I always like to ask this question each year before the fishing season starts, what new lure or presentation that you have never used in Quetico or the Boundary Waters do you plan on trying in 2023? What is the target species of the lure or presentation?

I am not sure what I have shared in the past but I am definitely in the camp of always resorting to my tried and true method. However, this year we are getting into LLC in early to mid June time period so will be doing some vertical jigging for lake trout with an assortment of baits. All I have done is trolled crankbaits and spoons in the past. I have really not targeted them too much to this point.

We plan to vertical jig in that 30-60 foot range with spoons, jigging raps, other assorted lipless crankbaits, bucktail jigs, etc... hoping to tie into a couple of them.

Another good answer to this question that I have been telling myself I need to try for years is the "tgo method" for walleye. I have still yet to try it as we typically slip bobber. I can see where it would be effective for finicky bites and feeling everything I just feel it would be incredibly slow fishing with no idea if you are on or near the bottom, hung up etc... I am guessing the leech would swim decent to avoid getting hung up but have not carved out the time to try. maybe I'll play with the set up this year. I believe it was you Mike that wrote an article about this method in the BWJ as well. For those that don't know and others can correct me if I am wrong but the set up is: smaller hook with a leech- maybe small split shot but none if you can get away with it due to little or no wind, and that is it. Letting the leech drift and swim around the bottom.

I also think we will troll crankbaits a little more this year. We almost never do this and I always hear about a lot of people fishing and catching big fish trolling. We are exploring all new water this year so might be helpful in learning it while we paddle and look around to learn the area.

I might pick up one or two of the deep dive purpledecent rapala's that folks seem to be having luck on.

My usual go to lake trout lures are vibrax inline spinners or krocodlie spoons - i've had the best luck with red and gold. It'll be fun to try something new and if it works, I look forward to not having to deal with the line twist I get from the inline spinners.

I think I'm going to try out spinner like the vibrex or mepps with a beaded chain keel sinker for lake trout. I've always used spoons and crankbaits for trolling for them and this might be a nice change.

Tony

Shoot, I’m still trying to master the Z-man plastic presentation. Thank you for submitting that.
Anyhow, going to be solo this year so thinking about trolling. Plan on making a couple sink stand pipe rod holders and clamping them to my rental canoe.
I’ve a couple of the purple dancers, spoons, Rapalas… I’ll be dragging anything and everything in the sack. Let y’all know what fries up.

QMike...great question! I'm planning to do more cast and retrieve toward shore. This season more of my time in the bwca will be solo and I'm even more of a closer-to-shore paddler when alone. My current plan is to throw more paddle tails along shorelines to cover water and then jig bucktails when I find the fish. Will troll for a few lakers when on those lakes too.

I would like to try vertical jigging with jigging raps for lakers and walleyes. I like the aggressive nature of it.

Perhaps some drop shotting (walleyes/smallys) and I want to do more wacky (smally) worm presentation. I started that for my sons in the Q and it killed for them, but I just seem to go back to the ole twister jig out of habit.

Finally maybe tossing a big suick mid size musky lure and hunt big pike.

T

Just want to do less trolling and rely less on crank baits. Jigging for deep lake trout for sure!

(not BW) new presentation : i use jig spinners a lot , my local lake is milfoil infested and a jig spinner can get through in areas that aren't too matted but instead of using the rod to snap off/out of the weeds i tryed just reeling as the rod bends to snap off the weeds instead of jerking the rod , and it comes off more like a fleeing fish/bug/etc(i usually tip with a twister tail or paddle tail) and did hook walleyes the 1st time i tryed this.

The new Bird lure.

Zman Hellraizer for topwater smallmouth
Rapala Jigging Shadow Rap for Lake Trout and Walleye
Northland Predator Tube for Lake Trout

gripper: "The new Bird lure."

