Devil's Lake Fishing Reports

[SHANTY]

How is the bite? We had soem friends up there to weeks ago and shore fished around the bridges. They did well on the northern. I myself are looking for the walleyes. Maybe making a trip early next week if the walleyes are biting. Any info would be great

[riverview]

I have been there the last 3 weekends, I have been only fishing a couple of hours a day and all on the north end of 6 mile and channel A. I guess i did ditch fish between cando and curches ferry 1 day. Picking up a few northerns and a couple of walleys. I have had alot of very nice walleyes follow my lure to the boat but not bite. Last weekend i caught alot of white bass and no walleyes. The water temp is slowly comeing up. From what i hear is that it has been hit and miss. I am hopeing this weekend they will cooperate a little more.

[SHANTY]

thanks for the report. last year around this time we could not keep the white bass off our hooks in six mile. is that the case right now? we are talking 100+ whites. Was hoping to get into some walleye. keep us posted

[lispeej]

I may head to devils lake this weekend to do some shore fishing. I will be targeting for white bass.

[riverview]

fished devils lake a few hours on sat the 8th and this morning 9th. Caught enough northern and white bass to keep it interesting. I saw some walleys get caught but i didnt catch any. I had a couple on but lost them (very light bite) slip bobbers and jigging lead heads. fished from the hwy 19 bridge to the towers on the north end. water very clear and cold 47 to 50 degrees

[sunnyday]

I was also fishing north of hwy 19 both days, but got kicked around by the wind on Sunday. Caught only 1 walleye and too many northern. I was on six mile bay.

Riverview, what bay were you on and what depth were you fishing?

[86Tyee]

So I am heading up there, Memorial weekend. Be my first trip up there and not staying at Grahams. I am staying in town with a friend, but just curious if you have to pay a fee at any of the ramps or not. Like I say I have never launched anywhere up there but Grahams Island.

[sunnyday]

There are several free launch all over the lake but no docks.

[riverview]

I was also fishing north of hwy 19 both days, but got kicked around by the wind on Sunday. Caught only 1 walleye and too many northern. I was on six mile bay.

Riverview, what bay were you on and what depth were you fishing?

Sorry about that i was on 6 mile bay i was fishing from 3 to 14 feet

[lispeej]

How has the white bass fishing been? My sources says it's been slow, but anyone else have much luck?

[Rick]

A lot of pike being caught on crankbaits up shallow. Plenty of eater walleyes are mixed in. If you want to see what cranks they are biting on and the general size..check out Greg's report when it comes up.

[NDLive]

Umpteen, Is That A Number?

Northern, Walleyes, White Bass filling the live well like a Minnesota pan fish outing. This can only be Devils Lake. I already fed the Northern $25 bucks in premium grade, lacquer finished plastic and they are just getting started.

5 am at my house shows up in just two ways. Dark, eyes closed, soft pillow and still another hour to go. The other is a blurred, frenzied, frantic rush to slam the truck door with a cup of coffee in hand and head east. I got it made, 120 miles, two short hours, and I will be fishing the spring bite in Devils Lake.

Brandon recently re-opened 6 Mile Bait and has it stocked with just what you would expect of a lake store, bait and tackle. Open early and closing late he will even put you on fish if you ask. It’s worth the asking as he is also a Devils Lake Guide. Give Brandon a call; he will be pleased to help. (701-393-4480) Thanks to him and a fishing buddy Eric, my day was a typical DL fishing experience. Remarkable!

Pitching cranks to shorelines ranging from rip rap, trees, and cattails you can expect Northern, Walleye and White Bass. If someone from DL tells you they are pitching the cane it probably means cattails. Fun comes from both ends as fish tend to really slam a crank. The other end is at the boat. Pay close attention as all three will follow your crank, sometimes right to the surface.

Some days you can get away with a simple snap, some days you need more. Northern seem to love high gloss plastic. $25 bucks worth before I decide to tie on an Invisa-Leader. There is nothing invisible about them and you will likely feel you have way too much junk on your line but walleyes actually don’t mind and you will save a fist full of cranks.

The morning is characterized by Northern and a walleye now and them. Follows keep the blood pumping. Seeing a big walleye slide back down after following to the boat is exhilarating. So is the dramatic pause as the lure stops for just a second with 3 feet of Northern inches behind. Sometimes it works, today is one of those times.

