Lake Winnie Ice Fishing Report for March 14, 2012
Hello, from Big Winnie!
What a change in a week?!? We now have to access with ATVs. As of today, the lake is "ok" to fish and we have some areas giving up fish pretty well. On the West side of the lake, shore-drops from 5 to 11 feet are rather good. East side of the lake, the Moxey shore-drop from 13 to 18 is producing fish. At the South side of the lake, the stumps are going well in 13 to 18 foot depths. The North end has the humps North of Third River Bar working ok for fishermen. Bowans Flats has some fish going well, shallow, in 5 to 9 feet of water.
Tullibee are going strong in the mud south and north of the saddle area up the east side in 30 to 40 foot of water.
Warm temps continue in our area so check in with the resorts you access for up to the minute ice conditions.
See you on the lake. Spring is rapidly on its way!
It's a great time to be checking with us for cabin and motel unit availability for the summer months. We still have openings during the great fishing months of May and June! For you avid ice fishermen and women that have not visited in May or June, we strongly recommend a visit.
Pat Rooney
Lake Winnie Ice Fishing Report for March 8, 2012
Hello, from Big Winnie.
The perch bite is continuing to go good around the lake. We have had good luck on some of the humps north of Third River Bar in the 21 to 25 foot range. Deeper, and you get into some tullibee. They are fun to catch and very good to eat when smoked. The Tamarac Bay area is still producing in the 10 to 14 foot range. East side Saddle area south to the stumps is going pretty well in 15 to 22 feet. West side has fish in the river mouths, 5 to 11 feet of water, or out to the Sugar Island and up to Ravens Rocks. We have a good bite going early in the day, daybreak till 2 is the best time period. A short window is also good from from 4 till dark.
The weather has been warm. Many are fishing outside and running big lines (rows of several holes) of holes has been the ticket. Snow cover has come down a bit. We still have 5 to 8 inches, yet. Some travel off road is ok in less drifted areas. We have a warm week ahead forecasted, so call ahead to get the an up to the minute report on lake conditions.
See you on the lake.
Pat Rooney
Lake Winnie Ice Fishing Report for February 29, 2012
The perch bite remains strong! If you haven't made it to Lake Winnie this winter, now is a great time to get up here. Lots of great perch fishing and the weather makes perch fishing quite enjoyable to be outdoors and on the ice. This weekend is expected to be very nice. The Raven Rocks, at about 13 to 18 feet, have been good in the morning till early afternoon for great perch fishing. The Sugar Bar, far east and south to the flat on the backside of Center bar, is also a great hot spot and worthy of a trip up this weekend. Fish this area in 12 to 24 feet. There are some good perch now showing up in the Stumps on the south side. The Moses and Snag area are going well for good perch size and numbers. Tamarack Bay has some fish going also. It is now the best time to perch fish as they are on a VERY SOLID bite all around the lake. Best baits are smaller rattle spoons in glow pink, blue, or red with a minnow head.
Tulipee have been caught off the Mud Hole and in the deep water off the humps east of High Banks. They are found from 30 to 40 foot of water up 5 to 15 feet off bottom.
The Sunnie and Crappie bite is a bit spotty this week. Look to Big Cutfoot, Little Ball Club or Six Mile for some panfish action. Sleds or wheelers the way to travel on some of the smaller lakes.
The lake is in good shape as of now, with about 10 inches of snow cover. Check into the area resorts or bait shops for up to the minute lake conditions.
See you on the lake!
Pat Rooney
Lake Winnie Ice Fishing Report for February 22, 2012
Hello, from Big Winnie!
The perch bite picked right back up and is quite good again. Look for good perch action along the West side at Snag Hole from the top at 13 feet down to 25 feet. Also, you can find hungry perch within the same depths on River Bar and the back side of Center Bar, west and north to Raven Rocks. Move a bit until you find them drilling a few holes and being proactive about it. The perch won't be too hard to find. The best perch baits right now are small buckshot rattle spoons with a minnow head or a whole minnow on smaller glow jigs. This setup works great when we have some cloud cover and the sun is blocked. The East side also has some perch going strong on Moxey Hole up thru the Saddle.
The walleye bite is still spotty, but look to the bar drops and shore drops near the tops, from 13 to 18 feet and the best activity has been during the twilight hours.
The Northern Pike bite is still good with fish being caught regularly on tip-ups, roughly 3 to 5 feet off the bottom with larger suckers.
Smaller lakes in the area are really starting to give up some sunnies and crappies. But the greatest activity for panfish is also during the twilight hours. Teardrops and a waxey is working the best.
