Ely Area Lakes

[greatoutdoors]

The Great Outdoors Bait & Tackle
419 East Sheridan St.
Ely, Mn.
218-365-4744

Ice conditions on the Ely area lakes have changed dramatically the last few weeks.?  Last Sunday and Monday,?  Burntside Lake, had water created by the melting snow running?  through fishing holes,?  3-4 foot whirlpools being normal,?  making them larger by the hour. Then it cooled off, and locked up the surface water. There is a potential 3-6 inches of snow coming tonight, but may miss us from the look of the sky. The next 14 day extended forecast looks good, and has the potential for early ice out. We will begin to post weekly fishing reports next week, and continue until ice conditions prohibit them. Trout season continues inside the BWCA until March 31st.

[Lee Borgersen]

Glad to have you aboard Jim. Keep those reports comming in for us. Quick question for you bud.

With open water season just around the corner, what would be your top 4 area lakes to try for crappies?

[Mayfly]

Please welcome Jim from Great Outdoors Bait and Tackle located in Ely, Mn.

Jim is our newest Field Staff member. He will be hopping on board to update us with fishing reports and anything else pertinent in the area. I just got off the phone with Jim and he was heading out to do some fishing. I'm sure he'll be stopping in tomorrow to give us a report! Welcome Jim and Great Outdoors Bait and Tackle to MNO!!!

Glad to have ya Jim

[greatoutdoors]

Hello Lee,  :euro:
In response to your question about crappies, easy accessibility would be Bass Lake, Low Lake, Grassy Lake, and Fenske Lake. All are in close proximity, and have some decent sized crappies. Low Lake has yielded some very nice Bluegills, 1 lb+ in the spring close to the Cloquet Line landing. Back Bay of Basswood Lake gets some real beauties in the fall, but no one seems to go up in the spring. Not many people do the open water Crappie/Bluegill, probably goofed off all winter and the Little Woman grounds them until they do all their projects they didn't do during the winter.

[Dr.Bob]

Welcome Jim!

[Harold]

Hey Jim,

There is a certain lake that connects to your home lake that yields some really nice crappies in the Fall.  Bobby H, Jammer & myself have all but given up fishing walleyes in Sept to head up for the meat run on those beautiful fall afternoon/evenings.

I'd name names, but heck, then smallmouthguide will have to start spending time somewhere other than Basswood.  Can't be having that.

Have also caught some huge Gills from my Grandpa/Uncle's place on Wolf. 

Damn, I need to get up to Ely more often.  Nice to see you here - you'll know me by Leaky on another board.

Jim

[greatoutdoors]

Yo, Harold

I'll  be heading up to that lake that connects to the REAL Lake early next week to see what the Crappies are doing. A few guys were heading there today, hope to get a report and let you know.

[Lee Borgersen]

Daily expense to fish Basswood Lake.

Permit fee..........................$12.00
Portage fee........................$24.00
Daily boat docking...............$14.30
Gas & oil............................$28.00 
Bait 2 people......................$12.00

Total daily cost to fish Basswood Lake.

                   $90.30



(Greatoutdoors) quote: "I'll  be heading up to that lake that connects to the REAL Lake early next week"

(Harold) quote: "There is a certain lake that connects to your home lake that yields some really nice crappies in the Fall."

(Harold) quote: "I'd name names, but heck, then smallmouthguide will have to start spending time somewhere other than Basswood.  Can't be having that."

(smallmouthguide) Thanks for the info guys. ??? Do you guys work for the CIA with all that secret trash talk stuff? I guess I'll just have to keep fishing Basswood till I'm broke. :hang:

[Dr.Bob]

I thought they up'ed that portage fee last year. 

Your gettin forgetful you old fart.

[Lee Borgersen]

Do you mean it's $30.00? I guess I am getting forgetful :stupid:

[greatoutdoors]

Lee,

You should finish the mathematical equation.
Daily Guiding Fee for Basswood-$3,000.00
Daily expenses  $91.30                           

Net take for the day                    $2,908.70

[Outdoors Junkie]

Welcome to the MNO team Jim.  I am glad you could join us here!

[Dr.Bob]

I guess I am the pot calling the kettle black here......I know they raised it but I don't remember how much!  I think it is prolly $12 each way now, but I'm not sure.

[Lee Borgersen]

It all comes back to me now Doc. It is $24.00 round trip. What was I thinking? I should run for office with a memory like mine.

[Woody]

Welcome to MNO Great Outdoors!  It's great to have you aboard!  I've personally never made it to Ely before, but it sounds like I may be headed that way-somewhere-with my son's Boyscout troop this coming August.   

[greatoutdoors]

Thank you for the warm welcome on the forum

A few good crappie reports in the Ely area this week from Twin, Bass, Birch, Garden and Farm Lakes. Size has been decent, up to 13 inches, and the most luck has been fishing within 2-3 feet of the bottom in about 30 feet of water, with limited success finding crappies suspended about 8 feet up.
The sled dog guys have been reporting  good fishing for Northern Pike on Basswood Lake, in both size and numbers. Ciscos have been the bait of choice for them.
Ice conditions will be interesting.  The warmer weather accompanied with rain could make some of the shorelines touch and go by next weekend, but the ice in the middle should still be safe. ???