Water temps play a huge role in the success of this bite. It’s still a bit early in the season for fantastic morning bites. As the water warms during the day fish tend to move up and become more active. Don’t dismiss the morning bite; just be aware that it is driven in part by water temps. The more obvious to keep in mind is wind. Fish the windy shorelines as much as possible.

We did a lot of drifting today since the wind pushed hard out of the south. We chose a protected little back bay nicknamed “Golden Pond” by 6 Mile Bait’s Brandon Wegener. The afternoon turned the odds in favor of the walleyes that outpaced the Northern 10 to 1. It is a fish a cast for a while.

Today’s best morning crank, a countdown in blue. The afternoon favorite, a #5 Shad Rap in blue/silver. I like Firetiger and caught several fish on it but blue seemed better today. Husky jerk-baits get pitched a lot as well. If I was to guess which crank is used most at DL it would be a toss-up between Countdowns and Shad Raps.

Golden Pond is just that, Golden. The afternoon is magic, fish after fish, way too many to keep track of. Keep in mind there is a limit on the fish, but not on the fun. What’s that? How many? I would guess by end of day we had about, uh, maybe, umpteen. Is that a number? It is on Devils Lake!

[SHANTY]

Thanks for the report. There are 13 of us heading there this weekend. Where is that golden pond at on 6 mile? Have any of the mayflys hatched yet? Last year when we were there they had hatched and made a mess of everything

[lispeej]

According to the weather, this memorial weekend looks like it may be a wet one. How will that affect the fishing?

[NDLive]

Yes the hatch has begun. What do you mean they made a mess of everything? Are you refering to the fishing or the massive numbers of bugs in everything?

Golden Pond is west of Six Mile. If you watch the video about 1 minute 30 seconds in there is a screen shot of the GPS location to my best spot.

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[SHANTY]

The may flys make a mess of everything! Cabin, boat, trucks, tents, food, beers... they also do not help the walleye bite any. The fish are full of the fly larva.

How bad are they now? Any idea how long they will be around?

[NDLive]

May Flies in Devils Lake

Try to think of them as walleye food. They make for bigger fish! Black mess on boat carpet, true, annoying, ya-- but not like misquotes. They do come in amazing numbers. I remember camping at Minnewaukan and hearing a buzzing sound and not being able to locate it. I finally looked up and just over head about 10 feet off the ground was a continuous mass of the little critters. To think, those are the ones that got away after the Devils Lake carnivores had first chance. They don’t bother me much but I will agree they can be a pest.

How long you ask?

I checked with a local at 6 mile bait. Normally there are 3 hatches in the summer. Spring hatch somewhere mid to late May and lasts for a week or so. The summer hatch shows up in July followed by the fall hatch in September. Keep in mind this is nature we are talking about and nature don’t fit in boxes very well. For instance the 7 day spring hatch is now going on around 14 days!

I’ve been hoping to come up with another positive but try as I might it ain’t coming.

Think of them as walleye food.

[NDLive]

Personally I don’t like rain and fishing. It's not that fish don’t bite but I doubt they bite as well in the rain. Give me a nice stretch of warm south winds on clear skies. If nothing else my attitude is better. This time of year rain is normally tied with cold fronts. I don’t like cold fronts either. When you get back give us a report. I’m interested in what you learn. Good Luck

[riverview]

Fished North end of 6 mile Doc hagens grahams island road, bud bay. fished cranks, lead heads and lindy rigs. 4 feet to 20. caught walleys in 6 feet with lyndy rigs. tough bite and the weeds are growing fast. water is very clear and 58 to 61 degrees. I found cloudy water but caught nothing.

Oh yea and the mayflys were bad friday and saturday

[beer batter]

Any recent reports from Minnewaukan area? Heading out there tomorrow morning. Are the shrimp in the trees yet? Water temps?

Thanks.

[NDLive]

Sliders Strike out Devils Lake Walleyes

For awhile it was a fish every cast. Then it slowed to 2 casts per fish. After the first 10 it dropped to 3 even 4 casts for a fish. Devils Lake, my kid’s favorite place on Earth.

Thunderstorms are predicted for later this afternoon, mostly cloudy with a south east wind up to 17. Not a bad forecast and if we can get it done before this afternoon’s storms we will be home free. I remember the first time I came to Devils Lake and asked advice. What followed was bunch of fishing jargon that would make oil field talk seem normal.

