Lake Superior Trout

[jrpick]

Anybody fish Lake Superior Lakers?  Any tips for the Big Lake?

[sunup]

Best thing you could do is go with an experienced fisherman.  It's a whole different ballgame out there.

[JT]

I second what sun up said go with folks who know where to go or get some tips ahead of time. Iv'e caught lakers in 18' and of course deep ,it just depends on the day and time of season. A guide the first few times out might not be a bad idea as these men will save you time NOT catching and that knowledge is priceless.
Watch the crowds and see how they are doing. Set up shop and fish smart and you will usually get into some action. Be safe out there man ,that lake will swallow you up
if you aren't careful, try to go with buddies and watch the heaves,just don't take any chances out there. P.S. Gruenwald wrote some great stuff on Superior
in ICE FISHING III ( I think that's it )definitely packed with good tips and places to try. I love fishing the big girl,there's nothing else like it. Take care and goodluck out there. Don't forget the grill,I like my venison and brats,I'll bring the Beer LOL!

[jrpick]

Thanks, and am taking safety first into advisement - hard to fish from under the ice.  Suggestions on whip-ups versus tipups or jigging?  First time out I prefer action to trophy fishing. 8)

[sunup]

I spend most of my time in deeper water, 150-250 feet.  Tip-ups are a pain, usually too much current.  Quiet days they work but I spend too much time chasing flags when the little ones hit and drop.  Jigging is my favorite.  Bucktails with cutbait, airplane jigs, pimples, castmasters all work.  Watch yourself out there.

[norway]

you will want to be pounding the bottom,jigging with gibbu/steel line.we fish in 300-400 feet of water.the only bad part is once you get strike you will have to pull up all that line to see if robbed .lakers will not strike that rig again if the pointof the hook is exposed,my favorite bait is smelt or sucker cut bait

[jrpick]

Thanks for the input!  In mid Feb., I will likely head to the Chequamegon Bay Area, somewhere between Ashland and Bayfield.  I will stop into Anglers All to get an ice report and some tackle/bait.  My current thought is to have one tip up set in 60 - 80 fow.  It will have powerpro with 3 separate hooks on 6 ft 8# mono leaders set at 4 and 15 ft off bottom and 20 ft below the ice.  Each will be tipped w/ medium treble and 3 " minnow.  I will then set a whip-up rigged w/ powerpro and an 8# leader and  tipped w/ minnow at about 35 fow.  About 8' from the whipup, I will jig a castmaster or airplane jig/white tube jig tipped with cut bait.  I need to double check the fishing regs to make sure all of this is in compliance for WI Lk Superior.  I haven't decided if minnows will be hooked through tail, dorsal or lips.  I know from summer trolling that they attack trolled minnow rigs from the rear and so there I thread and drag behind.  Not sure about winter fishing, it's hard to troll on hard water.

Just throwing this out there as food for thought or laughter.  Tight lines FOM

[outdoorallure]

Current report and conditions as of 2/1/05
*Most of the slush north of Houghton Point and into the islands has firmed up enough for snowmobiles. People are getting out to hermit and beyond bobbing for Lakers. 4Wheelers are still having difficulty in spots. Ice thicknesses have not changed much. There is an average of a foot in the bay. North of Houghton Point in the south channel and out in the islands the ice is highly variable in thickness, anywhere from three inches in spots to over ten in others. Ice tends to be thinner under thick snowdrifts. Fishing is falling into a typical midwinter pattern. The bay has slowed down especially in the shallow water. There is still a real varied mixed bag of species being caught but not as consistently, and mostly from deeper water around the channel in 30 to 60 feet. Bobbing has been good both in shallower water (80-120 feet) for Lakers and Whitefish and in deeper water up to 300 feet for fat trout. Several big fish around 20lbs were reported caught and released this week.

*Ice fishing inland lakes has slowed down somewhat. There is around a foot of good ice in most areas. Walleye  fishing has been decent on the Pike Chain, Namekagon, and Owen, right at dusk and after dark. Pike and Panfish fishing has been good on the smaller ponds in the Iron River, Delta areas
For current fishing and ice conditions reports; www.outdoorallure.com

[jrpick]

Thanks for the update Outdoor Allure!  I will be stopping in there for my ice advisory, bait and tackle before heading out to the Big Lake in the next couple weeks.  It looks like I may need to find 80 - 100 ft of water to find lakers.  Thanks again, FOM