Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidelines" Lake Vermilion Walleye Tournament August 28, 2017

The better part of a week was spent on Lake Vermilion, pre-fishing and competing in the AIM Pro Walleye Series state championship. Here are a few thoughts and happenings that come to mind regarding last week.

*First off, with Andy Walsh, my season-long tournament partner, getting a new job and moving to Brainerd, I had to do all the pre-fishing, which I didn’t really mind. I went solo the three days before the two-day event got started on Friday. Many of you know that I fish alone, the majority of the time, so I was right at home out there.

Tuesday was terrible, as far as the weather went, being windy, rainy, and cold, but there I was, fishing from first light until 3:30 pm and just loving it. I didn’t bring along my warm clothes (wait until I run into that weatherman) so it did end up being a little uncomfortable out there.
My first two days were dedicated to just finding numbers of fish and that I did, going home with a nice limit on Tuesday. Wednesdays fish were all tossed back. The first two days were pretty good.

The third and final day of pre-fishing was dedicated to finding big fish, which I should have been doing all along. Working big baits and fishing deep, I ended up with only two fish for the entire day of fishing and both were of the smaller variety. Nothing big.

*Andy and I had a poor first day in the event, registering our five fish (aka “filling the card”) for a measly 10.56 pounds. We did lose a heavy fish that more-than-likely would have had us weighing in somewhere around 15 pounds or so but who knows? It didn’t really matter, as the top three teams each brought in over 30 pounds. We were basically out of it.

*Friends Travis Sorokie and Doug Robinson weighed in a nice bag for 21.13 pounds. Talking to them, after the weigh in, I asked Travis how he caught his fish and where he was fishing. He replied, “we caught our fish in that spot where you taught me how to lead core.” Maybe I should follow my own advice at times. At least I knew where we would be fishing on day two.

*There was a total of 55 boats entered in the tournament and Andy and I were boat number 53, which meant we were one of the last to take off on day one. However, they reverse the order for the second day so we were boat number three the next day.

Getting ready in the morning, I saw Grand Rapids angler Dylan Maki and his partner, Joe Bricko. They were one of the top teams on day one, weighing in 34.67 pounds, and were dead last in taking off, which meant they were boat number one on the second day.

I hollered out to Dylan “boat number one, you couldn’t have planned that any better.” I can’t imagine having a big bag like that and then being first out of the gate the next morning, knowing no one would be on your spot.

I then told him “I talked it over with Andy and we’re going to follow you guys.” A look of concern came over his face. I followed up by saying “we’re going to park 50’ away from you and not even fish. We’re just going to open a big bag of popcorn and watch.” It was at that point that he knew we were just teasing him. An obvious sigh of relief was witnessed. The poor kid. I scared the daylights out of him. But that’s just me.

Dylan and Joe went on to win the event, weighing a whopping 64.80 pounds, good for $8,500 and a trip to the national championship. Congratulations to them!

*Trolling lead core, sometimes back as much as 250’-300’, it’s sometimes hard to tell if you have a fish on, especially if it’s a small one.

On one occasion, I told Andy “I think I have one on here.” Reeling in, I wasn’t sure but something wasn’t right. It felt too heavy.

Getting near the boat, you could tell that something was on the end of the line, as the rod was pulling down. Reeling up, and Andy standing there with the net, I saw what had happened. My little #5 Shad Rap had snagged, of all things, a rock!

Small and round, looking like an ancient baseball, the little hooks had found something to dig into and I hauled it up from the lake bottom. It actually looked like a little cannon ball. Maybe it was?

I lifted it out of the water and Andy reached out to grab the line. That’s when it happened. The rock fell to the bottom of the boat and the lure sling-shotted itself at 100 mph into Andy’s hand.

“Oh oh” I thought to myself. “How bad?” I looked at Andy and two of his fingers were stuck together. One of the small treble hooks had a hook in two fingers and both were past the barb. There wasn’t a whole lot we could do, as we couldn’t even get a pair of cutters in there to cut the hooks off.

I offered to help but Andy wanted no part of that, saying “I know my own pain threshold.”
So, there we were, fishing. I set out the lines and kept on trolling, while Andy worked the wound and eventually wrestled the hooks out. Blood everywhere. Not good. I thought we might have had to make a run back to HQ for a little first aid.

Pouring ice cold drinking water over the fingers, to clean the wound, he dried it off and I applied a goodly portion of Liquid Bandage. We were good to go! How was your weekend?

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidelines" August 22, 2017

A group guide trip, last Sunday, had me explaining to my guests that walleye fishing was somewhat slow at the time, especially during the mid-day hours, but if they wanted to catch a lot of fish and have some fun in the process, we could always go after bass or northern pike. Pike it was!

Based out of Sugar Lake Lodge, I had been doing a little poking around beforehand, trying to find the best bite for my clients and wanted it to be as close as possible to the lodge, as it would only be a half-day trip. I would be picking them up around 11:30 am and had to have them back by 5:00 pm. Travel time was strongly considered.

I was catching a few walleyes, here and there, but it was painstakingly slow action. Even though I had caught fish up to 8 pounds, I didn’t think it would be too much fun for them. It would be boring, in my opinion. I wanted them to have fun and that usually involves ACTION!

Pre-fishing, I found a lot of northerns, using the old tried-and-true method of trolling spoons and was anxious to get going, as it’s still fun for me, after all these years. One of my guests, Rodney from Arkansas, had never caught a pike before and was blown away at how hard they hit. Even the little fish hit with gusto. He immediately called the trip a success, catching a small northern within minutes of trolling. “Oh, we should do a lot better than that” I explained, as his fish only measured 21 ½”.

The spoon bite was slower than expected and I was a little surprised by that. They were really biting two days prior. Also, a trolling presentation was needed, as both anglers couldn’t cast a bait-casting reel. That can sometimes make things a little more difficult. What do you do? Troll along and try to stay as close to the weedline as possible. It’s easy on a slow-tapered flat but sharp breaks can make it a real challenge.

Previously fishing the area, I had also done well with rattle baits but they weren’t producing either. It was time to change things up a little so I dug out the larger “Bionic Bucktail” spinnerbaits, made by Northland Tackle. These baits are much more weedless and can be trolled over the top and amongst thick cabbage weeds, where most pike live.

Previously trolling along the edge of the weedline, we stayed in the 9-12’ depths and caught a few fish but not the numbers I expected. However, with the change in lures, we were now able to troll in 6-8’ and that made a huge difference. Even the smaller fish were jumping onto the larger bait. It amazes me how aggressive those little fish can be. We were catching a lot more fish because of fishing shallower.

I recall a trip I had, many years ago, with “old Bill”. He couldn’t cast either and believe me, he tried but it just wasn’t going to happen. I’d be casting to the shallows while he trolled behind the boat and every once in a while he’d say “let me try that.” Back-lashes galore. I finally wouldn’t let him. He was relegated to trolling and that was it.

Fishing a thick weed area had me changing tactics, in order to get Bill some fish, and that was trolling Northland Tackle weedless “Jaw-Breaker” spoons. Never give up, if you can’t locate fish. They’re usually not too far from the weeds and the larger the weed-bed the better.

Rodney caught the biggest fish of the day, last Sunday, and that was a chunky 32” fish, which isn’t a monster but when you’ve never caught a northern pike before, it’s pretty darn good. He was beaming from ear-to-ear and wants to come back.

However, I think my other guest, Rudy, had a crack at the largest when he had a hard strike and reeled in to find the spoon and leader cleanly bitten off. I think a big fish hit it from behind and took the whole shebang. Rudy, from the Twin Cities, wants to come back as well.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" August 14, 2017

I had the opportunity to work with Camp Fish last week, something I’ve always wanted to do.

Established back in the late 70’s, In-Fisherman ran the program from 1983 to 1991, when they closed the doors. It was a great program but financially not a good decision to keep on operating.

Jump ahead to 2017. The doors are once again open and I was asked to guide for this inaugural event. Based out of Camp Bliss, near Walker, parents and children are offered classroom sessions, along with plenty of hands-on time on the water.

How wonderful it is to see such enthusiastic youngsters, fishing with caring parents. I was duly impressed. These kids know a LOT about fishing, to say the least.

Captained by Brad Petersen, who worked for Camp Fish back in the early years, guides were busy fishing the surrounding area. Most trips were taken on smaller bodies of water, where cooperative bass, northern pike, and panfish kept us all busy and some of these fish were very nice in size. However, a few walleye trips were done on Leech Lake as well.

At the present, there are plenty of creative ideas swirling around, regarding the next Camp Fish sessions and I’ll keep you all informed. There might even be a winter ice fishing session. Who’s up for that? I certainly am!

Cleaning up the garage, I came across this old bottle of sunblock. It reminded me of an unusual experience, when using it, many years ago, while on a guide trip.

Here's an interesting little story for those concerned about getting foreign smells on their bait or hands. Does it scare fish and keep them from biting? Sometimes it does but sometimes it might just help.

A corporate trip with a dozen or more other guides out of North Star Lake Lodge, it was a three-day event that usually had us going to Big Winnie on the first day.

Sunny, hot, and almost dead calm, I was trying to coax a few walleyes into biting on one of my favorite spots, Ravens Point, when I decided to put on a little sun-screen.

Lathered up with Coppertone, I asked my clients if they wanted any. One accepted my offer. The other refused.

A jig and minnow bite, the wind was almost non-existent. It was perfect, with the boat slowly drifting across a small depression.

Fish were there but very, very fussy. The slow drift was essential to catching anything at all. Move too fast and you wouldn't get a bite.

Up until the sunblock was applied, we only had a couple of walleye in the livewell. Fishing was tough.

All of a sudden, the two of us that used sunblock were catching fish at a good pace. The other angler, who didn't lather up, was more-or-less just watching us catch fish, even though I made sure that all of us had the exact same size and color jig. He couldn't catch a cold.

Other guide boats saw the activity and got in line for a drift but nothing. As a matter-of-fact, I motioned for others to "get in line." It was happening and they better take advantage of the situation. Who knew how long it would last?

I watched as several boats repeated slid through the area and only witnessed a couple fish caught. It just wasn't happening.

Meanwhile, the two "sunblockers" were catching them pretty good, with several "doubles" taking place.

Back at the lodge, guides were bringing their catch to the cleaning shack and there were some very skimpy catches being brought in. It was just one of those days. We've all been there.
However, my boat had 35 walleyes on this day, with two of us catching almost all of them.

One guide was angry, saying "you weren't on Winnie", as he struggled terribly.

Now, the two of us used a liberal amount of the sunblock and finished with a light rinse of water. I honestly believe that there was just enough of a smell on our hands to aid in catching as many fish as we did. It was incredible and I have no other explaination for it.

Up until that point, I was always a little leery to put anything on my hands but after that happening I would "grease up" pretty good and not worry about it.

However, insect repellent? That's another story.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" August 8, 2017

My strong interest in fishing was launched at a very young age. We did a lot of northern pike fishing back then and the lure of choice, which is still going strong today, was a simple 3” spoon. The classic “red and white Daredevle”, made by Eppinger was the best bait going.

Founded in 1906, Eppinger has been around for quite some time and over the years has expanded their product line to an extensive selection.
Growing up on Buck Lake (Terry Wickstrom always says “we never grew up, we just got older. How true.), the majority of our fishing was done by hopping onto the pontoon boat, with friends, and trolling around the lake with spoons.

We weren’t real serious, just out there having fun. One time I was fishing with one of the Mickelson boys, a cousin, and his beloved dog “Henry” was getting in the way, swimming behind the pontoon to be as close as possible to his “master.” Ah, the good old days.

Looking back, it’s a miracle we did as well as we did because we didn’t really try to stay next to a weedline (what was that?). Never-the-less, we always caught fish and the old red and white spoon was the hot ticket. Although I do recall when someone tried the black and white version and started to do pretty darn good. Green and white caught its share of fish too. Those were the top three colors.

However, when the first spoon came out sporting fluorescent orange paint, we couldn’t believe it. I don’t think we even saw a color like that before. The new spoon flat out caught fish, as they hadn’t seen anything like it either. Much less expensive than a Daredevle, we bought a lot of them and for many years it was the first lure we would snap on.

Jumping ahead, some 50 years, the red and white spoon still does just fine and it’s one that I’ll use quite often. Nowadays, the lure selection is overwhelming. There are so many more manufacturers, which means that many more color variations. There’s some really cool stuff out there.
Pulling spoons can save the day, especially when guiding for walleyes and the fish start to get a little fussy. I’ve had that happen a time or two and would say “reel ‘em in. We’re going to catch some fish” and off to the nearest weedline we’d go.

Letting my clients pick out what they thought would be a hot color, we’d just make one long cast behind the boat and troll close to the weeds. I usually worked each and every time. After they had enough fun, we’d go back and play with the stubborn walleyes.

I’ve caught as many as 50 fish in a matter of a few hours by doing this and it’s still as much fun as it was when fifteen years old. Who doesn’t like to get their string stretched?

The spoons aren’t just for pike either, as I’ve caught some rather large walleyes, admittedly by accident, by casting over the cabbage weeds. They’re opportunists, like most other fish, so if an easy meal happens their way, it’s theirs.

Ontario fishing guide, Tom Batiuk, uses Northland Tackle’s “Baitfish-Image” Forage Minnow spoons for lake trout and does very well. I had the mind-set of using thin “flutter-style” spoons for trout, not heavy spoons made for northern pike. Tom changed my way of thinking in a hurry.
When thinking about it, the heavy spoons just add a little more weight and make it easier in getting down a little deeper. Once there, they have a great wobbling action.

My spoons are all stored in Plano 3700 tackle boxes. One is for spoons in the 3” range and is for northern pike. The next one is a tad smaller and is used for our local stream trout. The last is for the little guys and is used for panfish. One can never have enough!

My father, who just celebrated his 89th birthday, last Sunday, tells of the time when he was fishing with my uncle, Alan Marsh. They were on Prairie Lake, north of O’Leary Lake, and enjoying the day catching northern pike when a foul cast hooked him between the eyes. You know, that thick skin at the top of your nose.

To make a long story short, they couldn’t get the hook out so Alan drove dad to the clinic in Nashwauk where he walked in with a big spoon dangling in his face. It must have been quite the sight.

