lakes around fargo?

[ivegottabite]

doesn't seem to be much activity on the nd forum? anyone fish other lakes besided devils lake? i am from fargo and have gone into minnesota quite a bit but i am just wondering if there are any lakes west of fargo within an hour or tow worth checking out?

[marine_man]

There are a couple within 1 - 2 hours...

Some guys go to Spiritwood, which is just west of Valley City and typically have good luck catching Perch... never been there myself. Spiritwood is limited to fishing in the winter only, if I remember correctly.

I have frequented the Jamestown Resrvoir on more than a couple of occastions... the Res is about 1.5 hours west of Fargo... a little bit north of Jamestown, depending on which access you go to.

Some other people fish Lake Ashtabula, which is about 1/2 hour or so north of Valley City... I've fished there once without much luck.. but have heard of some people catching some decent fish there...

Other than that.. I can't think of too many... I lived in Fargo while going to college... made most of my trips to Jamestown or Detroit Lakes.

Good Luck!

marine_man

[ivegottabite]

thanks marine man-
didn't know if i would ever get a reply about any lakes. started thinking the only place people in fargo go is east.
i had heard about jamestown and ashtabula, might have to check them out.
thanks again

[Willy]

We always go duck hunting in the Sibley area, which is on Ashtabula. One time I saw people at the landing holding up a stringer full of walleyes for a picture. Does anyone have anymore info on this lake? I will probably be out there duck hunting and wouldn't mind doing some fishing during the day.

Thanks

[Skitterpop]

I have heard Ashtabula can be good but is usually pretty tough to fish. Brewer up by Erie was good until the cormorants destroyed it a few springs back. I believe the fish and game are trying to revive it. If you have the patience there are still some largemouth, crappie, and some sunnies left. I did manage to catch a 7.5 lb walleye out of there from shore last May. I've also heard of others going out there and catching nada. If you are going to try Brewer I would wait until winter and fish it during the evening and night time. I would be out there all day and catch nothing and then when it got dark it was fantastic action. I would watch people leaving the lake because it was dark and I would be pounding the suspended gills. There were times I would drive out there from Fargo at 3am and fish for 3-4 hrs. before coming home to go to class at NDSU. After class I would clean my catch and have fresh sunnies for dinner. It was not uncommon back then to catch a sunnie, perch, or crappie about every 2 minutes. Boy were those the days before it went to the birds literally! Casselton has a pond that holds fish but mostly small. Hobart, outside of Valley City, can be tricky for perch in the winter. A lot of the ponds around Valley City hold perch or pike. Check on the Fish&Game webpage to see what has been stocked into the lakes in Barnes County. Finding the location of these "lakes" (slews) can be a tougher task. The James River south of Jamestown can be excellant for walleye in a few weeks into the middle of November. The rivers all around here are loaded with fish that are putting on the fall fead bag.