Fishing Report Lake Winnie and Cutfoot Sioux July 3, 2023

It had to happen eventually, the heat on Lake Winnie’s “BOILING HOT” walleye bite has been reduced to a simmer. Our guests and fellow anglers are still bringing in fish, but at a slower pace than we enjoyed throughout the spring.

Mayfly hatches occurring on Lake Winnie and Cutfoot Sioux

One reason for the reduced catch rates is thought to be the mayfly hatch that’s going on now. With lots of extra food in the water, walleyes, other predators too, can be more particular about how often, and for how long, each feeding session will occur. To the fish, it’s a lot like us being offered a peanut butter sandwich and hour after finishing a huge, holiday meal like the thanksgiving turkey for example.

Insect hatches occur over a wide variety of areas, so beyond providing more food, they also serve to disperse the lake’s fish populations. A few weeks ago, fish that were gathered in large numbers, single mindedly focused on schools of shoreline related minnows as their food source. Now, the same number of fish are present, but they are scattered over a much wider territory, finding multiple sources of forage, and eating to their hearts’ content.

 Reed Ylitalo, one of our favorite fishing guides had a charter early this week. By days end, the folks returned to the resort with enough fish for a fish fry. Along the way, they were taken to shallow water, deep water and over the mid-depth flats. They fished over rocks, sand weeds and open water structures. They used jigs tipped with both plastics and minnows; leeches and crawlers below slip bobbers and trolled spinners and minnows. Everything worked a little bit, none of the presentations worked a lot.

Walleyes on thr graph

 Ylitalo’s comments, “Even though fishing today was a struggle, the company was good, and we did catch a handful of walleyes. At the end of the day, we had enough for supper, and everybody had a great time getting sunburned and having a great day on the water. I figured that it (the slowdown) was coming, but when you get used to doing super well and then you see fish on the grapgh that won’t eat, it can be frustrating. You just have to be patient, fish deliberately through every school of fish you can find and catch the ones that you can coax.”

 Sunshine and warm weather, mentioned in Reed’s comments are not encouraging any hot bite either. Hunkered down against the sunny skies and bright water, more fish are feeding at dusk, or even after dark. An acquaintance mentioned having good luck during the night, 2:30 AM, that’s the best bite, he says. Fishing after dark isn’t for everybody, but some folks like it, and if catching fish is the only way to be happy, fishing in the dark might be a good option for some.

 Water temperatures rising, now entering the mid 70-degree range, are giving family anglers an alternative to walleye fishing. Sunfish, crappies, and bass are being caught by folks who pursue them. Use spinners tipped with small to medium leeches to explore for sunnies, tip the spinners with minnows to help locate crappies. Either species are using heavy vegetation for cover, so once they are located, stop the boat and fish more deliberately. Bluegills and pumpkinseeds are both curious, and voracious feeders, so use lures that combine flash with live bait. One simple but effective rig for panfish combines a plain hook, a few beads, and a bright spinner blade. The spinner does not need to “spin”, it just needs to attract the fish’s attention. A small leech of cut piece of night crawler added to the hook will trigger the fish to strike.

 Crappies prefer more movement, active jigging lures like beetle spins, road runners, jigs tipped with plastic action tails are all effective. Cast your lures into pockets and gaps in the vegetation, let them drop a little and then retrieve using a slow swimming motion. Don’t be surprised by some unexpected catches, northern pike, largemouth bass, rock bass, and even walleye will strike your lures, especially during early morning and late in the evening.

 Perch can be caught, but for most folks has been difficult to pin down. Small schools of nice size fish appear without notice, bite aggressively and then disappear just as quickly. Our best advice is to catch them when the opportunity presents itself. The two most likely places to find perch are at the soft bottom edges of mid-lake structures where insect larvae are present. Another likely place are weedy flats that lay adjacent to gravel or rocks.