It may have been the old “KB Spoon” but dad always referred to it as a “Finnlander Spoon.” I’m not sure what that is.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" July 25, 2017 - Fishing Report

I’ve recently found myself chasing bluegills all-across the North Country, which has included three counties, Itasca, St. Louis, and Beltrami. The most recent was another stellar outing with Daris Rosebear on the Red Lake Indian Reservation.

An impromptu trip, a phone call to Brian Griffith was made and as luck would have it, he was off work on this day and was able to join me. This would be the second trip with Brian to the fantastic fishing of the Red Lake Nation.

Late night messaging with Rosebear finalized our plans. He wanted us there early, 7:00 am, due to the road construction that was taking place on the lake he wanted to take us to, Bass Lake.

As luck would have it, we were running a tad late (my fault) and the heavy equipment had beat us to the access that was being rebuilt. This is really going to be nice when done. A new dock is already in place. Thankfully, they allowed us to get the boat in and we were fishing and catching in a matter of minutes.

Catching fish on the “first drop” is pretty much the norm when fishing with Rosebear, as these lakes are phenomenal.
I was first to toss a line in. I had four rods ready to go and selected a Northland Tackle “Thumper Crappie King” for my first attempt. Almost immediately, I had a hard-fighting heavy bluegill on. This was going to be fun!

Brian and I both ended up using 1/16 oz. jig, tipped with a small Impulse plastic. Daris used leeches to entice the big fish into biting, which didn’t really take much. They were hungry and of good size, averaging in the 9” range. We all caught a few fish that went over 10”.

The lake has nice crappie too but during the mid-day hours only a handful of small ones were caught. I’m thinking of trying for them in the fall, when they stack up in deeper holes and are much easier to find.

Rosebear runs trips on the same lake for largemouth bass and it certainly looks like it would hold plenty of them, as it’s very “bassy” looking with all the shoreline weed growth. Large northern pike are also caught in Bass Lake. Hmmm, let’s see. A fall trip for crappie, mixed in with northern pike, when they go on their fall eating binge. Sounds perfect! Oh yeah, maybe a few bluegills too, while I’m at it.

Each trip has me teasing Daris saying “you’re living the dream.” He just smiles. How nice it would be, guiding on un-pressured waters such as these. I couldn’t imagine. Well, maybe I can, as I keep on going back there. Yes, it’s that good.

For more information, you can contact Rosebear at 2016rosebear@gmail.com or (218) 214-0018. Did I tell you that kids under 16 are FREE?

I figured on doing something a little different, like catching bluegills, before I set my sights on Lake Vermilion, where I will be spending a majority of my time between now and August 25-26, pre-fishing for the AIM Pro Walleye Series championship with Andy Walsh.

Here’s a little tip on using buzz baits for bass. If it’s calm, you’ll want to use a “quieter” bait, with smaller blades or at least slow it down so it’s not so noisy. It just seems more natural that way. They’ll find it if they want to. Trust me.

However, if the lake condition is choppy, “go for the gusto” and toss out a larger bait, something that makes a good disturbance in the water. Big fish can get a little reckless during these conditions and if it’s raining, all the better. I’ve caught some real tanks during inclement weather and this goes for muskies as well.

I recall one time, musky fishing on Leech Lake with Brian Griffith, when I was having difficulty standing up in the boat because of the rollers. My back was hurting so I decided to take it easy for a while. This meant sitting in the boat seat and using a surface buzzer. It was a lure that could be cast out and slowly reeled back in. There was no hurry. It was easy and relaxing, until a 30 pound fish just about pulled me off the boat seat.

Give buzz bait fishing a try. Also, if you can get your hands on a “double-buzzer”, they work awesome!

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" July 25, 2017 - Fishing Report

"Fishing lately has consisted of a myriad of different species and opportunities. One day I’m trying my hand at some large northern pike in Aitkin County and the next I’m searching out big panfish in St. Louis County. Covering a wide area, the fish range from monstrous to small and it’s all fun, even on those “struggle days.” Yes, we all have them.

One short trip was made to Mille Lacs Lake, where I met up with Andy Walsh and Mike Patras to give big northern pike a try. Meeting in Malmo, poor weather was quickly rolling in so we decided on having breakfast first.

It eventually cleared and it was all downhill from there on out. Lake conditions looked to be prefect but the fishing wasn’t. Trolling up and down the shoreline, looking for isolated weed patches, we fished for three hours, without a bite, and decided to call it quits. It was just one of those days. I’ve had plenty of them in my day.

The next day, I joined panfish expert Keith Nelson for a crack at some big crappie. It was a lake that neither of us had been on before but had heard the “rumors.” We had to investigate.

This lake, too, threw us a curveball, giving up only dinky crappies but the bluegills were about as good as it got. Countless nice fish were caught and released, with one going well over 10”. That’s a good gill anywhere.

When looking back at this year’s open water season, I can call it “the summer of big bluegills”, as I have caught seven 11”and two 11 ½” fish. Beautiful gills, they were all quickly admired and released. I’m really getting into those big platters and am in the process of setting up a big bluegill trip on the Red Lake Reservation with fishing guide Daris Rosebear. I can’t wait for this one!

Up until now, it’s been pretty much all walleye, with the AIM Walleye Series, GRAHA, and Lake Vermilion tournaments.

The next AIM event will be on the St. Louis River/Lake Superior. I’ll be skipping this one but my replacement, who’ll be fishing with Andy Walsh, will be Duluth area fishing guide Jared Houston. This will sure make things a lot easier for Andy, as neither one of us has much experience down there and Jared know the “ins and outs” of this system very well.

This event will be our third AIM Series tournament, which is the minimum required to fish the year end championship to be held on Lake Vermilion in August. Well, you where I’ll be spending every waking moment until then. This is another “can’t wait.”

Over the years, I’ve had the pleasure of fishing some world class fisheries that are situated fairly-close to home. These fisheries can be best described as “champagne trips on a beer budget.” Basically, the main cost of each trip is the gas to get there.
One, Lake Nipigon, is quite a haul, but the lure of monster lake trout, brookies, and northern pike have had adventurists seeking out this remote area for the last 150 years.

I made it there once, with my son, Kris, and outdoor writer Brad Dokken. We teamed up with fishing guide Lorne Sholter and spent two days trying our hand at a big trout. Sholter has caught them upwards of 55 pounds and although we had it a little slow, we still managed a couple 23-pound fish.

Kris and longtime friend Kyle McCollor recently made the “Nip Trip” and spent an entire week, camping on an island.

The big lake is unforgiving and careful planning is a must. Kris and Kyle thought this one out for months before heading into the treacherous, big lake. Sixty miles long, it has countless shoals, reefs, and islands. Any mistakes made out there could prove to be life-threatening, as there’s no cell service. You are on your own. The television program “Alone” should go there if they want to get real!

It took them a while to figure out the lake trout but they eventually got into them, although not fish of the huge variety. They did, however, have the treble hooks pulled out of their large Rapalas a couple of times. Swivels were also broken. That makes one wonder. Fishing shallower, they really did a number on the big northern pike and brook trout. Kris is thinking another trip this fall. We’ll see if I have it in me.

Another budget trip that has exceptionally high rewards and expectations is fishing for Red River catfish in Manitoba. About six hours away, I’ve made this one quite a few times and like the Nipigon lake trout trip, I get excited when a close friend or relative is going there, even if I can make it myself.

Chisholm residents Tim Ranta, his son Timmy, and friend Greg Gargano made this trip last weekend and it surely didn’t disappoint. It never does. Although I’ve written about it many a time, it just doesn’t do it any justice. I’ve always said “you have to experience it to really understand.”

They must have gone home with their heads spinning, as they boated 71 big catfish in a day and a half, with the largest being a 27 pound fish caught by Tim Sr., who said “I broke my personal best catfish by 24 pounds….LOL.”

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" July 19, 2017

Summer’s in full swing and things are happening, as this warm weather really gets the fish cranked up. Some of my favorite fishing is taking place right now and that includes largemouth bass and crappie in the weeds.
As you all know, I hate the heat and pretty much lay low during the mid-day hours. However, as the sun nears the tree line, I become as active as the fish. It’s the perfect match!

The GRAHA Walleye Shootout on Pokegama Lake, held last Saturday, found me checking out the weeds, looking for walleyes. Although I didn’t find the Mother Lode, as did guide buddies Colt Anderson and Ben Olson, I certainly found some very nice crappies, along with oodles of largemouth bass.
Colt and Ben, by the way, finished in second place, competing in a very strong field of 107 teams, by weighing in 19.82 pounds, good for $5,000. Top honors went to the team of Tim Graupmann and Larry Estebo. They weighed in 21.62 pounds of walleye for a whopping $15,000. Now that’s a pretty good pay day!

During my pre-fishing efforts, I checked out plenty of weed lines but never did find the right areas. The newly found big crappie, however, have me thinking of heading back there for some evening fishing. Anchored up and bobber watching, it should be good.

Pitching into deep cabbage weeds, in 12’-15’ of water, I boated several nice crappies and these fish were hitting a large minnow. I can’t imagine going back and fishing for them with a proper, more finesse presentation. We’ll see what happens. Maybe they prefer big baits?

Fish hold in these deep, dense weed areas, especially when it’s sunny. It’s their “living room”, allowing them to be comfortable all day long and always have something nearby to eat, as there’s plenty of forage in there as well. The problem is finding these little sanctuaries.

The same with bass and although they seem willing to bite “in the slop” all day long, I like going after them later in the day, especially if it’s been hot out. Using the stealth mode of an electric motor, gradually ease up to the lily pad field and cast out a surface bait and slowly work it back to the boat. There’s something quite special when a bass “blows up” on a bait. It sometimes startles you.

My favorite lures for this are weed-less frogs and spoons but always have a flippin’ jig on hand, as they take more than their fair share of big bass. I’d have to think that the “jig & pig” is THE big bass bait.

This is a great way to catch a big fish. There may be a lot of bass frequenting weed lines but the big mamas are back in the vegetation. If you haven’t tried this, you owe it to yourself to get out there and give it a whack. You just may surprise yourself. One last tip – be sure to use heavy line!
Although crappies can be taken in the weeds, throughout the day, they too, really come alive when evening rolls around. All one needs to do is find a weed line and start trolling and the larger the weed bed the better.

Think of it like this. A skinny weed line is much like a small dwelling, housing a minimal number of residents. However, a large cabbage bed can be compared to an apartment building and has the potential of holding many. The adage “go big or go home” certainly holds true here.

I like to make a long cast behind the boat and slowly troll along the weed-line, usually beginning my outing around 6:30 p.m. or so. Many times, it’s like clockwork, with fish cooperating very well. You may be able to go “to the well” several days in a row, catching fish at the same time, but always be ready to have them start biting at a different time or sometimes not at all. That’s called fishing.

If you happen to find a good number of them, anchoring and using bobbers or just “fan-casting” the area with a jig can sometimes work very well. Anchored deep enough, 10’ for example, you may be able to catch them right below the boat, as fast as you can get your lure back into the water.
I’m not much of a bobber person and prefer to use a small jig, tipped with plastic. I like to stay busy. Casting out, keep an eye on your line for that little “twitch”. Many times, you won’t even feel the bite, as the fish strike from behind and push the lure toward you.

A little tip for this type of fishing is to use colored fishing line so it’s easier to see the “twitch.”

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" July 12, 2017

"What started out as a routine outing for a few largemouth bass, ended in another experimental session. Maybe that’s why I go solo most of the time. I like to fool around and try different approaches and ideas, when most other guest anglers would prefer staying with the program and catching fish. But that’s just me. I’m always thinking “what if?”

The small, local lake has very nice bass but one is always better off checking the forecast to make sure it is going to be overcast. Sun is absolutely no good for fishing this lake, as it is borderline “gin clear” and fish are easily spooked.
Easing into the water, I never started the outboard because this is another method of scaring shallow fish. It was cloudy and I was in “stealth mode”, sneaking along a weed line with the bow mount electric motor.

The first, long cast, using a top-water frog, resulted in a hungry, little bass. Things were looking good but that would change in a hurry. Almost on cue, the sun broke through the clouds and I was dealing, once again, with the wrath of Mother Nature. I knew immediately that it was going to be difficult fishing.

Working some of my favorite shallow-to-mid-depth areas resulted in nothing. Eventually, I ended up positioning the boat out in 25’ of water and casting a “jig & pig” combo toward a fast-dropping breakline, watching the lure slowly pendulum its way to the bottom.

The first cast had a fish hitting the bait as it neared bottom but it was only on for a second before becoming unbuttoned. A couple more attempts had me reeling in a nice three-pound largemouth. I felt the bite but always a line-watcher, I also noticed the telltale sign of a fish when the line made that little “twitch.”

Catching remained tough so I quickly changed gears and began trolling across the middle of the lake. Letting out 200’ of line, I offered a #7 crankbait that dove down to 10’. I’ve caught largemouth bass like this before, when trolling over 45’ of water. This time I was in 35’.

One of my largest bass, a 7 pounder, came as result of main-lake basin trolling so never rule out this plan of attack. When we get the infamous “dog days of summer”, now fast-approaching, give this method a try. All you need to do is snap on a shallow-running crankbait, let out a ton of line, and slowly troll across the middle of the lake, no matter how deep it is. You just may be in for a surprise.

Two trolling passes at “high flying” fish didn’t work so a different plan was put into practice. Noticing several fish at the 30’ level, it was time to go deep, using my lead core rod, which is always at the ready.

Snapping on a #7 crankbait, I only went a matter of 5 minutes before a fish took my offering. Nothing big, it was only a 3-pound northern pike but at least it was action. A couple more passes resulted in a fish with each one. Again, nothing big and certainly not what I was looking for. It was time to change it up a bit.

Sitting there, scratching my head, I spotted my little tackle box full of Northland Tackle “UV Mimic Minnows” and thought “hmmm, I wonder?” I tied one on and observed it at boat side, trolled at 2 ½ to 3 mph. It was perfect. I was amazed that the little bait worked so well, when moving at a fairly fast clip.

It looked to be the perfect stealth mode plan of attack, a small (2 ¾”) jig with a super-busy paddle tail, tied onto a 50’ monofilament leader, trolled deep at 30’ and 200’ behind the boat. It had to work.

