If you are not in the mood to read about fishing, you might want to stop here since that is all I have done for a few weeks. Saganaga and Northern Light lake have both been giving up little walleyes, but only one side of the border allows anglers to keep them under 17 inches. Thanks, Canada!
Fish of all species are biting on rock piles in depths ranging from 8-22 feet of water. The bigger walleye are biting shallower than the small fish, and they are eating a variety of baits depending on where they were caught. I am finding a lot of little herring inside the stomachs of the fish caught in the main lake areas, and bug hatches in many of the shoreline fish.
Smallmouth bass have been active this week, and are gorging themselves on crayfish in the shallower water. We are also finding a few of the bigger walleye mixed in with them— like my friend Dave Shay used to say, “Where there’s smallies… there’s wallies.”
Or something like that.
Smallmouth will often empty their stomachs while being fought, which creates a short-lived feeding frenzy that is usually good for half a dozen bass, some of which are 20- to 22-inch bruisers. These football sized smallmouth bass are first-class fighters that will find their way into just as many photo albums as the highly coveted walleyes.
The hot days have allowed some extended shore breaks for lunch, allowing me to pick some blueberries while eating a sandwich in the shade. I am really impressed with the number and size of the berries this season. Large patches are easy to find in the burn areas, and many of the berries are as large as the store bought variety.
There have been very few berry-picker vehicles parked alongside the Gunflint Trail, which surprises me. Either the Seagull burn area is not producing as well this year, or people are not picking like they used to.
Marco Manzo, of Sagonto Resort, showed me his five-gallon bucket that was better than half full last week. He was picking them in the middle of the night, since resort owners rarely have time to do such activities during business hours, and it is a great way to escape the heat.
With this week’s Northern Light predictions, it might be a great time to do some berry picking after dark, although I would be a little concerned about who else might be harvesting berries at night.
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. You can also visit Cory’s website at Gunflintfishingguide.com.
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