Our party will be making the annual trip up in mid-September this year. We normally go mid-summer, and bait is leeches and crawlers. However, I'm thinking minnows would be the better bet for an autumn trip. Wondering how you minnow-bringers do it?

We're going in on Moose River heading north to LaCroix. Portaging won't be bad, but there are a few. Hopefully we can make it through them all the first day, in which case I'd just leave them in the oxy bag. Still, if you have portaging in your future, is there any better way than just keeping them in a floater? They're so prone to spilling...

Thanks for your input.

Yes, bring minnows in mid-september. The leaches are small that time of year, and the fish from my experience aren't that interested in them. We only brought leaches last year into Fourtown, and on the way in, the groups we met said shiners where the way to go. And that was the case. Walter didn't want leachers, but was eating minnows from other groups camped near us.

We have brought them in both in the oxy bag or a minnow bucket in the past.

We just got back from a trip down the Nina Moose. We base camped in Lake Agnes and day tripped into Lac La Croix. We brought both minnows and leeches. Minnows were much more effective and wish I brought more. You probably won't be able to buy leeches in Ely in September anyway. As far as packing them in - leave them in the bag with O2 and they should hold up fine until you get to your first campsite. Agnes is a great fishing lake. I would suggest dragging a spinner rig with a minnow in 8-12 feet, working the points and islands. We caught a lot of decent walleyes and pike (30"+). Lake Agnes also has a good supply of large crappies. I've had best luck on the East shore, north of the second camp site as you enter the lake. Good luck and happy fishing. The pictures are all fish caught using spinners and minnows.

Last sept went through 4 doz. leeches in couple days (2 guys) working small-mouth schools. Fishing real slow, slipping along large rocks near drop offs. I wish I had brought minnows for wally. Only had a few small walleyes, just not real aggressive, minnows may have been the answer. But the smallies loved the leeches and wish I had brought more.