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Lake of the Woods Tourism MN Fishing Report 3/19/24

Category: fishing reports

 Mar 19th, 2024 by sworrall 

Modified Mar 19th, 2024 at 12:51 PM

On the south end…   Ice fishing continues strong for those few resorts who are still ice fishing and the bite is good.  Most resorts have pulled their fish houses off for the year.  There is still ice fishing happening and available.  Some resorts are allowing collapsible fish houses pulled with an ATV or side by side.  Check social media or call ahead to your favorite resort for specifics.

Daytime temps this week in the twenties with overnight temps in teens and single digits.  Ice is holding up nicely where resorts are traveling.

Walleyes and saugers in good numbers with mixed in jumbo perch, pike, eelpout, and an occasional crappie, tullibee or sturgeon in the mix.

Walleyes and saugers being targeted in 17 – 28 feet of water.  Jigging one line and using a live minnow on the second line is the way to go.  Green, glow red, pink and gold were good colors this week.

Big pike are active!  Great reports of pike up to the mid 40 inch variety being caught using tip ups with live suckers or dead bait such as smelt and herring in 8 – 14′ of water.

Work through a resort or outfitter for ice road conditions.  Safety first always.

Fish houses are allowed on the ice through March 31st, the walleye / sauger season goes through April 14th and the pike season never ends.

On the Rainy River…  The river has opened up along the Nelson Park boat ramp in Birchdale, the Frontier boat ramp and Vidas boat ramp.

Very good numbers of walleyes in the river.  Reports, as a whole, have been excellent.  Jigs with brightly colored plastics or jigs with a frozen emerald shiner have been the desired bait on the river.  Don’t overlook slow trolling crankbaits upstream as well.
Good reports of sturgeon being caught on the river as well.  Pick a spot such as a deep hole in a stretch of the river and soak some nightcrawlers.

Up at the NW Angle…  Ice fishing remains strong up at the Angle.  Walleyes, saugers, jumbo perch, eelpout, pike and some big crappies in the mix again this week.Jigging one line and deadsticking the second line is the way to go.  The general theme is picking away at them during the day and normally a very productive evening bite.

Check with Angle resorts on transport options from Young’s Bay.  Truck traffic is winding down in favor of smaller vehicles, side by sides, snowmobiles, etc.  Call ahead for ice road guidelines.

Lodging, fish house rentals, small boat guide trips on the river and meal packages are available.  Go to www.LakeoftheWoodsMN.com/Lodging for more info.  

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