The first pass resulted in nothing but halfway through the next run my rod buckled and the rod-holder strained under the load. Thinking northern pike, at this point, I saw the line quickly rising to the surface and thought “maybe a bass?” And then it surfaced, about 200’ behind the boat. Yes, it was and a nice one at that.

It bulldogged, as bass do, as I watched it down deep in the clear water. It was a nice one, around 3 ½ pounds. Thinking maybe I was onto something, I gave it a couple more passes before calling it a morning.

Heading home, my mind was awash with ideas on how to best utilize this new method. The presentations and opportunities were endless and I can’t wait to get back out there.

Enjoy the Great Outdoors. Get out there, be safe, have fun, and good luck!"

Greg Clusiau, Lake Mille Lacs Walleye Fishing With Scott Moe July 3, 2017

A late evening message from fishing guide Scott Moe had me quickly getting things ready for the next morning. Prior the message, I didn’t have any specific plans. Maybe another round with Swan or Trout Lake. Maybe checking the waters of Pokegama Lake, doing a little super-early pre-fishing for the big GRAHA Walleye Shootout. However, those thoughts fell by the wayside when Scott said he had an open seat and was heading to Mille Lacs Lake in the morning. I was there.

Having only fished it a handful of times, it was the perfect opportunity to get a crack at some nice walleyes before the season closes on July 7. Yes, heavily managed for walleye, Mille Lacs Lake is under the microscope and there is no such thing as a “normal” fishing season for the big lake, all 207 square miles of it.

Up until July 6, it is catch and release fishing only and totally closed to walleye fishing from July 7 through the 26th. After that, it opens to catch and release fishing again from July 28 to September 4, closing again from September 5 through November 30. Who can keep up with these regulations. What in the world?

Moe, five years a fishing guide, focuses on the big waters of Mille Lacs Lake and Upper Red Lake, along with several smaller lakes in the Alexandria area, where he used to live. Now making residence in Brooklyn Center, countless trips are made to Mille Lacs, along with several days at a time on Upper Red Lake, where he runs a launch for Rogers Resort.

Winter finds him on the same waters, where he is busier than all get out. Talking about his guide service, Scott said “I love meeting new people. No one is the same. That’s what it’s all about. It’s a tough way to make a living but I love it.”

Our meeting place was the public access near the casino and I realized it was the Fourth of July weekend but who would think you’d have trouble in finding a parking place? Fishermen were there in droves. It didn’t matter if they had to toss back all their walleyes. They were going there to get bit and the odds were pretty good that it was going to happen. Truly amazing.

Sure, there were the occasional smallmouth bass and musky fishermen but the majority were looking for Minnesota’s state fish, Mr. Walleye.
Moe’s boat, a 1775 Lund Pro V, was purchased new in 2000 but looks good for its age and handled the windy waters of Mille Lacs quite well. I can’t imagine how many thousands of fish have come aboard that old Lund.

We planned on trolling crankbaits so no live bait was brought along, even though it was allowed through July 6. Starting July 7, it is not allowed. Minnesota fishing regulations state “Only artificial bait and lures allowed in possession on Mille Lacs Lake from 12:01 a.m. on Friday, July 7, to 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, July 27. Live bait restriction begins again at 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 5, and continue through 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 30. Anglers targeting northern pike and muskellunge may possess sucker minnows greater than 8" in length during these restricted periods.”
Pulling cranks, our first walleye, a nice, fat 24” fish, came quickly and lure colors were changed a few times until a definite pattern emerged. Although it wasn’t fast and furious, fish came often enough that we were never bored.

And it’s more than just tossing out lures and going willy-nilly across the lake. Moe, at 47 years old, has fished the big lake for most of his entire life. Speed and lure depth was also very critical but it didn’t take Scott long to get them “dialed in.”
Moe is good at what he does and represents several fishing related companies. One of them really caught my eye. It’s a little device, made by Kill Zone Fishing, that can make your bottom bouncers much more versatile. In a nutshell, it allows you to quickly and easily adjust the dropper weight distance on any rig you are using. For more information, go to their Facebook page or web site at www.killzonefishing.com. Here, you’ll be able to view short videos of the product.

It ended up being a great day on the water, catching a couple dozen nice walleye, with Scott getting bragging rights for his 27” fish. He also lost a larger fish as it neared the boat. For more information regarding a fishing trip with Scott Moe, go to his Facebook page or phone (612) 868-8810.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" Walleye Report June 20, 2017

Fishermen are inquisitive creatures, to say the least. I think that’s why the general majority of them have so darn much fishing tackle. We just can’t help it!

It doesn’t matter where I’m at. Somewhat a magical happening, there’s always something luring me toward the fishing tackle aisle, whether I need anything or not and I usually don’t. But what if? What if there’s a hot, new bait on the market and I’m missing out? Good Lord, I can’t let that happen.

Stopping at the local bait shop, you’re expected to look things over and make a purchase or two but WalMart? Come on. I can’t begin to think how many times I ran over there to buy bananas and bread and came home without them. I did, however, have some plastic worms, to use for bass fishing, along with a few other much needed necessities.

Much of the tackle, I believe, is designed to catch the angler, as well as the fish, as it comes in flashy, well-balanced colors and looks pretty darn cool. I’ve a lot of this stuff. However, some of it isn’t fancy at all but is proven and has been around forever, like the famed “Plow Jockey” plastic worm. I can’t remember where I first purchased one but it looked goofy enough to entice me into trying it. 

While most all plastic worms are fairly straight, the “Plow Jockey” lies there curled up, in sort of a crooked, fetal position, almost looking like it has given up. Odd, I thought. I had to try one just for fun. Needless-to-say, I was more than surprised when I started catching quite a few fish with the contraption.

The pre-rigged “Plow Jockey”, along with a few of the copycats, measures 5 ½” long and features three hooks, embedded into the worm. On one end, there is a short leader with a loop for tying on. It also emits the sweet smell of anise oil.

It’s a great little, obscure bait that can put a lot of fish in the boat. Bass eat it up, as well as sunfish, as the small Mustad hook at the at the rear of the bait nabs them most every time. The three hooks, by the way, are tied together with 17 pound test Trilene XL line so it’s made to take a beating and hold up.

When using one, I use a light sinker, just heavy enough to aid in casting but light enough to offer a slow fall. It gets them every time. Shortly before writing this article, I drove around Hibbing and failed to find any so it looks like I’ll have to order a few more from their web site at www.kellybassworms.com.

Coming in all sorts of colors and different lengths, you can get them weedless, if preferred, and some even feature a small propeller in the front.

I have the mind-set that slow trolling them wouldn’t be very productive but when thinking about it, they would almost imitate a “Slow Death” rig for walleye, where a crooked action is preferred. So, who knows?

The Swan Lake Classic was held last weekend, based out of Mr. Roberts. Anglers competed for top spots in walleye and northern pike divisions and the competition was fairly stiff. Many of these local anglers are very good at what they do. Make no mistake about it.

Coming out on top, in the walleye division, was Ted Bielecki, weighing in the largest walleye of the tournament at 1.45 pounds. He also took top honors in the stringer weight with three fish going 3.49 pounds.

Tom Galley and Casey Fisher brought home the big northern pike trophy with an 8.31 pounder, while the stringer of three award went to Gary and Chad Rutherford, weighing in 17.03 pounds.

Andy Walsh and I fished the event but had trouble in catching anything to weigh in, as all of our walleyes were either too small, under 14”, or too big, falling in the 17” to 26” slot limit and we did have a big one get off, while casting for northern pike. That fish, which I saw at boat side, looked like it might have been in the 26” range. Regardless, it sure put a bend in my musky rod.

Trying lead core mid-way through the contest, we immediately caught two nice fish, a 24” walleye and 28” northern pike. The walleye had to be released but the northern went into the live well and do you think we could get another qualifying fish over the 24” mark? No, but the lake certainly has a ton of smaller fish in the 20” range. Wow.

It makes one wonder just where all the walleye in the 14” to 17” range are. Gone? We either caught 11” fish or 23”ers. Hmmm. 

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" Lake Vermillon Walleye Report June 13, 2017

Wow. Fished out I am. I’m sure it will take a day or two to recover to the point where I want to hit the water again. I just spent eight days on Leech Lake, non-consecutive, pre-fishing the big lake for six of them and tournament fishing the other two, during last weekend’s AIM Walleye Series. As expected, “highs and lows” were had throughout the entire stretch.

I started things off by joining Al and Bev Standly. Covering a lot of water, in typical pre-fish mode, they were scouting things out for the Leech Lake Walleye Tournament to be held in days to follow. It was an excellent day and I even learned a thing or two from this dynamic walleye fishing team. Who said you can’t teach an old dog a few tricks now and then?

After a day off, I headed back solo and tried a few interesting spots. More-or-less riding around and exploring, I didn’t do much of anything until later in the day, when I finally found some very nice fish, measuring 26” and 28”. Checking out another area had me catching smaller fish in the 17”-18” range, along with losing another bigger one.

I waited another two days before going back, as the big Leech Lake Walleye Tournament was taking place and I didn’t want to get in the way or deal with all the boat traffic. However, the following Monday, fishing partner Andy Walsh and I were back at it.
It turned out to be a real stinker of a day. Fishing was horrendous. At least the catching was.

The next day had Brian Griffith, my tournament partner from many years ago, joining us. He knows the lake well and has run many a guide trip on Leech Lake. Although not fantastic fishing, we pin-pointed a couple more, little, obscure spots and went on to catch and release a few fish. Overall, it was a good day and a great opportunity to catch up on things with Brian. Oh, the stories.
Another day off, Wednesday, was taken due to Andy’s grandfather’s funeral. We had two more days to pre-fish before the two tournament AIM Walleye Series got underway on the weekend.

Thursday had good friend Jim Carpenter joining us for the day. Jim’s been in many walleye tournaments and has done very well. He also knows the big waters of Leech Lake like the back of his hand. We went on to learn a few more good spots, catching a bunch of fish in the low-to-mid 20” range, with the largest going just under 25”.

The final day of pre-fishing was held on Friday, where Andy and I were honored to have Bill Thurman, owner of Mesaba Heating A/C Plumbing, join us for the day. Bill, one of our tournament sponsors, is an avid angler and was right at home in chasing Leech Lake walleyes. This was somewhat of a slow day but we didn’t want to beat up the spots that we had going.

As luck would have it, Mother Nature, right on schedule, knew Saturday morning was tournament time and presented us with typical angry Leech Lake weather. It was blowing pretty good and really threw a wrench into some of our favorite walleye spots, as the lake was too rough to fish them properly.

How hard was it blowing? Well, Justin Bailey was just taking off, right out of the shoot, on the way to his “first pick”, when he hit a “hard wave”, causing a drawer to slide open in his boat. Now that’s not so bad but when stored items fly up into the air and settle on the bottom of the lake it is. Some of them were about $200 worth of Jig Raps, handheld radio, truck keys, and billfold.
We went on to struggle throughout the day and had a poor showing. Such is the life of a tournament angler. Thank goodness I don’t do this for a living, as I’d starve to death or at least be eating one heck of a lot of fish.

The next day was almost a repeat, with Mother Nature acting up again, only tossing in a little rain and lightning this time, and with Andy and I struggling. We did better on this day but it was still tough going for us, along with a few others.
It’s always fun going head-to-head with some of the best walleye teams and “Team Picht” emerged as one of them. Stephen and Brenda Picht placed 23rd on Saturday and wrapped up the weekend with an impressive 4th place finish on Sunday. Full results can be viewed by going to “AIM Weekend Walleye Series” on Facebook.

Next up? The GRAHA Walleye Shootout on Pokegama Lake, July 15. And the competition doesn’t get any easier.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" Lake Vermillon Walleye Report June 5, 2017

Their love for each other, along with the sport of fishing, is quite evident. After all, they stayed in a tent on their honeymoon, spent at Judd’s Resort on Big Winnibigoshish, in 1979, and are still going strong today, maybe stronger.

Al and Bev Standley, Lakeville, have been a fixture on the walleye tournament scene since 1996, starting out with a “couples event” held on Mille Lacs Lake. From there, things sort of snowballed, as they have competed in at least 200 events so far and still counting.

I had the opportunity to hop in the boat with them last week and observe how this well-oiled walleye catching machine gets things done. We were on Leech Lake and it was their first day of pre-fishing for the 9th annual Leech Lake Walleye Tournament.

Leech Lake offers 111,000 acres of water with angling opportunities for all, no matter the species. While Al and Bev Standley were in hot pursuit of trophy walleye, many others were enjoying Leech Lake for its bass and northern pike fishing and let’s not forget about the bragging size panfish that swim these waters. Famous for its musky fishing, the musky season opened June 3, the same day as the first day of the Leech Lake Walleye Tournament.

Although one of Minnesota’s larger lakes, it doesn’t take the Standleys’ long to go from one end to the other, if need be. Forever a “tiller man”, Al now runs a wheel boat, a 20’ Warrior, powered by a 300 horsepower Yamaha. Needless-to-say, we covered water in a hurry.

It was a little breezy on this day, making the big lake rough from time-to-time, but it didn’t matter when sitting in a boat seat on top of a WavePro hi-performance pedestal. These units make all the difference in the world, especially when it comes to running hard in rough conditions, which is what tournament anglers do. Your back will say “thank you.”

We checked out several areas and found a stingy bite. A few fish were caught and released and some were just what Team Standley was looking for, like the 27”er caught by Al. No stranger to big walleyes herself, Bev has caught them up to 29 ½”, on Mille Lacs Lake, while Al’s largest came from the Rainy River and taped out at 31 ½”.

Trying to put together a pattern was difficult, as fish came on all live-bait presentations, using shiners, crawlers, and leeches. Depths varied as well, depending on which area of the lake we were fishing. Hopefully, by the end of the week, Al and Bev would have a concrete plan to put to work. They usually do.

Back in the early years, Bev said she was more than a little intimidated when it came to backing up a boat trailer. Watching her now, you’d think she’s done that for decades. Oh wait, she has! She’s also pretty darn good at catching fish too.
Although the Standleys’ are always a force to be reckoned with on the tournament trail, Al said “we’ve had our highs and lows”. There isn’t a tournament pro that hasn’t. It comes with the territory.

