Hey guys & gals, going in for some fun on & near the border from Clearwater in mid September. I'm taking my brother on his first trip & I'm hoping to get some pointers from more successful fishermen than I. All I've ever successfully caught on previous trips were SMB on topwater and the occasional pike while trolling a diving/floating rap while traveling. My last trip a couple weeks ago I brought 1.5lbs of leeches for the Scouts and nobody caught anything with them.

I know there's trout in the waters we'll be on or adjacent to, and depending on conditions I could see us going on a bushwack to get to a designated lake. I even got a trout stamp because I knew waters I'd be on this year had potential.

I'm thinking of picking up some undressed Mepps to put into the tackle box, but will gladly entertain suggestions on what may be good to have along too.
I'll certainly have an assortment of jigs, offset hooks, and plastic baits as well.

Thanks!

If you are going to Clearwater fish the north side of the lake on the points. You will catch a Smallmouth almost every cast. Use a Mepps #3 inline spinner dressed.

So you're looking for trout lures? Little cleo is my go-to

mirth: "My last trip a couple weeks ago I brought 1.5lbs of leeches for the Scouts and nobody caught anything with them.
"

I am guessing you were not using slip bobber rigs? If you have not learned this rig, I would make it a priority. This rig changed how I fish.

I had a friend at work that wanted to get into fishing. He knew I liked to fish and asked me to show him how. The first thing I showed him was the slip bobber rig.

The great thing about this rig is you can catch all kinds of fish on it. You can practice the rig locally on small mouth bass, large mouth bass and channel catfish.

Also with leeches, have you read this site for TGO method?

The number one piece of advice I can give you is to start fishing your home waters. If you can catch fish out of pressured forest preserve lakes, you will be able to catch fish in the bwca.

For Lake Trout, I would read up on this site about the deep diving purple descent tail dancer.

Regarding the Meps, the Meps #2 is one of my top small mouth bass lures. I like the silver or gold dressed. I see someone recommended a #3. Probably because there are bigger smallies in the bwca.


Some of my facebook "friends" give me a hard time about catching small fish in Northern IL. This was from Banana Lake at Lakewood Forest preserve. Hit a leech under a slip bobber.


I view it as practice. This was from the boundary waters. Hit a leech under a slip bobber. Same rig. Better fishery.



This was from Rock Cut State Park near Rockford. It hit a leech under a slip bobber.

Thanks for all the suggestions so far. I have slip bobbers & bobber stops, and that's how I was recommending the kids fish using the leeches. I know of the TGO method and that's basically what we were doing.

I've also received QueticoMike's writeup in the past on z-man plastics and have tried it with limited success.

I'm also in N. IL and definitely I need to get out and practice more. Life often gets in the way of fun.

We'll be fishing Clearwater about 2 weeks after that right before trout season closes. I have had good days on CW in mid-June but I haven't fished it this late in the season before. I'm expecting lake trout to be DEEP. I could be wrong and I'll be prepared with everything from surface baits to leadcore that can get a spoon to 35 feet.

Questions:

1) Do you have a fish finder?

2) Do you have any specific goals in terms of species or just want to catch some fish, period?

mirth: "Thanks for all the suggestions so far. I have slip bobbers & bobber stops, and that's how I was recommending the kids fish using the leeches."

Step 1 is to get bit. The first reason I can think of that you would not get a bite with a leech and a slip bobber is your line is too heavy. Some fish are line shy (not catfish).

My friend related a story of fishing from a pier in lake Michigan. The water was clear. They could see fish near the bottom of the lake. He had light line and a slip bobber. He had some kind of live bait, I think a meal worm. He fished from the pier and started catching small mouth out of Lake Michigan. Other people on the pier were fishless. They could have been using the same bait. What made the difference? Small hook. Light line.

Have you also heard of the book, Lunkers Love Nightcrawlers? This book reiterates the theme of light line and small aberdeen hooks. It is one of the thinner hooks. It will keep live bait alive longer.

I am biased towards live bait.

Rigs are different for lures. You mentioned the zulu rig. It is designed to catch larger fish using plastics. Thus the large hook. 1/0 IIRC. You don't want to impale a live worm or leech with a 1/0 hook.

Take the aberdeen hook compared to the classic eagle claw bait holder, the aberdeen is thinner. It is better for smaller worms and leeches. You will probably have to re-tie an aberdeen more often because it is more likely to bend if snagged or you catch a larger fish. However, the goal is to get bit.

Once you start getting bites, you can fine tune your rig.

Around Northern IL lakes, I would start with 6lb test and a #6 or #8 aberdeen hook.

I picked up a fishin buddy a few years ago from another member but haven't used it, also wasn't planning on bringing it this time.

Don't have any specific species in mind other than possibly visiting some of the designated trout lakes in the area. Chances are if it's a keepable size we will keep whatever species we catch.

Yeah, I'm terrible at it too. Not sure why I even bother carrying all that stuff and buying a license anymore! We never catch anything.
My problem is that I never know which lure to use when and at what time of day. I must have thrown a thousand casts last week and only had one bite and it got away...

mirth: "I picked up a fishin buddy a few years ago from another member but haven't used it, also wasn't planning on bringing it this time.


