Some of the reports ive been hearing is that fishing slowed over the past few colder days. I know i’ve heard reports of bug hatches over the past week or so. Mayflys and fish flies both. I will be up thursday and friday scouting myself for muskie opener and doing some walleye fishing as well. I have a little bit of availability monday if you are interested in a full or half day guided trip. Otherwise good luck to you and hope you have a fun trip.
Well, for starters the west side of the lake traditionally has larger fish while the east side of the lake has better numbers. That is something i personally have experienced and the DNR nettings will give you the same info. Focus your efforts shallow with jigs, lindy rigs, slip bobbers, or crank baits. Not exactly sure what the conditions are right now but i will be up there tuesday night and scouting a few days prior to opener. Saturday morning i am guiding for governors opener on vermilion but saturday afternoon and surely sunday i’m free for guiding if you guys are interested. Keep that in mind and report back how you do.
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It was nice to meet you too Kevin. I really appreciate you guys letting me hop in your boat and join for the day. I had a blast. And thanks for the kind words Phil and James. I honestly can’t wait to be back up north putting more of my journeys and adventures back onto the forums at IDO.
Look for my blue and white skeeter Dave. Stop and say hi if you see me around the east side.
Im glad you enjoyed your time spent on lake vermilion! I should have my first fishing report up of the season real soon and my first vermilion report should be the weekend after opener. I am a volunteer fishing guide for governors opener this year on lake vermilion so i’m sure I will have plenty of fun stories to share.
I can’t wait to share my northwoods journey with the people on In-Depth Outdoors. Thanks for the support Will!
I am local and this is the first i have heard of it.
All i can say is it dosnt sound like a good idea to me. we need to put a stop to all netting ASAP!
Sorry he late reply, I ended up breaking a lot of ice and trolling circles around the open water left in the lake! It was rough so I decided to call it early and buy something good for dinner to warm my bones! Last day is usually brutal and this time the fish beat me.
good reminder Cal. A good fishing trip is always best upon a safe return home. Good luck on the ice everybody…. Ill be posting my first ice pics sometime Monday I would say!
Sweet giveaway guys! And thanks a bunch for the early ice tactics for panfish…. I should be using these tips within the week or so up here on the iron range. 
love your stories from busting ice the past few days with Ryan! I hate to tell you james but i’m heading out today to bust ice and hopefully get the late season monster I have been chasing. I truly believe i’ll be fishing in my boat for at least another week here on lake vermilion, but at the end of my time i’d likely have the choice of my ice noodle or musky stick.
Keep up the good work guys, Sure would love to see a musky show one of these Saturday mornings!!
love your stories from busting ice the past few days with Ryan! I hate to tell you james but i’m heading out today to bust ice and hopefully get the late season monster I have been chasing. I truly believe i’ll be fishing in my boat for at least another week here on lake vermilion, but at the end of my time i’d likely have the choice of my ice noodle or musky stick.
Keep up the good work guys, Sure would love to see a musky show one of these Saturday mornings!!
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Fun post.
What is the proper way to set the hook with these quick set rigs?
Very good question as I like to see people doing it the right way. A basic quick strike rig is set up many different ways but the basic is 1 or2 treble hooks that you hook to each side of a large (10-18″) sucker minnow.
The proper way to fish this from my experience is to set it on a bobber or down rig and put your clicker on the reel. Once a fish picks up the sucker minnow your job is to get your boat back over near the fish and tighten slack slowely and carefully. tighten line once your near the fish and this is the key…. wait for the fish to move AWAY from the boat and set immediately. It is very important that the fish is moving away from the boat when hooks are set otherwise percentages are severely lower.
Using this method, from the time the fish takes the bait to the time you set the hook is usually less than 20-30 seconds. The fish I have caught usually viciously hit the lure and do a short run while you are positioning the boat quickly near them. The wait until you tighten the line and move again and that is the time to set the hooks.
When done properly sucker fishing in fall is the most effective method by far on some lakes. I like to use my minnkota and drag suckers below 1mph near weeds or even over the top.
nice fish joe! good to see you and your son are still catching fish on the river together.I had a blast last time I fished with you guys… getting to net one of your best walleyes. keep up the good work
I have never fished the area much but i’d say if you want to catch a few fish this time of year check out sucker fishing with quick strike rigs. If hooksets are done correctly, the hook always ends up in the corner of the mouth for easy access. some people think sucker fishing isn’t good for musky fishing but that is with circle hooks and swallow methods.
Look for the greenest weeds left in the lake…. the last green patches will be small at times but concentrated with fish.
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I usually put the boat in storage around mid November. I know i’m missing a lot of good fishing. I usually fish alone which I won’t do in freezing water since a life vest won’t stop you from freezing to death.
so I take it you would rather not die alone?? nobody else in my own boat is going to save me if something happens….we are both dead. Think this week i’ll go jump in the lake to make for a good cold water training video 
I would think that grilling this cut of meat would be considerably tougher than to grill a steak… unless you left one side of the roast with a chunk of fat on it like a tri-tip beef roast. then you could grill it on the fat chunk and then discard the fat. just my opinion as a self proclaimed grill master
Not an exact recipe but just an idea to go off of. Maybe try some ketchup, hoisin (Asian bbq style sauce), root beer into a crock pot.
Another good idea to do with a tougher cut of meat is to smoke it. I always think low and slow barbeque style with a roast or shoulder. I worked at a bbq joint for a few years and stole a few tricks from the trade.
Im not much of a venison fan but would be interested how these techniques would turn out.
I have a go pro hero3 silver edition that I shoot musky film with in the summer. here are a few pros and cons I have found about the camera.
pros: waterproof- stick down the ice hole and get underwater footage
quality video
hard un breakable case
small
cons: cost for accessories is more than camera almost if you want a lot of capabilities.
no night footage on silver edition
I have a few charging issues with my camera where I have to mess with it sometimes so it will start to take a charge….kind of weird if you ask me
hope some of this info helps. good luck making your videos
total: 13.7 lbs
big fish:3.1lbs
Always pounder season richie! haha I think I’ll put my favorite pounder on now in fact… The sweet one that u gave me! What a nice guy 
Glad to hear everybody had fun musky fishing with Ryan… Even bk! The guy sure know his muskies! Way to go Ryan and gang
Awesome photo of the super fish as she swims away only to become another LIVING LEGEND!
Feel free shoot me a call or a message! The fish are really biting… Yesterday we contacted over 20+ fish. Let me once if you are interested and we can set something up. I just checked and I AM available those dates.
Swear I heard a friend say he is guiding leech this year. I’ve seen a few of his fish from this year and he is on them as usual wherever he is at…
Look up jerry sondag… Best guide on leech hands down for big fish! Well worth the money spent…
Thanks for the plug cal! Feels good to have a heavy hitter like you who’s got my back. 
Pm sent. Enjoy your stay on the most beautiful lake in MN!
Be sure to Bring hook cutters, long needle nose, and a large Muskie net if you plan on targeting muskies… All nessicary tools for a proper CPR.
On another note, I’d say try any lake in the twin cities. I have always said that the metro is the easiest place to catch a muskie. Cast buck tails to weed patches and you should have some luck.
Haha good answer huntindave! My best advice is not to say you are fishing a tournament and then ask where the fish are… Not trying to be mean just pointing out the obvious. Good luck and fish hard!