He told of the time when they had a nice basket of fish to weigh in but their boat broke down. Tournament rules allow an angler to be picked up by another boat, during a situation like this, so Bev and the fish bummed a ride back to the weigh-in, while Al stayed with the boat.
They ended up cashing a check that day. Ironically, the same team that brought Bev back to shore was bumped out of the money for their good deed. Classy anglers all around.

I’ve competed against Al and Bev quite a few times and no matter the outcome, they always hold their heads high and display a professional demeanor. They usually beat me too!

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" Lake Vermillon Walleye Report May 23, 2017

My first walleye tournament is now in the books and after two days of rest, I’m still tired out. They’re a lot of fun but a good deal of work as well, especially when Mother Nature starts throwing curveballs, making it miserable out on the water.
My pre-fishing started out with my brother, Bruce, on opening day. I really wanted to go to Upper Red Lake on this day but seeing how Andy Walsh and I were entered in the City Auto Glass Walleye Classic on Lake Vermilion a week later, I thought it best to spend as much time out there as possible.
Bruce and I experienced decent fishing (except for the banana episode) on that Saturday. I took Sunday off but headed right back to Lake Vermilion, by myself, on the following Monday. More-or-less just exploring and looking at areas I have never fished before, I found a couple more good spots and brought home a nice limit of walleye. I also lost two big fish but one I’m betting was a musky, which is always fun but not what I was looking for.
Going solo, back at it again on Wednesday, I found the fishing, or at least the catching, to have slowed considerably. Never-the-less, several other spots were checked off “the list” and pre-fishing continued. Even if fish weren’t found or caught in some of these areas, I consider it positive pre-fishing, as at least I know not to worry about missing something and there’s a lot to miss on this body of water, with its 40,000 acres, 100 miles of shoreline, and 365 islands. It’s indeed quite a fishery.
Andy had Thursday and Friday off to help pre-fish but the weather had really turned sour so the first order of the day was to stop and have a hearty breakfast, on our way to the lake, at Sportmen’s Café in Hibbing. To say we weren’t in any hurry is an understatement.
Once on the water, we re-visited several of my proven spots and came up empty-handed. Not one walleye was caught on this day but a couple of very nice smallmouth bass made their way to the boat. That had me thinking of the bass tournament that was scheduled for Sunday. Hmmm?
By Friday, the weather had straightened out to the point where it was actually nice out. The fish bit well too. Determining where to go in the morning of the tournament was a difficult choice. We had fish going in so many different spots and none of them were anything special but both of us favored going back to the last area we fished on Friday. It looked promising, in there was a good number of fish to be found and it wasn’t over-fished by other anglers. We’re usually on the same wave-length, when it comes to making fishing decisions, and that, I believe, is what makes us such a compatible tournament team.
Although only a little more than an hour away from home, we stayed Friday night at Fortune Bay Casino, where the tournament was based out of. This made things a lot easier, as we had the rules meeting dinner from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and had to get after it right away in the morning. Precious hours were saved.
The marina opened at 4:00 a.m. on Saturday morning. If you needed bait or boat gas, it was readily available. Andy’s boat was securely left in a slip overnight and was charged up and ready to go.
Coffee and muffins, courtesy of Perkins, were offered to any anglers needing a little something in the morning. We didn’t worry about not eating a breakfast, as Subway box lunches were given to all contestants. That would work just fine.
Being boat number 91, out of 110, we watched almost everyone else heading out onto the big lake, wondering if anyone would be in “our spot.”
It was windy and rough out but that didn’t stop Captain Andy from pushing the limit with his 200 horsepower Mercury. I think we only went airborne once, maybe twice. Halfway there, I noticed Andy’s lucky hat had blown off his head. It did the “deep six” somewhere back in Big Bay.
Only one other tournament boat was there to greet us. Each working a small area, fishing etiquette was observed, as we each kept a safe and respectable distance from one another. That’s sure nice when you are fishing near “class” anglers. I’ve seen it the other way around too many times.
Andy started things off with a 13 ½” walleye, caught on a jig and minnow, which is certainly nothing to brag about but when it’s the first fish of the morning and you don’t know what is in store for you, it goes into the livewell. Each team could keep their limit of eight fish, four each, and weigh in six of them. The walleye had to be at least 12” in length and only two could be over 26”. Everything in the slot limit, 20” to 26”, had to be released.
He followed up with another of the same size. I told Andy “I’m going for the gusto” and dropped down a large minnow on the end of a live bait rig. Minutes later, I had a nice fish on the end of my line. Upon netting the fish, I was a little disappointed, as it looked to be 25” or so, which meant it wouldn’t count for anything, other than the fun in catching it.
The fish measured at a “hair” over 26”. Using two bump boards, we measured it several times before deciding to keep it. Still fishing, another decision had to be made and that was to leave our spot and head back across rough water to weigh the fish in before it died. It was looking good now but later? Who knew?
We left and tried to take it easy, which is hard to do during windy conditions. Heading back, I pointed off to the side and said “look, a hat”, joking around like normal.
One hour into the tournament, we were docking at the headquarters and officials were walking down to meet us. If the fish was too small, we would be disqualified. You can rest assure that we did some accurate measurements out on the lake, using two different boards.
It measured out as over, but barely, and we were on the board with a nice walleye weighing 5.69 pounds, which was successfully released by officials. Now we had to go back and get five more decent fish, which really didn’t happen. Although we set our sights on catching a few in the 16” to 18” range, the biggest we could come up with was two measuring 15”.
Mixed in with a few 14” walleye, we were able to put together a six fish tournament limit weighing 10.51 pounds, which ended up being good enough for 7th place and $1,400.
Hats off to the team of Dan and Jake Dougherty for their first place finish, weighing in six fish for 15.28 pounds, which included a 10.2 pound trophy walleye. They were awarded $12,500 for their efforts.
We’re already looking forward to next year!

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" May 15, 2017 - How was your opener? Opening Day Fishing Report

From the sounds of it, most everyone did pretty good and if they didn’t, they surely couldn’t complain about the weather. That’s about the nicest opening day weather I can ever remember.
Fishing friends and family were spread out on different waters, all across the North Country and here’s how it all went down.
Andy Walsh did the “start at midnight thing” on Mille Lacs and just about wore out his fish clicker, as by the time the smoke had cleared, over 140 walleyes made their way into the boat. Of course, it was catch and release only, as you can’t keep any walleye there but who really cares when you can start the season off like that. Wow.
Andy and friends trolled crankbaits at night and had several “triples” happen. Once the sun peeked over the trees, they switched to jigs and plastics and kept on catching…and releasing. Yes, the fish were hungry, to say the least, and they weren’t just the little guys, as a couple of them were in the 30” range. Mike Patras boated his personal best of 30.75”. That’s a nice fish anywhere. Congrats Mike! 
Justin Bailey started on Leech Lake and found good fishing as well. Bailey found success by slowly working, almost dragging, 1/16 and 1/8 oz. jigs tipped with shiners. Key areas were where the sand met new weed growth in 5’ to 12’ of water. Justin also commented on the weather, saying “it was the most beautiful weather I can ever remember.”
My brother, Joel, and company, fished Upper Red Lake and did as expected, catching several nice walleyes. He stated that after catching a number of fish by using jigs and minnows, they switched gears and trolled Rapalas, and began catching them at an even faster pace. That can be hard to do, when there’s a lot of boat traffic, and I’m sure Upper Red Lake had plenty of it. 
My son, Kris, and longtime childhood buddy, Kyle McCollor, are always up for an adventure and this year’s opening day was no different, as they set their sights on a bunch of small backwater lakes. You know the type. They’re the ones that have you sometimes pulling a small boat through all kinds of obstacles, just to reach the water, not even knowing if it’s going to be worth the effort. Well, it was. Some of them anyway.
Their next adventure is going to require something more than a jon boat, as they will be making a trip to Lake Nipigon for monster lake trout, as well as other species. I can’t wait for the report on that one.
I talked my brother, Bruce, into joining me for a day out on the water and that’s always a special occasion, especially when it’s on opening day. Lake Vermilion was my selection.
Coming from different directions, we made plans to meet in Sturgeon, a halfway point. There, he would toss in his gear and jump in with me, leaving his vehicle.
There wasn’t a lot, just a couple of rods, an unusually heavy, old tacklebox, and a light lunch, which included a BANANA!
I enlightened him of the wide-ranging superstition of bananas being labeled as bad luck, when it came to fishing. Many anglers won’t allow them into the boat. Not believing in that bad omen, I just laughed it off but was sure to rag on him a little for trying to ruin our opening day.
Once there, Hoo Doo Point, (now with a name like that, I should have known better. I already had the banana going against me) I quickly backed the boat in and left Bruce on the dock, holding the rope. We were a little late in getting there and the parking lot was full so I had to drive quite a distance, park on the edge of the road, and walk about ¼ mile back to the dock.
Hopping in the boat and getting things in order, I noticed a lot of water coming in from somewhere. I couldn’t believe it! (It was the banana, I’m telling ya) The boat is only one year old and doesn’t leak a drop. As a matter-of-fact, I take great pride when it comes to pulling the plug, as it’s always as dry as a bone.
It was busy, more boats were putting in and we were kind of stuck, with nowhere to go. I found a small open area and beached it in front of some campers. I hated to intrude but had no option and explained the situation to my new friends. They could have cared less but their dogs were sure barking.
Wave Wackers are great for keeping water out of the boat, when back trolling, but there’s no way a person can reach over them to inspect a boat plug. I knew I put it in there and tightened it up good. How in the world could it have come out, if that was even the problem?
There was only one way to find out. Yup. Taking my shoes and socks off, setting them neatly off to the side, I stepped out of the boat and into the nice, cool, spring lake water. Thank goodness we had an early spring, as it wasn’t as bad as I was expecting.
Wet up to my knees, and up to my shoulders, I found the plug intact and shoved a spare plug into the “other” hole. Bruce walked up to get the truck (he needed the exercise anyway), while I watched the bilge pump work away. It didn’t look like I was making any headway but it didn’t matter. I had to drive it back onto the trailer to check things out.
He arrived and I don’t think I’ve ever loaded a boat so fast. I just don’t like the feeling of a lot of water inside the boat. It’s supposed to be on the outside.
The boat launch people probably thought “wow, that was a quick limit. I just saw those guys go out 30 minutes ago.” They did come to check us out though and once again I had to explain.
Parked well out of the way, I looked at the back of the boat and found I had inadvertently put the boat plug in the livewell drain hole! (I don’t care, I’m blaming the banana)
Tossing my wet shirt up in front of the boat and putting on any extra clothes I could find, we got back in line and did it right this time. Yes, my pants were wet and stayed that way for most of the day but we did go home with a nice limit of fish. How was your opening day?

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" May 9, 2017

Are you ready for the fishing opener? I think I am. Although at the time of this writing, I have only taken my boat out two times, so far, this new open water season. We’ll see. There’s always something that I have forgotten and it usually takes me two or three trips before all is “perfect.” Here is a brief “first trip checklist”.

• First off, be sure to try your boat out beforehand and not at the public launch, where a dozen other anxious fishermen will be waiting for you. I’ve seen it too many times. Fire that beast up prior to the opening day. Also, have a little patience, especially if you see someone having difficulties. It’s a long season and it doesn’t hurt to help someone out on this much-awaited day.

• Current fishing license? This is easy to overlook, when there’s so many other things on your mind.

• Boat trailer – This too, may need a license. Are the running lights “running”? How are the tires looking? If they’ve been sitting for a long time, they just may be weather-checked and in need of being replaced. Make sure there is enough air pressure in the tires. Running low will cause them to run warm, if not hot, and may create problems on the highway. If so, do you have a spare and the proper jack and wheel wrench to change it? Also, give the hubs a shot of grease and check (feel them by hand) after traveling a few miles. If they’re slightly warm, okay, but be careful, they could be HOT! Cool or cold is always preferred.

• Boat – Do you have a current license? A lot of anglers do but leave it sitting at home or in their wallet. Do the conservation officers a favor and put it on, as they have a lot on their plate and shouldn’t have to make “wasted stops”.

• How about a boat launching rope? Water levels vary (most are fairly-high right now) and a rope makes things a lot easier. You don’t want to be wading in the cold waters of spring. It’s not very comfortable. I always carry a pair of knee-boots, along with a pair of hip-waders, for difficult launching situations.

• Batteries are probably the number one cause of opening day problems. Be sure they are charged up and ready to go. Check the connections.

• Boat plug? As simple as it seems, this is highly important. Over the course of many years, who hasn’t gone to the lake and found out a boat plug had disappeared? I remember whittling down and jamming a stick in mine one time. Of course, it was a little 14’er that I was able to keep an eye on while nervously fishing away.

• Enough life vests and boat cushions? Not only a regulation but also something that just may save someone’s life.

• Drift sock? Larger lakes they often require slowly drifting the bait in front of a walleye’s nose call for some sort of device to slow you down a bit. This can make or break your day. I remember, back in the day, using a 5-gallon bucket on the end of a rope. This was before the drift-sock was even on the market. We do what we need to do.

• Check your fishing line, as it’s probably the least expensive cost of the whole trip. If you’ve got a little idle time on your hands, change the line to be sure you don’t break off on that big fish. Not sure how to do it? Bring the reel in. Most bait shops will gladly “spool you up.”

• Landing net. I can’t recall how many times I’ve forgotten mine at home. This is mainly because I don’t use one when fishing for spring panfish, as it gets in the way. So, there I am, out walleye fishing and am looking for the net when that first fish is hooked, only to remember that it’s hanging in the garage. With a half-dozen others.

• Most boats have livewells but many don’t. Don’t forget a method to keep your catch. When I’m fishing in a small boat, I either use a floating fish basket for panfish or cooler with a little ice in it. Sometimes a stringer is used but they take up time and always offer a good chance at losing a fish, if not the whole stringer.

• Last, but not least, on this somewhat short list is to be sure to protect yourself from the sun. Bring along sun-block (better yet, put it on at home and then wash your hands) and a hat and sunglasses.

Enjoy your time on the water with family and friends and good luck to all. Be careful and have fun!

Marc Koprevic of Keewatin continues his turkey hunting success with this nice bird taken in SE Minnesota. Bagged April 23, the tom weighed 24 1/2 pounds and sported a 10" beard and 1 1/4" spurs.