What is the new bird lure and who makes it?

ericinely: "Zman Hellraizer for topwater smallmouth
Rapala Jigging Shadow Rap for Lake Trout and Walleye
Northland Predator Tube for Lake Trout"

The new ZMAN HellraiZer might be a good choice! Just hope a pike doesn’t eat your $15 lure! What color or colors are you thinking about?

Looking at a new crank bait; going to be trying out the new Berkley Money Badgers. Some new interesting colors.

ericinely: "Zman Hellraizer for topwater smallmouth
Rapala Jigging Shadow Rap for Lake Trout and Walleye
Northland Predator Tube for Lake Trout"

Hope you post detailed video of your experience with the Jigging Shadow Rap. I'm planning on trying it for Lake trout

For those of you who are going to try jigging instead of trolling this year, are you planning on bringing a fish finder as well? How do you plan on locating the fish?

preacherdave: "Berkley Money Badgers.

;)

SummerSkin: "For those of you who are going to try jigging instead of trolling this year, are you planning on bringing a fish finder as well? How do you plan on locating the fish?"

Yeah, a depth/ fish finder is necessary if you are going to vertical jig lake trout in my experience otherwise it would likely be very unfruitful. It is tough enough even with a depth finder I wouldn't want to try it without one.

QueticoMike: "

ericinely: "Zman Hellraizer for topwater smallmouth
Rapala Jigging Shadow Rap for Lake Trout and Walleye
Northland Predator Tube for Lake Trout"

The new ZMAN HellraiZer might be a good choice! Just hope a pike doesn’t eat your $15 lure! What color or colors are you thinking about? "

Hmmm...the truth is that I've never really spent enough time targeting bass to pay much attention to color choice. I've had the best luck with crawfish and firetiger/frog colors, I would guess.

preacherdave: "

ericinely: "Zman Hellraizer for topwater smallmouth
Rapala Jigging Shadow Rap for Lake Trout and Walleye
Northland Predator Tube for Lake Trout"

Hope you post detailed video of your experience with the Jigging Shadow Rap. I'm planning on trying it for Lake trout"

Oh, it's pretty much a guarantee it'll work for lake trout! The only question is, how many do you lose before you just go back to a cheap tube or jig and soft plastic for similar results?? I had a lot of fun Fall/Winter '20 and Spring/summer '21 with jigging raps. I caught a lot of fish with them, but unfortunately I also left somewhere around $60 of them on the bottom of the lake. This is one I'll likely use more in the winter...

ericinely: "Zman Hellraizer for topwater smallmouth
Rapala Jigging Shadow Rap for Lake Trout and Walleye
Northland Predator Tube for Lake Trout"

Eric I admire your accomplishments as an angler, but have to ask -- what's the perceived advantage in a jigging shadow rap -vs- an original jigging rap for lake trout? Especially since, if I recall correctly from your videos, you've done pretty darn well on the originals? In my experience I would very rarely count on a more subtle presentation to be the ticket when targeting lakers. At $13 apiece I'll be taking a pass on this one someone proves I'm missing out.

This year, I am going to actually fly fish up there. I usually bring the rod, but never break it out. My goal with the fly rod would be my first pike and walleye on the fly. I'll bring some poppers for bass too, but that's not new.

For traditional gear, I am going to try jigging blade baits for walleye. I got in to them on the Illinois River this past year fishing sauger/walleye.

With that said, my goal this year is to reduce the weight of my tackle bag. I say that every year, and it never works.

QueticoMike: "

ericinely: "Zman Hellraizer for topwater smallmouth
Rapala Jigging Shadow Rap for Lake Trout and Walleye
Northland Predator Tube for Lake Trout"

The new ZMAN HellraiZer might be a good choice! Just hope a pike doesn’t eat your $15 lure! What color or colors are you thinking about? "

I'll be testing a Hellraizer as well. I got my from Karl's and I have their tackle insurance, so if break one off, I submit a claim, and they'll send me a new one!

I've also been injecting a variety of my own plastic baits and airbrushing some crankbaits. Excited to put my handmade creations to the test!

