I am taking my family to BWCA for the first time this Memorial Day Weekend. We will be going in on that Saturday for 7 days. Will be entering at Entry Point #30 on Lake 1 and heading up to Lake Insula - Alice - Thomas - Frazier and back to Snowbank. Is it worth taking a Fishfinder that time of year or is the water still pretty cool and most everything still in the shallows. Looking for Pike and Walleyes but anything else would be acceptable. It is just great to be able to get out and relax. Any advise for that time of year and locations would be greatly appreciated.

As you’ve probably heard before, moving water will be key. Structure around islands and points will produce eyes and you’ll catch pike everywhere. Depending on the type of spring we get, the walleyes will be anywhere from 5-15 feet of water Memorial Weekend. If it’s a really warm spring, they could be a little deeper, but it’s doubtful. Bring some leeches in with you and you’ll probably catch more walleyes. Every bait shop in town should have them. The most productive times will be early morning and early evening (just before sundown), but if there’s some wave action and/or an overcast day you can catch them anytime. SMB can be lots of fun too, but be careful with them as they will more then likely be pre-spawn. The pike and walleyes will probably be done spawning and will be ravenous. In regards to a sonar, if you want to bring one, do it. Personally, I don’t think you’ll need it on Insula or the number chain as the “fishy” spots are pretty obvious to anyone with a little experience. You’ll probably get many different responses from this forum in regards to a sonar, but ultimately it will come down to wether you want to portage it around for a week. Have a great trip! Enjoy the planning process and welcome to the forum.

Tony

Thanks Tony,
How is fishing on Thomas and Frasier that time of year? Any go to lures for that time of year?

Greg

Agree with a lot of what GopherAdventure said, but in general I think a sonar is always worth it. With tanin-stained waters it can be nice to know if you're in 8ft of water or 15ft without having to drop a jig.

LIVE BAIT. Slip bobber, pink jig head, leech. Find the bottom and set it about a foot above the bottom.

Unless you've got a super small, lightweight setup I wouldn't worry about a finder.