Manitoba Fishing

[JCon]

Come home, @Noeller! Fish are biting.

[Noeller]

18 minutes ago, JCon said:

Come home, @Noeller! Fish are biting.

I'm trying so hard....honestly thought I had things locked up for a Kenora gig.... crushed 2.5 interviews, including with the president of the company, and then crickets..... sigh. I'm working on it, though...the wife and I have an agreement in place to allow it. 

[Mark H.]

Walleye bite has been inconsistent so far.  You're quite likely to not catch anything, right now

 

[Noeller]

2 minutes ago, Mark H. said:

Walleye bite has been inconsistent so far.  You're quite likely to not catch anything, right now

 

lies and damned lies..... the greenback bite on LW, specifically on the west side between Matlock and "The Mouth" has been incredible. I follow all the usual suspects on social media and watch a lot of YouTube vids that are going up. Not only are numbers up, but overall size is incredible. A 15lb 32.5" tanker just came out yesterday morning....unreal. 

[Mark H.]

53 minutes ago, Noeller said:

lies and damned lies..... the greenback bite on LW, specifically on the west side between Matlock and "The Mouth" has been incredible. I follow all the usual suspects on social media and watch a lot of YouTube vids that are going up. Not only are numbers up, but overall size is incredible. A 15lb 32.5" tanker just came out yesterday morning....unreal. 

That's where we fish. Marking plenty of fish, but they don't always bite

With a few exceptions, most people didn't catch very much this weekend 

But the fish are there...so c'mon DOWN!

[Piggy 1]

59 minutes ago, Mark H. said:

Walleye bite has been inconsistent so far.  You're quite likely to not catch anything, right now

 

Buddy of yours and mine told me they caught way more than limit.

[Noeller]

I'm thinking Mark's community is just doing it wrong   Might be a finicky bite right now, but the South Basin is an extremely special place. Fishing Manitoba/NW Ont is probably my biggest obsession in life....possibly more than the Bombers, even. There are few things I care about more. 

[Piggy 1]

5 minutes ago, Noeller said:

I'm thinking Mark's community is just doing it wrong   Might be a finicky bite right now, but the South Basin is an extremely special place. Fishing Manitoba/NW Ont is probably my biggest obsession in life....possibly more than the Bombers, even. There are few things I care about more. 

Or ,they wanna keep em all to themselves.....

[Noeller]

Just now, Piggy 1 said:

Or ,they wanna keep em all to themselves.....

DEAD BITE - STAY AWAY - NOT WORTH YOUR TIME!!

[Mark H.]

29 minutes ago, Noeller said:

DEAD BITE - STAY AWAY - NOT WORTH YOUR TIME!!

Lotsa northerns! And mariahs!

[GCn20]

15 hours ago, Noeller said:

lies and damned lies..... the greenback bite on LW, specifically on the west side between Matlock and "The Mouth" has been incredible. I follow all the usual suspects on social media and watch a lot of YouTube vids that are going up. Not only are numbers up, but overall size is incredible. A 15lb 32.5" tanker just came out yesterday morning....unreal. 

One man's inconsistency is another man's big day. I get mad when I don't pull a dozen out on the ice, other guys dream of that day. It's all relative. I had a day last year on Wekusko with 4 walleyes over 28 inches and almost 50 walleye in total. Dream day, but unfortunately that becomes the bar afterwards and anything less seems anti-climactic. Went just after New Years to Paint Lake and caught about 8 walleye in the 22-24 inch range....I was kind of disappointed.

13 hours ago, Mark H. said:

Lotsa northerns! And mariahs!

Love the mariahs!! Would fish them all day every day if I knew there was lots of them. Best eating fish out there.

14 hours ago, Noeller said:

I'm thinking Mark's community is just doing it wrong   Might be a finicky bite right now, but the South Basin is an extremely special place. Fishing Manitoba/NW Ont is probably my biggest obsession in life....possibly more than the Bombers, even. There are few things I care about more. 

Make a swing through the North someday, I'll take ya out to a few pretty special lakes up here. Ice or boat...your choice. Wekusko, or any of the Grass River chain is just exceptional fishing for size and numbers with lots of incidental Lake Trout hookups, Paint Lake has numbers....100 walleye days are not an exaggeration, and I've got spots that no one has heard of near my wife's reserve that are mind blowing.

Edited January 11, 2023 by GCn20

[blue_gold_84]

14 hours ago, Noeller said:

I'm thinking Mark's community is just doing it wrong   Might be a finicky bite right now, but the South Basin is an extremely special place. Fishing Manitoba/NW Ont is probably my biggest obsession in life....possibly more than the Bombers, even. There are few things I care about more. 

