Great action on Devils Lake

[Jeff Dosch]

Pike and walleye fishing continues to be great and some perch are starting to show up. Some people are just starting to drive on the lake but we do not recommend it yet. Most areas of the lake have around 10 inches and this cold weather this weekend should help things along. It will really help to be able to drive to help look for perch.

[Papa Woodie]

Great News..

Looking forward to the 7th! (by the way, contract will be off in the mail tomorrow with pmt)

[yellowlabnd]

Just wondering what the fish have been biting on and were and depts? I havent fished Devils Lake in 7 years. Me and my uncle decided to give it a try again.

[2 DA GILLS]

I have never fished Devils Lake before, but I have been invited on a trip in March. How is the fishing during March at Devils Lake? Should I accept the invite?

Thanks

[Jeff Dosch]

If you pass up an invite to Devils Lake in March you might just be passing up some of the best fishing you will ever see!

[muskiehut14]

hi!, i also have never icefished DL. I just moved up to Grandforks this summer. I have a perm fishhouse and plan on comming to DL this friday night. Im taking a friend of mine that I met up here who has never been fishing period, in his life. I have spent some time driving around DL checking out some access areas to get on with my fishhouse but I have absolutly no clue where to go. Maybe sombody could give me a clue as where to go, it would sure be nice to get my friend interested in icefishing, it gets borring sometimes going by your self up here. hope this dont sound to soby, but any info would be great! FISH ON!!

[2 DA GILLS]

Sounds like I should accept the invite. I have heard about the walleye and northern fishing. What about perch or bluegills? Is Devils Lake good for other panfish?

Thanks.

[iffwalleyes]

I don't know that there are any gills in the lake. I didn't think there were crappies either but I guess some people stumbled across some last year by accident. I would not plan on specifially targeting crappies though because you would likely not have much luck. Perch the last few years can really be hit or miss at that time of year. The main species in the lake are Walleye, Pike, Perch, and White Bass.

[2 DA GILLS]

Thanks for the info. Are there lakes in the area to target panfish. Not that I do not enjoy catching walleyes, but a hot panfish bite can be a lot of fun. Winter bluegills is probably my favorite type of ice fishing. That is where 2 DA GILLS comes from.

[dougger222]

After about half a dozen years talking about ice fishing Deveils Lake finally did it in April of 2005 and all I can do is think about going back!!!

May go when work is slow, we'll see...

[picksbigwagon]

How long does the ice stay driveable up on DL? I am trying to figure out if I could squeeze in a spring break trip up there or maybe a winter trip next winter....

[iffwalleyes]

Picksbigwagon it just all depends on the weather of course. You should still be able to get on and fish around the time of year you are mentioning but I wouldn't guaranty that you will be able to drive. You can probably get out with a wheeler though at this time of the year still.

[bass-o-matic]

When they say the perch fishing can be hit or miss, they really mean it! I've been up there on 2 trips and both were busts. Made for a long 3 days when you didn't catch a perch, and even a longer ride home after a disappointing outing. I can honestly say I think it's the first time I ever saw someone fall asleep and fall off their bucket out of boredom! Although, the 2 pound perch I saw at the fish cleaning house is enough of a memory that MIGHT get me to go back. I just hate always hearing "you should have been here last week, or last year was the good year."

[iffwalleyes]

It is true that perch fishing is tailing off on DL. However did you try fishing for eyes because they have taken over on this lake.

[I Da Man]

Quote:

---

I just hate always hearing "you should have been here last week

---

GUYS!!!!!

I don't get out much (of the catfish forum)...But...here's a little write up I did about this last Saturday on Devil's Lake. PS...what's a perch?

FLAG!!!!!

********************

Devil’s Lake~ It’s not just for Perch anymore! 1/7/06

When I was asked to go along with Dennis, Rick and Mr. Deitz to Devil’s Lake for a guided fishing trip with Jeff Dosch, the first thing I thought of was…well what Devil’s lake is known for… perch. I was surprised that this was going to be a pike trip. Heck, I didn’t even know there were pike in Devil’s Lake!

We met up with Jeff at 7 a.m. and we were off to the famous Devil’s Lake. Since we bought our North Dakota fishing licenses a head of time on –line http://gf.nd.gov/licenses/index.html , we didn’t waste anytime in the morning. With all the bad ice around the Mpls/St Paul Metro area we had great ice to drive on with very little snow. That was nice! Ice cleats sure helped on the bare ice though, I wish I would have brought BOTH of mine along!

Tip ups were the presentation of the day and by 8:30 we each had 3 tip ups out and were jigging with our allowed fourth rod. Jeff brought along the bait, which was a one pound package of frozen smelt. The smelt was attached to the line using a “quick strike rig”. The depth we were fishing in was amazing to me. There was a solid 12 inches or more of ice, then only 2 to 4 feet of water! Not much line out under the tip up because we wanted our smelt to be just under the ice. By 8:45 we had our first flag which turned out to be the first of a number of “misses” through out the day…but that’s fishing. A few minutes after nine, I saw more flags than I’ve seen since memorial day! Jeff said that it was a slow day. I was scratching my head wondering how a person could keep up if we would have four tip ups out per person and a GOOD day?

I lost count of the number of fish and it was impossible to keep count of the number of flags. In fact, I forgot to take pictures most of the time! We ended up keeping two dandies in the 4 - 5 pound class because their survival was questionable. All others were released to be caught another day by you. I’m guessing the average northern came in around 3 to 4 pounds with none smaller than 2.5 -3 lbs. They all were very nice looking fish with a slight pink tinge to the skin. This is apparently from the freshwater shrimp that’s so abundant in the lake.

I have to admit, Mr. Deitz missed more than his share of flags. That’s all part of fishing too…however he did come through when it counted. At the end of the day he brought up this dandy walleye . Good job Deitz!

If you get a chance to get a way for the weekend, check out Great American Inn & Suites www.greatamericaninn.com . All the accommodations a fisherman could want. Bar, Grill, indoor fish cleaning room, indoor pool, hot tub and more, for a very affordable rate. Randy the manager couldn’t have been more hospitable!

We drove straight through in 5.5 hours leaving on Friday, fishing the daylight hours on Saturday and taking our time coming home on Sunday. Another thought would be pick up the AMTRACK and leave the driving to them!

I have to tell you folks, (I got that line from Deitz) if you want to get way for a weekend with some great action with pike, look up Jeff Dosch www.doschguides.com and book a pike or even a perch or walleye outing. He will put you on ACTION!

Here’s to Good Weather, Good Fishing and Good Friends!

[Deitz Dittrich]

Well said I DA--- I have to admit I am not much of a tip up guy, but after this trip, I will be more of one. What a blast! Flags from sun up till after sun down! ALL DAY!

Jeff, thanks so much for the great time!

[Rick]

I get to a lot of great fishing destinations and this is definitely one of the must try-out destinations for anyone who wants to satisfy their ice fishing jones

[Papa Woodie]

Glad to have met you folks on Devils Lake!

- Casey

[Rick]

It was nice meeting you too Papa Woodie.

Wasn't it a blast getting on all those pike like that and topping it off with a fat walleye?

[Bob Horn]

I stayed at the Great American Inn about 4 years ago. It was clean and the having the bar connected made it easier for food and drink. I was there for a week but stayed 11 days. I didn`t get a lot of perch but the ones I did get were big. I caught more walleyes than anything. It was a blast.