Chad’s Guide Service of Bemidji Minnesota. Specializing in the Cass Lake Chain, Lake Bemidji, Lake Plantagenet & other Bemidji/Cass Lake area lakes during the open water season. During the ice fishing season Chad offers sleeper fish house rentals on Upper Red Lake
“Cass Lake/Lake Bemidji Fishing Report”
9-14-09
The walleye fishing on both Cass and Lake Bemidji has been pretty good for the last couple of weeks. Most of the fish have been holding in the 20-30ft. range and being caught on many different patterns. Trolling crank baits, live bait rigging, and jigging have all been catching fish fairly consistently. We have been marking a lot of larger walleyes out on the structure but catching mostly smaller fish in the 14-17inch range. An occasional bigger fish or two will bite once in a while but not many. The bigger fish should become more active once the water temps start dropping once again. We have had some of the warmest weather of the entire season the last few weeks and the surface temps are around 70 degrees still. The next good cold front should get the bigger walleyes snapping and they will start dropping down a little deeper.
The perch bite on Cass has been very good if you can locate the schools out on the bars or weed lines. Many 10-13inch perch have been caught in the last few weeks and they should continue biting through September. The best presentation I have found is an 1/8 oz or less jig tipped with a fat head minnow.
Good Luck to everyone this fall and have fun!!
Take Care.
Chad
“Fishing Report”
8-10-09
The walleye fishing has been fair over the last couple of weeks. This time of year the larger walleyes seem to get pretty finicky. The smaller eating sized fish have still been cooperating fairly well though. Most of the walleyes we have been catching lately have been in the 13-16 inch range with a bigger one thrown in here and there. The best presentation has still been a leech or a crawler on a long snelled live bait rig. I have been using a 6-7 ft. leader and anywhere from ¼ oz. to 3/8 oz. weights to get the bait down to the fish. Most of the time, we get one to three fish off a spot and then they seem to get lockjaw on that spot. So the key right now seems to be to keep moving and scrape a couple here and a couple there.
Towards the end of August and through October the larger fish will become more cooperative once again. I always look forward to the fall bite on the Cass Chain when quality and numbers of fish always get better.
There has been some decent action for pike on Cass lately. Some nice sized fish have been showing up in some of the cabbage beds and also out in the 20-40ft. depth range with red tails or creek chubs.
The nice sized perch have also been fairly cooperative lately. The best bite I have found has been in scattered weed beds on shoreline flats or out on the bars. The 6-7ft. depths with a jig and minnow have been working well.
Good luck to all and take care!
Chad
“Cass Chain Report”
7-22-09
The walleyes on Cass have been cooperating fairly well during the last week or so. They are schooled up out on the bars in 14-30ft. Crawlers or leeches on a live bait rig has been working the best. A longer leader, 6-7ft. seems to help also. Not many fish over 20 inches, but pretty good numbers of eaters.
The jumbo perch have started showing up in the last few days as well. They are also out on the bars in the 8-14ft. depths.
Good luck too all & take care. Chad
Cass Lake Report”
6-16-09
Water temps are finally beginning to warm up some this past week. Surface temps have been in the low to mid sixties the last few days and the fishing has been pretty good. Some pretty good schools of fish have been showing up out on the main lake bars in the 15 to 25 foot range. Live bait rigs and jigs with leeches or minnows have both been producing well. The fish are holding in pretty tight groups and can take a while to find. The fish will usually relate to a point or turn o“n the bars.
Allen’s Bay has been producing some good walleye action as well. Most of the fish seem to be relating to the weed lines in 12-15ft of water. Some good crappie and bluegill reports have been coming in also.
The perch fishing has been picking up on Cass also. Pretty good numbers of 10-12 inchers have been showing up out on the bars and in the weed beds.
Good Luck! & Take Care
Chad
"Cass Lake Report"
6-3-09
Water temperatures on Cass are quite a bit cooler now than most years. We have had cold front after cold front coming through in the last couple weeks and that has kept the water temps around 55 degrees for quite a while. We have also had a lot of windy conditions that have kept people off the main lake areas.
When we get a couple decent days where a person can venture out and fish some of the main lake bars the fishing has been pretty decent. The 15-30 ft depths have been producing some nice fish. The fish have been somewhat scattered at all depths though. I usually start on the shallower end of the spectrum and start working my way down until I contact some active fish.
We have been having good success with a live bait rig/lindy rig with leeches, shiners, red tails. I’m sure crawlers would work just fine as well. The most important thing is to get some live bait in front of them. I haven’t tried much jigging lately, but I’m sure if you are good with a jig you will do just fine.
When the surface temps start reaching the 60-62 range quite a few walleyes will move up shallower for a while as the shiners in the lake come up to spawn. This should be in the next couple weeks or so if we ever get some warm air up our way this year? Wind becomes a pretty big factor when the walleyes move into shallower water. The fish can be pretty spooky when boats approach them due to the clear water conditions. With a decent chop blowing into or along the bars a person usually will have better luck catching a few. If the water is calm it can be a little tougher to get close enough and not spook them. If you run into calm conditions try using a lighter sinker and long line your bait quite a ways out away from the boat and you should still be able to get a few to bite.
Good luck during the next couple weeks & hopefully summer shows up one of these weeks.
Take Care.
Chad
“Cass Lake Chain Report”
5-17-09
Cass Lake has been giving up a few walleyes during the last week or so. The best reports have been during the evening hours, from people fishing the shoreline points in 10-20 ft. of water. Most fish have been on a jig and shiner combo. We also had some decent action in Allen’s Bay on the shoreline breaks, rigging and jigging shiners in 12-18 ft. last week also. Caught a few rigging leeches as well.
