Brainerd Fishing Report 5-11-17: Brainerd, Minnesota

from: http://www.brainerdguide.com/fishing_report.htm



Brainerd, Minnesota Fishing Report: 5-11-17The weather has heated up and so has the fishing the Brainerd Lakes Area. The crappies have invaded the shallow water areas and are readily biting small minnow, grub type imitations suspended below a bobber. The bite has been so good that live bait hasn't been needed. The best soft plastic bait colors have been root beer, smoke, and white. Search out backwater areas in 4 to 6 feet of water which are near know crappie spawning habitat. It won't be long, if the current temperatures hold, before the crappies will be spawning in the pencil reeds and bulrushes. The sunfish action has also picked up throughout the area. Key locations have been in 2 to 4 feet of water. A small jig tipped with a panfish leech has been a deadly combination. The best panfish bite has been occurring in the backwater areas with muddy bottoms. Locations with newly emerging lily pads have been best. The walleye action was fair this weekend. The best bite occurred in the evening hours. I look for this bite to improve as the water temperatures continue to rise. Keep posted. It's open water fishing time. We will be updating this forum weekly now throughout the summer until late fall. Good Luck this weekend! 

Catching Sunfish on Gull Lake: Brainerd, Minnesota Fishing

Info from:http://www.mnresortcabins.com/sunfish/

The Bluegill (known to many as the sunfish) tends to grow larger than the pumpkinseed, and of course the bluegill is more blue and the pumpkinseed is smaller and more orange colored, both taste wonderful and are great fun to catch when biting. Plan a family fishing vacation or a team building event for your business. We are here to help make your stay a fantastic experience.

*GPS Coordinates included on the right.

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1. Cinosam Very Good Summer Sunfish. Look for submerged cabbage (weeds) at 12-14′. Use a split shot sinker and a #8 hook, baited with a small leech or a piece of night crawler. Fish without a bobber, just off the bottom.
   GPS Coordinates: 4627.133’N 94 19.200′ W
2. Love Lake Small lake lots of fish! Sunfish are caught by the channel and just before the swampy back end. Fish with a bobber and a piece of night crawler or a small leech.
   GPS Coordinates: 4626.524’N 94 19.204’W
3. Crane Island-Wilson Bay Lots of Sunfish spring and summer. Fish in the weeds and along the weed edge. Use a bobber and a leech or a piece of night crawler.
   GPS Coordinates: 4623.735’N 94 24.147’W
4. The Hayfield Great summer sunfishing. Fish in the cabbage (weeds) 1′ off the bottom. Try putting down a crappie minnow also (some of the larger sunfish will take them)!
   GPS Coordinates: 4628.341’N 94 21.420’W
5. Grassy Point The big sunfish come in shallow early in the spring on this reedbed.
   GPS Coordinates: 4629.229’N 94 20.417’W
6. North Edge of Cinosam Flats Very good summer sunfish. Fish in the cabbage (weeds) using a splitshot and small hook no bobber. Use a small leech for bait.
   GPS Coordinates:

We only buy our bait at S & W Bait  and have for many years.  We live close by the bait shop and they are open at 5:30 every morning like clockwork.  They always have fishing tactics for area lakes on a white board above the minnow tanks, and I have bought everything from kids fishing poles to ice fishing chisel/scoops for cheaper than going into Fleet Farm.  My kids like the friendliness of the owners and clerks, and it is the best bait shop in Minnesota due to their consistent customer service, quality products and authenticity.  

Making Traps and Catching Crayfish or Crawfish in Minnesota

MN Sea Grant on Crayfish in Minnesota:
http://www.seagrant.umn.edu/fisheries/craving_for_crayfish

Make your own crayfish traps: http://www.teediddlydee.com/make-your-own-diy-crawfish-trap/



Video on 5$ Crayfish Trap

Crappie Fishing on Gull Lake: Brainerd, Minnesota Fishing

Crappie Fishing – Bring the family crappie fishing, it’s a great time to get the family together! Enjoy our Brainerd Minnesota Fishing Resort!

