Life is good this time of year in Minnesota for those that love the great outdoors. Cool days with lots of hunting and fishing to get done. Some days its tough to decide what to do. Hunt or Fish? Luckily with all that this great state has to offer its hard to go wrong with either decision and this could easily be said for the states that surround us to. If a person is real lucky they may get to do both and this is just what I was fortunate enough to do the last few days.
The quick hunting report is Deer hunting opener last weekend. Our party hunted up near Aitkin, MN and was able to go 3 out of 5 for the weekend. Nothing big, but very nice deer and will make for some great meals this fall and winter. From reports I’ve heard it was a pretty good deer opener around the state. Make sure and check out the hunting side of the web site at Idohunting.com to see some great deer that have been harvested and even better stories the go with them.
Since hunting took up my weekend I was lucky enough to sneak away on Tuesday to get a quick trip in on the river. Water levels where down a little since my last trip a week ago but the flow was still moving pretty good. There was still a little junk floating around the main channel but conditions where very fish-able.
Dean and Rick jumped in with me Tuesday morning. The 2 goals for them that day was to catch some walleyes and learn a little more about pitching jigs on pool 2. Well the good numbers bite we had been seeing early in the day didnt really get going on Tuesday but we still managed a few walleyes just about every where we stopped. On the other hand Dean and Rick got to see more of the areas I like to target and hear about what makes them fishy. We did end up with a few quality fish and hear is Dean with one of them.
Our approach for catching these nice Mississippi River Pool 2 walleyes has not changed much from last week. Pitching BfishN jigs tipped with their plastics has been the go to bait. Moxies, Paddle tails, Ring worms and even the old stand by K grub all got the job done. Just about any colors with a chartreuse tail seems to be working well as you can see in the photo below. Oystershell, Motor oil and Firecracker have all been good to. 1/4 and 5/16 ounce jigs have been working to get these plastics down in this heavier current.
Picture below in a very heavy 27.5″er I caught mid day deep on a wing dam. She missed hitting that jig and ended up getting foul hooked in her check. This gal was hanging out deep on the tip of a wingdam with some current screaming over it. Once she got out of that pocket of slack water and turn side way in the current it was game on. She had me down to the backing on the reel pretty fast and it was then time to pull the anchor. This was a tricky maneuver and was just a few turns of the spool before I was going to be on that backing knot. Well we got the anchor up and started heading down river after this fish. By this time I was sure it was a big sheephead or cat as I had never had a walleye spool me before. We where very supprised and we got up on it to see that nice white tip on the tail. A quick sweep of the net by Dean and this nice fish was in the boat. Never a dull moment on Pool 2.
Thanks for the company yesterday Dean, Rick and Jake. Looks like its back into the woods this weekend for me to try and fill those last few deer tags.
If anyone is interested in a trip on pool 2 give me a holler. Ill still be down there fishing until freeze up.
Great report Mike Those are some awesome fish
For those of you that are not familar with Ringworms, Kgrubs, paddle tails and Moxies here is a quick photo. The jig head they are on is a H20 jig also by BfishN tackle. The jig is designed with a wide gap hook so that there is plenty of hook sticking out of these plastics to connect with the fish. There is also a metal bait keeper on them that is nothing short of fantastic for holding plastics and live bait on the jig with out tearing them up. These jigs come in a large selection of sizes and for a bonus the jig weight is marked on the backs of them. Yes even us old river guys that use these jigs all the time still need to look every now and again.
All of these items and much more can be found at BfishNtackle.com This is also the same company that produces Cutstom Jigs and Spins ice fishing tackle. Great tackle from a great company.
Thanks for the report, Mike. I’m going to be on “2” Thursday and Friday. I’ll report back and let everyone know how it goes.
Nice report Mike.
It was a fun evening.
Great report nice eyes
Nice job, Mike!!
-J.
Good fishin Mike. I’ll be down this weekend to clean up after James.
Nice fish Mike….and to think it is only gonna get better too!
You sir have been putting some nice tankers in the boat, great job Mike
I agree Dean. Right up to freeze up. Any chance of you coming up here and keeping our ramps open this winter? Maybe just send Brian.
If a guy could get a few days back to back on the water I think a real good pattern could be put together for these big gals.
Thanks guys.
How much would it cost me for you to take BK ?
Seriously though, I cant think of a better window for someone to catch their next PB fish than to book a trip with Mike in the next few weeks,especially if you are looking to do it on a pitching bite! Just be prepared to catch more than one!
Another awesome report Mike!
Congrats to all the guys who caught big fish as well.
Mike, I really appreciate the detail you went through to teach Rick and I how to correctly fish on the river. What I learned in a few hours will put more fish in my boat for a lifetime!!!
I’m starting to feel…um unwanted.
Mike, do you have any week night openings? Course I’m free the weekend of the
Nov 20 two fish for two days!
Thanks Dean.
Brian, that week of Thanksgiving is usually a pretty good bet. Have had some fantastic trips that week in the past. Not much going for week night trips right now as the sun sets pretty early. About 5 to 530 if I remember right. A evening trip would run most likely 1pm to dark.
Good report Mike! I havnt been down there since last Tuesday and starting to miss it. Really torn between getting back down there this weekend or heading to sconni for the last good weekend of bow hunting. Keep up the good work!!
I hear you Joe. To hunt or fish? Its a tough question but dont think you can go wrong with either one right now. Looks like we are going to be taking the boat on the upper croix deer hunting this weekend. Got a feeling there will be a fishing pole in the boat in case the need arises.
