July 22, 2011
This is a wonderful time of the year to be fishing in the Brainerd Lakes Area.  Sunfish and crappies have moved to the outside cabbage weed edge or have suspended near offshore structures.  Try a plain hook tipped with a crappie minnow or leech suspended below a slip bobber.  The bass action is phenominal on a number of area lakes (i.e. Gull, North Long, Whitefish Chain)...try pitchin' a weed weasel jig tipped with a minnow or a plastic worm.  Hold the boat just off the outside weed edge and cast the jig into the cabbage...just hang on and wait for something to grab hold.  Northern action is picking up as water temperatures have warmed to the 80's...action is getting better everyday on several area lakes (i.e. Gull, Mille Lacs, Whitefish Chain).  Try trolling a jig spin tipped with a large sucker minnow on the outside cabbage weed edge.  Finally, the walleye bite...this has been unpredictable lately due to all the fluctuations in our weather.  One day its near limits and the next day it's a struggle to catch a few.  The fish are very shallow...still oriented to the outside cabbage weed edge.  However, they have moved to offshore structues (i.e. sunken islands, flats).  The best bet for a "sluggish bite" is a live bait rig tipped with a redtail or creek chub

June 20, 2011
Fishing in the Brainerd Lakes Region has been nothing short of fantastic!  The sunnies and crappies are moving from their shallow haunts to the emerging cabbage weed beds or the first drop off adjacent to the shallow water areas in which they spawned.  A slip bobber rig with a small jig tipped with a leech has been very effective in recent days.  The bass and northern bite is getting stronger every day.  These fish have also moved from shallow water to the outside weed edge (12-18 feet in most area lakes).  Deep diving crankbaits pitched over and through these weed beds has been an excellent tactic as well as pitchin' a weedless jig tipped with a minnow or a plastic worm.  North Long and Gull have been dynamite for these species.  Walleyes have been up and down as of late but we are putting fish in the boat on every trip...it's just a matter of how many on any given day based mainly on the weather.  The walleyes are still biting on crankbaits trolled in the shallows at night.  During daylight hours fish the windblown side of structures on the outside weed edge.  Try a live bait rig tipped with a red tail chub.  Gull, Round, Mille Lacs, and in recent days Whitefish have all been producing walleyes in the past week.  On Mille Lacs the fish are transitioning from the shallow shoreline sand break to the mud flats so be sure to look in both types of areas

June 1, 2011

August 16, 2010
Wow!!!  That is all that can be said about the fishing in the Brainerd Lakes Area this past week.  The walleyes are cookin' on Gull and the Whitefish Chain.  Try a live bait rig tipped with a redtail on the outside weededge of shoreline and off shore structures.  The bass are poundin' crankbaits on North Long, Gull, and many other area lakes.  We've started to find large schools of bass suspended beneath schools of bait fish over deep water.  This is a perfect time to cast deep diving crankbaits over deep water adjacent to steep drop offs.  The muskies and northerns have been terrors in the deep cabbage weed beds on Mille Lacs, Alexander, and Cedar.  It has been more of a top water bite until this past week and numerous fish have been responding to bucktails cast over and pulled through the cabbage.  It is a great time to me fishin' in the Brainerd Lakes Area!!!

August 1, 2010
Fishing in the Brainerd Lakes Area remains highly productive but we've had to dodge more than our share of weather!!!  The walleyes are going well on Gull, Whitefish, and Mille Lacs.  The bass are really chomping on all area lakes.  The northerns have really started to get active and the musky fishing is just starting to pick up.  Look for the walleyes to be moving from shoreline structures to off shore structures (i.e. sunken islands, humps, flats).  The bass have begun to drop deeper of the outside weededge of shoreline structures.  The northerns and muskys are hanging out in cabbage weed beds waiting to ambush baitfish on both the inside and outside weededge.  It is a great time of year to be a fisherperson in Minnesota!!!

July 14, 2010
Fishing in the Brainerd Lakes Area has been fantastic this week...walleye fishing has been awesome on Gull, the Whitefish Chain, and Mille Lacs.  Try the outside weed edge on Gull and Whitefish with a live bait rig tipped with a chub.  On Mille Lacs try the mudflats with a live bait rig tipped with a crawler on a six foot snell or try pulling bottom  bouncers with spinners tipped with a crawler or a Berkly Power Crawler.  The bass fishing has been nothing short of spectacular with a variety of methods working on Gull, North Long, Whitefish, and Mille Lacs.  Try smallies on the rocks with a wacky work hooked plastic worm.  For largemouth folks are having success with weedless jigs tipped with plastic worms or deep diving crankbaits on the outside weededge.  The northern bite is starting to pick up and will only get better as the water warms further.  Try a Northland Tackel Weed Weasel Jig tipped with a pike sucker on the outside weededge.  Good luck fishing and be safe on the water!!!
 