[UncleDave]

Where is your store located in Ely?  When you first get into town?  I don't recall seeing a bait store by your name.  Next time I'm up, I will have to stop by.  Back in '89 & '90 I lived above the movie theatre on Sheridan.

[greatoutdoors]

UncleDave,

My Bait Shop is just across the parking lot from Mike's Liquor, which would be one block down the street from your previous residence above the theatre. It's been there since 1984. We have recently re-sided it with 12 inch log siding, and installed log railings. Easier directions, one block down from Zup's grocery store on the left side of the street. Beer and Bait, your one stop shopping!!! ::)

[UncleDave]

I know right where you are.  I will stop in on my next Ely trip.

[BDub]

eh Jimbo, welcome to MNO.  I check in here from time to time.  Maybe I'll learn some of your secrets.

[JackpineRob]

Hey BDubs - if you're looking for a secret walleye hole, I've got two words for you:

Power Dam

Don't tell anyone else!  We don't want those Burntside types trailering their boats over and cluttering things up.

[Harold]

Hey BDubs - if you're looking for a secret walleye hole, I've got two words for you:

Power Dam

Don't tell anyone else!  We don't want those Burntside types trailering their boats over and cluttering things up.

 :ROTFLMAO: :ROTFLMAO: :ROTFLMAO: :ROTFLMAO: :ROTFLMAO: :ROTFLMAO:

Dave - I'd say you are way overdue for a trip to Ely.

[greatoutdoors]

Jackpine Rob :P

No need to worry about us Burntside types coming over to Fall Lake! We couldn't look at ourselves in a mirror if we ever caught those tiny walleyes you guys get there.

[JackpineRob]

Speaking of tiny fish, I've been meaning to send you a copy of this pic Jim.  You see, about the time Pat was revelling in the fame of his alleged "Burntside Laker" ( Ely Echo), the kids and I were on a canoe trip.  This beast was caught on July 4.  Oh yeah, it was caught in Minnesota - in an Ely Area Lake.

[Dr.Bob]

Looks likw you need a bigger net :o.

[greatoutdoors]

Jackpine Rob


Nice fish. Incidentally, the lake that Pat caught his Trout on was listed as "Top Secret Lake" when the entry form left our shop. The Echo changed it to Burntside, we had nothing to do with that, nor did Pat! :'(

[JackpineRob]

That whole Burntside trout incident - beginning when I spit my coffee out seeing the pic in Echo, and right up to the explanation from the Echo was high entertainment!  I'm kind of sorry the thing got explained in the end, because some stories are better off left alone.  No matter what country that fish of Pat's was caught in, it was one heck of a trout.  Funny thing though - he went all that way to catch a smelt-fed trout - with all of the "lunkers" lurking in the Ely water supply.

About the trout above - it was my daughter's first lake trout.  My son handed the line over to her when the fish hit, and it ended up taking all 3 of us to deal with things.  As Bob noted, the net wasn't nearly big enough!  I'll spare you the details of how I ended up wrestling the thing over 60 feet of water with my trusty Rapala knife clenched in my teeth, and the kids pulling both me and the fish into a ledge where the final epic battle was waged.  Our canoe escaped unscathed from the beast, and at some point I seem to recall the voice of my daughter calling out "MAN THE HARPOONS". 

Anyhow, good to see you and Bdubs on the Board, keeping all of us updated on the latest from The End of the Road.

[greatoutdoors]

 :rock: There is no doubt in my mind that Burntside has a state record in every species which lives in the lake. With the massive amount of smelt (which are stunted from overpopulation) a fish traveling at 4 mph needs only to yawn to eat about 10 lbs of the damn things
The average person fishing does not have the tackle to pull up, let alone land, a large fish.
If Shagawa can produce 50+ inch Muskies of 30-35 lbs, Burntside can do much better for Northern or Trout!

[Harold]

Is there a typical smelt run in the spring where a guy could go fill up some buckets of those tasty little critters?  And how the heck did so many of them get in there in the first place?

[greatoutdoors]

Yep, :D
Slim Creek, if there is any water.  When you say tasty little critters, you are right about little. Many are not much bigger than a medium size chub. How they got there: Back in the 60's, smelters returned from Lake Superior,
cleaned them on their docks & threw the guts into the lake for the seagulls. No damage to Fall or Shagawa because they can't support smelt (too shallow, too much warm water), they did take in Eagles Nest 1, and obviously, Burntside was the "perfect storm." So many in the lake now that they are stunting, and eat all of the spawn from the walleyes and trout. The DNR stocks the lake with fingerlings, after they determined the smelt were eating the fry (too small to cope with smelt) Makes for big fish, and at times, slow fishing-except for smallies, they are doing just fine (yuck) >:(