Bass fishing booming in Ely area

[Lee Borgersen]

Bass fishing booming in Ely area

by Nick Wognum......Ely Echo

If you like to fish for bass, the Ely area is a great place to cast a line. And because the season up here starts two weeks earlier than the rest of the state, we see some big smallies and bucketmouths registered every year in May.

There was even a report of what may have been a state record largemouth caught in the Ely area.

The StarTribune reported this week that Teresa Toikka-Jensen caught and released a 23.5 inch largemouth bass in an untold Ely area lake on opening weekend.

She told the StarTribune she was casting off the dock near a campground with a No. 11 orange jointed Rapala when the big fish hit.

The state record is 8 lbs. 15 oz. and was the same length but had a girth of 18 inches. Toikka-Jensen's fish had a girth of 21.5 inches and likely would have set a new state record.

She said she wouldn't have killed the fish to see if it was a record and has no regrets about her husband releasing the fish after he measured it.

What's all of this mean? That there's a state record largemouth bass swimming in an Ely area lake. One that's a bit wiser about orange Rapalas.

Our top bass of the week weighed in at 6 lbs. for Ely's Emily Henry who was fishing in Fall Lake. She entered the Angler contest at Spirit of the Wilderness.

A 5 lb. Shagawa bass was reeled in by Stephanie Rancourt, Hibbing who registered her fish at the Great Outdoors.

We also had a nice 4 lb. 12 oz. bass out of White Iron, caught by Lee Berninghaus, Kilkenny, MN and brought in to Silver Rapids Lodge.

Plus a Burntside Lake bass that went 4 lb. 8 oz. for Nick Seaton, Cottage Grove, MN who weighed his fish at the Great Outdoors.

Whopper northern pike continue to be caught in the Ely area and White Iron Lake is leading the way.

This week Ely's Jim Buccowich pulled in a 20 lb. 8 oz. northern and had it weighed on the lake at Silver Rapids Lodge,

Catching a 14 lb. 1 oz. denizen of the deep was Mary Jo Maxwell, Stillwater, MN, who filled out an entry form at Skube's Bait & Tackle.

And a 12 lb. 12 oz. White Iron lake pike was caught by Brianna Berninghaus, Kilkenny, MN, who registered her fish at Silver Rapids Lodge.

Young fisherman Zach Smith of Ely went to One Pine Lake and reeled in a nice 10 lb. 2 oz. northern pike, with the entry coming in from Skube's Bait & Tackle.

In case you're wondering, here's the special regulations on White Iron Lake:

Northern pike: All from 24-36" must be immediately released. Only one over 36" allowed in possession. Walleye: All from 17-26" must be immediately released. Only one over 26" allowed in possession.

In the walleye department, we had a 7 lb. 4 oz. entry from Ely high school senior Erica Starkovich who was fishing in Shagawa Lake and brought her fish to the Great Outdoors.

Tower angler Ben Velcheff entered an 11 lb. Burntside Lake lake trout at Babe's Bait & Tackle.

In the Catch & Release entries, White Iron was the lake where the aforementioned Lee Berninghaus was fishing and released a 41-inch northern pike.

A 38-inch pike was released in Basswood Lake by Matt Skronski, Oak Forest, IL who entered his catch and release at Packsack Canoe Trips.

Biggest walleye this week was this 7 lb. 4 oz. caught by Erica Starkovich, Ely on a leech in Shagawa Lake and registered at Great Outdoors.


Basswood Lake is still the home of the state record for northern pike, caught on May 16, 1929 and weighing in at 45 lb. 12 oz. Now that is a monster fish.

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