Andrusia has still been doing fairly well on the shorelines in the 7-12 ft. depths. Rigging or jigging shiners is still the best bet.
Kitchi has been so, so during the last week. The fish seem to be a little nicer sized when you find them. A few guys have had decent luck fishing the humps & points in 12-17ft.
Pike Bay has been giving up some fish also. Mostly out on the bars in the 15-20ft. range rigging leeches. A few big fish have been reported as well.
The Annual Bemidji Eagle’s Tournament was held on Lake Bemidji this past weekend. Fishing conditions were tough, as was the walleye bite. I think it was the first year no one brought their five fish limit to the scale. A four fish bag caught by Tim Vegan & Jon Zastrow ended up the taking top honors this year. The fish that were caught mostly came from shallow water, 6-10ft.on the weedlines.
2009 Eagles Tournament Results
1st Place……….Tim Vegan & Jon Zastrow…10.94lbs.
2nd Place………Rick & Rory Whittington…9.40lbs.
3rd Place……….Dan Posner-Joe Edlund…..6.56lbs.
4th Place……….Jack Gringo-Jack Neuman...6.45lbs.
5th Place……….Mike McKee-Justin McKee…6.33lbs.
6th Place……….Carl Knutson-Brad Zylog…6.06lbs.
7th Place……….Chad Benson-Buck Leeper…5.59lbs.
8th Place……….Ron Bostic-Travis Giffen…4.83lbs.
9th Place……….Mike Geller-Chuck Geller…4.59lbs.
10th Place………Al Kendall-Kent Schuver…4.42lbs.
The weather forecast for this week sounds pretty promising, so the fishing should pick up on a lot of the lakes this week. Good Luck!!
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5-11-09
The walleye bite on the Cass Chain this opener was fairly typical on Saturday. Overcast, cold & raining at times made for some numb fingers, and made it a bit harder to feel the bites when they came. Our group did pretty well, catching 30-40 walleyes between three boats. The fish were predominantly males and ranged from 14-23 inches, most were 16-18 inches. We fished Lake Andrusia with live bait rigs in 6-8ft. of water to catch our fish. Most of them were caught on spot tail shiners and a few on leeches. The shoreline flats adjacent or near the river mouths are mainly where our group fished.
There were also good reports from anglers fishing the river mouths in 6-8ft of water using jigs and shiners . The Turtle River mouth had some good reports as did the Mississippi inlets and outlets. The best fishing is usually at lower light periods and after dark when fishing these current type areas. These areas get quite a bit of traffic at this time of year and are a little to busy for me. A person can usually move down the shoreline a little bit away from all the traffic and do pretty well.
During the next week or two the walleyes will gradually start showing up on some of mid-lake structure. Usually the structure that is relatively close to the shorelines or directly connected to the shorelines will produce first. By the first week in June or so most of the walleyes will be dispersed throughout the lakes and most structural elements will hold some fish.
Good Luck to all who venture out in the next week or two and Good Fishing!
Be careful out there & take care.
Chad
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4-30-09
Opening day is less than two weeks away now and the lakes are pretty much ice free, except for a few chunks floating around in places on some of the bigger lakes. The walleyes have been spawning in the rivers during the last week or so and should be about done. This year should be a fairly typical opener, with the walleyes working along the shorelines and filtering through the river systems on the Cass Chain.
Lake Andrusia, Kitchi, & Big Rice are some of my favorites for walleyes during the early season. These lakes warm up a little faster than Cass and the fish seem to cooperate fairly well. The best fishing is usually on the shorelines where the wind has been hitting into for a day or two. Work along the newly emerging weed lines in 6-10ft of water with a shiner or leech on a live bait rig or a jig. The water is pretty clear this time of year and the fish can be somewhat boat shy. I have had pretty good luck using as light of a weight as possible and getting your bait at least 20yds away from the boat. You will get a lot more bites if you long line out away from the boat. If there is a good chop on the water this isn’t as critical as when the water is calmer.
The fishing should be pretty good near the river inlets & outlets leading into and out of the lakes as well. Usually the best action is early morning, evenings, and at night. Most people anchor up near or in the current areas and cast a 1/8 oz jig, tipped with a shiner. Tossing a shiner or leech on a live bait rig around the area and slowly bringing it back to the boat can work well also.
Cass Lake can be a little on the tough side during the early part of the walleye season due to the water clarity and that it warms up more slowly than the smaller lakes on the chain. I have had my best luck out on Cass when the water starts reaching the upper 40’s or so. Live bait rigging with a shiner or leech in 12-15ft is usually where I have had my best early season action. The shoreline of Star Island is pretty good and also up by Knutson Dam is worth checking out. I have also had pretty good luck for some bigger fish on Cass during the early part of the walleye season out in the main lake on the more traditional summer spots, such as Buck Bar, & North Cedar. The first fish to show up out there seem to be the bigger ones. The 12-20ft depths are usually where you will find them. Watch your electronics as you are cruising along the edge of the bars. If you mark a fish or two give it a pass or two. You will usually not catch many numbers on any one particular spot, but your chance at bigger fish is increased. If you catch a fish or two you are best off moving on and trying to duplicate further down the bar.
Hopefully the weather cooperates for everyone who ventures out on opening day this year & we are all eating some fresh walleye fillets over opening weekend. Good Luck! out there and take care.
Chad
Chad's Guide Service - Specializing in the Cass Lake Chain of Lakes.