WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
November 9, 2006

My boat is for sale. Check it out here.

With the Minnesota Deer season pushing the second week, not many outdoorsman are stilll in pursuit of the fish. For those anglers that are still chasing those Fall bites, it sounds like things have slowed down for the most part but the November full moon was one filled with good number of big fish. From Pokegama to Mille Lacs, the bite was worth it if one was willing to stand the cool temperatures. As for me, I was chasing the swamp bucks of the Northland.

As for the opening weekend, it was slow at best for our deer camp. I was the only lucky hunter on opening day to bag a buck. The buck was a spike, not exactly what I was looking for, but nonetheless, I will take it. On Sunday two of the camp members would bring home their deer with one being a nice doe and the other being a nice 6-pointer. This week with the high temps and stages of the full moon, the camp has found themselves watching rabbits and birds, with no herd management taking place. I hope everyone had a safe opener and hope the next week is safe and successful for you.

So as the lakes make the final waves of the season and the deer season pushing to the end again, one can now focus on the next season which is first ice. Some of the best fishing of the ice season happens in that first month of ice, no better time than now until first ice to get that gear ready.

First ice is one where you can typically get an active bite for many fish in the area including those walleyes and perch. Presentation may vary from angler to angler, but most anglers will have two rods set up much differently and for me, I like to have a jigging rod and a bobber rod. Typically the bobber rod will have a jigging spoon or Salmo chubby darter, where I tip the presentation with just a minnow head and keep the bait moving through the water column. As for the bobber, I typically like to use a plain hook and tip it with a active minnow about one foot or so from the bottom. This presentation works well when in chase of the walleyes and perch and many of times for those first ice crappies as well.

A number of lakes in the area are worth getting out once the ice is safe, but I would say my favorites are Winnie and Splithand. Pokegama can be fun and I would expect to see some numbers of walleyes caught out there as the number of 14-16 inch fish are significant. If one gets a chance the run to Lake of the Woods is certainly worth it as the fishing up there day in and out for the Winter is usually second to none. Then there is Red Lake to the North. Oh baby, it should be a tremendous year up there. One can find 6-to-10 foot of water, with the preferred depth likely in that 7-to-8 foot and hang on, that jig and minnow will likely not find the bottom.

So as we move towards Thanksgiving and those first ice fishing trips, one can only start to prepare for the Winter months of excellent fishing here in the Northland. Make sure those Vexilars are fully charged and those ice augers are full of gas, cause we are only days way from the rod bending action again.

See you on the water, not for a bit though!

Sean Colter
member of the NMLOG's
www.seancolter.com