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In mid-August I'm staying at Laughing Waters just north of  Sioux Narrows. I think the adjacent portion of LOW is called Long Bay. I've never been there before and never fished LOW. I've heard rumors that the water in this area of LOW is very clear (lake trout water) and the walleye fishing is difficult unless you put on a lot of miles each day and head west. Can anyone give me a general sense of what to expect from the LOW in this area? We will be primarily fishing walleye but I'd like to catch some nice smallies too. Thanks.

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I've stayed up in Sioux Narrows at Tomahawk for a week the past 2 years, and doing it again this July. If you're looking for walleye, you shouldn't have too much of a problem finding them. Look at your graph around islands and reefs, and drop a jig down where you see fish. In the clear water around Whitefish and Long bay, it is tougher and you'll do better with clouds/prime time. However, Yellow Girl isn't too far from where you're staying, and the water gets stained there. I've also had success pulling cranks in Log Bay, when the snot rockets aren't hitting it every other second.

If you drive past the smiley face (I'm sure the lodge or anybody else who has been up there will know what I'm talking about), I have never had any problem getting endless numbers 14-17 inch walleyes and keeping a few for the pan. It's about a 20 mile run from Regina Bay, where Tomahawk is, but depending on where your lodge is, it could be less than that since I have to go through Long Bay to get there. Not sure what kind of rig you have, but I do great in a 1750 FishHawk with a 115 Yamaha and really enjoy the long run.

I've never tried hard for smallies, but people I've stayed with have done real well hitting rocks right next to Sioux Narrows, so you shouldn't have to go far for them. Regina Bay, Long Bay, North end of Whitefish should have plenty of reefs to keep you busy for years.

Absolutely beautiful area of the lake and you're going to have a blast. Good luck fishing!

 

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Thanks for the reply. The resort we are staying at is on the Long Bay side of the Hwy and just west of the LOW houseboat docks. My boat is a 17' Lund with a 90hp so I shouldn't have any issue making the run to Yellow Girl if I need to. It looks like it's about 10-12 miles so if the weather is decent it wouldn't be a bad run. What is the bait of choice typically in late July Aug.? Crawlers and leeches? Can we buy them in Sioux Narrows?

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Just looked up where you are, it wouldn't be a bad run from there especially with that rig. No matter the weather, that area of the lake is easy to navigate. It's narrow, so wind is never a problem. Just watch out for reefs, but they are pretty well marked through Long Bay, and on the marked channel through Yellow Girl.

For bait, I've done about equally good on minnows and leeches. I tend to go more towards leeches since they're a bit more durable and can last a couple of fish/bites. There's a sport shop in Sioux Narrows that sells bait. Can't remember the name, I think just Sioux Narrows Sport Shop. I've never bought bait there since Tomahawk supplies it and I can get it right at the dock. I've also never tried crawlers/harnesses. A 1/4 oz jig has always caught more than I ever need. I spend a lot of my time chasing muskies, so there could be a great crawler bite somewhere. I just never dedicated the time to try it. 

I'll be up there from July 11th-18th. Can't wait for the trip. I've been staring at my maps the last couple of weeks looking for new areas to try. 

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Went great! Caught all the walleyes we could ever want. We caught bigger ones on the mid-lake humps in Yellow Girl Bay, as well as tons of eaters out past the smiley face. Evenings I also picked up walleyes casting cranks on rock piles in 8-12 FOW around the north end of Whitefish Bay. Also caught smallies/pike doing this. Fun way to pick up a mixed bag.

I mostly fished muskies the last half of the week and boated 3. Nobody else in my family likes to chase them like I do, so the time I get to chase them is limited, which is a shame because I know I could've gotten few more. They were going good if you were willing to run 20-30 miles away.

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1/4 oz jig and a minnow. Brighter colors were better. Didn't try crawlers, but did use leeches one day. They worked as well. We only had 1 giant on through the week, but it broke my grandpa's line after a while. Biggest boated was 23 I think, but we did get a few from 18-23.

 

I didn't fish in Long Bay at all, but asked a guide about it. He said they walleyes and smallies will slide up on the humps and reefs in there too, so I'm sure you could find some. We caught most of our eaters in 12 ft, and bigger fish in 20-25. I'm sure that could change by the time you're up there though. Just use your electronics and fish where you mark them. They are chunky, feasting on the rusties.

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We got back yesterday from our trip to Laughing Waters on Long Bay. We had a great time but the fishing was fairly average. My boat had 4 guys and we fished 3-1/2 days and caught 180 walleye. Of those fish only 4 were bigger than 20". Lots of little guys. We fished humps and points in Long Bay, Yellow Girl Bay and various other locations out past the smiley face. I think the weather played a major role in the slow fishing. It was very hot and humid the first 2 days then a major cold front came blowing in and things really slowed down.

We still have fun and I would be interested in going back to this area. But, I'd like to do it during a different time of year when the action for bigger fish is better. Does anyone know if early June is good in this area? The drive from our RV park to Yellow Girl is about 45 minutes so I'm also curious if earlier in the spring/summer the fish are closer to the Long Bay area.

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