Some of the best, if not the best, freshwater fishing on the planet. We are so ******* fortunate to have such an incredibly rich and diverse area in which to fish for just about anything an angler could want.

Ugh... Now I want to go fishing.

[Mark H.]

2 hours ago, GCn20 said:

Love the mariahs!! Would fish them all day every day if I knew there was lots of them. Best eating fish out there.

Make a swing through the North someday, I'll take ya out to a few pretty special lakes up here. Ice or boat...your choice. Wekusko, or any of the Grass River chain is just exceptional fishing for size and numbers with lots of incidental Lake Trout hookups, Paint Lake has numbers....100 walleye days are not an exaggeration, and I've got spots that no one has heard of near my wife's reserve that are mind blowing.

I'll agree to disagree on the mariahs.  A Manitoba walleye caught through the ice is the best eating fish on the planet

Agreed on the north.  We head up Sherridon every few years - incredible for walleye and lake trout up there

There's something different about the air as well

 

[Noeller]

Apologies for derailing the CanPoli thread......but bless you fellas for this discussion on MB fishing. It sustains me. Wife and I have decided to get into the winter camping craze to take advantage of the late night/overnight/early AM bite. Were out a couple weeks ago and really enjoyed it, going again this coming weekend. The walleye bite from 7-9pm was just stupid...worth every bit of effort. 

Have a buddy whose mom is from Snow Lake originally, with some family cabins up Wekusko way. That Grass River Chain is polluted with big fish. Relatively little known fact: There is no better place in the province to find Master Angler (20") Sauger than Wekusko, if you're attempting to check that one off your MA list....

[GCn20]

1 hour ago, Mark H. said:

I'll agree to disagree on the mariahs.  A Manitoba walleye caught through the ice is the best eating fish on the planet

Agreed on the north.  We head up Sherridon every few years - incredible for walleye and lake trout up there

There's something different about the air as well

 

Lake Trout are a crap load of fun. I'm not big on eating them, but boy are they fun to catch. You might be right about pickeral vs mariah....I am just sick of them honestly, and rarely get mariah. Up here walleye on open water in the first month and a half of the season is as good as walleye through the ice down south so I end up making a pig of myself in the spring/early summer and find myself looking for other fish by the time August hits and I usually don't get hungry for them again until spring. Don't think I keep more than a handful of walleye each year through the ice. Sheridon/Cranberry/Flin Flon is some outstanding fishing. The air is different, and most importantly so is the quality of the water the fish are caught in. Don't care what anyone says, the fish in the North taste better.

48 minutes ago, Noeller said:

Apologies for derailing the CanPoli thread......but bless you fellas for this discussion on MB fishing. It sustains me. Wife and I have decided to get into the winter camping craze to take advantage of the late night/overnight/early AM bite. Were out a couple weeks ago and really enjoyed it, going again this coming weekend. The walleye bite from 7-9pm was just stupid...worth every bit of effort. 

Have a buddy whose mom is from Snow Lake originally, with some family cabins up Wekusko way. That Grass River Chain is polluted with big fish. Relatively little known fact: There is no better place in the province to find Master Angler (20") Sauger than Wekusko, if you're attempting to check that one off your MA list....

Just be careful with your propane heater and enjoy the winter camping!!

Edited January 11, 2023 by GCn20

[Noeller]

3 minutes ago, GCn20 said:

Just be careful with your propane heater and enjoy the winter camping!!

switched to the Big Buddy (has CO sensor and auto-shut off)  this year (Sunflower is a death trap...) and 2 CO detectors running at all times. Will be a great winter/spring! 

[GCn20]

1 hour ago, Noeller said:

switched to the Big Buddy (has CO sensor and auto-shut off)  this year (Sunflower is a death trap...) and 2 CO detectors running at all times. Will be a great winter/spring! 

I like the BB...I use the lil Buddy because I just have a 2 man clam but if I ever get one bigger than that's the way I will go too. I won't be doing the winter camping thing because my ice hole is 50 yards from my dock, but it sure would be nice to have a 6-8 man for guests.

Edited January 11, 2023 by GCn20

[Noeller]

13 minutes ago, GCn20 said:

I like the BB...I use the lil Buddy because I just have a 2 man clam but if I ever get one bigger than that's the way I will go too. I won't be doing the winter camping thing because my ice hole is 50 yards from my dock, but it sure would be nice to have a 6-8 man for guests.

went to the Otter Vortex Monster Lodge this year (at 132sq ft, the largest on the market) so the BB was a necessity. We still have a "Regular Buddy" from before, as a back up. Finally got the hose to the 20lb propane working properly, so we'll be cooking this weekend. 

