September 6th, 2022
***Fishing Report***
Walleye - Walleye fishing remains steady for many this last week. Crawlers on spinner rigs and trolling crankbaits remains the best way to catch walleyes. Anglers continue to find walleyes in that 6-12 foot range, working windy shorelines. Gold, brass and orange where the best colors this last week. The minnow bite seems to of cooled off as water temps climbed this last week.
Smallmouth - Smallies continue to transition out to sunken islands, close to deep water, on many of the areas lakes. Out here big minnows either fished on a jig or lindy rigs has been very effective for size and numbers. Humps that top out at 15-20 feet of water have been best. Anglers also continue to find good numbers of smallies still working shorelines, points and current areas. Here spinnerbaits, soft plastics and whopper ploppers remain very effective on aggressive smallies.
Crappie - Crappie fishing has cooled off thanks to the recent cold snap. Anglers are noticing that crappies are starting to school up, just outside large weedbeds and mouths of bays, but getting them to bite has been challenging. Crappie minnows fished under a bobber was the best technique for catching inactive crappies. Pink, white and chartreuse colored jigs were the colors of choice.
This one's a mid-August family win from around the August 16th, 2022 report—capturin' the smallmouth peak in Ely MN's BWCA waters. A young angler beams ear to ear while holdin' a stout smallmouth bass high in the boat, its dark bronze back, emerald-green sides, and bold red eyes shinin' in the sunlight, mouth wide open showin' teeth after a hard fight. The calm lake stretches behind under a bright blue sky, thick pine forests and rocky shores framin' the horizon—pure Northwoods open-water paradise on a sunny day. He's rockin' a red hoodie with the Beavers logo, cap, and that proud grin while grippin' the fish carefully, with an adult smilin' in the background and rod rigged nearby for more casts. This shot nails the summer smallie dominance: aggressive fish feedin' heavy in shallow bays, rocky points, weedlines, and downed trees, poundin' topwater lures like Whopper Ploppers, Torpedoes, and Pop-R’s—soft plastics via wacky rigging and Ned rigging provin' killers for sight fishin' or castin' to structure. Walleye reports stayed solid that week on deeper sunken islands and humps in 18-28 feet with Lindy rigs or bottom bouncers tipped with crawlers/leeches, evenings shiftin' shallow to flats and weedlines in 8-12 feet on slip bobbers or jigs for low-light bites. Pike were active in weedlines and bays, hittin' spinnerbaits, spoons, or suckers under bobbers for good numbers and sizes. Panfish (crappies/sunnies) schooled on weed edges and drop-offs with small jigs or minnows under bobbers. The image radiates that August family fun: warm sun, clear water, explosive smallie bites, and a quality catch rewardin' the effort with kids or family on board. At Arrowhead Outdoors, we were stocked with topwater lures, wacky/Ned rigs, crawlers, leeches, spinnerbaits, and tips nonstop that week—same today for BWCA smallmouth hunters or walleye/pike anglers. Swing by 1810 East Sheridan in Ely for Whopper Ploppers, Torpedoes, Ned heads, live crawlers/leeches, and fresh reports. Subscribe on arrowheadoutdoorselymn.com to stay on the bite—nothin' like smallies explodin' on topwater up here in the Northwoods!