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Troutaddict80
member (13)member
  
02/17/2021 01:08PM  
Iv struck out on any keeper lakers the last 3 trips this yr. Thinking either sled into kemo or hike into tusc this next trip.. any opinions would be great. Trying to get to know the area the last 2 winters. Going at it alone the last two yrs. Just using dnr site info but gets pretty vague on some areas.
 
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02/17/2021 01:32PM  
Welcome to the board Troutaddict80.

Here is a picture of my first bwca lake trout thru the ice. Caught on Tuscarora a few years ago. From the first campsite to the west from the portage, I fished out from camp about 150 yards jigging a white heavy jig with large white rubber body and a salted minnow. Checked this off my bucket.

 
02/18/2021 08:19AM  
Troutaddict80: "Iv struck out on any keeper lakers the last 3 trips this yr. Thinking either sled into kemo or hike into tusc this next trip.. any opinions would be great. Trying to get to know the area the last 2 winters. Going at it alone the last two yrs. Just using dnr site info but gets pretty vague on some areas."


What's size are you looking at for a keeper? Does this mean you've either caught small or huge lake trout on your last trips?
 
Troutaddict80
member (13)member
  
02/18/2021 09:42AM  
Looking to catch 15"-20".. All the ones I have caught have been small. Caught 2 decent ones off ram last yr but not this yr. Iv been to greenwood,ram,south this yr. Only keeper was a brookie off topper. Mavis and missing link all were 8" brookies.
 
thegildedgopher
distinguished member(1659)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
02/18/2021 10:00AM  
In my opinion you've gotta fish some bigger lakes with a greater, greasier forage base if you want a better chance at catching bigger fish. In the DNR reports, don't just look at the surveys, look at the full list of species found. Fish a like with cisco or smelt and you'll find bigger lake trout in general. Lake trout aren't that easy to survey, so you've gotta look at more than just the number and size of fish that ended up in DNR nets.
 
Troutaddict80
member (13)member
  
02/18/2021 10:00AM  
Feel free to email me if you dont want to post it here.
 
thegildedgopher
distinguished member(1659)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
02/18/2021 01:35PM  
Troutaddict80: "Feel free to email me if you dont want to post it here."


Just do the work. Everything I mentioned was in the DNR reports.

I hope you weren't laker fishing in Mavis or Missing Link?
 
02/18/2021 02:53PM  
I don't ice fish (at least not yet:), but you could try Seagull as well. There is a northern basin that is deep and productive during the summer months. Just a suggestion.
 
Troutaddict80
member (13)member
  
02/18/2021 03:00PM  
Went to Mavis, Missing Link and topper to get my first brookies. Tucarosa don't say there is any Cisco or smelt in it but you think there would be. Just got the hitch for my snowmobile so might just slide into Kemo and see what happens next trip up.
 
02/18/2021 03:23PM  
We hiked into Tuscarora last year, certain it'd be the best bet for lots of lakers, with some keepers/eaters. It was early March. We fished hard for 3 days, and just landed one laker between the 3 of us- not saying you shouldn't try Tuscarora, just that we were a little discouraged, as we thought a lake that far back would be the ticket... It was epic quiet, and heard wolves howling each night, so it was not a bad trip at all, just not as many trout as we'd hoped for. I've heard it's amazing there in the Spring, for Trout.

I was Jigging white tube jigs tipped with salted minnows, and some spoons, too- the one I caught was in about 60 feet of water, but only 10 feet under the ice. If I didn't have a Vexilar with me, I'd have never had a chance. They come in at random spots along the column. Set the hook hard, their mouths are tough. My buddy lost a couple trying to set them like Walleye.

J
 
02/18/2021 04:13PM  
You could go into JAP. You'll catch plenty of 15-20 inch lakers. You'll never catch one bigger than 20, but it's choke full of them that size. Good Luck!
 
Troutaddict80
member (13)member
  
02/18/2021 04:53PM  
Iv thought of that to.. just dont know if its doable for day trip fishing.. hopeing to next yr have a hot tent set up.
 
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