I am changing gears this year and going to VNP.

In regards to fishing who can say which one is best?

Sand Point...Namakan...I guess you could even throw Crane in there or anything else you believe is pertinent.
Thank you

Namakan. If you can, go through the proper procedures to fish the Canadian side. It's like a mini Rainy lake.

Man, its like asking which kid you love the best..... They are all pretty good if you ask me, trickiest part can be finding a group of keepers. Don't understatement Crane and Sand Point, I see so many guys blow bye on their way to Nam like its some sort of promised land only to see them blow back through a few hours later. I have found fish all over all three of them, spring summer and fall. I kind of like to setup shop on northern Sandpoint and have relatively fast access to all three.

I like the idea of base camping on the North end of Sand Point Also. I am fond of Crane from when I was a kid but don't have experience with Sand Point or Namakan yet. I sometimes wonder if one day with a guide wouldn't be a good investment on the first day of the trip. Do you know anyone capable of this...we could even use my boat.

What are you fishing for? My host on Sand Point is strictly northerns, and he puts us on some monsters every September.

As my handle suggests, I'm primarily a walleye guy. I've always liked Namakan as the fishing is solid and I really like the scenery of it as well. Also, the east end of the lake is further away from most of the landings so it seems slightly more remote.

The west and east end of Namakan are very different. The west end is more of your classic flowage with Kab and the Ash river dumping in and flowing up to Kettle falls. I think this is the spot to be earlier in the year. Fish your classic neck down points with good current as well as islands and points. The east end is a deep basin with endless reefs. I find this is the better spot later in summer as water temps go up. The walleyes will school up on the deep reefs chasing cisco. Jigs or Lindy rigs are my go to. Minnows in the spring, crawlers or leeches early summer then back to minnows by late summers when fishing the deep reefs.

That said, my biggest walleyes, 27"+, have all come out of Crane :)

Walleye6: "As my handle suggests, I'm primarily a walleye guy. I've always liked Namakan as the fishing is solid and I really like the scenery of it as well. Also, the east end of the lake is further away from most of the landings so it seems slightly more remote.


The west and east end of Namakan are very different. The west end is more of your classic flowage with Kab and the Ash river dumping in and flowing up to Kettle falls. I think this is the spot to be earlier in the year. Fish your classic neck down points with good current as well as islands and points. The east end is a deep basin with endless reefs. I find this is the better spot later in summer as water temps go up. The walleyes will school up on the deep reefs chasing cisco. Jigs or Lindy rigs are my go to. Minnows in the spring, crawlers or leeches early summer then back to minnows by late summers when fishing the deep reefs.


That said, my biggest walleyes, 27"+, have all come out of Crane :)"

Spring walleyes..."the gorge" I'll bet...
We used to go there when I was a kid.

Richwon4 Spring walleyes..."the gorge" I'll bet...
We used to go there when I was a kid. "

Surprisingly not! Late June/Early July out on the lake. One was at high noon of all times!! My old man sure loves fishing the gorge though.