Just picked up these new jigs to try for Laker fishing this spring. Never tried jigging or tubes for Lakers before. Any comments on how anyone thinks these lures will work on lake trout. Weights are 1 oz and 3/4 oz.

Tony

I'm planning to try out the new Megabass Sleeper Gill. By the way, if you haven't tried them, the Dark Sleeper (little baby walleye) works great too.

Tony: "



Just picked up these new jigs to try for Laker fishing this spring. Never tried jigging or tubes for Lakers before. Any comments on how anyone thinks these lures will work on lake trout. Weights are 1 oz and 3/4 oz.


Tony"

I guess I should have looked at the above post it's already been discussed haha.

Tony

How about throwing us a bone Mike? What new lure are you going to try?

As for me, no trips planned to the BWCA or Quetico this year, but very near. I will be spending a week on Vermillion chasing the big girls, Musky. I will be using a bunch of new lures like Medussa, #10 double blade bucktails, depth raider, shallow raider. My goal is to boat a fish at least 48”.

I'm planning on using a 3 inch pink Lazy Ike (I didn't even know it came in that color) that I picked up in Florida some years ago. Hoping to troll around some of my favorite lake trout lakes in late May to see if it gives me any success.

Savage Voyageur: "How about throwing us a bone Mike? What new lure are you going to try?


As for me, no trips planned to the BWCA or Quetico this year, but very near. I will be spending a week on Vermillion chasing the big girls, Musky. I will be using a bunch of new lures like Medussa, #10 double blade bucktails, depth raider, shallow raider. My goal is to boat a fish at least 48”. "

The fish you catch eat the ones I catch! Good luck, Savage, in your quest...please share the pics when you do land the leviathan!

I second the request to hear Q-Mike's plans...please.

Don't even know what to think about this new lure.

Oh man, every year about this time I start working through my tackle and thinking, "I really don't need new lures this year ... either for local TC fishing or BW." Then I read a thread like this and a few hundred dollars later, I can't fit my lures in my tackle box.

Savage Voyageur: "How about throwing us a bone Mike? What new lure are you going to try?


As for me, no trips planned to the BWCA or Quetico this year, but very near. I will be spending a week on Vermillion chasing the big girls, Musky. I will be using a bunch of new lures like Medussa, #10 double blade bucktails, depth raider, shallow raider. My goal is to boat a fish at least 48”. "

I really don't have any new lures for '23, but now thinking about maybe getting a couple of those ZMAN HellraiZer lures after Eric mentioned them. But if I come up with anything else new to take along I will chime in again. Bone and chartreuse shad look like the best colors.

I've read that the ZMAN HellraiZer is fragile.

CoffeeInTheWoods: "Oh man, every year about this time I start working through my tackle and thinking, "I really don't need new lures this year ... either for local TC fishing or BW." Then I read a thread like this and a few hundred dollars later, I can't fit my lures in my tackle box."

This post hits too close to home. Now I just add another Plano tray to the lure order.

QueticoMike: "I always like to ask this question each year before the fishing season starts, what new lure or presentation that you have never used in Quetico or the Boundary Waters do you plan on trying in 2023? What is the target species of the lure or presentation? "

I've been itching to run the Neko Rig and Donkey Rig.

Ahh the donkey rig... that's a new one for me... would be curious to try that.

missmolly: "I've read that the ZMAN HellraiZer is fragile. "

I have not seen that in any of reviews I have read. Where exactly are you seeing these bad reviews?

I'm tempted to try a crayfish trap this summer.

QueticoMike: "

missmolly: "I've read that the ZMAN HellraiZer is fragile. "

I have not seen that in any of reviews I have read. Where exactly are you seeing these bad reviews? "

I don't remember. I visit a lot of sites. If you've read nothing but good reviews, buy away and let us know it goes.