 Pike anglers should search mid-lake structures right now. Baitfish attracted to the middle by hatching insects also attract larger pike. Cooler water attracts northern pike too, so any place where structures lay adjacent to deep water can be good. Steep break lines that connect the two can be key hiding spots and can be explored using modified spinners. Use larger than average blades, larger hooks too and tip them with sucker minnows in the 6-to-8-inch size range. Trolling the break lines at moderate speeds helps you cover water fast, and also helps trigger instinctive strikes by the fast moving predators.

 The transition between spring and summer may offer challenges, we’re seeing some of them now. But at some point, the lake’s water will develop an algae bloom, and light conditions will improve. Vegetation, as it develops, will offer walleyes additional places to find cover too. Combine those elements with declining insect hatches and you have the ingredients for the mid-summer walleye bite to commence. Timing is uncertain, but sometime soon, we’ll notice the walleye action picking up again, when we do, we’ll let you know.

 In the meantime, enjoy the warm weather and sunshine.

Lake Winnibigoshish Cutfoot Sioux Fishing Report June 23, 2023

Walleyes in both Lake Winnie and Cutfoot Sioux are in a seasonal transition. While some fish remain in relatively shallow water, 8 to 16 feet for example, others are migrating out to mid-lake structures. Instead of finding large, concentrated schools of fish, it’s more common now to find small schools of fish, in a wide variety of locations. So, exploration of fresh territory will pay off bigtime for anglers hoping to find a “hot bite”.

On Wednesday, anglers located good schools of fish in shallow water, not far from the resort. Fishing with jig and minnow combinations, they captured limits of keeper walleyes, and released a good number of larger fish too. At the same time, there were anglers fishing mid-lake structures and they found walleyes too. Whether you fish shallow or deeper depends on your fishing preferences.

Water temperatures have stabilized, and are solidly holding at about 71 degrees, varying by 1 or 2 degrees between day and night. Water clarity has begun to change, there is a slight-but-noticeable algae bloom taking hold in the big lake, somewhat stronger in Cutfoot Sioux. Insect hatches have been minimal to date, but indications of fish feeding on larvae have become more common this week. Some anglers also report viewing images of larvae on their electronics, and we could be on the verge of more widespread insect hatches.

One of our preferred guides, Reed Ylitalo also reported the discovery of large schools of tiny, ½ inch long perch. Identification was made initially on his graph, and confirmed when the tiny minnow sized fish were caught, snagged by the jigging lure he was using. The presence of freshly hatched minnows, along with potentially large-scale insect hatches means that walleyes are choosier about what and when they will feed.

The best bet for catching the fish in a positive feeding mood is to fish in the low light periods. Whether you prefer fishing late, or starting early, the odds of finding walleyes in the mood to eat are vastly improved. That’s not to say that walleyes won’t bite during the daytime, they will, we do know though that clear water makes it more challenging. The trick to catching them when the sun is shining is to avoid making direct contact with the fish, how you do that is debatable.

We don’t need to tell you that these days, horizontal sonar has become very popular, and is seen on the lake often. There’s no doubt that they are helpful, but don’t fall into the “hype trap” you do not have to use them to catch fish on Winnie.

Another local guide, Jeff Sundin argues this; “If the trick to catching walleyes in clear water is to avoid contacting the fish, then, by definition cruising the breakline, searching for them on any down image, side image or forward scanning sonar violates the principal. Seeing fish on the screen of your graph IS making direct contact with them. For me, creeping along the breakline, casting our lures out ahead of the boats travel path is almost as good. We may not “see” the fish coming, but they don’t see us coming either. So, when our lures drop into the water ahead of them, the element of surprise greatly improves the odds of triggering strikes good.”

No matter how you do it, everyone agrees that getting lures in front of fish before the boat passes overhead is important. Anglers insistent on using “old-school” presentations like Lindy Rigging, vertical jigging and bottom bouncing are at a disadvantage. These days, casting and retrieving jigs tipped with minnows, or soft plastics are effective.

Slip floats, increasingly popular on Winnie, are used to good effect right now too. Avoid fishing too close to the bottom, position your offering about 18 to 36 inches above the bottom, walleyes will come up willingly to grab a lively leech or fresh night crawler. If you love trolling spinners, consider learning how to use planer boards. They allow you to position your spinners out, and away from the boat instead of directly beneath it. The same tactic will help you position crankbaits and will likely come into play later this summer.