See you on the lake!
Pat Rooney
Lake Winnie Ice Fishing Report for February 15, 2012
Hello, from Big Winnie.
The perch bite has gotten "spotty." You can still find good perch by moving greater distances and drilling more holes. One day we are doing good in 6 feet of water, the next day perch are found only in the mud in 32 feet. They are eating well with minnows being the ticket. Try the North Humps down thru the Mud Hole. Some shore drops to try are Moxeys Hole and Snag Hole. Both the Mississippi and Third river mouths have perch moving thru, but the bite window is shorter but more frequent throughout out the day.
The walleye bite is fair with more larger fish being caught. Way up the shore breaks to 13 feet on top of Long Bar up to 12 feet and a few humps northwest of the Third River Bar.
The pike bite remains very good with most humps and shore drops working from 14 to 24 feet with tip ups and sucker minnows set from 3 to 6 feet off bottom. The ice is in good shape, very little snow and travel is good.
See you on the ice.
Pat Rooney
Lake Winnie Ice Fishing Report for February 8, 2012
Hello, from Big Winnie.
The Perch bite remains super HOT with good numbers of ten inch fish being caught. The shore drops are still the best from Snag Hole around the south shore thru the stumps, thru Moxey's Hole up thru the Saddle. The best depths for perch have been 24 to 30 feet up to 3 feet off the bottom. Some main lake bars also producing good perch numbers as well. Moses, Sugar and the south end of Horseshoe down to 33 feet of water are good. There are perch above the smaller fish, so spend time by fishing 1 to 3 feet above those smaller ones to get bigger fish out of the schools. The west side of Raven Rocks out to the North Bar area is also having perch schools moving around. Generally the perch bite is going well around the lake.
Walleyes are a bit spotty right now. we have had some good shallow action in ten feet and also some humps north and west of Third River Bar going at times, but the bite window is shorter than usual. Twilight hours are the best for walleyes.
Travel on the ice is good with 2 to 5 inches of hard pack snow at most entry areas.
Baits still working well and worthy of your tackle box are are Jigging spoon rattles tipped with a minnow head for walleyes and smaller glow jigs or gold jigs for the perch, tipped with small minnows.
Pike fishing is very good now for good numbers of fish. Set tip ups in the upper portions of the structure, 3 to 5 feet off the bottom with large suckers. 20 to 30 flags a day are quite common in the last week.
Look to the the smaller lakes around the area as the Sunnies and Crappies are starting to get active, twilight has been the best time to catch the panfish. Small Bro bugs and a waxies are working well.
See you on the lake!
Pat Rooney
Lake Winnie Ice Fishing Report for February 1, 2012
The Big Winnie perch bite is really great right now! Several areas around the lake are going strong with terrific perch action. Shore drops down in the 26 to 34 foot range is the ticket. The Moxey Drop, Stump Line, Snag Drop and West side drop around the Sugar area are all HOT now. Really hot! Humps up north are also going well, but perch are moving in and out of the humps. Be on the move, regularly, to find and catch those fish.
The walleye bite is good in the main lake bars. Bena Bar from Big Musky out to the Bend, Horseshoe and Sugar Bar are all good. Fish the top third from 23 feet up to 15 feet. Rattle spoons are still working well with a minnow head. Glow colors have been better as we have had cloud cover for quite for awhile.
The pike bite is going strong for the tip-up fisherman. 3 to 6 feet off bottom in the 15 to 23 foot range is working best.
Smaller area lakes are starting to put out some crappies and sunnies. Look to Six Mile, Little Ball Club , Big Ball Club for pretty good panfish action. Evenings, into dark, up till 9 PM seems to be the best window. Some sunnies are being caught during the daytime on those same lakes.
We have 20 to 24 inches of ice. Very little snow. The ice heaves have stayed put for the most part and are not moving as much as other years. As always check in with your resort access to get up to the minute reports on ice conditions to be safe.
Time to go fishing!
Pat Rooney
Lake Winnie Ice Fishing Report for January 25, 2012
Hello, from Big Winnie. Look to the deep shore drops for jumbo perch in the 24 to 30 foot range. Snag Hole on the west end and Moxey drop on the east end of the lake have produced good perch numbers.The main lake bars are also holding perch right on the mud-line and down deeper. Perch are being found from 23 to 35 feet. If you like shallow perch fishing, look to the Mississippi River mouth or Third River or into the Bowans Flats area. You will have to drill some holes around a bit to find the perch schools, but they can easily be found.
