Interesting article along with Ely area info

[Dr.Bob]

This was taken form the Ely Echo:

A few fast fish facts for area lakes

They?re out there! Wily walleyes, nasty northerns, lunker lake trout and scrappy smallmouth! Lurking in the depths of our crystal clear lake waters, waiting to tear up some tackle and give you more action than you thought you had coming.

All you have to do is find out where they are, and what it takes to put them on your stringer.

The walleye, commonly called walleyed pike in Minnesota, pickerel in Canada and pikeperch in the eastern states, varies considerably in color. The state fish, it ranges from a dark silver to a dark olive brown mottled with brassy specks. Those of the brown waters of the northern lakes are the darkest in color. A large black spot is always present at the base of the dorsal spine, though it may fade in dead walleyes. The lower lobe of the tail or caudal fin has a wide white margin. The jaws contain large canine, or tearing teeth.

The walleye is found from southern Canada to southern Alabama and Georgia. It ranges south on the Atlantic Coast to North Carolina.

Minnesota has been the leading state in the propagation of walleyes. More than 825 lakes are stocked annually with fry of this species by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The walleye angler-caught average one to two pounds, but may go as high as ten pounds.

Generally, the best lakes in the area for walleye are Alice, Agnes, Basswood, Crooked, Insula, Gabbro, Kawishiwi River, Lac La Croix, Vermilion, White Iron, Shagawa, Moosecamp, Ima, Adams, Malberg, Horse and Angleworm.

The DNR stocks lakes yearly with two to five million walleye fingerlings or fry raised in its hatcheries and rearing ponds.

In Minnesota, the northern pike is often called pickerel or great northern pike. This species is found in nearly all the streams and lakes of Minnesota and anglers catch 2-3 pound fish on the average. A northern may exceed 20 pounds. Its color is bluish and greenish gray, the belly white or yellow. In adults the sides are more or less covered by light spots against a darker background. The young have light bars upon a dark background. The fins are more or less spotted.

The best lakes in this region for northern are Agnes, Basswood, Bald Eagle, Birch, Crooked, Farm, Insula, Lac La Croix, Lake One Chain and Kawishiwi River.

The most common species of bass, other than the black bass, are the northern smallmouth and largemouth.

It seems rather odd that in certain Minnesota lakes it is difficult to distinguish the adult smallmouth bass from the largemouth, though the young of the two species until they are yearlings at least, are so radically different that they can be distinguished at a glance.

The northern smallmouth bass has a mouth of moderate size, the maxillary not extending beyond the lip. The young are more or less barred or spotted and never have a very distinct dark horizontal stripe on the sides. The northern smallmouth vary from a dark green flecked with gold to a pale olive brown; it is white below.

The largemouth bass differ from the smallmouth with the absence of vertical bars and position of the angle of the jaw.

The northern smallmouth bass when hook-and-line caught averages from a half to one-and-a-half pounds, but may be a five pounder. The area?s best smallmouth lakes are Basswood, Big Lake, Moose Lake Chain, Crooked, Twin (Ojibway), Mitchell and Shagawa.

Largemouth bass range from one to two pounds caught by the average angler, but may grow to six pounds. It can be found in the Ely area at the following lakes: Kawishiwi River, Lake One Chain, Meander, Long and Moose.

The rainbow trout is either bluish or olive green above and silver on the sides with a broad, pink lateral band. The fish is native to the streams of the Pacific Coast, the steelhead variety being a seagoing type.

Early introductions of the Shasta rainbow trout were made in Wisconsin, Minnesota and other northern states. Later steelhead rainbow trout were successfully introduced into many waters of Minnesota and neighboring states and have now largely replaced the planting of years ago. Rainbow found in small lakes may exceed 10 pounds.

The brook trout has a dark olive back and sides with light worm-like or marbled streaks across the back. Numerous red spots margined with brown applied on the sides. The brook trout is native to certain cold streams of Minnesota.

Brook and rainbow trout can be found at Glacier Pond, Section 30 Creek, Dry Hugh, Hugh Lake, Louis, Longstaff Creek, Regenbogen, Tofte and Little Isabella River.

Lake trout are distributed through northern North America extending as far south as the Great Lakes region and the New England States. Although the trout is widely distributed in certain types of northern lakes, it cannot be said to be abundant in any of them. It can be found in almost all the deeper lakes in the northern part of St. Louis, Lake and Cook counties. Some of these lakes are Basswood, Burntside, Lac La Croix, Knife, Kikakabic, Thomas, Snowbank, Oyster, Trout and Carp.

The lake trout is dark gray with round pale spots sometimes tinged with pink; although the belly is usually pale, it may be dark and spotted.

Minnesota?s panfish include bluegills, sunfish, crappies and rock bass. They generally weigh in at no more than one pound, but provide tasty eating and fine sport. Farm, Garden and White Iron lakes are excellent for panfish.

Now that you know everything there is to know about area fish, go get ?em. You?ll find fast action and excitement. And, to ensure that excitement will be here for generations to come, consider catch and release.