Northern pike in the eating size range are aggressive right now. People fishing for walleyes in Tamarack Bay are catching lots of them in their walleye presentations. Even folks fishing mid-lake structures are catching the occasional “bonus pike” as they pursue walleyes. If you’re interested in catching a larger pike, go with larger lures or use a slip float to present big, 8-to-10-inch sucker minnows. The old saw, “big fish, big bait” is especially true when seeking larger pike. We’ve heard that pike prefer forage that’s about 25% of their body length; this means that a 30-inch pike would likely want to eat baitfish in the 7-to-9-inch range.

Perch fishing has been spotty this week and anglers who find them report that they seldom remain in the same spots for very long. From reports at our fish cleaning station, deep water appears to be one key for catching them. Mid-lake structures adjacent to soft-bottom flats in the 25-to-30-foot range offer opportunity because of insect larvae. Gravel, light rock, and clam beds where crawfish populations are high will also attract perch.

Bass and panfish are active too, but like walleye, show a strong preference for feeding during low light periods. Right now, early risers have the advantage, especially when seeking crappies. A reliable pattern is to creep along the outside edges of vegetation. Casting and retrieving small jigs tipped with plastics into pockets and gaps in the cabbage will produce crappies for sure. As a bonus, you’ll catch some perch, walleye, pike, and bass along the way. If you like watching the sun, come up, we suggest doing it from the casting deck of your boat, you won’t be disappointed!

Lake Winnibigoshish Cutfoot Sioux Fishing Report June 16, 2023

After crossing the 80-degree mark, surface water temperatures receded this week. Water temperatures are now registering in the 70 to 72 degree range, and the combination of moderating air and surface water temperatures, along with a stabilized weather pattern helped make this week a good one for fishing on Lake Winnie.

 Our guests and friends visiting the lake reported good catches of walleye on the big lake, and for anglers “in the know”, panfish and bass action on the Cutfoot Sioux chain of lakes.

Some of you may recall the Ojibwe translation for the name Lake Winnibigoshish; “Filthy Water”. These days, that name describes the complete opposite of what Winnie’s water looks like. Zebra Mussels, Faucet Snails, and cleaner, clearer water flowing in from flowages have transformed the formerly stained water lake into one that features gin clear water.

 We’ve issued numerous reports in recent years about fishing “The New Winnie”, and offered solid tips on how to approach walleye presentations that work with, not against, the clear water conditions. This summer, we’re seeing evidence that many anglers have taken those tips to heart. They have adapted to the clear water and their creels, filled with walleyes, offer proof that the adaptations have been effective.

 Fishing the twilight period, for example, is one of the key adaptations. Formerly reserved for sitting by the campfire, fishing at sunset has now become very popular with our guests. They’ve experienced the transformation from lethargic, daytime feeding patterns to aggressive, even gluttonous at times, walleye feeding behavior during the crepuscular feeding periods. Our guide, Jared Saufferer says; “The bite continues to be strong, especially during the twilight hours. Most fish are coming out of the 10 to 18 marks on gravel or rocks.”

Jig and minnow, a longtime crowd pleaser on Winnie, continues to provide results, but these days, we’re seeing more folks fishing with slip-floats. Position fishing, parking the boat and casting out and away from is also fast becoming a mainstay presentation. Folks have figured out that at times, walleyes will disperse when a boat passes overhead. Fishing underneath the boat, especially during calm periods, can feel like a waste of time because the fish are simply not there. But often, they don’t move far from the boats path, so casting and retrieving lures allows anglers to reach unsuspecting fish, and they do bite!

Whether you’re using a jig and minnow, a slip float, or artificial lures, keep your offering a good distance away from the boat. Retrieve your jigs using a “drop-hop-drop-hop” presentation, waiting between hops to feel the fish pick up your lure. Using slip-floats, use small, 1/16-ounce jigs to present lively leeches or ½ night crawlers. To improve castability, add split shot sinkers about 1 foot above your jig. Here’s an important tip to remember, set your float to hold your bait above the fish’s line of sight. It is much easier to entice a fish to swim up for your bait, than to swim down for it. Ideal height for slip float fishing is 18 to 24 inches about the bottom, even higher when fish are feeding aggressively.

