:: Minnesota Fly Fishing » Reports  ::

Greetings,

I understand this board has low traffic, but I will continually watch for updated posts. While surfing youtube for smallie action, came across this gentlemans youtube account, nice vids btw. Great website!

My Norwegian side of the family homesteaded in Thief River Falls, MN. As a child, I grew up walleye fishing on Lake of the Woods/Red Lake.  In summers, I lived with my grandma on the small lake chains where I taught myself alot by trial and error. Unfortuantly the fly fishing came after. We moved to Montana where I learned fly fishing. Fortuantly 6 inch brook trout were easy, cus I sucked. I never really became proficient until my senior year in highschool. After finding a new found passion, I brought it back to Minnesota while visiting family. I tied up some sloppy bunny leeches out of Kaufmann's book and fished it real slow in the small lakes there. I did not have time to do this very often, but while I did, the results were spectacular. Caught numerous hammer handles, bass, crappie, and a few big bluegill off the docks. The flies worked great over thick weedbeds, where my favorite hardware lures would always snag. Unfortuantly the trips back east ceased shortly after. I enjoyed the trout fishing in the famous western waters, but still had interest in the warmwater action which seemed almost non-existent in the fly fishing community, much to my dismay.

Graduated highschool, and had no idea where to go so I mistakenly wound up in the Navy. Woops, but I sure learned alot more life lessons, wow. Stayed out of trouble long enough to get stationed in Jacksonville, Florida for 2 years. I was only 18, and quite scared. Two weeks later, I booked a saltwater charter for redfish. Great guide, lots of fish, and made the fishing report. Numerous redfish and seatrout up to 8 lbs. It was awesome using shrimp and I am quite sure the guide was awfully sick of hearing about fly fishing the whole time. I surfed the net alot, and found all the local fly fishing chapters in the area. Joined a kayak club and a saltwater fly fishing club. Spent two amazing years fishing on weekends, showing up at work Monday morning trying to explain to my enlisted colleagues what fly fishing was. Never did meet many guys that fished in the Navy. I stayed away from drinking and girls while making every meeting/fishing outing. One speaker you may reconize was Bill Scherer out of wetieit.com in Wisconsin, a muskie on fly specialist. To be honest, for the amount of time I spent on the water, I was not very successfull, but in the course of 2 years still had a bunch of great pictures various saltwater fish, which made me a better fly fisherman all around. Minnesota was still a place I missed, and regret to the this day that I did not discover fly fishing for pike/bass earlier in life. 

Well the Navy has a habit of ruining a good thing after awhile, so I was sent to Norfolk on a ship where I continue to be for my last 5 months in the military. Hoping on receiving an early out for education. While here, I have taken leave back home to Montana and applied new found techniques. My father/hero and I spent an equal amount of time fly fishing for smallmouth bass in Montana as we did for trout. The fishing was fantastic, a whole month of it. I had to shift a few paradigms. Strip setting trout is not a good idea. Coming back to the military knowing I would not be back for a full year was severely depressing. My family awaits my return and in celebration of that, including other family events, we are renting a house on Lake of the Woods in Minnesota for a week this summer.  I did manage to take leave once to Minnesota where I caught a pike at Red Lake fly fishing the Tamarac. (I also sunk the boat trailer during heavy launching traffic..........). Now, we are Currently in the process of buying a used Lund Baron. There will be walleye, but also hoping to get into some back waters for some fly fishing action, and also trying Rainy River for smallies. I would sure love to meet other people that have more experience in that area.

I hope to learn more about fly fishing familiar waters in Minnesota with a fly rod here. My brother in law lives in Minneapolis and wants to start fishing locally there, but not sure what to tell him. Minnesota has so many untapped fly fishing oppurtunities, and many of those educated fish had not seen a fly. Due to increased popularity in the sport, and crowding of trout waters, I foresee an explosion of intrest in fly fishing outside of trout. It has already happened in the saltwater world. If anyone replies, Ill go ahead and post the pictures.

Regards

Thanks for sharing some fishing history of yours.  Cool to hearing the different paths we take to make fishing and enjoying the outdoors a part of our lives, especially when the fly fishing bugs get you

There must be good story behind that boat trailer sinking.  I've been to that launch many a times and know where your coming from.  Thats why we just pay the fee to go out of one of the resorts, much easier and plenty of space.  By the way, Red Lake has some really big pike in there and hope the DNR continues to protect the pike fisheries there.

The Lund Baron is a big boat.  I've fished out of a lot of boats, but my own is a older Lund Tyee.  I might be going with the Lund guide program, so I'm looking at a new boat this year.  I really like the Lund Alaskans, simple layout, and lots of room, but with a deep-v configuration, but doesn't sit in the water as much as a tyee, baron or pro-v and much lighter for easier one man operation.  If you choose Lund, you can't go wrong.

The Rainy River and Rainy Lake are excellent smallmouth waters.  It was my first time last year fishing the area and what a blast, good walleyes, big pike and excellent smallmouth bass fishing.  One tip for the Rainy system is their forage base.  Smallmouth tend to like minnow type lures and flies, because a lot of their diet is fish, including the smelt population in Rainly Lake.  Lake of the Woods is not bad either, excellent fishing there as well.

Your brother in law is lots of opportunities around the Twin Cities areas.  There are a few urban trout streams, but you have to dig hard to find out the best areas to access them.  There are hundreds of small ponds and lakes in and around the Metro area, probably even one within walking distance from his house.  I think the biggest hurdle is actually giving it a try.  I live in Duluth and when I make a drive to the cities, I always make a stop at some small lake with a park (which there are many) and whip out the fly rod.  It's strange, with so much access to water within a residential area, I don't see many taking advantage of the fishing oppurtunities...no kids fishing, or even adults taking kids fishing.  I'll do admit it feels ackwards fishing with all the traffic in the background, buildings and people, but there I am slinging my fly rod around in this urban setting.  Maybe I'm just not used to it living up north where we enjoy a little bit more space.

Sounds like you might be turning to the darkside.....fly fishing for warm water species.....

Fly fishing for bass, pike and musky is a blast.  Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy fishing for trout.  But I enjoy fly fishing the most, whatever species I'm after.  There is always a time and place for each species to catch them with a fly rod.  Figuring out what times, place and flies is what fishing is all about, well for me anyways.  For instance how many fly fisherman have tried fishing for walleyes?  Not many.  Spring is a good time (imagine the looks while your casting your fly rod with all the jig and bait guys around).  But there are times in the summer where you can catch huge walleyes on top water flies, where?, when?, well you'll have to discover that.  But it does coincide with a hatch.

I've been taking new fly anglers, especially kids for early season crappie and bluegill fishing.  What a blast on a 4wt fly rod, people get hooked on fly fishing after that and very fun for the young and old.   Crappies and bluegills are in almost any lake in the Midwest.

Well enjoy your time here in Minnesota and may you have many more fishing stores to tell.

I do think MN has some great fishing but I don't think it has the best fishing in the USA.  The state has probably the broadest variety of fishing which is awesome but when I think of the best fishing I have to include a lot of factors like scenery, quality of fish, accessability of fishing, etc.  Out of all of the states I have fished I would have to say California has to have the best fishing.