Walleye are going strong on top of the main lake bars. 15 to 20 feet of water is where to begin drilling and stay. Early and late in the day has been best for walleye action. Northland Buckshot rattle spoons with a minnow head is working well for our walleye fishermen. Bena Bar, Sugar Bar and the humps north of Third River Bar are going well for walleye action. Some humps have walleye present for a day or two, then they move away following bait schools. Be prepared to move a bit to look.
Pike action is good for those that like pike fishing with tip-ups. 3 to 6 feet off the bottom on the upper portions of the structure you are fishing is the best place to find good pike. There has been plenty of pike caught in the 3 to 8 lb range.
Ice is at 20 to 22 inches in most areas. We do, and will for the season, have some "live" ice heaves. They are not a problem as we have posted a way around the south shore roads and they are good up the Bena Bar and north along the east side up the the saddle and west to the Mud Humps. The west side heave is also moving a bit, so be cautious. North, in the bay, is good for travel. Just remember to check into a resort where you want to access to get up to the minute reports on where to cross the heaves.
Be safe around the heaves, have fun and see you on the ice!
Pat Rooney
Lake Winnie Ice Fishing Report for January 18, 2012
Big Winnie is making lots of ice right now - we are at 17 to 19 inches! Most areas are allowing truck travel. We have marked our first road out to the humps, east of High Banks. The second road runs up Bena Bar. The south heave is still holding tight to the east and there is a good crossing. The west side heave still moves a bit, but note there are several good spots to fish going around it. Crossing in spots is ok, too. At the north end, there are reports that ice is pretty good. Also, there are now trucks going out of High Banks. In Tamarac Bay, the ice is also good.
The snow cover is only one to three inches. As always, check in with the resort you go out through for an up to the minute report. This is important for safety.
Fishing has been pretty good with the cloudy days being good for walleyes and the sunny days good for perch.
Walleyes are biting on shore drops and the main lake bars from 17 to 24 feet. Buckshot rattle spoons are working well, lately, in glow or gold. Dead-stick a tail-hooked minnow next to your spoon for extra attention from the walleyes. Most bars are catching some fish. Sugar, Horseshoe and Bena, from Big Musky to Three Bend. The humps up north are starting to get quite hot. Walleyes are very much on the move. Drill a few holes to find them. Once you do, they are then quite easy to put on the ice.
The northern pike bite remains strong. Tip-up fishermen are reporting 3 to six feet off the bottom toward the top portions of the structure are the best locations to see great pike action. Big shiners or 5 to 10-inch suckers are the way to go. Minnesota now lets you run a quick-strike rig for pike. It is now quite a bit easier to put pike back as there is less deep-hooking occurring for the pike fishermen.
The perch bite, in the sunshine, is fast and furious with pink or pink-white being good colors to use. Also, keep gold jigs handy as a go-to color, if the pink colors start to become less interesting to the perch. Perch seem to be a bit deeper right now with the 20 to 30 foot range working well for most of our perch chasers.
It's a great time to be ice fishing Lake Winnibigoshish! See you on the ice!
Pat Rooney
Lake Winnie Ice Fishing Report for January 11, 2012
Hello, from Big Winnie!
We are holding our own with the ice on the big lake. Most areas have 13 to 15 inches. Lighter truck travel is being allowed in a few spots. You just have to talk to your resort or bait shop when you get here for up to the minute reports on travel. ATV travel is good anywhere on the lake. We still have the south heave moving but we are crossing it in shallow water ONLY. Little Stoney is also a safe crossing. The West side still has some movement on the heave. The East has spots closer to shore that you work around to get over. But, in general, the lake is in good shape. No snow as of yet. Cold is on the way for this week and this weekend, which will be good for improving ice conditions.
The fishing has been good, also. Perch bite north and east is in 10 to 13 feet. The main lake bars have been ok, deeper, in the 22 to 30 foot range. Shore drops also, and perch are being caught fairly deep.
The pike bite is on fire!!! Tip-up guys and gals are running flags in the 13 to 18 foot range constantly. They are having a blast with the active pike bite.
The walleye bite has been ok off of the main lake bar drops and the north humps. 21 to 26 feet early and late in the day has been the best for finding hungry walleyes.
Panfish have been going well on the smaller lakes around Winnie. Check out any green weeds shallower or go to the basin. Sunnies are active during the afternoon and through into the evening. Once evening hits, just "minnow up" for some crappies.
See you on the lake!
Pat
Denny’s Resort – Lake Winnibigoshish • 15017 16th Ave. NE • P.O. Box 8 • Bena, Minnesota 56626
(218) 665 - 2222