Don't have any specific species in mind other than possibly visiting some of the designated trout lakes in the area. Chances are if it's a keepable size we will keep whatever species we catch."

Re-think the fishin buddy. You can eliminate huge sections of the lake or water column that aren't holding fish and concentrate on the ones that are. This increases your odds probably more than any other single factor in my opinion.

Also, professing that you you intend to kill & eat everything you catch is probably not going to inspire a lot of folks to start sharing their secrets. People generally keep their trout spots close to the vest anyway. The Minnesota DNR have recently suspended trout stocking on many lakes up there, so in some cases the fish that are left is all there's going to be for some time, until they figure out an agreement (the dnr uses helicopters instead of planes now and the USFS doesn't want to allow helicopters into the wilderness).

Yeah, good points for sure & I'll reconsider the fishin buddy.

Really what I meant by keep what we catch was more in line with - because of lack of confidence in our fishing abilities, if we're lucky enough to catch something that would be considered a keeper we will be keeping it.

mirth: "I picked up a fishin buddy a few years ago from another member but haven't used it, also wasn't planning on bringing it this time.


Don't have any specific species in mind other than possibly visiting some of the designated trout lakes in the area. Chances are if it's a keepable size we will keep whatever species we catch."

Several people above have given advice on lakers, but your mentioning "designated" trout lakes make me think you are looking for stream trout like brookies. May want to clarify which trout you are angling for.

I asked a similar "help me not suck" question a couple years ago specifically for lakers. The best advice I got was essentially "you have to fish where the fish are" (thanks, MT). it was good advice. I put aside my resistance to fish finders and got a Garmin Striker 4. Not the top finder out there, but it is small and does just what I need. Its not all that much coinage, even after doing the simple conversion to AA batteries (thanks MagicPaddler). Not only did it help me improve my catch, it also unexpectedly helped me stop losing lures! At $10-15 a pop, it doesn't take long to pay for itself. I definitely echo the advice for the purple deep tail dancer, and I also seem to still do when with the blue even in August. I saw a video not long ago of a guy fishing deep lakers in the BWCA by dropping a 4 inch or so curly tail white jig (or maybe a tube would work) down to 100+ feet, and then pulling it up. He was catching down just 10 feet or so off the bottom. I definitely want to try that next time. I never thought of fishing for any fresh water fish that deep.

Can't help on the other stuff, but good luck.

If you want to read my article Grand Slam Lures, just send me an email at - queticomike@yahoo.com

I've posted numerous 'help me not suck' sort of articles here and I still suck, but I suck less than I used to :).

Here is what I've learned:
1. Find someone who's trying to do exactly what you do. Don't get advice from an early-May flyfisherman about how to trout fish in September. I focused an entire October trip on a fishing style better suited to early June. If you're going mid-September, get mid-September advice.
2. If something isn't working, try something different. I often fish with 4-6 kids and I set them all up on different bobber depths to start. Very quickly, we'll figure out what depth the fish are at and everyone gets that depth and we all start catching. Also, very often we all stop catching after a while. Then we start experimenting at different depths again.
3. Get comfortable with the idea that you'll have to experiment before you get dialed-in on any given trip. We take 3-4 day trips and often don't figure out what works until the last day.
4. In fall, things change quickly. Mid-September in this warm year may be more like summer than fall, but last year we got advice from someone fishing the exact lakes only a few days before. We got the same lures and fished the same spots and got nothing. They were catching everything in 5-10 ft of water and we had to go much deeper. See points 2 and 3 above.

Thanks for the advice so far. I found batteries & the unit appears to work. I'll study the manual and try to get down to the local pond to try it out before the trip.

I had the same thought as rdgbwca, thinking your line is too heavy. I fish with 6 lb. and use the TGO method because it's hard to outfish that combo.

The last two trips I've been on I wound on fresh 6 lb mono. It seems like I had better luck when I was using 8lb line!

mirth: "The last two trips I've been on I wound on fresh 6 lb mono. It seems like I had better luck when I was using 8lb line!"

A couple more thoughts on dialling in a slip bobber setup based on your early comments about the scout trip and leeches.

You want to present a leech in as natural a manner as possible to the fish. The line, the weight (split shot or jig head), the swivel, the hook and even the size of the slip float can all make a difference. For all these components, when using a leech, you want to go as light as possible.

Too much weight and the leech won't fall naturally through the water.

Too big a slip float and the fish might reject the bait because they feel resistance when they take it.

Leeches are a great bait but it takes more than the right bait. The entire rig has to be designed to present the bait so as not to spook a fish.

Once you are confident in your rig, then you can move on to locating the fish. This is another big reason you won't get a bite, your bait is not in front of fish.

The first advice (that I sometimes have a hard time following), when fishing a spot is to set a timer for 15 minutes. If you don't get a bite, move on to a different spot.

People are asking about what species of fish you are targeting and also pointing out time of year. The species of fish and time of year can make a difference on where they are located in a body of water.