Alright, I think we might need to branch this conversation off into a separate thread, if a Mod would be so kind......

[Mark H.]

2 hours ago, GCn20 said:

Lake Trout are a crap load of fun. I'm not big on eating them, but boy are they fun to catch. You might be right about pickeral vs mariah....I am just sick of them honestly, and rarely get mariah. Up here walleye on open water in the first month and a half of the season is as good as walleye through the ice down south so I end up making a pig of myself in the spring/early summer and find myself looking for other fish by the time August hits and I usually don't get hungry for them again until spring. Don't think I keep more than a handful of walleye each year through the ice. Sheridon/Cranberry/Flin Flon is some outstanding fishing. The air is different, and most importantly so is the quality of the water the fish are caught in. Don't care what anyone says, the fish in the North taste better.

Lake Trout were very good fresh out of the lake.  I have some in the freezer - a bit apprehensive about what they'll taste like

Ice fished walleye are still good after months in the freezer - if you package them in a ziplock bag with some water

[Noeller]

Lakers are DEEEELISHHHHHHH....... have had them many times during canoe trips into NW Ont. Personally, my wife and I are just fishing for trophies...we don't ever keep. Incredible thing about Alberta that Manitobans can't wrap their heads around: Walleye are so scarce in Alberta, that in order to keep ANY, you have to enter a tag-lottery (as Manitobans do for hunting deer/elk/moose, etc) and you can get drawn for Class A/B/C (which correspond to a certain size). It's really wild and we've never bothered to enter. We'll both eat fish, but we don't like it enough to bother going through the hassle. And I could fillet if I absolutely had to, but again, to me it's not worth the hassle. I'm strictly out there trying to catch a 30" walleye and nothing else...

[GCn20]

43 minutes ago, Noeller said:

went to the Otter Vortex Monster Lodge this year (at 132sq ft, the largest on the market) so the BB was a necessity. We still have a "Regular Buddy" from before, as a back up. Finally got the hose to the 20lb propane working properly, so we'll be cooking this weekend. 

Alright, I think we might need to branch this conversation off into a separate thread, if a Mod would be so kind......

Otter Monster lodge....whoah...I need Noeller money...lol. Pretty awesome unit.

Edited January 11, 2023 by GCn20

[GCn20]

44 minutes ago, Noeller said:

went to the Otter Vortex Monster Lodge this year (at 132sq ft, the largest on the market) so the BB was a necessity. We still have a "Regular Buddy" from before, as a back up. Finally got the hose to the 20lb propane working properly, so we'll be cooking this weekend. 

Alright, I think we might need to branch this conversation off into a separate thread, if a Mod would be so kind......

I use a 20 lber on my lil buddy. The price of 1 lbers is insane.

[Noeller]

3 minutes ago, GCn20 said:

Otter Monster lodge....whoah...I need Noeller money...lol. Pretty awesome unit.

it's really great so far.... also finally broke down and bought the Strikemaster 40V Lite which is among the best money I've ever spent in fishing. We'd been using an Eskimo uninsulated double bubble along with a Jiffy Pro4 propane auger, and the word "upgrade" is a massive understatement. Really glad we moved up in the world this year...

Just now, GCn20 said:

I use a 20 lber on my lil buddy. The price of 1 lbers is insane.

oh they're riduclous right now... we buy 3 packs from CT, which used to be like 18 bucks and now they're 25, I think. Insanity.

[GCn20]

17 minutes ago, Mark H. said:

Lake Trout were very good fresh out of the lake.  I have some in the freezer - a bit apprehensive about what they'll taste like

Ice fished walleye are still good after months in the freezer - if you package them in a ziplock bag with some water

I don't mind smaller Lake Trout, but I rarely catch any under 10 lbs and I find over that they are oily. It's not the taste per se.

1 minute ago, GCn20 said:

I use a 20 lber on my lil buddy. The price of 1 lbers is insane.

I use the 1 lbers if I am off my home lake and it drives me nuts when I purchase them. There goes a case of beer. lol

[Mark H.]

5 minutes ago, GCn20 said:

I don't mind smaller Lake Trout, but I rarely catch any under 10 lbs and I find over that they are oily. It's not the taste per se.

I am referring to smaller ones. Anything over 20" went back in the lake