Channel A and Pepsi Barn ain’t what I call good fishing info but it’s all you will get from the locals. Not that they don’t want to be helpful, it’s just how things are placed here in 6 Mile Bay. So with that in mind, let’s take a trip over to some of these locations and get an idea where they fit.

6 mile Bay is west of Devils Lake and Hwy 19 divides it in half north and south. We will get started as far north as you can boat which is the Channel A bridge. Access by foot is from Hwy 2 west of Devils Lake. Early, like ice out early, it is great walleye fishing. So good in fact you need to be advised that conservation is every sportsman’s responsibility. Catch and Release please!

My thought was to get a picture of the Hwy 2 bridge, pitch jigs for a few White Bass and head out. The bass didn’t see it my way but a respectable Walleye did. It’s a little late in the season for a great walleye bite this far into Channel A. Be careful where the old railroad crosses, plenty of depth but a bit narrow.

Our next stop heading south on the east shore of 6 mile is the famous Pepsi Barn. Completely encased with signs it’s hard to sort out how “Pepsi Barn” stuck. In fact, my son Jesse, on seeing it for the first time remarked, “Why didn’t they call it the Coke Barn?” There is a bay around the corner NE of the barn I suggest you give a look over.

The Gravel Pit is across 6 Mile Bay and a bit south of the barn. It has some steep structure and if you like the live bait jigging presentation you will settle right in. I was introduced to this area last year by a local, Al, who doesn’t know how to hook on minnows so he just uses cranks. I like Al, my kind of fisherman. The shoreline running west is a good starting place if you want to pitch.

Under the Hwy 19 bridge and a mile or so on the west is 6 Mile Bait. This is where we launched this morning. 6 Mile Bait has everything you need on DL for tackle and a guide on hand as well. Heading south again and sticking to the west side is today’s ultimate destination, Doc Hagens.

Doc Hagens is expansive and one of those descriptives that bundles everything into one small name. If someone tells you “Doc Hagens” in reference to “Where they biting?” see if they will be more specific. Doc’s has everything from cattails (locally Cane) to riprap with sunken roads, sunken islands, stock dams and rocks.

You’re gonna need more than a simple “Doc Hagens” if you can get it so here it is. There is a narrow strip of shallow flats that run east and west between Doc Hagens Island and the canes to the north. Depths average 7-9 feet right now. Most of the boats are set up in the middle of the bay at the west end of Doc Hagens Island.

Slip bobbers are without a doubt the most popular technique right now. With an anchor out the corner and a couple of rods each you can sit back and wait for the action. It is a very productive way to fish Devils Lake. I don’t particularly care for the bobbers and thankfully a few walleyes don’t either.

Couple of years ago Nathan, a friend from Minot, introduced me to the slider. No, we’re not talking baseball. This Slider is soft, supple, and deadly on DL. There are days when it seems nothing else will work and Nathan put on a demonstration that stuck with me. I’m thinking it’s the throbbing tail that does it.

No, I didn’t forget the opening paragraph where I bragged about a fish a cast. That was simply a scouting trip north of DL for my 13 year old son Levi who absolutely loves shore fishing. I expected White Bass but the Northern were totally bonkers for a jig. How he is going to love this.

[riverview]

Thanks for the report greg.

[beer batter]

Well, we made it back. Stayed in Minnewaukan Thursday through Saturday. Leeches on slip bobbers in the brush was the ticket. Caught a few trolling, but by far the best was slip bobber. Heard many other similar reports, as well as a few that had more luck trolling cranks. Rained pretty well Thursday, 40mph gusts Friday, Saturday was perfect conditions.

Couple more feet of water and there will be huge problems with the road to Grahams Island as well as hwy 2 along the north shore. The bridge over Mauve Koulee (sp?) is already in pretty rough shape.

[riverview]

fished fri, sat and sun morning. lindy rigs and leaches easy limits of 14 too 17 in eyes. caught a couple northerns. saw alot of people casting cranks. all fish caught around grahams island and road.

[NDLive]

Six Mile Bay from Channel A to Doc Hagens for Walleyes.

For awhile it was a fish every cast. Then it slowed to 2 casts per fish. After the first 10 it dropped to 3 even 4 casts for a fish. Devils Lake, my kid’s favorite place on Earth.

Sliders are one of those unique baits that excell at Devils Lake. Thanks for watching.

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