Eight year old Aubrey Bailey, Keewatin, shows how to catch big crappies. She was fishing with dad, fishing guide Justin Bailey. Crappie are up shallow NOW. Keep this in mind for Minnesota's "Opening Day".

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" May 2, 2017

Normally waking up quite early, I was a little disappointed in myself for sleeping until 4:35 am (I never set an alarm). That’s when I first cleared my eyes and glanced at the clock. It took a few seconds before I realized that Andy Walsh and I had made plans to leave town at 4:30 am!
Peering outside, there he was, patiently waiting, with his big Lund Impact in tow. Somewhat embarrassed, it only took a few minutes before I was joining him for a trip across the border to Kakagi Lake.
Ice-out lake trout in mind, I knew we’d be pushing our luck a bit, as the ice had just left. I’ve experienced poor fishing immediately after ice-out but here we were, positioned in a miserable transition stage, with not a lot of choices, when it comes to fishing. Also, Andy only has weekends off so we had to make it happen.
I was excited, as I haven’t tried my hand at these early fish for several years. The equipment used has been sitting in the garage, organized and ready to go for the last two weeks. All we needed was open water and it was finally here.
It’s not a bad trip, for doing it all in one day. It’s very comparable to driving to the Twin Cities and back for a day of fun. There’s one big difference though and that is there aren’t any Canadian Shield lakes offering great lake trout fishing.
It was cold overnight, so I wasn’t surprised to find an early morning ice skim covering most of the lake. We took it easy, making it out to a few open water patches, breaking ice as we went. One other boat was out there, slowly trolling an open water area. The ice looked to be ¼” thick in places but had melted away by day’s end.
Picking our way, we found suitable water to troll in and would occasionally feel our lines hitting ice from time to time. The ice looked to be ¼” thick in places but would melt away by day’s end. Water temperatures ranged from 37º to 39º throughout the day.
Starting “old school”, the way I first began fishing for these critters, 30 years ago, a stick-bait was tied on and let out about 200’ behind the boat. A 1 oz. trolling sinker was also used, to make sure that we were down just a bit, in case the fish were lazy and didn’t feel like raising up to get it.
The other bait was one of my custom-made rigs, mimicking the famed “Strip-On Minnow.” Decorated with catchy, trout-loved colors (silver, white, purple, etc.), a thawed-out cisco was threaded onto it. I’ve found this to work well, especially very early in the spring. It will catch more than its fair share of fish, when compared to crankbaits and spoons.
Years ago, a 4” floating Rapala was king and best colors varied from day to day. This was before the introduction of “Husky Jerks” and the myriad of other great crankbaits that we have on the market today. There’s almost too much to pick from and that can be a problem at times. I think.
Nothing was happening with our trolling approach so we decided to do the shore-fishing thing. This is always fun.
We tried one of my favorite spots for this method. This one involves a long, slow tapered break that has early season trout on the prowl, looking for something to eat. Many spots like this allow the angler to cast out from shore but this one had us bringing the baits out to the desired depth with the boat, dropping them in place, and then returning to shore, giving line as we went.
Once on shore, the rod is propped up and the reel bail is open, allowing the fish to pick up the bait and run with it, not feeling any resistance at all.
If it’s breezy out, the line will be pulled out of the reel so you need to make sure that it is secured in some creative manner. I have some custom-made line holders, made with rubber-coated alligator clips but there is also the old method of “beer canning”, so named by my Canadian trout fishing friends.
This involves wrapping the line around an empty can, shortly after leaving the spool. Sitting upright, the can will tip over and make noise (almost always fishing on a rock ledge) when a fish runs with the bait. Shore fishing usually involves having lunch and not paying a lot of attention so this method works well.
Since we are not allowed to carry beer in the boat, let along be drinking it on shore, we went the American version of “pop canning”, or in Andy’s case “energy drink canning”.
Another tip when shore fishing is to place something on the line, close to the rod tip, so you notice line leaving the rod, signaling a fish. Do you chew gum? Tin foil works well for this practice.
We gave it the old college try and came up empty-handed. Discouraged? Not much. Maybe just a tad. The beautiful scenery made up for much of the lack of action. It’s always gorgeous up there, especially during early spring, when ice is still clinging to the shorelines.
It did give us a chance to check out some of our tournament equipment (graphs, new transducer, trolling rods, etc.). All worked great but I think we’re going to upgrade the trolling line-counter reels.
We’re also making a trip back. This time, the water should be a little bit warmer and trout should be frequenting the shallows. Warmer shallow water equals insect and minnow life and with it hungry trout. Maybe next weekend?

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" April 25, 2017

Come on Ma Nature! Quit teasing us. However, I guess we should be used to this type of behavior, as it happens most every spring. The problem was an early ice out, with a few balmy days mixed in, which had many of us quickly getting our summer fishing gear ready. On the plus side, we’re now ready to rip!
This is definitely a time of transition and it has me chomping at the bit. Hearing a report of ice out lake trout, across the border, I quickly lined up a trip. Having spent hundreds of hours on Kakagi Lake, especially in the spring, I was excited to get back up there and had all equipment lined up and ready to go in a matter of minutes.

"Double Trouble"...Justin Bailey and Coty Pihlaja doubled up on suckers several times last week. They're great smoked and always fun to catch.

There was only one problem. The lake wasn’t open yet. The report was of someone, who had trolled a “skinny” stretch of open water, in between the main lake ice pack and the rocky shores of Kakagi Lake. They caught three fish.
It now looks like we will be waiting until the 1st of May or so before heading north, which works for me. I’ve always found that ice out lake trout fishing is usually very predictable, along with very good, ten days to two weeks after the ice has vanished.
Anxious for the season, I’ve been up there a day or two after ice out and found fish to be back in small, shallow bays, where a jig and minnow had to be used. It was slow fishing and boring to me. Unlike the shoreline trolling method of pulling Rapalas. So, it looks like I’ll have to wait a bit on this adventure.
Then there was Lake Superior calling my name. Yes. Fish were being caught but the first two planned outings fell by the wayside due to weather patterns. When it’s windy, you certainly don’t want to be out there. Scratching out the date in my appointment calendar, it too, has been re-scheduled. I’m equally excited about this one as well.
Searching for something, anything, to stretch my string, I ended up going sucker fishing and happily experienced one of my best outings ever. Three of us, Justin Bailey, Coty Pihlaja, and I, caught a pile of fish and had quite a time.
You know it’s pretty good fishing when doubles and triples are happening on a regular basis, even if it is only sucker fishing.
I always look forward to spring sucker fishing. It’s a chance to use walleye tackle and is sort of a spring ritual for me. We caught several dozen fish and kept sixteen that were destined for the smoker at Four Seasons Market in Coleraine. They do a great job and I’m looking forward to a snack of smoked sucker.
I’ve been trying shore fishing for panfish quite a bit but the cool temps have kept the majority of them out in deeper water, much further than I can cast. Actually, the only panfish I have caught have come while using a boat.
Andy Walsh and I tried three lakes last Friday and found fish in two of them.
The first lake, a local, popular, body of water, had us finding crappie in 16’ of water. They weren’t exactly jumping in the boat, as it was a tough bite. We had to hover directly over them, placing our baits right in front of their faces. I brought along my Vexilar, which proved to be very useful. It was a lot like winter fishing, only using long rods.
The best bait was a small hair jig or Northland Tackle “Fire Fly”, tipped with a waxworm. Go without any added “meat” and they wouldn’t touch it.
The next lake, home to some real dandy crappie and bluegill, had us searching around and not finding anything. When this happens, we quickly load up and are on our way to the next lake. You have to love living and fishing in Itasca county, home of 1,000 lakes.
The third lake of the afternoon offered up a fair amount of panfish, finding them anywhere from 16’ to 21’. One area was classic textbook. As we were heading back to the access, I told Andy to check out the deep water right in front of a small, shallow bay. Yes, there they were, staging, waiting for the little bay to warm up to their liking.
All fish were released on this day, unlike the suckers. That got me thinking. Who in the world keeps suckers but tosses back panfish? Me I guess.
Get out there and enjoy the Great Outdoors. It’s happening NOW.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" April 18, 2017

I hope everyone had a nice Easter. We did, gathering together at my place with some of the family. Naturally, I had time in the morning to sneak away and check out a couple local rivers. No fish were caught and the only hint of one was a super-light sucker nibble.
I recall an Easter spent at my mother-in-law’s cabin on Little Bear Lake several years ago. The kids, both young, searched outside for eggs, as all the snow had melted. It was much like last weekend’s weather but we still had some sketchy ice on the lake.
A thin open water area, located near a small, weedy island, caught my attention. It was directly in front of the cabin and surrounded by very shallow water. Wondering if there were any fish in this area, I scrounged up some “summer tackle” from inside the cabin and headed out to investigate.
If I wanted to fish anywhere on the lake, it had to be this spot, as I never had an auger with me. The open water was my only opportunity.
Easing myself up to the edge of the hole, I extended a long summer rod out and dropped a small jig over the side, in 2-3’ of water. Imagine my surprise, when a large perch slammed the bait and was pulled to the surface.
I admired it for a few seconds and slid it back into the water and went on to catch a few more. They were all big and obviously female perch, full of eggs. We never caught them that large during the summer months, only the little ones.
They were also grubby but never-the-less fun.
The allure of water. I just can’t get enough of it and that’s probably why I’m always checking out different fisheries. Some of them aren’t even that. Just a pool of water that appears to possibly hold a fish or two.
I’ve been in the boat a couple times this spring but most of my adventures have taken place while trying to shore fish somewhere. I realize that I’d be better off using a boat, if bringing home a meal of crappies was a priority, but I prefer to start out from shore and then work my way into the boat a couple weeks later.
It goes like this:
*Fish from shore using knee boots or hip waders. That’s why I’m constantly checking water temperatures and as of right now it’s too cold. I’ve found water as warm as 51.5º but the fish weren’t there. This was in the morning. I’m thinking if I went back in the afternoon, it would be warmer and might possibly have a few fish within casting range. Ideally, find water in the mid-50’s and you’ll have fish.
*Use chest waders to work the shorelines, when fish start to disperse from in front of you. Waders allow me to move up and down the shorelines, as long as it’s not too soft of a bottom. I haven’t gone too deep, where water has run into the top of them but darn close. It’s the boggy, soft-bottomed areas that usually stop me. I said usually.
*Once fish are harder to catch from shore, it’s time for the boat. Many of the lakes I fish, however, are only accessible from shore and dragging a boat into them isn’t really worth the effort. Normally, when using a boat, I’m on prime crappie waters.
One of the lakes (if you can call it that) I checked last week brought back a lot of memories, as I had fished it with my late Uncle Francis, over 30 years ago.
Thinking there might be some fish in it, we put on the knee-boots and made our way out across a floating bog. It was one of those bogs that had you making an immediate next step because your other foot was sinking. You had to look ahead and plan your steps. You also had to go fairly quick and that’s hard to do when there’s a lot of brush in the way. It was such tough going that we only brought along one rod, which we planned on sharing.
Reaching the edge of a 20-acre bog lake, Francis got the first turn. Casting a “Beetle Spin” for five minutes resulted in nothing. Then it was my turn, which ended in the same results.
Back to Francis. I was looking the other way, when I heard him say “there’s one.” I turned to see the rod folded over and the line slowly moving along the shoreline. Obviously not a crappie, it didn’t fight but steadily and slowly swam away until it came loose. That was our only bite. I had to re-visit for old time sake.
Again with the knee-boots. This time, however, the bog was still partially frozen. I could feel the solid firmness below my feet and getting to the so-called lake was a breeze. Taking the water temp revealed it to be slightly over 51º. I was hoping for more.
This time, I was making extra-long casts with my 7’2” Tuned Up Custom Rods ultra-light. A small hair jig was on the business end of things and a large Rocket Bobber helped in making casts of 75-100 feet. Nothing. Still too cold. Not easily deterred, I’ll be going back.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" April 11, 2017

Wow. We sure made a quick leap into spring. I can’t believe most all the lakes are now ice free. This is one of the earliest ice-outs I can remember and I’m guessing that the Minnesota general fishing opener will be a very good one. After all, the walleye and northern pike will have spawned weeks in advance and will be aggressively looking for something to eat. I can’t wait!
Pretty much anchored around the house for the past couple weeks, due to being sick and having nowhere to fish, I looked forward to a Twin City road trip, last Sunday, with Justin Bailey.
He was bringing a good buddy, Jonathon, to the Minneapolis airport so he could catch a flight back home to Colorado. Jonathon, a medic, saved Justin’s life not once but twice while doing tours in Afghanistan and Iraq so, obviously, they are as tight as buddies can be.
The bond our servicemen and servicewomen have with one another is something to behold. Not having been in the service, I have witnessed this everlasting friendship while fishing with Justin and his comrades and it is indeed something very special.
Jonathon spent several days fishing for sturgeon and walleye with Justin on the Rainy River. The guy loves to fish, especially largemouth bass, which he did with me last summer. I’ve invited him back here this year for more of the same.
On the road, Bailey’s phone summons him often. Many times, it has something to do with the “Fishing with Vets” program he co-founded. A registered 501c(3) non-profit organization, its popularity is snowballing and receiving a ton of support. We were driving past an almost-open Mille Lacs Lake when his phone rang again. It was another generous donation. This time, from the Keewatin Legion. And so it goes. The phone just keeps on ringing.
Fishing with Vets strives to hold four to five “once in a lifetime” fishing events annually. Recently, Fishing with Vets had a successful event on Upper Red Lake. This event gave fifteen veterans the opportunity to fish with accomplished guides, while sleeping on the ice in donated Ice Castles from the Ice Castle Owners Group (ICOG). It also gave these fifteen vets a chance to “open up” and have a few laughs.
Currently scheduled for 2017 are events on Pool 4 of the Mississippi River, Lake Minnewaska in Alexandria, MN, the Grand Rapids area, and Lake of the Woods. Each event is budgeted for at least 25 vets and 15 guides. Two nights lodging is provided for veterans and guides, along with food, and bait. Gas and other general fishing expenses (e.g., gear) are donated by the guides.
During the Trout Lake event last year, Fishing with Vets partnered up with the local community to hold a fish fry for the vets. Not only did the community come out in droves to show their appreciation, but the local fire department and law enforcement provided an escorted caravan from Grand Rapids to the Trout Lake public access in Coleraine. Also helping out and joining in on the fun was a local motorcycle club. It was an impressive sight, to say the least. This was a unique experience for all on the trip and something the community took great pride in.
Fishing with Vets has accomplished quite a lot in its first two years, providing more than 170 veterans the opportunity to enjoy the passion of fishing, whether open water or on the ice. Many vets stated the events not only opened them up to the sport of fishing but aided in calming and reducing anxiety.
For more information on the Fishing with Vets program, contact Justin Bailey at 218-259-9932 or go to their Facebook page. 
I will be doing my regular “spring thing”, running around and checking out some of my better shore fishing spots for panfish. I’ll keep you posted when it all starts to happen. It can’t be too far away.- Good luck, be safe, and have fun!