Mike, I found this in a YouTube thread where a fisher had reviewed the lure:

"Awesome lure but very fragile. The wire that connectst the lure to the rear hook and blade is very thin and pliable. I've had two of these lures break after catching one fish. I hope Zman can fix this problem. Otherwise the lure is incredible. It does hunt like crazy. Fun to throw."

missmolly: "Mike, I found this in a YouTube thread where a fisher had reviewed the lure:


"Awesome lure but very fragile. The wire that connectst the lure to the rear hook and blade is very thin and pliable. I've had two of these lures break after catching one fish. I hope Zman can fix this problem. Otherwise the lure is incredible. It does hunt like crazy. Fun to throw.""

Sounds like a pike would destroy this lure. I still I will give one a shot and see what happens. Love the action on this lure.

I can't seem to choose which of these beauties to throw!



Guess I'll stick with my tried and true Rapalas and Plopper style lures.

Mac

QueticoMike: "

missmolly: "Mike, I found this in a YouTube thread where a fisher had reviewed the lure:



"Awesome lure but very fragile. The wire that connectst the lure to the rear hook and blade is very thin and pliable. I've had two of these lures break after catching one fish. I hope Zman can fix this problem. Otherwise the lure is incredible. It does hunt like crazy. Fun to throw.""

Sounds like a pike would destroy this lure. I still I will give one a shot and see what happens. Love the action on this lure. "

I bought one too because I agree with you on the action. I bought one in gold. There are a lot of gold shiners in Maine.

I'd like to catch a lake trout on a fly this year, though I'd settle for a nice pike or walleye. Caught a beautiful smallie, probably my best to date, one of my last days up there last October on a mouse topwater fly & boy did it get my heart pumping - I'd like to repeat that with the other species. I had the gear with me at the start of the season last year though I didn't start working on relearning the art of fly fishing until a bit later in the season - this year, I'll have my streamers working the water before June.

Telco: "I'm tempted to try a crayfish trap this summer. "

&/or minnow trap... Has been on my mind as well. I was reading through the regs on it last year, though does anyone have a lead on a good option for BWCA?

missmolly: "

QueticoMike: "

missmolly: "Mike, I found this in a YouTube thread where a fisher had reviewed the lure:



"Awesome lure but very fragile. The wire that connectst the lure to the rear hook and blade is very thin and pliable. I've had two of these lures break after catching one fish. I hope Zman can fix this problem. Otherwise the lure is incredible. It does hunt like crazy. Fun to throw.""

Sounds like a pike would destroy this lure. I still I will give one a shot and see what happens. Love the action on this lure. "

I bought one too because I agree with you on the action. I bought one in gold. There are a lot of gold shiners in Maine. "

Let me know what you think after your first session using the lure, if you could please.

Thinking now about getting a couple of black hair jigs to imitate a leech. Thinking if water is cold and or fishing is slow, I would try the simple, slow retrieve doing my best to keep it off the bottom to avoid snags.

Will do. I'm sure it will catch both SM and LM bass and hope it won't catch a chain pickerel, aka the line cutters of Maine.

Hey, John Galt, aka the Jeremiah Johnson of the BWCA!

JohnGalt: "

Telco: "I'm tempted to try a crayfish trap this summer. "

&/or minnow trap... Has been on my mind as well. I was reading through the regs on it last year, though does anyone have a lead on a good option for BWCA?"

Being an invasive there is a lot of monitoring and data available online. I believe they're fairly widespread throughout the BWCA but there are more documented reports on the Ely side.

So I asked a buddy of mine, also a semi-pro bass fisherman, about what he would recommend I give a try. Without hesitation he recommended the mega bass lure. Expensive...but the reviews online are encouraging. Anyone have experience with this lure in the BWCA?

YetiJedi: "So I asked a buddy of mine, also a semi-pro bass fisherman, about what he would recommend I give a try. Without hesitation he recommended the mega bass lure. Expensive...but the reviews online are encouraging. Anyone have experience with this lure in the BWCA?"