Yea, Yea go hunting guys… That just leaves more pool 2 eyes for me
Oh! So now you’re a Pool 2 guy again? Where were you all summer?
dd
I’m gonna give it a shot this afternoon. Might try for some of those sumo pool 2 specks too.
JP
Got out this evening, and found the bite to be a little slower then my last couple trips. Too many hits without getting hooks in them
. Big fish for the evening was a fat 27″. Good to see other IDOers down there.
We must’ve crossed paths…
I thought it was slow too. The fish were not committing to the bait. They would just test it and let go. That got old fast and I packed up early.
I fished with Mike last November 25 and caught a Walleye of a lifetime (sorry my camera flash malfunctioned
) Mike is a fun guy to fish with and very knowledgeable on Pool 2.
A trip with him would be money well spent! I hope to do it again this year!
Yup, same here. I fish with Dezurik and Grant Sorenson and we found a short flurry in the AM and the same around sundown. Biggest fish was 24”… with only a couple others on the plus side of 20”. The day time bite was VERY tough. We caught more smallies than walleyes… and that should tell you something.
I made it out in the snow this a.m. and found a decent pitching bite going, but the bite seemed to slow as the morning went on. I would have guessed the bite would have stayed good all day with conditions and all. Greg R put a clinic on with the new Moxis while the k grub bite was not great. 26″er was big fish for the a.m.
Jake I got out that morning and had the same exact thoughts. In fact I didn’t boat a walleye all morning. Had a bunch of those very distinct thunks/hits that you no is a walleye with nothing on the other end. Very frustrating.
Should be out a couple of mornings this week before work.
Anyone out over the weekend?
James, I thought that was you guys parked on my fav dam there. And I thought I might have heard Dezurik’s voice from your boat as well. I parked on the one downstream of you guys for a bit and then headed back down.
tough go for me that morning. Had a number of bumps where I was parked when you guys launched and then a whole lot of nothing after that.
I thought that was you but you were just out of range for a positive ID. Next time give a wave. And thanks for the update on the bite. I’m hoping to get out a time or two later in the week. I have a score to settle with some tight lipped pool 2 walleyes that won round one last week.
Even in the snow it was hot for Jake & I on Sat am.
Way to go Mike, and everyone. Some great looking fish.
I’ve been out one time in the last 3 weeks, at this rate I might get out one more time before the year end
Again great job guy’s
The “W” and I are going to give it a go tomorrow.
I’m going to be out thursday morning for sure with a couple of young guys and settle the score is about right. I got my a&* handed to me last time out. Maddening when you know they are there but just won’t bite and commit to a bait.
Do you know if anyone is selling Moxies in the cities? Wanted to pick some up but can’t find em anywhere.
I’m honestly not sure about the Moxies and retailers in the metro. Joes would be my first guess. Have you checked there?
Would think Joe’s is the best bet to but dont think they have them in. Jake would know. I gave one to Roger R. a few weeks back and at that time he said he had just restocked at Joe’s but had not seen the Moxies yet.
Try giving Dean a call. If he got them in the mail today you might see them tomorrow.
Dont you and your brothers have you annual pool 2 trip coming up soon?
Jumped in with Rootski yesterday afternoon for a quick trip. Water levels are down from last week. 1/4 and 3/16ths where plenty in most areas. Clarity is still improving with being able to see a foot deep at the 494 dock. We found a few fish with a nice fat 26″er being the biggest. Just couldnt beat the nice calm afternoon yesterday for pitching jigs.
Not at Joes…
The more interest/demand there is for BFN at Joes will help.
James
Yea I thought the same thing about the Joes and took all the girls up for a trip to the bait store with daddo only to find no Moxies. too bad Moore’s is closed he was usually on top of the BFN stuff.
Mike, while I type I think you and James are on the water…punks! and yes the 3rd annual Witham Brother Turkey Bowl is coming up next week. Really looking forward to it. It was pretty cold last year with dodging ice chunks a serious issue. I think this year will be better.
MW
That’s a bummer. I would think if Joe’s had them they’d be doing very well with them right now. Particularly now that Moore’s is no longer.
I know the Ace store on Diamond was getting into tackle to fill the Moore’s void.
Diamond Lake Hardware
5425 Nicollet Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55419
612.824.8813
Someone should let them know there’s an opportunity here.
Anybody else catch this fish yet? It is missing the top of it’s tail for some reason. Fish were hitting plastics with chartruese coloring this afternoon and evening. The snow/sleet made things interesting.
Someone must have scooped that one already. And what a day to be out slinging. Lights winds… felt fishy.
Ace will be stocking bfishn items next spring, sorry did not get a chance to get them in for the fall! Also a good amount of Ice fishing jigs from custom jigs and spins, etc are ordered and on there way for this years hardwater.
That’s great news. Once your inventory arrives be sure to drop a post in the ice forum letting everyone know that you’re stepping in to fill the Moore’s void and what you have in stock. It will help guys become accustomed to your selection.
Thats fantastic. Even though Both CJ&s and BfishN are fast at shipping its very nice to have a local supply to. If you have questions on what to stock make sure and ask on the site. No easier way to hear directly from you customers what they want.
Great hardware store. We used to do a lot of work out of there and the store on Penn.
Havent seen that walleye Pat. Where did you catch it at?
Please Send suggestions via PM’s
I like that the lights are out in that pic. I’ve been hoping the fish would start eating after dark too.