June 28, 2010
Fishing in the Brainerd Lakes Area has been fantastic in recent weeks.  There is generally something biting everyday.  The walleyes have been a bit up and down with fluctuations in the weather.  However, with a little wind or overcast you can put some walleyes in the boat.  The fish on Mille Lacs are going strong on the mudflats.  Try a live bait rig with a 6 foot snell tipped with a blown crawler.  The walleye bite has also been good on Gull and North Long.  Try the outside weed edge of shoreline structures with a live bait rig tipped with a red tail.  The bass fishing has been coming on strong and is about as good as it can get on Gull, Round, and North Long.  Pitchin' a jig tipped with a plastic worm or a minnow has been "lights out" on good numbers of fish.  The northern bite was just starting to get some legs and then the storms and cold fronts blew in...that bite should only get better as the summer progresses.  Nice catches of northerns are being experienced on the Whitefish Chain.  Please remember to boat/fish safely over the weekend of the Fourth!
 

June 11, 2010
Well, the walleye fishing is really picking up in the Brainerd Lakes Area.  While the night time bite has been strong for weeks the daylight bite was lagging behind.  Those days seem to be over...the bite on Gull, Pelican, and North Long has been very good during the daytime.  It is wind and weather dependent, but if you have overcast and some breeze, the walleyes have been biting.  Try a live bait rig tipped with a redtail on the outside weed edge of shoreline structure.  The bass bit is going strong and the good success has been experienced in the "shallows."   Try pitching a jig and plastic up onto a shallow rock reef, sand bar, or bull rush bed and hang on.  The northern bite has been a bit subdued but we are picking up some nice fish when "rigging" for walleyes.  Good luck on the water and have fun!!!
 

May 29, 2010
Fishing in the Brainerd Lakes Area has been very good.  Walleyes are going strong on Mille Lacs, look for fish on the flats or deep off the rocks during the day.  Look for them shallow on the rocks or shorelines from one hour before dark until you have to leave the lake.  North Long Lake has also experienced a good walleye bite, some wind or overcast makes the daytime fishing better but the night bite has been consistent every night.  Gull is putting out walleyes at night, try trolling cranks over the shallow flats.  The bass opener is Saturday and it seems as if they might be a bit behind schedule.  Look for them in the shallow emerging weed beds.  The crappie bite has been fantastic for weeks and some good catches are still being reported from the bull rush beds.  Good luck!!

May 18, 2010
Fishing this weekend was good.  The crappie bite is near peak, with a lot of fish in the bullrush beds.  This is a time of year we have to be careful about over harvest because the crappie are very aggressive in protecting their beds.  I would recommend taking no more than a meal.  A small tube jig head and a puddle jumper suspended beneath a bobber is working very well on Gull, North Long, and other area lakes.  The bright, and no wind, conditions of the walleye opener made catching walleyes a bit more hit and miss.  Folks that were out night trolling, or fishing flats with spot tailed shiners beneath a lighted bobber, caught quite a few nice walleyes.  Just before daylight, and again just before dusk, there has been a pretty aggressive walleye bite.  The daytime bite has been all but non-existant.  Walleyes were caught on Gull, Pelican, North Long, Round, and the best action seemed to be on Mille Lacs.  The walleyes are scattered from 10-30 feet and you simply need to find schools on shoreline structures and put a bait in front of them to see if they will go.  Small jigs tipped with rainbows or live bait rigs tipped with spot tailed shiners seemed to be the best bet.

September 9, 2009

August  21, 2009
Well, the weather turned on us once again.  The northerns and muskies were getting more active with the warmer weather last week and all the rain has cooled things off again.  The sun the next couple of days should help...so, look for active fish on the inside and outside weed edges of the cabbage.  The bass bite continues to be strong on all area lakes with fish dropping to the outside weed edge and suspending off steep drop offs at the weed edge depth.  Try pitching crankbaits or jigs and worms along the outside weed edge.  The walleye bite is showing signs of improvement with small to medium size fish going on several area lakes.  This bite should only get better as we approach fall.  Try a live bait rig tipped with a red tail on the outside weed edge.  This week we've fished Pelican, Whitefish Chain, and Gull...finding active biters on all lakes.  Good luck fishing and play it safe on the water

August 13, 2009
Weather may be "hot and heavy" but bite is worth the time outside.  Several days of sun, low winds, and high temperatures have things picking up on Brainerd area lakes.  The Whitefish Chain still seems to be the most consistent walleye bite and now the northerns have strapped on the feedbag.  I took a trip over to Mille Lacs yesterday to check out the muskie and northern bite.  Although we didn't boat one, we had several close encounters that were encouraging...the muskies are starting to perk up.  The bass bite in the are is nothing short of phenomenal on Gull, North Long, and Round (the northerns are also clobbering jig spins on these waters as well).  Be sure to take care of yourself on these hot and humid days, but don't let them keep you in the cabin as the bite is on!