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" April 3, 2017 A Time to Travel

Spring transition is now upon us so if you still have the need to go ice fishing, you may want to head north, way north, like deep into Ontario. I don’t push the envelope like I used to so I won’t be drilling anymore holes this spring, preferring to wait until this fall.
And where in the world did all that ice fishing equipment come from? I sell off quite a bit of stuff, from time to time, but it still manages to accumulate at a fairly-fast rate. This year, the plan is to get rid of all shelters, augers, along with a bunch of rods.
The only things I’m hanging on to are Vexilars and my Tuned Up Custom Rods collection, which is growing nicely with each new season. Sometimes it takes a while to get things all figured out and one thing I did come to realize is that fact that I prefer shorter ice rods, like 26”. I’ve already got next season’s order in mind but for now it’s time to put things away. The rods, by the way, are nicely put away for the summer in IceFishing Innovation boxes. Not only are they great for hauling your stuff around when ice fishing, they work very well in storing those expensive rods and reels until the next season.
Focusing on the open water season, options are limited but it still can be done. It just depends on what type of boat action you are looking for.
Locally, the ever-famous Cohasset “hot pond” has anglers casting away, catching practically everything under the sun. If you’re looking for a chance to see if the boat still floats and want to get your string stretched, this is the place for you.
Otherwise, head north to the Rainy River and give those fat walleyes a chance to grab your bait. It’s happening now. Live bait, salted shiners, or plastics, they’re biting on all offerings. Success, however, depends on river conditions and just where you decide to fish. Many anglers did well recently, fishing closer to the lake.
And yes, the sturgeon hunters are heading up in droves. This sport has taken off in a big way and the fish seemed to have gotten bigger as well. If you’ve never done battle with a big fish, this is your golden opportunity to do so.
Nothing fancy is needed to join in on this big-time fun. All you need is a boat with a heavy anchor or two. I use two 28-pound river anchors, placing one at each end of the boat to keep it from swinging around, especially if I’m fishing Four Mile Bay. I’ll position the boat sideways, making it easier for everyone to fish. It just gives you more room to spread out your lines.
However, when fishing in the river, where strong current is present, I’ll only drop one anchor from the bow. It’s tricky at times and can be dangerous. Never, and I mean never, drop the anchor over the transom (back), as strong current could swamp the boat. I’ve seen unknowing anglers flirting with disaster, and it scares the heck out of me.
Other open water options are to head south and fish the rivers in the Twin City area. This is always a fun adventure and you just never know what you’re going to catch. It’s quite the smorgasbord.
For now, I’ve been anchored to cleaning the garage and organizing tackle, slowly putting away winter stuff and getting ready for the summer season.
Andy Walsh and I will be competing in a number of tournaments again this summer so most of my organizing has to do with walleye fishing.
I like this. Everything looks so darn nice and neat when I’m done but after only one or two outings looks like a bomb went off, as all looks out of order, to me anyway.
I’ll start off with the jig box, organizing according to size and color, tossing any that have a hint of rust (It might not bother the fish but it bothers me). Northland Tackle “Fire-Ball” jigs are a favorite of mine and I can easily see which colors I prefer, as there aren’t many left (Glow Watermelon always a favorite).
Northland’s new “Current Cutter” jig has made my starting line-up and will definitely be used when I’m fishing current areas like the Rainy River, etc. Tip with the new Impulse “Core Swimbait” and you have a serious walleye catching presentation on your hands. I can’t wait to give it a try.
From there, I’ll move onto the live bait box, making sure I have a nice selection of egg sinkers, swivels, beads, and hooks. It’s a simple presentation that catches a lot of fish but must be done right. Practice makes perfect. Remember, “keep it simple.”
Of course, the crank bait boxes need to be gone through, checking hooks, making sure you have enough of each-and-every size. This gets a little expensive but by adding a few with each new season you will eventually end up with a very nice assortment.
If you want to talk more on fishing (or boats), be sure to stop by the open house at Ray’s Sport & Marine in Grand Rapids this weekend. I’ll see you there!

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" March 21, 2017

My last day of ice fishing involved me pulling a Fish Trap all over the lake. Yes, I could’ve driven my truck, as the ice was still good but that old “gut feeling” kicked in and I decided to play it safe. Sometimes I surprise myself. I guess I’ve pushed the envelope enough to know when I should use a little common sense.
The ice surface was sloppy, at best, with an inch of standing water here and there. Many times, my shelter was floating along behind me like a small barge. I thought it would pull easier than that. Ice cleats were used for traction and by day’s end I had enough. So much, in fact, that I decided to put everything away for the summer, even though others were still walking out to their little hotspots and doing quite well.
The next day, this is when the decision to quit was realized, I was sore from head to toe, from pulling the shelter. It was at this time when I came down with a nasty chest cold. It was a doozy, which included an upset stomach, dizziness, body ache, coughing, head ache, sinus issues, and more. Needless-to-say, I didn’t do much and was laying pretty low for the next four or five days.
More-or-less trapped in the house, I spent a good deal of time at the computer, if I wasn’t sleeping. I posted two of my shelters for sale on Facebook and got rid of them in an instant. How nice. I still have one more, a small Clam Vista hub, and two augers, one 8” and a 10”. I figured I free up some storage space and start fresh next fall.
Justin called, saying “what are you doing tomorrow? Do you want to do quick road trip? I have to bring my boat to Rochester to get it wrapped.” I couldn’t say “no” fast enough. As sick as I was feeling, I couldn’t imagine spending well over eight hours in a vehicle. There was no way. The wrap, by the way, is going to be pretty slick. I’ll have to post a photo when done.
A couple more days passed, I was still sick, and here comes Justin saying “where are the musky lures? I want to do an inventory.” Good Lord. Here we were in March, musky season starts in June, and he wants to count baits. This guy is going 110 mph all of the time. Incredible. Locating a couple more boxes of the big baits, I sent him on his merry way, happy as a lark. I should mention that he showed me his latest purchase, a large musky trolling bait that was pick up at the Mpls. Sport Show. It cost $129! Yes, that’s just for one lure.
Then there’s Andy. Working a 40-hour week, he was bound and determined to do some open water fishing on the weekend. Hence, the numerous messages, trying to talk me into joining him on the Rainy River, another thing that wasn’t going to happen. He’s persistent, I’ll give him that.
So, I wasn’t real surprised when I checked my phone on Saturday morning and found fish photos from the river. He found somebody to go with, co-worker Cody Mjolsness, and they were catching a few fish. Here’s Andy’s Rainy River report.
“There’s no better feeling, knowing everything is working well!! (Andy had just pulled his boat out of storage.) Had fun on the river with Cody today. We didn’t get the big girls but we still managed to put a few in the box.
We were using the down imaging feature to focus on shelves that were hidden below. I was able to spot lock on a shelf that was 15’ on top and 19’ on the bottom. Dangling the jigs just off the edge seemed to work the best.
Live bait, such as rainbows and emerald shiners worked best, running pink and bright yellow jigs, with my TUCR (Tuned Up Custom Rods) Apex jigging rods. Current was roughly 1.2-1.4 mph with a water temp of 36.7º.
This time of year, I am used to running 4 oz. no-roll sinkers on sturgeon gear but 2 oz. is plenty.
Can’t wait to go back up. A big thank you to Ray’s sport & Marine crew this week, helping get the boat “river ready!”

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" March 21, 2017

It was a last, safe ice hurrah, as we drove our trucks all over the lakes, right through last Saturday. Warmer weather now has me in a different mode, using wheelers or just plain walking out, which isn’t bad, as the tote sleds skip along behind with ease.
Saturday’s bite was once again fussy, as it has been for most of the winter. Oh sure, we’ve had some great bites, with fish practically jumping out of the hole but for the most part it has been an unusual season. Many other avid ice anglers agree. I don’t know what it is.
Some think the lakes are fished out but I disagree. There’s something else going on, more than likely related to forage, would be my guess.
Yes, there will be a couple weeks of great ice fishing left but many are already thinking of the open water season. I’ll have to admit that I’m one of them. It’s been a long winter and I’m ready to jump into the boat.
Speaking of boats, I spent last Sunday at the Jaycee’s Home Show. Ray’s Sport & Marine had a small lineup of boats on hand and it sure gets a guy’s blood pumping.
I’m anxiously waiting for the walleye “tournament trail” to start, where once again, Andy Walsh and I will be teamed up. We start out a week after opener on Lake Vermilion in the City Auto Glass Walleye Classic and then set our sights on the AIM Walleye Series, fishing the somewhat “home waters” of Leech Lake, Mille Lacs, St. Louis River/Lake Superior, and hopefully ending up in the championship on Lake Vermilion. The GRAHA Walleye Shootout on Pokegama Lake is also mixed in there somewhere.
Then, if time allows, there are a handful of MTT (Minnesota Tournament Trail) events on Big Winnie that have us interested. It all depends on if we can fit them in our schedule. Toss in a few guide trips here and there and the summer is practically booked solid already.
Yes, to say “we’ll be busy” is an understatement. I was just about “walleyed out” after last season but it looks like I’m, once again, ready for another go at it.
Justin Bailey spent several hours, last month, working on an old boat he has had since a kid. It, along with the trailer, has been totally redone and looks pretty sharp. He pulled it up to the Rainy River last Sunday and had trouble in finding a suitable place to launch.
Eventually, he was able to get it in the water and came away with his first successful walleye outing of the year. I guess “if there’s a will, there’s a way.” I thought it was a little early but the always determined Bailey made it happen.
I’m currently working with Tuned Up Custom Rods on a “dual purpose” panfish/walleye rod. My rods, custom wrapped, to match my Pflueger President XT reels (crimson & grey), will be 6’2”, 6’8”, and 7’2”. The super-sensitive, soft, rod tip will detect the slightest of bites, whether it’s a fussy slab crappie or temperamental walleye. I prefer light action rods for walleye fishing and thought “why not?” I’m anxious to try them out.
That’s one thing about Tuned Up Custom Rods, they truly are “custom made” for your fishing pleasure, open water or ice fishing. No matter the species, length, action, handle design, color, etc., they will make a rod according to your specifications.
For more info on Tuned Up Custom Rods, go to their web site at tunedupcustomrods.com. Locally, you can see them at Thousand Lakes Sporting Goods in Cohasset. Just ask for Grant or Andy. Tell ‘em “Greg sent ya.”

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" March 14, 2017

Truck fishing at its finest! That’s what’s been happening for me lately.
The colder temps have frozen up our lakes, making it as good as it has been all winter. There’s no snow, however, so don’t get too excited about using a snowmobile. I’ve been driving and will continue to do so but will be using an atv or hoofing it as the weather warms, which is right around the corner.
We’re still dealing with those cold winds and it makes it miserable in standing out there without a shelter. Hence, the pickup truck, which is basically used as a wind block.
The ice surface is about as smooth as it can get so be sure to wear ice cleats. Many times, when drilling a hole, I find that my boots are froze to the surface (if not wearing cleats). Yes, it’s that smooth. When slowly driving a truck across the lake, you can hear the rubber tread of your tires squeaking, trying to gain traction. Conditions are wonderful!
Fishing has been good and the best baits continue to be small jigs, usually tungsten, tipped with plastics or wax worms, especially when dealing with sunfish. They catch their fair share of crappie too but if I’m on a good crappie bite, it’s usually a Northland Tackle “Forage Minnow Jig” or “Forage Minnow Spoon” that gets the job done.

When first arriving at the lake, I’ll drop down a Forage Minnow, as it’s a larger presentation and is a great “search lure.” It gets their attention, whether they are going to bite it or not and that’s been the case lately.
Many times, especially if you’ve found the bluegills, they’ll come over for a look and as much as they want to taste that sweet-smelling waxworm, they’ll just closely inspect and come to the conclusion that’s it’s too large a presentation. Then it’s tungsten time.
Tiny jigs, and they don’t necessarily have to be tungsten, mainly small, tipped with wax or plastics can be a real game changer. Their mood changes in a hurry, when the offering is small enough for them to take in and this applies to the crappie as well.
The best plastic for me has been Northland’s Impulse “May Fly” and I don’t know what it is but the brown “natural” color has been lights out all winter. Don’t get me wrong, the other colors work too, as I’ve caught plenty of fish on them, especially with white or black. It pays to experiment. Keep switching colors until you come up with that hot presentation.
I’ve also been catching good number of large perch. Yes, March is always the best for true JUMBO perch, as the big females are slowly making their way to the shallower spawning grounds. It may be awhile before they spawn, 45-50º water, but they’re on their way. This is the time of year to catch big fish, a lot of them.
“Twenty is plenty.” That’s got a nice ring to it. I’m glad the perch limit is now at 20 fish. Looking back at my first serious “perch jerking” effort, the limit was 100 each and I recall filling up a 5-gallon pail of them, after a very productive day on Leech Lake. They were big fish, with some of them hitting the 14” mark.
It was also my first attempt at eating them and I was delighted with the “different” but delectable taste they offered. Very good indeed.
Most of my perch presentations involve smallish spoons, some with trebles and others with a larger single hook. It all depends on what they prefer to eat on any given day. Usually, it’s a full minnow on a larger Forage Minnow jig. A little fussy? Then it’s a minnow head on the end of a Forage Minnow Spoon. Whatever works.
I’m kind of at a crossroads right now, anxiously awaiting open water boat fishing but hoping we have good ice for another 2-3 weeks, or more. In any event, I’ll be out there fishing, somewhere, somehow.
Also, if you’ve had enough fishing for the winter, be sure to check out the 50th Annual Grand Rapids Jaycees Home & Sport Show, this weekend, March 17-19th. Rays Sport and Marine will be on hand, displaying Lund boats. We’ll see you there!