I have used the Megabass Dark sleeper and am a big fan of that bait but have not tried that bait that you were referencing and linked above. I think it is too expensive for my taste.

Hair jigs! I had never used them until I gave em a shot late last summer. Couldnt believe how hard walleyes hit them. Earlier this week I started tying them up myself. Got a few color combos I'm going to toy with. I'll be in the BWCA over memorial weekend. We always do very well on the walleyes, so I'll be curious to compare these to the live bait we haul along.

YetiJedi: "So I asked a buddy of mine, also a semi-pro bass fisherman, about what he would recommend I give a try. Without hesitation he recommended the mega bass lure. Expensive...but the reviews online are encouraging. Anyone have experience with this lure in the BWCA?"

I think those would take a pretty heavy rod to the throw, I have used the dark sleeper up there. Works really well until the tail gets bit off your $7 swim bait!

tbro16: "Hair jigs! I had never used them until I gave em a shot late last summer. Couldnt believe how hard walleyes hit them. Earlier this week I started tying them up myself. Got a few color combos I'm going to toy with. I'll be in the BWCA over memorial weekend. We always do very well on the walleyes, so I'll be curious to compare these to the live bait we haul along. "

I just picked up some black hair jigs, going to them a go up in Quetico this year.

Bill Lewis Precise Walleye Crank (designed by Bill Lewis lures in cooperation with Mark Romanack)

I've heard some good things about these baits from some of the walleye guys on Lake Erie, although I haven't used them yet (although I did purchase a couple of them online recently).

It seems to be like a Reef Runner 800, only the rattles are quite a bit louder, and the lure has a reputation for running true right out of the box (unlike the Reef Runners, which are notorious for not running true).

I plan to use it for lake trout actually, since it has a really steep dive curve (similar to the Rapala Deep Tail Dancer 30 foot model).

And, to a lesser extent, I may troll it for walleyes as well, maybe on planer boards with a shorter lead.

"Jackpot" John Schroeder

jackpotjohnny48: "Bill Lewis Precise Walleye Crank (designed by Bill Lewis lures in cooperation with Mark Romanack)


I've heard some good things about these baits from some of the walleye guys on Lake Erie, although I haven't used them yet (although I did purchase a couple of them online recently).


It seems to be like a Reef Runner 800, only the rattles are quite a bit louder, and the lure has a reputation for running true right out of the box (unlike the Reef Runners, which are notorious for not running true).


I plan to use it for lake trout actually, since it has a really steep dive curve (similar to the Rapala Deep Tail Dancer 30 foot model).


And, to a lesser extent, I may troll it for walleyes as well, maybe on planer boards with a shorter lead.


"Jackpot" John Schroeder"

Do you use a planer board while canoeing?

We are going in early June hoping for some nice walleyes. We will be throwing mostly Kalin tickle tails and other swim baits and I am going to take a bunch of Rip-N-Raps as well. We have not used either of these baits in the past.

Mike,

To answer your question regarding planer boards while canoeing, generally the answer is no, simply because when paddling, I think the planer boards probably create a bit too much drag, and then it becomes a lot of work to maintain proper boat speed.

Having said that, I have a square back canoe and a Minn Kota electric motor for lakes that allow motors, or where I have a source of power nearby so that I can recharge the batteries at night. We've done pretty well on lake trout, pike, and smallmouth bass trolling crankbaits behind the canoe on some of the remote portage lakes near Kenora, Ontario.

But even then, we're mostly just running deep tail dancers, deep husky jerks, or jointed shad raps on a flat line without any planer boards. And we've done really well simply on flat lines.

And if I were fishing an area where electric motors were prohibited, or simply not feasible (such as in the BWCA or Quetico), I would simply put the rods into rod holders and paddle troll on a flat line without a planer board. (That's the way we fished before I bought the electric motor and we did quite well with that technique).

"Jackpot" John Schroeder