Walleye location is still focused primarily on shoreline related structures, but it is shifting slowly. Fish have been moving slowly across sprawling flats on both the north and west sides of the lake. Pushing toward the lake’s mid-section could be an indication that we’re on the verge of seeing insects hatching. So far, we have not witnessed any large-scale hatches of mayflies or the smaller fish flies. There have been smaller, isolated hatches of other bugs, and perch appear to be keying in on some of them.

Panfish are feeding on insects now too, especially sunfish. They’ve largely fishing spawning and are showing up on the outer edges of cabbage and coontail flats, in areas adjacent marly bottom, clam beds. Spinners tipped with night crawlers can get you zeroed in on sunfish location, and once found, small jigs tipped with cut leeches or night crawlers will improve efficiency.

Crappies are on the prowl, but like walleyes, prefer to feed during twilight periods. Early risers will enjoy great fishing for them if they’re on the lake at sunrise. On Cutfoot, casting small jigs tipped with action tails like ripple shads, mister twisters or beetle spins will produce crappies. Treat yourself to a multiple species morning by casting your lures into the pockets and gaps between the vegetation. Let your lure fall into the pockets on a tight line and feel for any “pop” at the tip of your fishing rod. Crappies, sunfish, walleyes, bass, and pike will strike at random intervals. Rock Bass, not often talked about, but fun to catch are still in spawning areas, so you’re liable to catch some of them too.

 Northern pike are still largely being caught as a byproduct of walleye fishing. Jigging often discourages the largest fish, but anglers looking to improve the size should experiment with spinners. For walleyes, it’s a bit early to make a full-scale switch over trolling with spinners, but the pike are striking them. You’ll catch some walleyes along the way too, maybe some panfish too, so don’t be afraid to experiment.

 Perch are where you find them, random catches come and go on a daily basis. So far, there does not appear to be a solid, uniform feeding pattern that gathers and holds them in large numbers. Our best advice for locating them is to watch for gravel, especially when vegetation is present. The combination of woody cover and gravel is a common preference.  

 As summer fish migrations toward mid-lake structure progress, anglers should begin experimenting with fishing on the bars and humps. On overcast days, especially with moderate breezes, fish have been showing up in some, but not all of the more popular mid-lake spots. On clear days, the fish do not hold to the edges of bars and humps. Moving out and away from the structures often puts them in water that’s too deep for safely releasing these fish. On sunny days, we suggest keying in on the twilight periods instead.

 Tomorrow will be the Musky fishing opener and we’re curious to see how much attention trophy hunters pay to Winnie. Anglers casting large baits may begin to encounter larger pike and that could be a focus of next week’s report.

 If you’re headed for the lake this weekend, good luck and remember, you’re always welcome to stop in to launch your boat, or for a chat.

Lake Winnie and Cutfoot Sioux Fishing Report June 9, 2023

Surface temperatures, at their peak reached the high 70 to low 80-degree range. After a cooler, breezier weather pattern developed at mid-week, Winnie’s waters were churned by the choppy water and temperatures settled back in to the 72-to-73-degree range.  

The warm water generated a moderate algae bloom and that added some color to the “gin-clear” water in Lake Winnie, which had previously been a problem for walleye anglers on sunny days. There haven’t been any large-scale insect hatches so far, but evidence is mounting that there will be some soon. Walleyes caught on the mid depth flats are coughing up insect larvae in folks’ live wells and tiny white, gnat-like bugs have been hatching over the deep-water mud flats.

 The development of submerged vegetation has influenced walleye location too. Earlier this week, walleyes were caught in good numbers by anglers fishing cabbage patches in shallow, 4- to 7-foot-deep water.

