Fall Fishing 2022

Can you believe that we are into November next week! This will be our last open water fishing report for this season but as soon as we get safe ice we will have weekly reports on ice fishing here in the Bemidji area.

Saying that, there is still plenty of excellent open water fishing to be had and you’ll virtually have the lakes to yourself. I’ve got a few more guide trips on the books depending on the weather and then it’s time to get my boat winterized and put away for the year and get my wheelhouses ready for the ice fishing season.

Last weekend I had Don Bell from Kuttawa, Kentucky out on a guide trip. Don had never caught a walleye or northern pike before and it’s not because he’s not a excellent angler (He is!) but in Kentucky they don’t have walleye or pike in their lakes. Well Don caught his share of nice walleyes and just before we finished up our trip he caught a real nice pike, needless to say we both tickled about that!

You’ll find good walleye action on area lakes and jigs and minnows are working well. Most of the fish have been coming off the 12-14’ breaks but this time of the year the walleyes can be anywhere so if you don’t find them shallow just keep working deeper. Look for balls of baitfish on your graph and the walleyes will be close by! Smallmouth bass fishing has been excellent on the deeper rock humps and bars and pound for pound you won’t find a harder fighting fish. Remember though that it’s all catch and release now on smallies.

Overall it’s been a great open water season and I’m now looking ahead to our hard water season with excitement! Thanks to all my guide clients who made every outing a fun one and thanks to all you readers for letting me share with you pictures and reports! Please remember to practice selective harvesting, by doing so we will continue to have great fishing for years to come!

With cold temps, wind, and even snow there has been very few folks out on area lakes this past week. But the ones that have have been doing well on walleyes with a jig and minnow in 10-14’. Bemidji, Plantagenet, Grace, and the Turtle River Chain are all kicking out some fish. Grouse hunters are now doing well with most of the leaves down and there has been a increase of ducks into the area.

The colder weather this past week really lowered the water temperatures on area lakes and the fishing remains strong. Walleye fishing has been good using jigs and minnows off the first breaks in 12-14’. The water is very clear now so long line jigging or spot locking and casting away from the boat is key. Northern Pike are very active in the same areas as the walleyes. Smallmouth bass fishing has been good up in the mid lake and shore line rocks using tube jigs or swim baits. Largemouth bass are still hanging on the remaining green weed edges. Tubes and plastic worms along with drop shots are producing fish. You’ll still find a few crappies and bluegills off the edges of deeper green weeds and also out suspended in the deep basins. Grouse hunting is getting better as the leaves continue to fall. It’s a great time to be outdoors! Dress warm and if your out on the water make sure you wear your life jacket. With the cold water, hypothermia can set in quick and a life jacket just might save your life! Please remember to practice selective harvesting, by doing so we will continue to have great fishing for years to come!

I’ve been guiding for 50+ years and I love everything about it but the best part is the people you meet. This past weekend I had a couple, Nathan and Brandi Rossman from Omaha, Nebraska who were here in town for a wedding and also to celebrate their 6th anniversary. What they do to celebrate is they surprise each other with doing something the other person doesn’t know about. Brandi had the first half of the day then Nathan had his surprise for Brandi the second half of the day. Brandi’s surprise to Nathan was a half day guided fishing trip. We had a ball! The fish weren’t exactly jumping in the boat but we caught enough walleyes for them to have a couple of nice meals and they caught and released lots of pike. We listened to the Vikings game, shared stories, and caught good number of fish. Great memories for all of us!

Water temps continue to cool and are now in the upper 50’s and by the end of this week with highs only in the 40’s the water will chill down even more and the fall bite should be into full go mode! Most of the walleyes have been coming in 10-12’ off the edge of still green weeds on jigs and minnows. You’ll also catch jumbo perch in those same areas along with northern pike. Most crappies are now out in those deep basins where they are hitting jigs and minnows or plastics. The fall bite is hear, the colors on trees should be at full peak by the weekend, it doesn’t get much better than that to be out in the great outdoors! Please remember to practice selective harvesting, by doing so we will continue to have great fishing for years to come!

The fall bite has begun! Water temperatures have now dropped into the low 60’s and should cool down even more this week and that is good news for anglers! Jigs and minnows are producing walleyes on area lakes. Many of the fish we’ve been catching this past week have been coming in 8-10’ of water. Balls of baitfish are up shallow and the walleyes are following the bait. Bass fishing has been a bit tougher this past week, not sure why but perhaps with fronts coming through it seems like every other day that might have something to do with it. We are catching some on plastics off the deeper weed edges. Crappies and bluegills continue their trek towards the deeper basins but we are still catching some off the deep green cabbage on small jigs and minnows or plastics. Pike action has been good on jigs and minnows in 8-12’. You’ll find jumbo perch going in 8-10’ on jigs and minnows. It’s a great time to be on the water but dress warm as it can be a bit chilly out there especially in the mornings. As we head into the month of October the bite should only get better! Please remember to practice selective harvesting, by doing so we will continue to have great fishing for years to come!

The fall walleye bite has slowly started to kick in on Bemidji area lakes. This past weekend we had a couple of mornings with low temperatures in the 30’s and that has started slowly dropping water temps and in the fall that’s a good thing! This past week jigs and minnows were producing for myself and guide clients. Most of the walleyes were coming off the 12-14’ breaks and weed edges. As water temperatures continue to drop the fall bite should only continue to get better! Look to Lake Bemidji, the Cass Lake Chain, and the Turtle River chain of lakes for decent walleye action. The bass fishing has picked back up after a bit of a slowdown using plastics off the deeper weed edges. You’ll still find some crappies and bluegills off the deeper cabbage but this past week there has definitely been a transition to many of those fish suspending over deeper basins. These next few weeks can be some of the best fishing of the year. Colors are starting to change, birds are starting to migrate, it’s a wonderful time to be in the great outdoors here in the Bemidji area! Please remember to practice selective harvesting, by doing so we will continue to have great fishing for years to come!