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" February 28, 2017

I’ll tell you what. I’m getting kind of tired of using a snowmobile or wheeler every time I want to go fishing, which is like five times a week or so. Plenty of respect for the questionable ice left behind from the recent warm weather has me doing so. Yes, it’s better to be safe than sorry but it does get old. Hey, this isn’t supposed to be late ice yet.
Most ice has been measured in the 20” range, which makes my decision so hard to deal with. I’m sure I could drive my truck out there but what if? Conditions were getting quite sketchy there for a while and the ice was getting softer, as well as thinner.
However, with the recent turn around in temperatures, some are out and about, driving on the lakes just like before. One of the lakes, a favorite of mine, Big Bowstring, has anglers driving all over the place. If I can shake this miserable cold, I just may be one of them. Like lemmings, we sort of throw caution to the wind at times and just follow along.
Fishing remains good, if you happen to select the right lake on the right day. It’s almost like a lottery. How lucky are you? There’s been plenty of those “you should have been here yesterday” outings. You just never know. It’s a good thing I fish as much as I do, as I’m bound to get lucky every once in a while.
The most productive panfish offerings have still been small tungsten jigs tipped with plastics, maggots, or wax worms.
A perch outing, last weekend, had us catching a bunch of nice fish but the best presentation was a laid-back approach, ala “dead-stick” style.
Once fish were located, I’d make slow jigging motions until a perch showed some interest. Then, it was time to lay the rod down, sit back, and watch. Almost without fail, I’d see the rod tip start to bend after a minute or so. However, move it too much and off they went, not wanting anything to do with it.
Unseasonable weather has a few already thinking of the Rainy River and you can’t blame them. Especially when it has opened up in various stretches. It would be fun to get back in the boat again but I think I’ll keep on ice fishing until the season runs its course. The best is yet to come!
For those in mourning over the recent closure of the walleye and northern pike season, keep in mind that the winter trout season goes until March 31. So, if you’re looking for something larger than panfish to play with, give the trout a try. They’re always fun. Tasty too.
This late season fishing has me looking back and remembering a flood of memories and one of them was of my uncle Jack. Always an avid ice angler, he would fish until he couldn’t make it out on the ice anymore.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" February 21, 2017

My Goodness! What about this weather? We lost a month somewhere, as this is exactly like late March, instead of February. We’ll take it, however, and although it looks to cut short our ice fishing season, we will always have other outdoor passions to look forward to, like walleye fishing on the Rainy River. That’s just the worst-case scenario, if our season happens to end early, which wouldn’t be all that bad.

We have a slight cool-down in the forecast, which should prolong our ice fishing season, at least for those that care to walk out or use atvs. As far as snowmobiles, it doesn’t seem that there will be enough snow to keep them running cool like they should. I do, however, remember Blake Liend and I running all over Big Bowstring with ours when there wasn’t a lick of snow in sight. Big perch and crappie can make you do things like that. Crazy.

A gentle reminder, if you plan on walking on the hard-water for another month, and that is to make sure you’re wearing ice cleats. There’s many to choose from and most any model is better than nothing. They make a huge difference in staying upright.

The end of the month signifies its once again time to renew fishing licenses. Due on March 1st, there are many options to pick from. For example:

*Military get to fish for free, cost is $0. The DNR is recognized as a Yellow Ribbon Company. In appreciation of and support for your military service, the DNR extends certain outdoor recreation benefits. To find out which license, permit or pass you are eligible for visit the MN DNR web site. If you still have questions call the DNR information or license center at (888) 646-6367.

The following pertains to Minnesota residents only:
* 24-hour angling license - $10 (individual)
* 72-hour angling license - $12 (individual)
* season license - $22 (individual)
* conservation license - $15 (individual, ½ bag limit)
* angling combination - $35 (married couple)
* individual sports license - $38 (fishing and small game)
* combination sports license - $52 (fishing and small game)
* three year license - $63
* trout stamp - $10
And then there’s the lifetime angling license, which just might be a great value for someone of younger age. Me, however, I don’t think so. Heck, I won’t even buy green bananas!
* lifetime angling license - $508 (ages 16 – 50) *lifetime angling license - $335 (ages 51 – older)

These are just a few of the license options available. There’s been talk of license increases but the way it stands right now, I think it’s a great value. Even with the increase, I wouldn’t complain.

As far as fishing, I’ve been out there a lot and have found somewhat unusual conditions, regarding the bite. Most of the lakes, and I’ve been on a dozen different ones in the past week, offer difficult fishing.

A lot of the local crappie lakes, which normally offer good action, are almost shut off, with fish being extremely fussy. There are, however, a select few that are pumping out fish at a high rate. I’d really like to know what causes this. It’s a puzzler. Plankton?

The top presentation has been a small tungsten jig, tipped with a piece of plastic, or sometimes a wax worm. As it is right now, the plastics are winning, hands down. Of course, every once in a while, small jigging spoons, tipped with wax worms have been doing pretty darn good.

Keep an eye on the ice and don’t be foolish. Play it safe and enjoy the GREAT OUTDOORS.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" February 14, 2017

A family fun day was had last Sunday, on a small back-in-the-bush lake in Itasca county. Going for northern pike, with pickled fish on our minds, we gave it the old “one-two-punch”. My son, Kris, and his two youngest daughters, Lexi and Claire, would be spearing, while I would try to ice a few via angling.
Now, even the best laid plans can have a wrinkle or two. Kris has been using a portable “hub” shelter all season, for spearing, and has done well with it. If there was any problem at all with his approach, it was that fact that it lets in too much light, making it hard to see into the water at times.
To remedy this, he had brought along an enormous sheet of black plastic. The plan was to wrap it around the hub and that would have been fine but we faced strong winds right from the get-go and had one heck of time in doing so. We eventually finished our little project and it took all four of us. Looking back, I’m glad no one was watching, as it was quite a sight.
The hub allowed plenty of room for the three of them, with one of the girls at each end of the 2’x3’ hole and Kris in the middle, keeping an eye on things. They each had folding chairs and enjoyed the warmth of a Buddy Heater. It was perfect, except for that wind.
I was set up and angling 20’ away and we couldn’t even hear each other. It was blowing that hard. Oh, I guess it wouldn’t have been so bad but the plastic was flapping and slapping the hub, causing all kinds of commotion. Kris later thought this extra noise may have frightened off a lot of the fish.
That may have been the case but even my set up, which was in a quiet, stealth mode, had fish being very spooky.
Kris and the girls watched fish come into a 2’x3’ hole, while I used two 8” holes. But I was watching too, with a VexilarFLX-28 flasher in one hole and Vexilar “Fish Scout” underwater camera in the other. I was set.
Fish came fast, with the girls getting a couple pushing four pounds right away. These turned out to be the largest of the day.
That’s one thing about harvesting northern pike to be pickled. They don’t generally have to be very big and we have plenty of waters offering this type of fishing. This one was tucked away, off the beaten path, and nothing special, other than the fact it was loaded with small fish. It didn’t matter. We were there for the action.
Part of the fun is the process of setting up. Holes were drilled, six of them making a large rectangle, with a 10” power auger. From there, an ice saw was used to free the block. Then the fun begins, using a pair of ice tongs for removing the large ice cube.
The old tongs were a recent acquisition and came from a pawn shop, costing $45, about the same for a new set but were very well made and added character. Very well worth it, in my opinion. They were sharpened the night before, along with the spear.
This was just one of many, many outdoor adventures that my granddaughters have experienced. At a young age, they’re learning it all, having done everything from successful deer hunting to catching monster sturgeon on the Rainy River. I can’t think of a better way to raise your children. Give it a try.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" February 7, 2017

It’s been a while since I’ve traveled across the northern border for some winter lake trout action but that all changed last week, when Justin Bailey and I made a day trip to Lake of the Wood’s Whitefish Bay. Reminiscent of my long-mileage day trips, years ago with Blake Liend, this one has to rank right up there, especially when we traveled out-of-the-way to meet Travis DeWitt on the way up.
Against my better judgement, we met Ballard’s Resort fishing guide, Travis DeWitt, in Baudette and followed him to the lake. This maneuver added an extra 70 miles to our trip but I figured “what the heck, if Justin wants to drive, that’s fine with me.” Going home, we went the way we should of, via Ft. Frances, etc.
Total mileage for the trip ended up being 465 miles. That’s quite a haul for only fishing 5-6 hours but that’s what we do sometimes, especially when it can offer trophy fishing and you don’t want to spend the night. Yes, we are official members of the “pork and beaner” club. That’s a term used to describe Americans, probably just us close-to-the-border Minnesotans, that run up north for the day, without spending a whole lot of money for lodging, etc. Hey, it works for me, especially if I don’t have to do the driving.
Travis, a fulltime guide, spends nearly every off-day winter trout fishing in Canada so he pretty much had them wired. During the summer, he focuses on muskies. The guy is good.
Crow Lake had crossed our minds but seeing how DeWitt had been doing so well on Whitefish Bay we decided to put the odds in our favor and go where he had recently been fishing. Heck, it was only another 25 minutes or so.
I did a little checking on lake conditions before we left and wasn’t very happy with my findings. Lake surfaces were half glare ice, with the other half sporting frozen, hard-packed snow. It wasn’t good for long-distance travel but here I was, talked into heading up north for what I expected to be a punishing day on the ice. It doesn’t take much.
Now, bear in mind, that Justin and Travis were using newer snowmobiles with great suspensions, while I had my trusty 20 year old Bearcat, which was made for comfort, not speed, as theirs were. As one can imagine, I couldn’t keep up with them. It was as rough as rough can get and when we finally did stop I noticed my machine was over-heating. There wasn’t enough snow to keep things lubed and cool.
It was cool and the wind was blowing good enough to make it uncomfortable fishing outside. It was also very slow. We hopped around from spot to spot, and all good spots I might add, areas where Travis had down well on days prior.
Very few fish were seen and it looked to be just “one of those days.” I’ve done the same on Crow Lake but then I’ve done exceedingly well there too. It all depends on the mood of the fish. There are times when they don’t want to be bothered and this was one of them. That’s probably the only real downside of doing a long day-trip. There is no tomorrow.
DeWitt uses smaller trout baits and does very well with them. Justin was in the “big bait, big fish” mind set and has done well on Minnesota trout waters but had to reduce down in size when visiting Whitefish Bay. The old adage “when in Rome” came into play. Regional tactics are something you really need to pay attention to, if you going to be successful.
One this day, however, only one fish was hooked and landed. It came while Justin and I were chatting, sitting in a shelter and keeping warm. The day was winding down and I can’t recall if I was even jigging the little swimbait or not. All I remember is the slack line, which somewhat surprised me. Slack line! That’s a fish!
Instincts told me to set the hook and a few minutes later a nice lake trout showed its face. Justin gets half-credit for this one, as the hook popped loose in the hole and a quick hand-grab had to be made.
A photo was quickly taken, so not to damage the fish, and it was released back in the hole, swimming off with nothing hurt but it’s pride. It took off real strong. It’s a good feeling.
It’s amazing at what lengths we go to enjoy a day on the water. Make a round-trip just under 500 miles, fish hard in the cold, on a fussy, tough bite, catch one fish and then let it go. It’s what we do.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" January 31, 2017 - Bring On The Snowfall

I’m looking forward to the forecasted snowfall, as current lake travel is horrendous on most popular bodies of water. It’s nice to get around in 2-wheel drive but it is currently as rough as it can get.
Our recent January thaw left very little snow on the ice but that’s not the problem. It’s the frozen vehicle tracks made during the “melt down.” Even ATVs and snowmobiles have left their mark. Crossing a set of truck tracks is like crossing railroad tracks, or worse. All you can do is go slow, very slow.
I can’t help but watch in amazement, as anglers pull their wheel-houses across the lakes. It is so terribly rough; I would imagine anything that isn’t secured in place will end up on the floor. The worst of it is the beating that $20,000 shelter is going through. Not good.
Fishing success has been having its ups and downs, ranging from very good to struggle time. It’s amazing how quickly the fish can go into a funk. Take Bowstring Lake for example. I did very well there on a guide trip (thank God) and went back only to find that the fish were shut off big time. Even the smallest, most finesse presentations were snubbed. Relocating to another lake offered much of the same.
It’s odd, how we humans don’t detect the slightest change in anything, weather-wise, but the fish and game do. Maybe that’s Mother Nature’s way of keeping a healthy balance?
There’s been some talk of cutting back fish limits and although I’m not sure that this is official news or just local scuttlebutt, I for one would love to see it happen. We need to keep a close eye on our fisheries before some of them start to slip away. It’s happened too many times. Let’s protect them before it’s too late.
I also would like to see more lakes managed for crappie and bluegill. Some lakes, again I’ll use Bowstring for comparison, are teeming with crappie and nice size fish at that. However, when hundreds of anglers are out there, and most catching fish, it can certainly put a serious dent in the population. The recent warm weather was a huge factor, as you could fish most anywhere you wanted to.
Driving across the lake, with a graph at your side, featuring an accurate depth map, little-known holes and hotspots are now vulnerable. Many times, just for fun, I’ll pick out a little, good looking spot and drive to it only to find that it has been discovered earlier by several others. It’s kind of scary.
Imagine if there was a five-fish crappie limit on Bowstring like there is on Big Splithand. Would size increase? Who knows? One would think so but it doesn’t always work like that. Sand Lake would be another great candidate for a five crappie limit. That lake gets pummeled, especially in the fall.
Looking back at the “crappie boom” on Upper Red Lake, it was mind boggling at the number of anglers that were out there. Local economies flourished. Now, even though the crappies are fished down to the point of you being surprised when you catch one, the crowds are still out there by the thousands. With most all of them trying their hand for walleye, it almost looks like the crappie fishing days of old. That’s a special fishery if there ever was one.
Some lakes managed for bluegill, like Splithand, Bass, Deer, and Grave, offer a chance at some real dandy fish. There’s good reason that the limit is only five. I wish there were a lot more lakes like this, as big sunfish lakes are scattered across the North Country and once word gets out, they get beat up pretty bad, with limit after limit of big fish destined for the frying pan. It’s sad.
Visiting one of these lakes, my first bluegill through the ice this winter measured 10 ½” in length. I admired it for a few seconds, had a photo taken, and slipped it back into the water. Off she went, giving other anglers a chance at catching her. Hopefully more anglers repeat this process.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" January 24, 2017 -

