Has anyone been through the area recently?

We have a group of six heading out of EP22 next week. I'm guessing we will shoot for Gun as a basecamp and day trip from there. Not sure if we will push for Thunder or Beartrap, but the focus will be on Boot, Fairy, Gun and Gull. The weather is bound to change, but the predicted 70s/50s with a slight change of inclement weather shouldn't discourage our efforts. I will plan to report back on our experience.

Thanks and regards,
Paul

We went last June and made it to Fairy before it started pouring. The kids that were on the trip outvoted us adults, and made an executive decision to stay on Fairy. We basecamped in rain and wind the whole 5 days we were there, but still managed to day trip to different lakes for some good walleye fishing. Loved that area, and would love to go back again. Enjoy your trip, can't wait to read about it!

We are heading in on the 25th with a group of 4.....similar plan as yours. Please post your results when you get back!

Bryan

Just got back to NYC having spent the last 8 days in Minnesota, with 4 of them being in the BWCA. As indicated, our group up six set off to Gun Lake this past Thursday. Conditions were wet, portages were flooded out, and canoe traffic was high. So our pace was slower than expected. Roughly five and half hours after hitting the first portage into Mudro, we finally arrived / settled on a campsite on Gull Lake (campsite west of portage into mudhole). Fourtown, Boot, Fairy, Gun and Gull all had a fair amount of traffic, with a number of campsite suffering from the waves of rain. The 'Trigger' campsite was essentially a swamp and littered with fish carcasses...much to the liking of a resident turkey vulture. The first campsite into Gull is amazing and would have been perfect for our larger group, but it was of course taken. The only positive from all of the rain, was the trek down Moosecamp 'River' was a breeze. Bugs weren't terrible, but wearing long sleeves and pants is probably a wise decision. Despite being on the latter half of their peak season, no-see-ums are still pretty bad. All in all, a beautiful route and an area I will definitely go back to at some point down the road. Now for the fishing.

Fourtown: Narrows to left of Island as you head west to portage into Boot produced walleyes on black/silver rapalas and smallies on slip and leech setups (one was just shy of 20"). Southeast corner of same island produced smallies and walleyes on slip and leech setups.

Boot: Really didn't fish much due to weather conditions but we did pull a few smallies near portage from fourtown and the southern shoreline

Fairy: Did not attempt to fish

Gun: All of the locations discussed on this forum over the years produced in some form (narrows between peninsula and western shoreline, trigger campsite, portage into Gull, end of barrel, etc). We mainly caught walleye, but did pull in a few sizeable smallies as well (18-19"). Slip and a leech produced all but a couple walleye, which were caught on black/silver rapalas.

Gull: In front of cliff, shoreline between two campsites near portage into mudhole, etc. A lot of small pike, a couple walleyes, one really big bluegill, and some decent smallies...one that was bordering on 20". Jig and a leech, slip and a leech, and white spinners seemed to be the ticket on Gull. A very large snapping turtle that has a taste for fish on stringers as evident by the scarring on the top of head from a paddle or something similar surfaced at our camp, and tried to make off with catch one of the evenings.

Overall, the fishing was good but not great. Certainly had to work for them, trying out a number of different techniques and locations. Ultimately, finding running water combined with a slip and a leech was the ticket for the hottest action. All fish were caught in 4-10ft of water, with 6-8' producing the most fish. On our way to the Moosecamp 'river', my canoe partner and I decided to make a few casts at the end of the barrel on Gun. I got a solid hit on my 3rd cast, ~7-8min and multiple runs later, we were able to net the largest walleye we both had ever seen in person. My buddy assisted in getting the hook out and the plan was to pass back to me for a quick measure and a picture before releasing. Sadly, the perfectly calm walleye gave one massive thrash of its tail once unhooked causing my buddy to lose his grip and the walleye fell off the side of the net and back into the water. I've caught numerous in the 26-29" range and this one dwarfed them all. I'm confident in saying there is at least one 30" / 10lb walleye roaming Gun Lake! Until next time...

I traveled through this area June 6 to June 10. This is a very busy area, my group made the 6 hour trek to Friday Bay on day one. Fishing was good, bring leeches and jigs. Enjoy!

Paul,

I appreciate the update! We are heading in on Sunday and will give an update when we return the following Saturday.....one question.....what does a 30" inch 10 pound Walleye like to eat on Gun Lake???? He should be hungry again by the time we get up there....I am sure we will spend a little time in that area.

Thanks again,

Bryan

quote bkelley314: "Paul,


I appreciate the update! We are heading in on Sunday and will give an update when we return the following Saturday.....one question.....what does a 30" inch 10 pound Walleye like to eat on Gun Lake???? He should be hungry again by the time we get up there....I am sure we will spend a little time in that area.


Thanks again,


Bryan"

Bryan -

On Gun, we quickly realized running water was the key. There are two spots on the northern half that offer this (discussed in my update post). Leeches on red hooks ( I used a #4 Octopus) produced every fish at both of these locations, including the mentioned wall hanger. We used bobbers and enjoyed the R&R...no shame in being lazy...allows you to enjoy the scenery, which is amazing.

Good luck!