 With the ever-growing food chain, reduced light penetration, and blooming vegetation, the array of angler’s choices has now widened. Jig and minnow presentations continue to work and are still used by many of our guests. But trolling presentations like spinners and crankbaits are producing fish too. Lindy rigs tipped with lively leeches and night crawlers are also producing fish and so are slip floats combined with live bait. The best rule of thumb for choosing a presentation is to adapt your presentation to the fishing situation you encounter.

Our guide, Jared Saufferer tells us that calm water encourages walleye to move onto breaklines and sand-to-mud transitions. Key water depths there range from 22 to 28 feet of water. Jig and minnow combinations still produce fish, but Lindy Rigs are a good choice here as well.

Saufferer advised that on breezy days, walleyes move up onto sand flats and small rock piles in the 10-to-14-foot depth range. Here, the jig and minnow combination still produce the most action, but slip floats, combined with either ½ night crawler or large leech will produce fish too. Using the slip floats is an excellent way suspend bait above the newly emerging “moss-like” vegetation called Filamentous Algae. The algae clings to jigs, rigs and other lures that encounter it, so suspended baits below a sip float improve efficiency by helping to avoid fouling hooks.

In shallow water, cabbage patches trolling spinners is the key to success. Spinners move through the vegetation when other presentations get snagged and fouled. A #3 Indiana blade, a #2/0 Aberdeen hook and medium size fathead will get you into the action. The spinners are not only great for walleyes, but will trigger other warmer water species like sunfish, crappies, pike, and bass. Speaking of warm water species, many have been very aggressive this week.

Crappies wrapped up their spawning migrations about a week ago and have disappeared from shallow cover. Now, they’ve moved into deeper cabbage and along steep, shoreline related breaks. Daytime activity is minimal, but anglers fishing during late evening or at dawn will find schools of fish roaming the edges of cabbage as they feed. Using small jigs tipped with minnows and suspended below a bobber is one standard tactic. Casting small jigs tipped with plastics is also very effective and so are spinner type jigs like the Beetle Spin, Road Runner or Mepps. Fishing from an anchored position, or with the aid of a spot-locking trolling motor, focus on areas where larger expanses of cabbage meet shoreline breaks that lead into deep water.

Bass, rock bass and sunfish are in various stages of spawning right now. As of Monday, for example, rock bass were solidly pinned to their spawning beds and aggressively defending against intruders, including jig and minnow combinations. Often overlooked as a game fish, rock bass seldom get the respect that they deserve. Some folks do harvest them for dinner, but most don’t, but they are a blast to catch. They are scrappy, eager to strike and in the case of Lake Winnie, come is sizes Extra Large, through HUGE! Fish for them in and around bulrush patches, especially the ones that occur in conjunction with sandy, or hard gravel bottoms.

 Largemouth bass and sunfish have been active in shallow water too but are found somewhat deeper. Anglers accustomed to finding them in shallow water spawning cover will be surprised to learn that the warm weather accelerated the process, and many have already moved in, and back out again. Cabbage, coontail and eelgrass patches have been prime examples of their present-day habitat. Fast moving lures like the afore-mentioned spin jigs are a good presentation choice.

 Northern pike are active now as well, but not widely targeted yet. Most folk who do harvest them have caught them as a byproduct of walleye fishing. Folks trolling with spinners tend to catch more pike than folks using jigs, and the size potential of fish caught with spinners can often be greater, so this is the preferred “casual presentation”. Folks interested in targeting a larger pike today should consider large minnows, suspended below slip floats.

Late evening, early morning best for crappies

 A 30-inch pike may allow your jig or spinner to pass by unmolested, but it will have a harder time saying no to the ’full meal deal”. Use a quick strike rig to present lively sucker minnows in the 8-to-12-inch range and suspend them below a large slip float like Thill’s Big Fish Slider. Focus on patches of healthy green cabbage, and on rock points or rock bars located on the flats.

 As summer sets in, fish migrations toward mid-lake structure should begin at almost any moment. We’ll be monitoring conditions and reporting in again next week. If you’re headed for the lake this weekend, good luck and remember, you’re always welcome to stop in to launch your boat, or for a chat.

