Waconia advice

[kevslice]

I'm new to HSO, my 1st post. I'm heading to Waconia Friday morning, first time out there, as I need a change from Tonka. Any tips on 'skis out there? I've heard the East side of Coney can be hot, I've got room in my boat if anyone's interested in joining me. Thanks!

[DHost21]

I fish waconia quite a bit. Not really a bad spot on the lake. The whole island is solid and all the reefs are really good too. Id work the reefs quite a bit. Also the west and northwest middle of the lake its about 25 fow thats close to the deepest spot but there are usually suspended fish there to troll over in between the reefs and the island. I dont think I can make it friday morning but let me know if you head out there other times and i could meet you with my boat and would love to help

[asteffes]

Waconia has been very slow this year. The east side of Coney Island can be ok, but there are much better locations on the lake to fish. I would focus on the mid lake structure and there is a lot of it. Reinke's and Wagners bay have good cabbage this time of year and produce fish as well. There really are not many bad spots to fish, just whether or not the fish are moving or not.

Focus on North Reef, Anderson's Reef, Center Reef, Cemetary Reef, Keg's Reef and the cabbage beds near the beach, reinke's bay, and wagner's bay. The island has some good spots as well.

Most people will throw cowgirls and bulldawgs, don't be afraid to work suicks and suirrley phantoms out there. Topwater can be great too. It is a great body of water, but it can really test your patience. This year has been one of those years - Good luck.

[kevslice]

Thanks, I appreciate the advice!

[cupper]

diddo for what asteffes said. I just got off the water and it was slow. I didn't move anything... I tried Kegs, Nelsons, and the east side of the island. I caught one 33" northern by the island on a baby girl. I tried blades and dawgs. My buddy and I were moving fish the first weekend on dcg in Reinke's and on North reef, but we haven't seen any there lately. Good luck and let us know how you do. If you ever want to meet up, shoot me an email and we can hit the water sometime.

p.s. I've had good luck with orange and bronze colored lures.

[Jmeyers]

Thinking about heading out there today around 4:30pm. I'll let ya know if I have any luck, if your out there today as well make sure to say hey to the Lund ss Angler

[kevslice]

I only boated 1 pike on the E side of Coney Friday morning right @ moonset on a glidin Rap, tried a couple other spots, nuthin. I'll be back, as I know there's some great potential there. I'll be out on Indy this season as well, we're very blessed w/ many excellent lakes in the area.

Thanks for the tips! Much appreciated.

[TheHawgTrough]

While all of the metro lakes seem to be fishing tough, I think this lake is in a bit rougher shape. It's popularity in recent years has taken its toll, and I've heard rumors that a lot of the really big fish were either kept or haven't made it through real well (Poor handling?). Don't see many of the guides out there any more and I think I'd rather put my time in elsewhere.

[BuckKiller]

I strongly disagree... Waconia is still an awesome lake for muskies. I haven't caught one this year yet but I had a nice one on last weekend and had about a half dozen follows this year already. Always been my favorite lake and in the past 5 years I've maybe seen 3 dead muskies floating.

[asteffes]

BuckKiller-

I like Waconia as well, but for whatever reason (weather is a major factor) the lake has been very slow this year. In addition, the lake has gotten overpressured the past few years which has lead to more and more mortality of fish. Just check with Mase's In Towne Marina and see how many fish get harvested each year. New size restrictions will hopefully help, but too many "uneducated" anglers out there who don't know any better. Too many guys coming to the dock with a muskie on a stringer wanting a picture and taking it home with them over the past 5 years. Then tack on the fish that die during catch and release attempts. No matter how great the angler is, there will still be times when a lure is taken too deep etc...and the fish cannot be revived.

I have fished the lake now for over 10 years. The lake has seen some dramatic pressure increases during this time. Many guides have come and gone on this lake as well. Is it still a good fishery? Yep. Are there still some big fish in there? Sure. I just think that it is not as good as it once was. Why? I don't know. Will I still be fishing there? I will, but I may venture to some other bodies of water in an attempt to have a little more peace and quiet. (If there is such a thing anymore )

See you out on the water!

[MLS]

Amen Tony. That much pressure is tough on fish and fisherman. Good luck out there!

[Fever]

I also agree that Waconia is a good lake and it takes too much pressure. Unfortunately, I don't think it will change. I've been fishinging waconia now for about 8 1/2 years and have noticed a dramatic up tick in pressure. The popularity of Muskie fishing has gone up so much in the past few years that one can't help but think that some harm is done to many of our fisheries even if it isn't intended. I was lucky enough to boat a 42 incher this past saturday the 2nd of July. I wasn't on Waconia though, I was up about 40 or so minutes north. Much less pressure and just as good of a fish population. One has to wonder why fishing has been so poor on Waconia this year. Weather has something to do with it but how many top raiders and cow girls can a single musky fall for??? I mean if bass can get educated to spinner baits I'm sure 15-20 year old muskys can learn to not hit a lure they fell for 5-6 times.

