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Need help finding good smallmouth lake

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JeffG

07/29/2018 06:45PM

I am planning a trip to the bwca the 3rd week of Sept. We will be going out of Ely and I'm looking for suggestions on a good smallmouth lake that is easy to get to. My back has been acting up and we can't go to a couple places we would like to. Any info is much appreciated!

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murphylakejim

07/30/2018 06:18AM

Throw a stone and you will hit a good small mouth lake.

Just go into basswood anywhere.

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heavycanoe

07/30/2018 10:41AM

Couple of years back, we caught a ton of smallies in East Pike. That is only one portage in, but 200 rods. I don't remember it being that long, so must be an easy portage.

"I have fished through fishless days that I remember happily without regret." - Roderick Haig-Brown

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MikeinMpls

07/30/2018 12:45PM

Little Shell. Caught scads of smallies off the western wall/shoreline.

Mike

I did indeed rock down to Electric Avenue, but I did not take it higher. I regret that.

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mooseplums

07/30/2018 01:07PM

Throw a dart at a map of the BWCA... bingo.

"I am haunted by waters"~Norman Maclean "A River Runs Through It"

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mooseplums

07/30/2018 01:07PM

heavycanoe: "couple of years back we caught a ton of Smallies in East Pike. That is only 1 portage in, but 200 rods, I don't remember it being that long, so must be an easy portage."

That would be West Pike....1 portage from Clearwater Lake

"I am haunted by waters"~Norman Maclean "A River Runs Through It"

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heavycanoe

07/30/2018 01:42PM

We came in from John lake

"I have fished through fishless days that I remember happily without regret." - Roderick Haig-Brown

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MN_Lindsey

07/30/2018 07:29PM

I don't know what your definition of easy is, but we slayed Crab Lake w/the Smallies. Almost every cast.

Darnit, shouldn't have spilled the beans. (The 420 rod portage kind of deters people, but my 9 year old at the time did it just fine).

“The Wilderness holds answers to more questions than we have yet learned to ask.” - Nancy Newhall

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Guest Paddler

07/31/2018 07:58AM

Thanks for the suggestions. I’ll share this info with the group and we’ll pick one. Thanks again!

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egknuti

08/01/2018 08:39AM

Crab, Cummings and Coxey Pond are all good bass lakes.

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mmarksnp

08/01/2018 10:17AM

Indiana for sure. Portage in from the east as it is easy and short. The portage in from the west is hard.

Non est ergo nothi tere vos usque

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AmarilloJim

08/01/2018 10:26AM

mmarksnp: "Indiana for sure. Portage in from the east as it is easy and short. The portage in from the west is hard.
"

That's a good batch of fertilizer there!

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mmarksnp

08/01/2018 10:44AM

Just to be clear, we ate them all. Group of Scouts. No fertilizer here.

Non est ergo nothi tere vos usque

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mgraber

08/01/2018 12:11PM

I believe Amarillo Jim was probably stating that bass are only good for fertilizer. There is a lot of prejudice against smallmouth around here although much is probably tongue in cheek.

So many fish,so little time

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mmarksnp