Once you have picked a target species, learn as much about that species as possible. Understanding the behavior and habits of your target species will help you predict where they might be on a body of water.

mirth: "Hey guys & gals, going in for some fun on & near the border from Clearwater in mid September. I'm taking my brother on his first trip & I'm hoping to get some pointers from more successful fishermen than I. All I've ever successfully caught on previous trips were SMB on topwater and the occasional pike while trolling a diving/floating rap while traveling. My last trip a couple weeks ago I brought 1.5lbs of leeches for the Scouts and nobody caught anything with them.

I know there's trout in the waters we'll be on or adjacent to, and depending on conditions I could see us going on a bushwack to get to a designated lake. I even got a trout stamp because I knew waters I'd be on this year had potential.

I'm thinking of picking up some undressed Mepps to put into the tackle box, but will gladly entertain suggestions on what may be good to have along too.
I'll certainly have an assortment of jigs, offset hooks, and plastic baits as well.

Thanks!"

Gold cast master spoon

Just wanted to thank everyone who contributed. I picked up a good assortment of silver & gold Mepps as well as spoons in the same colors, plus some of the lures QM mentions in his fall grand slam article. I spooled on 6lb for August's trip and have a refill of 6 and 8lb mono if it becomes necessary.
The Fishin' Buddy was tested and seems to work correctly although I think my 5-8' deep local pond at 2PM was probably not the right time or location to really try it out.

I hope to come back with good results!

mirth: "Just wanted to thank everyone who contributed. I picked up a good assortment of silver & gold Mepps as well as spoons in the same colors, plus some of the lures QM mentions in his fall grand slam article. I spooled on 6lb for August's trip and have a refill of 6 and 8lb mono if it becomes necessary.
The Fishin' Buddy was tested and seems to work correctly although I think my 5-8' deep local pond at 2PM was probably not the right time or location to really try it out.


I hope to come back with good results!"

When you going to Clearwater?

My favorite lure to drag behind the boat is a Silver white dressed #5 Mepps. It catches everything.

AmarilloJim: "When you going to Clearwater?"

We put in Sunday for a week of early fall bliss.

mirth: "

AmarilloJim: "When you going to Clearwater?"

We put in Sunday for a week of early fall bliss."

We will be entering Clearwater early on 9/19. If you see 2 red canoes give us a shout.

AmarilloJim: "

mirth: "

AmarilloJim: "When you going to Clearwater?"

We put in Sunday for a week of early fall bliss."

We will be entering Clearwater early on 9/19. If you see 2 red canoes give us a shout."

Will do! That's exit day for us. If you see a black Bell with the flying moose on the stern please introduce yourself! =)

Well, we still sucked. Had a great campsite up on a rock with an immediate offshore drop off and could not get anything to bite. To make matters worse, the fish finder ended up getting wet and only saw real use on one day and confirmed lots of fish offshore the campsite. We moved camps midweek and couldn't find the bite on Pine either.

Ultimately we lost a lot of lures and still had fun in the process. A newer, better finder is already on the wishlist so hopefully my next trip proves to be more successful.

mirth: "Well, we still sucked"

Sorry to hear it, but glad you had a great time. I'm on trip 5 or 6 still sucking; I'm hoping the one I take in a week is my first non-sucking trip. I'm definitely improving and, like you, enjoying the process.

We had a lot of success in early September. We put in on moose, paddle threw knife and went to Keck from their we went to Insula and then out lake one. We fished For lakers and walleye caught most of are lakers on Keck. Caught 20 in 4 hours (nothing huge but good eaters). Most of are walleye were caught on insula about 20 or so after a day of fishing as well as 3 nice fat 19 inch smallmouth. All of are lakers were caught jigging/ trolling with the wind on big one oz spoons about 40-50 feet deep. All of are walleye and bass were caught on a all white grub or a worm in about 15 feet of water of points/islands. Also hooked up on a bass which got eaten by a pike but lost it after it wrapped around a log would of been a trophy pike. Hooked it on a white grub. Over all lures did not seem to mater as as long as you put it in front of them.

Sorry about spelling
Peace

-TroutHooker

I have made one trip to the BWCA in summer but the fishing was really good. Trolling in 8-10 feet of water near shore works for SMB and walleyes. We caught walleyes every day for a week and they helped supplement the foil pouch food. I liked to fish for northern pike early and late around islands off shore with surface plugs like Hula poppers.

We are cold water fishermen, and did not go after trout at all. The warm water species were something different. I caught one northern about the size of my leg. We had to land the canoe to release . He was the largest fresh water fish I have ever caught except for salmon which are anadromous.

I have made one trip to the BWCA in summer but the fishing was really good. Trolling in 8-10 feet of water near shore works for SMB and walleyes. We caught walleyes every day for a week and they helped supplement the foil pouch food. I liked to fish for northern pike early and late around islands off shore with surface plugs like Hula poppers.

We are cold water fishermen, and did not go after trout at all. The warm water species were something different. I caught one northern about the size of my leg. We had to land the canoe to release him . He was the largest fresh water fish I have ever caught except for salmon which are anadromous.