[Grunt L]

Waconia is a good lake. Lived there for about 10 years. You just need to work teh lake a lot to get results. Island and a few reefs taht produce good fish. email me and I acn let you know where I had luck.

Hope taht helps,

James

[asteffes]

James-

I still live there and have fished it for 10 years with a high level of success. It is NOT the same lake it has been. I fished it last night thinking maybe the night bite was going. Fished 8 pm to 2 am with not even a single follow.

People may think I am nuts, but I wonder how much the cormorant population is affecting the bite out there. There used to be hundreds if not thousands of cormorants living on Coney Island. The DNR has been shooting them annually now for a couple of years and the population is way down. If these birds were eating 2-3 pounds of fish per day, that means that the forage in the lake for the muskie to eat was significantly less. Maybe there is just plenty of food for them now?????? I doubt it and still chalk it up to too much pressure and mortality, but that is just me.

The lake is in very rough shape right now. I hope it bounces back.

[MN Slick]

I concur, Waconia has been tough. I too have fished it for over 10 years and long for the good old days, haha! My wife tells me to quit living in the past because I spend so much time reliving my Waconia success from years gone by, lol.

[50inchpig]

according to the MI logs waconia has been one of the better metro lakes this year, there are a few other good lakes in the metro that stink even worse this year so far.

my only point is that maybe it's not in such bad shape for the long term, just super tough this year like a lot of other metro waters.

[asteffes]

Are M logs always accurate and honest? Tonka and Independence have both been way better than Waconia this year for me. Just Sayin -

I still think that the cormorants affecting the bait fish population have more to do with this than I originally thought.

[50inchpig]

Are M logs always accurate and honest? I still think that the cormorants affecting the bait fish population have more to do with this than I originally thought.

Nope, they are not, and I'd certainly defer to your opinion, you having lived by and fished the lake much more than myself the last decade. I was just trying to be a little positive because we've got just as much W.T.F going on with our lakes in the NE metro at the moment, and I'd hate to think the overall quality of my favorite lakes has declined over the last few years as a lot of people on this thread think Waconia has.

Leech lake bounced back after the cormorants, hopefully Waconia will too.

[asteffes]

My hope is that it is not an overpressure/mortality issue, but rather a high population of bait fish due to the elimination/reduction of the cormorants.

Only time will tell. I hope more than anyone that things are in good shape for the future of the species there. I am encourage that many other bodies of water are "tough" - maybe it is everywhere.

I do know of a few lakes north of the metro that are doing well....maybe I need to spend more time up there I will keep those names quiet so not to upset anyone.

[muskiemanAD]

I have fished Waconia a few times this year and it has also been slow for me. However a little over a year ago during metro tourney the lake could not have been any hotter! I think they are there just more baitfish then ever in there. Was over open water in 35 feet and all of a sudden I'm reading 4 feet, with nothing but baitfish stacked up below! That's why its called fishing and not catching!

[asteffes]

Maybe the DNR killing large numbers of cormorants on Waconia have boosted the baitfish numbers, thus giving the muskies a "buffet" and less interest in our presentations.....

http://www.thornebros.com/messageboard/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=33703#Post33703

[cruiseforever]

This week was the first time I have been on Waconia this year. I was fishing for Bass and I could not believe the large schools of Perch and Sunfish that would chase my lures. I also saw and heard large schools breaking the surface when the lake was calm.

[thopkins]

i totally agree with the bite being hard due to the amount of available food in the lake. ive fished wac for 7 yrs and never have i seen the amount of follage that i witnessed this year. throwing bulldogs and cowgirls is like offering a mcdonalds cheeseburger at a vegas style buffet. theres no competition for that. the shiner population is off the charts and that mixed with a couple large mayfly hatches and ideal weather for spawning plus all the mosquito larve for the smaller fish to gorge on allows them to thrive and grow fat fast thus allowing the muskies to thrive and gorge as well. mix that with the dnr removing the "rats with wings" equals poor fishing conditions..walleye fishing has been tough this year due to this too. the plus side to this is bigger fatter fish when you do get them. also this will defer alot of the fishing pressure away. i think its a good thing..just saying

[SpclPatrolGroup]

Spent about 10 hours on Waconia this weekend, it was hot, muggy, and dead calm. The fishing was very slow, eventually we switched gears and went after panfish which were in a feeding frenzy it seems. After reeling in a bunch of 6" perch, and some smaller sunnies, it seems there would be plenty of food for some larger preditors.