How to Catch Crappie on Gull Lake. 

info from: http://www.mnresortcabins.com/crappie/

Crappie fishing must be an all time favorite for family fishing. Every kid should get to try their hand at crappie fishing at the end of a dock on a sunny afternoon at least once while their young. If you want to make it really interesting rent one of our boats and spend a day or two on the water. Crappies are fun to catch because their fairly easy as long as you know where to go. If one of the spots on the map is not producing, try another. Crappies are not only fun to catch, they are fantastic to eat as well because of their incredible flavor. Crappies bite early in the season so planning a fishing vacation in May and June is a great time to take advantage of our lower rates!

*GPS Coordinates included on the right.

Crappie regulations on Gull Lake
Season: Continuous
Limit: 10 (no size restrictions)

1. Love Lake Crappies spawn in here from May into mid June. Use a jig & minnow suspended near the channel, or use a bobber and hook with a minnow in or near the swampier back end.
   GPS Coordinates: 4626.315’N 94 19.103’W
2. End of the Bowtie Bar near Love Lake Good summer crappie, they will be deep, use a small jig and a crappie minnow.
   GPS Coordinates: 4626.571’N 94 20.226’W
3. Wilson Bay Excellent May-June Crappies fish the dropoff into the reedbed with a jig and a minnow or a beetlespin w/ a Mister Twister.
   GPS Coordinates: 4624.410’N 94 24.026’W
4. Wilson Bay Crane Island. Excellent early summer Crappie fishing try along the break with a minnow.
   GPS Coordinates: 4623.906’N 94 24.293’W
5. Gull Lake Narrows Excellent May & Early June Crappie fishing. Take a jig and a minnow and you will be pulling out fish like a dentist pulls teeth.
   GPS Coordinates: 4630.640’N 94 20.725’W

Brainerd Lakes Area Fishing Report : May 1, 2017

Brainerd Fishing Report
Crappie fishing in the Brainerd Lakes Area has been hit or miss, with the weather, but when you find them it can be bast and furious. Fish are still being found on weed flats in 6-8 feet of water. Much like any kind of fishing, playing the wind is the key. This past weekend we found active crappies feeding along a weed edge that had some emergent weed growth. Between bugs and minnows the fish were actively feeding. A 1/32oz jig with a tube under a slip bobber was the ticket. Constantly changing the depths at which you have the bobber set as well as the colors of the tubes. Pink/white, pearl, black, and purple were all good colors. An important thing is to make sure your bobber is always sitting vertical and you aren’t using too big of one and you are changing your retrieve as crappies will respond differently throughout the day.

Brainerd Lakes Area Minnesota: Fishing Report May 1, 2017

Crappies and sunfish are being found in the shallow bays and 4- to 8- foot weed patches on Upper Gull Lake, Lake Margaret, Nisswa Lake, Roy Lake, Cullen Lake, and North Long Lake. Nightcrawlers are producing channel catfish on the Mississippi River.

S & W Bait & Guide Service/Nisswa Guide League (218) 829-7010

From http://www.brainerdguide.com/fishing_report.htm:

Brainerd, Minnesota Fishing Report: 4-20-17
The crappie fishing has been good in the Brainerd Lakes Area. Small backwater areas have been producing the most fish. Search out locations with soft, dark, muddy bottoms. These spots warm considerably quicker than other areas. The best fishing spots have been located on the smaller bays of the larger lakes. Small channels, harbors, and marshy areas have been producing the most fish. Small jigs, when fished two to three feet below a bobber, have been the best baits. Tip the jigs with minnows or plastic grub imitations. Don't use too heavy of a jig. Spring crappies can't resist presentations which fall slowly. Heavy jigs fall too quickly and are less attractive to fish when the water is cold. Fan cast likely areas while cruising with your trolling motor. Drop the anchor, or hit the spot lock, when the first crappie is found. You've found the spot! Crappie rarely are by themselves. Fish the area effectively and you will have the makings of your summer's first fish fry. Keep posted. There will be more fishing reports to come. It is finally nice to be back on soft water.
Life is Good.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota Fishing Report April 16, 2017

BRAINERD/NISSWA AREA

Hit the Merrifield Bay on North Long Lake for crappies in 3 to 6 feet and the Highway 371 Bay in shallow water on North Long for sunfish. The channels on Nisswa Lake are producing a few crappies and sunfish, as are the docks at Bar Harbor on Gull Lake.

S & W Bait & Guide Service/Nisswa Guide League (218) 829-7010