January thaw? I’d say. Wow. Has the weather ever been nice, as of late? If I didn’t know better, I’d say it was late March and the fish are biting as if it is. Lake surfaces are much like late season as well, with anglers facing a lot of wet conditions. Lake travel, however, is quite good, making it easy for anglers to get around. Never-the-less, caution is always high on the priority list. Stay away from flowage areas, as they are usually the first to go.
It’s amazing, how fast things can deteriorate. Over the last two weeks, I was hung up in a snow drift on two different lakes with a four-wheel drive pickup truck. They are so darned hard to see at times, blending in with the rest of the snow cover. Now, however, the snow has settled, if not totally melted away, and it’s pretty much free sailing out there.
Justin has been in hot pursuit of lake trout, ever since the Minnesota winter opener on the 14th. I, on the other hand, have been right back at what I do best and that is playing with panfish, mainly crappies. Although, I have caught some very nice jumbo perch and a few bluegills as well.
Fishing out of the back of the truck has never been better. I love this style of fishing. All the necessary equipment for locating a hot school of fish is always close at hand, making it downright easy when I’m in the search mode.
There is one piece of equipment that stays inside the truck and that is a Humminbird “Helix 9” graph (thank you Andy Walsh). Using it solely in the chart feature allows me the luxury of a 9” color lake map that shows my position (as a boat) as I cruise across the lake.
It’s surprising at how precise the unit is. Stop on the edge of a steep breakline or the middle of a small hole and it’s dead on. This saves a lot of time and effort when drilling holes.
Laying in the truck bed, with the tailgate always down, are two augers. One is my 8” Clam “Edge” gas auger that is used for drilling new holes. It rips through 24” of ice with ease (it’s too bad Clam doesn’t offer this auger anymore, opting, instead to work with Jiffy).
The other auger is an electric “K-Drill”. The K-Drill Ice Auger System is exclusively geared towards hand held cordless electric drills. Equipped with composite flighting, it is lightweight, durable, and very efficient. I drill fresh holes with mine but mainly use it for re-opening old holes, as it is extremely light and fast-cutting. Powered by an 18 volt Milwaukee, I can check out an old fishing area in a matter of minutes.
Earlier in the season, when we had 12” of ice, I could get 50-60- holes with it before the battery needed charging. An extra battery is always brought along and only one time did we run them both out of juice. It’s truly the way to go.
As I have stated many times, “If you see me on the ice and are curious as to what I am using or want to try some of my equipment, don’t be afraid to ask.”
This happened a couple of times last weekend. One was with the K-Drill. I could see a look of curiosity in a nearby angler’s face so I offered him the chance to try it out. He was amazed, as most are.
The other was one of many “Vexilar 101” lessons, in which this time it was a vacationing woman from Maplewood. I was busy catching fish, one on almost every drop, and caught the attention of her entire group.
Good-natured and casual banter ensued, like normal. I invited her to come over and use my Vexilar, as there were a bunch of hungry fish below me. Explaining to her “you can’t catch fish if they’re not below you. If you aren’t using some sort of electronics, how do you know where the fish are? That’s why you see me walking all over, drilling holes and checking with my Vexilar.”
A crash course in electronics ensued. Well, it didn’t take long before she was reeling them in left and right. I politely reminded her “the limit’s ten.”
Finally, most of their group had joined me and were fishing alongside. Fish were making it topside but were becoming a bit fussy. Never-the-less, they had a nice bunch of fish to take home and their mini vacation was a total success. I like that.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" January 16, 2017 - Minnesota winter trout opener in the books.

Prior last weekend, I thought it through, wondering just where I would go and for what species. We’re quite fortunate to have as many options as we do, when it comes to trout fishing and can give our DNR a well-deserved pat on the back for that.
Lake trout entered my mind, as they’re always fun. I love watching their antics, chasing a bait up and down the water column. We call it “cat and mouse.”
I’ve angled for Minnesota lake trout all across the North Country, ranging from Ely’s Snowbank and Burntside Lakes to Trout Lake north of Grand Rapids. There’s plenty of opportunities if you search them out. Even some of the mine pits offer lake trout fishing.
Stream trout (rainbows, browns, and brookies) also tempted me. Normally, that’s what I go for on the much-heralded opening day. While lake trout fishing has you being a lot more active with moving about, hole drilling, and jigging motions, “streamers” usually involve sight-fishing, looking down the hole, and using a more subtle presentation.
As for where to go, the list is long. Stream trout waters are scattered all over the state. No matter the species, they’re all fun. This year, however, lake trout won out.
One thing about most lake trout lakes is that fact that they are generally quite deep and the last to freeze. If not too far away, I’ll usually check out ice conditions before the opener so we can head out onto the frozen fishery before first light takes place.
When fishing Canadian lakes, such as Crow Lake (aka Kakagi), I prefer to go the second weekend. By doing this, you can easily see where others have traveled on the ice with snowmobiles. Safe travel routes and slush spots are now more defined, making your trip a whole lot easier.
Most Canadian lake trout waters have plenty of current areas, which usually exist near “pinched down” areas, between islands, etc. Use caution here. Avoid if possible.
Meanwhile, back in Minnesota, our crew made it out onto the ice in the morning darkness. It’s nice to get set up early, as first light usually triggers a few lakers into biting, as does the evening. It’s also nice to reach “your spot” before someone else does. Competition for prime spots always take place, something that pretty much doesn’t happen when across the border.
It worked. It wasn’t fast and furious but a first light flurry did take place, with us landing a few fish. Throughout the day, fish would come by, every once in a while, but for the most part it was borderline boring and that’s fishing sometimes.
Best baits were large “flutter-type” spoons, used mainly for summer trolling applications and white tube jigs. Small hair jigs also accounted for a number of fish and even the old-style airplane jigs did their thing.
I went home with my Minnesota laker limit of two fish, in the 4-5 pound range. Three fillets were vacuum packed and will be “gifted” to a few friends that like them. One was for me. I usually don’t cook any lake trout, preferring to have them smoked.
This time, however, I decided on cooking a few nice chunks in the microwave. Normally, I “nuke” crappie and walleye for about 1 minute and they’re ready to eat. Perfect.
Going with the same routine, I was about 30 seconds into the process when it started “popping.” You know the sound. But this time it was so loud that I was surprised it didn’t open the oven door. Lily, my little dog, was sleeping in the living room and came running into the kitchen barking! What in the world?
Opening the microwave, I discovered quite a mess and salvaged what was left. The other two pieces were only given 30-40 seconds and stayed intact.
Now for the taste test. I wasn’t looking forward to this one, as lake trout can be very fishy tasting if you don’t clean them properly, the main reason I either have them smoked or just catch and release them in the first place.
Piping hot, margarine was spread over the pieces and then a little lemon pepper seasoning. They were ready. Not expecting too much, I was pleasantly surprised with the results, as it was excellent! Never-the-less, I’m not going to do that again.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" January 12, 2017

Frigid weather always manages to throw a wrench into things. It doesn’t matter what it is. It could be your car that doesn’t start, freezing water lines, or school closings, to name a few. It also toys with those that like to go ice fishing.
If you’re parked in the garage or have your truck plugged in, you’re good to go but you’ll also have to check your tires. Almost without fail, one or more of them will be borderline in needing air.
If there’s any good at all coming from an Arctic blast, it’s the fact that lake ice is getting thicker and that’s a good thing, as who wants to run a snowmobile out onto a windblown lake in this type of weather? Not me. I prefer taking the truck, as it’s a lot more comfortable and you always have a place to warm up if need be.
Reaching your fishing hotspot, it usually doesn’t take more than a hole or two before your auger blades freeze up and won’t cut. I keep a hammer in the truck box just for this. Tap lightly around the blades and you’re back in business. Just be sure to keep your tapping away from the cutting edges.
Walking around, drilling holes, you’ll notice the auger feels much heavier than it used to. The flighting (auger spiral) now has a nice layer of ice up and down the whole thing. Again, with the hammer.
Cold weather also wreaks havoc on rewinds. Take it easy. Trying to start the auger, you’ll notice the rope slowly work its way back into position. It usually takes a time or two before it’s limbered up and ready to go.
You can always go with a battery-operated auger but here, again, the cold weather comes into play, as batteries drain down at a much higher rate. You can use the type that hooks up to your car battery but who really wants to be opening the hood during sub-zero to drill a hole or two? No.
Never-the-less, we manage. We get out there and give it a whirl. Although, now that I’m older, I’m finding that I’m a lot more selective in choosing fishing days. There are times when I’ll just stay home (can you believe that?). Of course, I can do that “when every day is Saturday” for me. I’m loving this thing they call retirement.
It was quite nippy last weekend when we drove up to Upper Red Lake for a crack at a few walleyes. It seemed like a decent plan. It’s days like this that I don’t mind spending a couple hours in the truck just to reach my fishing destination. I’m in no rush at all.
On a lark, we decided to go out of JR’s Corner Access, as it seems most folks stop at the first chance they have, to get out onto the big lake. This is about as close as you’ll get to the reservation line.
I was really impressed with the lake road, which was about 100’ wide and plowed right down to the ice. You could have driven anything out there and that’s always nice for those not having a 4-wheel drive vehicle.
With map in hand, we followed written instructions on where to go and found that place six miles later, amid an army of anglers. Well I guess everybody didn’t stop beforehand.
It still amazes me at how many anglers are out enjoying themselves on this big body of water. It almost looked like the old “crappie days” and I can’t imagine how many millions of dollars of equipment, mainly Ice Castles, were out there. It’s totally incredible what has happened to the ice fishing industry.
My brother, Joel, and I tried setting up away from the crowd, near an ice ridge. Sometimes this works and sometimes not. This was one of those times that it didn’t.
Drilling four holes for our hub shelter, only one of them allowed a lure to reach bottom, as large chunks of ice and slush kept filling them up. After countless efforts of re-drilling and scooping, we gave up and moved to another location.
Dennis Rule, who followed us up, was situated 40’ away and had the same problem. He did, however, have one hole that was free of debris and that one had a bunch of fish below it. Dennis put on a clinic, catching quite a few fish and he wasn’t even using any electronics! One never knows. Slowly jigging up and down a whole minnow was the ticket.  
Joel caught a few walleyes, along with a jumbo perch and I never caught a thing! Thinking it through, I still found it better than sitting home on a cold, blustery afternoon.  - Get out there and enjoy the Great Outdoors, even if it is cold out.

Greg Clusiau, "Greg's Guidlines" January 3, 2017

Back-in-the-bush, exploring, something I love to do but it usually doesn’t pan out the way I hoped it would. In this case, it was a couple of small, semi-private lakes that offer fantastic fishing during the open water period but had a reputation for not giving up a thing during the winter.
Feeling I was just the guy to “crack the case”, I teamed up with guide partner Justin Bailey for a little trek into the backwoods.
Snowmobiles were the key. We had those. A chainsaw was also needed. Justin had that. I had to chuckle when I drove over to pick him up, as I could hear it running in the garage. A plan was coming together.
Reaching our destination, we parked, packed, and took off down a much-neglected trail, which was evident after only going about 200 yards. It was here where we met up with the first of many trees that had fallen across the trail. Logging 101.
For a while, I thought we might have missed the main trail, as it was getting awfully brushy and again with the trees.
Finally, up in the distance, I could see a small snow-covered lake, peeking through the evergreens. What a welcome sight. Was it full of hungry fish? We’d find out.
Cautiously making it out about 100’ or so, we stopped to drill a hole, just to be on the safe side. I heard the little lake had a lot of springs and even though it had very little snow cover and looked to be froze up pretty good, we had to be certain. There was plenty of ice, measuring 14-15” but there was also slush pockets here and there.
Looking at the lay of the land, we picked an area in front of a steep bank, hoping to find a hole, one filled with big panfish.
The first hole revealed 9’ and the next 10’. Making the little body of water look like Swiss cheese, we covered it all and only found 12’ to be the deepest water available. I don’t think we missed anything. I don’t see how we could have.
One would drill and fish, while the other would take the auger and go ahead to repeat the process. I never had a nibble but Justin had two small fish tap his offering. He was guessing they were very small perch. Or perhaps a minnow? The first lake was a bust but that was okay, as the next little hotspot was only a ¼ mile away, if we could find the trail into it. We did.
This one was supposed to have better fish in it, meaning bigger. Again with the drilling process. Again with similar results.
Mother Nature had won on this day but we vowed to be back in the spring and why not? The trail has already been cleared.
The next day, another little adventure took place, one that I had been on many a time but wanted to share with Justin, as it was a new lake for him.
Much of the same, it required snowmobiles, only this time we’d be “running the river”, which can be a little scary at times and this time was no different.
Over the years, I had figured out a safe path to get into the lake but shortly after taking off realized there was more water to deal with than other times. Not to worry.  Always looking up ahead, well in advance, I plotted out my trail, observing possible bad-looking ice, slush pockets, and sometimes open water.
Now bear in mind that this isn’t a raging river but a slow-moving current of only 2-3’ or so. Never-the-less, who wants to get wet and spend all day getting a machine out of the drink? Not I.
Sticking close to the shoreline and keeping up my speed, all was going well until I met the otter.
At first, I thought it was a stump sticking out of the water but then recalled there weren’t any obstructions in this piece of the river. I ran my boat through this particular stretch many a time, trimmed up and fairly fast. It was clean.
The otter did a double-take and then stared, as if saying “what in the world are you guys doing?” It was getting a little too hairy so we turned around and headed to another body of water while we were still dry. I’d have to show Justin the lake via another route.
Looking back on our adventures, we could have “gone to the well”, one of several other productive bodies of water that we have been fishing in the past weeks but the curiosity factor takes over from time-to-time. One never knows. - Happy New Year and good luck fishing!