month and I couldn’t be more happy with it! I walked into the shop for the first time and DH took the time to go through each rod he builds with me and gave me all the options I could have. When I got the call a few weeks later that my rod was ready for pickup, I immediately drove 2 hours south and picked it up. For the type of custom rod you get from DH, it’s hard to beat. Every small business has it’s issues, but quality is not one of them with DH. I know he was running around with his head cut off after taking all the orders from the show in December and he and another guy were hard at it building rods when I walked in the store. Again, this is what I experienced from only being in the shop twice! But overall we are all in this together, we need to stop all the trash talk on here and push forward as a group, community, family, or whatever have you! Whether its hunting or fishing, the majority of the criticism in our industry comes from others within “our family”.. We NEED to stick together and enjoy what we love and not be a critic first to judge when someone may be having a bad day or a bad year! I give DH credit and give him major kudos for stepping up to the call and calling himself out, it shows that not everyone is perfect nor can one person in this world please everybody, but that one person can step up when the time arises and make the statement needed to move forward in a positive direction. Thanks for my awesome rod DH, what you do is a work of art!

I normally go out of High Banks Resort, they are pretty up to date on their postings on Facebook about conditions and fishing report.. I highly recommend them.. Great crew!

Looks like it’s gonna be a cold one on the opener, but at least the ice should be in great shape for us with this cold snap this past week. Good luck to all going out after trout or any other species this weekend!

Well it look as if there will be some ice being made later this week into next week with some temperature drops up north.. This should help the deeper Laker lakes to be safe.. Last year was great with 24 in of ice on the Trout Opener… I would guess around 8-11 inches on the opener, so there should be enough for atv and sled traffic on these lakes but stay cautious and check the ice regularly!! I’ve noticed that a lot of these natural deep lakes are fed by underground streams and have found a few on some of the laker lakes I’ve fished on with the majority of the maintaining well over a foot of ice and all of a sudden I drill a hold 10 feet away and theres only 3 inches.. Just be safe!

With that said, who’s ready to put some giant trout on the ice??????

Im actually hoping that IDO does an “Inland Laker” Episode, I loved what they did two years ago on Superior out of Duluth and probably have watched it 50 times to this point, but would love to see and inland “Laker” version… There are only a few quality inland laker videos from the ice belt, just wish there were a few more that others and myself could reference off of..

Ben has a great point, these fish only get more active during the winter months and love the cold water temps, its like a buck in rut and kind of makes them go crazy! I do us a Clam Arctic Warrior TipUp with live bait but the upper majority of my fish are caught using artificial jigging.. My two faves are 4″ Tube Jigs and Lipless Cranks! Again, don’t expect to go out and catch 10 fish over 25″ every time.. I target big fish so when I do get one, it’s usually a pretty good one and once in awhile you’ll get those that are exceptional, but overall if I catch 5 fish a day around the 30″ mark, it’s a pretty good day…

@Al… It’s definitely worth the trip and time… Targeting Lakers is similar to looking for that one mature buck during the season! Once you put a laker through the ice and watch them chase your bait from 60ft all the way to the hole as fast as you can reel it, you’ll be hooked!!

@Sam…I have looked into Grindstone, never fished it but from the numbers I saw on DNR survey wouldn’t shy me away from giving it a shot.. I would assume you’d do pretty good on 20-25″ fish on dead stick tip ups with on mid lake structure

Not a problem, hope you put a bunch topside!!

Same here, I’m sure we won’t be too far from one another since you’re in the Grand Rapids area… Good luck this season

JR’s is really on top of updating their areas ice conditions on their website and on Facebook “JR’s Corner Access”. Is will really be building this week for sure with the temps dropping late in the evenings through the night and subtle winds.

I love reading everyones “two cents” on here, tons of great advice and options for sure. I have a handful of lakes in MN that produce 13″ average crappies or larger. Last year I caught and released 14 crappies in a row that were between 13.25″ and 17″ on a northern mn lake that isn’t known for its slabs! I do a lot of research on the MN DNR website looking at the fish surveys for particular lakes.. 20 mins of your time will narrow down your search dramatically enabling you to target certain lakes and size of fish!

I also forgot to mention that I am using a larger “Live” bait and have never had the bait trigger the Warrior. But if you are fishing in stronger winds, make sure to point your rod tip in the direction of where the wind is coming from.. a few gusts have been known to push the rod over tripping my Warrior… Overall depending on how large your bait is, you shouldn’t have an issue with a larger live bait like I use for Lakers..

Josh,

I have a few of these and they work great, but as to everything there are pros and cons. With this set up though I have mostly great things to say about it.
I am use mine primarily for Lake Trout “My target fish of choice”.. My set up is pretty similar to what you said you would be using, but Im only running a 38 inch MH spinning rod and attached to the Warrior itself I have a Strike Sensor for each one I have. I Do NOT run mine with an open bail, but yet I open my drag almost all the way, that way when I get a bite, the rod will tip and “controllably” give line with a very limited amount of tension due to the loose drag. I found “Depending on the reel” that if you leave an open bail, there is a chance for an excessive amount of line to release when the rod is tipped over and may cause knotting or a tangle in your line or even the eyelets of the rod, so this is why I run a very light drag.
The one major and only con if you will is that there is nothing covering the hole to keep it from freezing on those colder days, so basically I use a circular foam piece that is slotted for the line but covers the entire hole so it is protected by the elements to dramatically slow the hole freezing process! Not sure if this helps you but don’t be afraid to tinker with your particular setup to see what works best for you.. Good Luck

About 90% of my laker rigs are main lined with braid and run about a 4-5ft leader of heavy florocarbon. I target bigger fish and thats the reason for the heavier florocaron.. Im not a fan of wire leaders when fishing for Lakers, mainly due to the unnatural presentation you get on the drop. I normally use 20-25lb floro leader and 40-50lb braid for my main.. I just know this works for me but there are a million other ways out there to set up your laker rods…

If you want to keep track of daily conditions up there I suggest jumping on Facebook and liking JR’s Corner Access.. They normally post daily conditions and are great about telling you whats hot and whats not if you go inside and talk to them a bit.. I’ve been going out of there for years and they are a great bunch that will keep you informed!

The color of those fish are awesome!!! Loved the video

I’ve got a good buddy that is up north right now finding solid walkable ice in smaller lake/ponds like you were on. He called this evening and said he got into a really good crappie bite on a secluded lake he never even knew was there until looking at his maps. The lake doesn’t even have a name but he said it’s gonna be an early season destination for years to come, small lake/pond is fed by a stream that runs into a much larger well known body of water.. I’ll be heading that way in a few hours for my first ice excursion! FYI- the lake has a constant 6-7in of ice and is very protected by trees and only a 200 yard hike into it! Hope this helps someone find their own early season honey hole!

I have a brand new Ice Castle that has both detectors in it and work quite well. Your best bet (even with detectors) is to crack a window to allow ‘some’ air movement in and out of the house. Most everyone knows the smell of LP, but there is “zero” smell or detection of CO except a CO detector!

Your issue sounds like a CO problem and if you felt a little dizzy and light headed that would be the culprit! Fresh air movement is key and getting a solid CO detector for your house.. I hope this helps and have a great and safe season!