Lake Winnie and Cutfoot Sioux Fishing Report June 1, 2023

The combination of stable, nearly perfect weather, active fish, and a traditional family holiday turned the Memorial Day weekend into a “Mega Fishing Event” on Lake Winnibigoshish. It’s fair to say that there were few if any disappointed anglers on the lake and a cheerful buzz about the great fishing was the norm around our resort.

Dick Williams with Lake Winnie Walleye May 31, 2023

Walleye locations around the lake were focused primarily on shoreline structure, but the earliest signs of migrations toward mid-lake structure were noted by some of our guests.

 On Lake Winnie, shiner minnows typically begin spawning around Memorial Day, and that pattern was on track this week. So, we think that the shoreline bite will continue for a week or so, especially in areas adjacent to the sprawling sand flats where shiners perform their spawning cycle.  Small perch and other baitfish move onto the same shallow flats where shiner minnows are spawning, and these add to the attraction for hungry walleyes.

 Clear water conditions favor fishing during the twilight periods during morning and evening. Key walleye depths range from 12 to 18 feet along shoreline, shoreline related points and rocky structure also provide decent walleye action. During the daytime, especially on calm days, walleyes slip deeper down the breakline, preferring the 22-to-26-foot depth range. In the dark of night, they’ll move over shallow flats in the 10-to-14-foot range, maybe shallower at times.

Jig and minnow combinations continue to be the prominent presentation for our guests. Jig weights of 1/8 ounce are sufficient during twilight when walleyes move shallow. During the day, ¼ to 3/8-ounce weights are required to maintain contact with walleyes. Shiners are readily available now, and do appear to provide an advantage on Winnie, but larger fatheads or rainbows will get the job done too. Minnows in the 3-to-4-inch range, no matter which species, are the key.

 Alternative presentations are beginning to produce results now too. Trolling spinners, Lindy Rigging with larger minnows and trolling crankbaits have produced fish this week. Experiment if you like, but keep the jigs and minnows ready, as a backup plan.

Walleye Location Lake Winnie May 31, 2023

 While the water clarity on the big lake is still high, surface temperatures have risen into the 65-to-68-degree range. This, combined with lots of sunshine are promoting algae production. On Wednesday, while the underlying water remained clear, there was a thin film of plankton spreading horizontally across the surface of the lake. The “algae bloom” is important to anglers because it helps decrease clarity, making fishing daytime fishing easier. To the tiny walleyes that hatched recently, algae blooms represent an important element to survival, food!

 Overnight Tuesday, into the wee hours of Wednesday morning, thunderstorms rattled the lake. Calm, sunny conditions on Wednesday produced a setback in terms of walleye action. Fish were caught, but at a lower pace and by a smaller group of anglers. Deeper structures, located near the shoreline were one key to “scrounging” decent catches of fish. See the fish on the Humminbird screen above? These tightly grouped schools of walleye are predominantly 2019-year class, 14-to-15-inch fish. When you see images like these on your graph, that’s what you should expect to catch. Anglers in search of larger fish should look for smaller groups of fish, or even singles and doubles appearing on the sonar.

Paul Kautza Showing Early Signs of Crappies Moving Shallow

Crappie fishing over the Memorial Weekend was slow, folks were looking for them, but few were caught. On Wednesday, singles began appearing in shallow water spawning territory. “They were not stacked up, but we saw early signs of movement”, one group of anglers reported. “We caught more rock bass than crappies, and a largemouth bass too, so we’d expect to see more crappies moving shallow over the next several days.” They added.

 Perch fishing is good at times, not so good at others. They appear to be on the move, some anglers find a good school of keeper size fish one day, then lose track of them the next day. Perch populations are lower than average in Winnie right now. But when located, there are some nice size fish available, 11-to-12-inch perch can be expected, if you search for them.

 Pike fishing hasn’t begun in earnest yet, but there are folks catching them as they fish for walleye. Apparently, the protected slot for northerns must be working because catching 23-to-25-inch fish is becoming common. It’s early in the season though, so let’s see how pike fishing progresses as the summer sets in.