Lake of the Woods, Canada

[mizzouflyfisher]

Just got back from a week on LOTW. I love trout fishing, but nothing compares to a 40+" fish breaking the water as it follows your lure that is roughly a 2 ounce zara spook. Caught lots of pike up to 37", a few walleye on spinnerbaits for dinner, couple dozen smallmouth up to 18.5" and several muskie up to 42.5". Big fish for the group was a 48" muskie. Great fishing despite the less than ideal conditions. I'll post some pictures some time after I get back from Alaska.

Mizzouflyfisher

[Steve Smith]

I spent a week on Lake of the Woods last month at Rex Tolton’s Camp near Nester Falls Ontario. It was my 15th annual trip to Canada and probably the best year ever. However, there seemed to be a real lack of walleye between the 16 to 20 inch ranges this year. I don't mean to sound like it was a bad trip, as I don’t think I have every caught so many fish. Just very few in that take-home range. The camp owners said it was probably the size that the Indians were culling from the nets for market. It is hard to believe they could harvest that many walleye, but maybe it’s possible. During my week I caught two 18”, two 19”, two 20”, two 24”, and one 28”. That’s not bad for an ole geezer. There wasn’t any real patterning other than there seemed to be a lot of fish on the humps, or at least more than usual. Unfortunately, the smallies were prespawn and not very active yet. It sounds like you hit it just right.

[mizzouflyfisher]

I've made 8 or so trips now. We stay at Monument Bay Lodge in Canada. It's on an island about a 45 minute boat ride from the ramp. 95% of the time we cast for pike and muskies. numbers keep getting better every year, especially the pike population. The gill netting was cut way back several years ago and there is a slot limit on pike, can't keep anything between 27.5" and 35.5", not that I keep pike anyway. Plus nobody keeps any muskie. This is all despite the fact that boat traffic keeps getting thicker every year. As long as you can miss the rocks everywhere, you're going to catch some fish. We lost a lower unit last year, and there were already 4 lost at the camp this year. Keeps the boat rides interesting I guess.

Mizzouflyfisher

[Steve Smith]

I hear you on the lower units. This year was an exception, but I did bang some paint off. I was lucky that was all I did. You'd think after 15 years that I would find all the rocks on the lake, but there's always that one that gets forgot. Some of our guys fish for the northerns and muskies, but most go after walleye and smallmouth. If one knows how to clean the "Y" bone out of a pike, they can be dang good eating. Not as good as walleye, but good enough. I like it when the northerns are in the reeds, and you can watch the weeds spread as the pike charges out ofter your lure. It can make your heart flutter more than a little.

[MoCarp]

I have been twice to lake o the woods, --great place love the pike and 'ski fishing and awsome smallmouth bass--never done that well on walleyes but whopper yellow perch and crappie" that whats worth eating!

any ways for pike try this- 1 oz tail spinners buzzed like a bass spinnerbait--also a size 5 white mepps but replace the tiny treble with a dressed musky treble thats 3 sises bigger--you can slow buzz it and the pike and 'skis are all over it

also lake trout--next trip I need to try for those--does anyone know if any brook trout fishing is close to the eastern half of the lake of the woods Kenora area?

Mo