Heading into Ensign for some fishing June 16-20. Any suggestions? We could do day trips if it would bring us some fillets.

I will also be on Ensign June 18-24 for my first trip to the bw. Any information provided would be helpful.

I am exited!

I have been to Ensign in August 2001 and in June 2005. On both trips we caught lots of SM Bass with good sizes, a decent amount of Walleye (average size), very few northerns.

We used leaches on a plain hook with a slip bobber setup most of the time. We focused on the shorelines that had dead trees hanging in the water and did very well, especially on the sunny days.

In the August trip we found a couple of reefs that were in the eastern basin of the lake and caught lots of SM bass on the reef. We used leaches with a plain hook and put a few split shot 1-2 feet up the line. The split shot would sit on the bottom and the leach/hook would "float" a little bit off the bottom. We caught a few walleye off of this reef with the same method in the evenings.

Ensign is a fun lake with good fishing, good campsites, and lots of shoreline. I suggest paying for a tow up Mooselake to save yourself a 1/2 day paddle in and out. Lots of people travel through Ensign but it still is very peaceful and quiet. Have fun. I have to wait until 2009 before I can go to again.

Our group basecamped Ensign last year and fished it and some of the surrounding lakes. I agree with gogo as far as the type of fish there and so on. An easy portage to the south of Ensign is Ashigan, where we caught some bigger bass( however they were full of parasites) and some decent northern while fishing for bass. I have a feeling there may be some bigger northern there. We had quite a few bit-off lines. I would pack some steel leaders and Rapala's about 5-6" long and give it a try. Good luck.

Was there over the 4th in 2007. Worst fishing ever but the crayfish were thick, so we ate two meals of them. Caught two small northerns and two small smallies. Over three days, drifting, trolling, salted minnow, crank bait, rapalas, fishing the river, fishing reefs, fishing overhangs, nothing.

Stayed at the site facing west just right out from the portage around from the river mouth.

Someone built a rather large stone dock, handy for loading, great campsite beautiful sight for star gazing.

First go to MN DNR lakefinder web site and print out the contour map of Ensign.

When on the lake pay attention to the shore lines that drop fast from 5 to 25 feet rapidly.

Drop or drag leeches in in these areas at about 12 to 15 feet. Having your bait just inches from the bottom.

The eastern part of the lake had better luck.

You will have more fish than you can eat.

Chuck

Pay attention to, and heed the posts that caught fish with plain hooks tipped with leeches, and those that didn't while using crankbaits or salted minnows!!

Enough said:)

We were there last year in mid May. At evening, every shore line we tried produced walleyes. We mostly fished the middle portion of the lake. We jigged leeches and caught so many small walleye that we got sick of it and started fishing for big smallies. (Can you believe that? ditching walleyes for smallies) We could not find a walleye over 20 inches. We did run into some very nice smallies. Also, we ran into two guys who had caught two twenty pound plus northern fishing cisco off a southern campsite in the eastern half of the narrow middle section of the lake.

And I would recommend not paying for a tow unless you are VERY pressed for time. It is a very easy paddle up Moose, and an easy portage through Splash. On the way out, from our camp in the middle part of the lake, we woke up at first light, packed up, and made it back to the landing on Moose at 8:11 AM. And we were battling a 20 mile an hour head wind the full length of Moose.