By Jeff Samsel
Often anglers must choose big numbers or big fish when weighing out top fishing destination options. Not so at Lake of the Woods, which straddles the Minnesota/Canada border. Walleyes absolutely abound in this massive North Country lake, and they commonly grow to heavyweight proportions.
I learned this for myself in early August while fishing aboard a 30-foot charter boat run by Nick Painovich, owner of Zippel Bay Resort and a 30-year veteran captain. The action started early and continued throughout the day, and the big fish of the afternoon was a fat 30-incher, which probably weighed close to 12 pounds.
Among the dozens of walleyes and saugers that slurped in our Cotton Cordell Grappler Shads, Bomber Long As and other plugs, at least ten were "slot fish," between 20 and 28 inches long.
Through mid-summer, Painovich does all his fishing by trolling, pulling crankbaits and minnowbaits behind downriggers. With six anglers aboard, we were allowed six lines, and at one point all 12 hands were busy battling walleyes. Along with the six-hitter, we enjoyed many doubles and a handful of triples.
One of the most interesting doubles came when two rods popped free of the downrigger simultaneously and then bowed to the weight of what looked like good fish. Amy Thelen and I each grabbed a rod and began fighting fish. We both seemed to be gaining line at about the same pace, and then a single big walleye surfaced with two Cotton Cordell Jointed Wally Divers hanging out of its mouth.
Downriggers allow for precise depth control, which is important during the summer on Lake of the Woods, when huge schools of fish hold just off the bottom in the lake’s main basin and feast on hoards of baitfish. We spent most our time trolling in the 20- to 25-foot range.
Painovich uses 6-foot Ugly Stik rods matched with Pflueger Trion round baitcasting reels and spools his reels with 12-pound-test. His favorite trolling plugs are Wally Divers, but he typically rigs his lines with a variety of crankbaits and minnowbaits and makes frequent changes, allowing the walleyes to dictate which colors, styles and sizes they prefer any given day.
Our top producers were a Chrome/Chartreuse Grappler Shad, a Pearl Melon XCalibur Xt3 Twitch Bait and a Purple/Chartreuse Hologram Rebel Minnow.
To learn more about the fabulous fishing at Lake of the Woods, visit Zippel Bay Resort online or give them a call at (800) 222-2537.