I know that the walleye opener in Minnesota is not an official holiday, but it may as well be. Tearing into presents on Christmas morning is no longer as exciting as launching my boat on opening day.
The Trail used to be a premier destination for the fishing opener and now it is not very busy at all. I only saw three other boats on Saganaga on Saturday and I knew every one of them. I remember squatting on a piece of shoreline in James Bay just so you could have a spot to fish. On both days last weekend, we were the only ones there. Granted, we did not catch anything in James Bay, but I do not think that was why we were the only ones there.
Memorial Day weekend is the official summer cabin owners’ time to come up and get the cabin ready for the summer, and that is when things really start to pick up. It is refreshing to see all of the cabin owners and seasonal lodge employees showing up each spring. Their excited faces remind me not to take anything for granted. They remind me how lucky we are to be able to live in such a great place.
I also like seeing them show up each year so that I can add to my collection of bungee cords and trailer straps found alongside the road.
I do not blame people for not being up here sooner because the weather is touchy, the water is cold, and the fish usually do not start to get active for a couple more weeks.
Saturday was windy with nice temperatures and Sunday was even nicer. The fishing was not fantastic, but we managed to scratch out a few of every species of fish that swim in the lake. We caught walleyes, northern, bass and even a whitefish and lake trout in the shallow muddy bays. It was never fast and furious, but it was fun.
The water temperatures were up to 54 degrees inside some of the bays and still a bone-chilling 45 degrees on the main lake. The water was warmer than I had expected which is good, but I think a lot of these fish are feeding later with the full moon cycle.
If the walleyes are not cooperating, especially midday, I like to troll for the lake trout out on the big lake. A spinner rig with some little minnows on the treble hook works really well. I usually will add a small split shot to keep the bait down a couple of feet below the surface and let out about 150 feet of line. We did this for an hour on Sunday and caught three nice trout. It helps break up the day and I do not like to over fish a good spot that is not working this time of the year.
Chances are that by “overworking” unproductive areas, you are preventing any fish from gathering in that spot so it is usually better to wait until the conditions improve. Shallow water fish are easily spooked and more susceptible to weather conditions than they are later in the summer when they go deeper.
If the sky is clear in the morning and you know it will get cloudy later on you should save the best spots for the cloudy weather and search for new spots while you are waiting.
If it is going to be bright and sunny all day long, you should go golfing. I hear Lutsen is nice.
Cory Christianson has worked as a fishing guide on the Gunflint Trail since 2000. If you have any fishing or wildlife reports or stories to share, send an email to: christiansoncory@hotmail.com or call 218-388-0315. Gunflintfishingguide.com
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