morson sabaskong

[bubs]

heading up on fri 17. what is the water temps and how is the algea bloom this year?

[Obabikon]

The algea bloom has really taken off in the past 3-4 days. It stinks, and is pretty slimy. It's not the worst it's been, but it's never a great great thing!

[bubs]

thanks.

[Wild Thing]

Come on folks, where are those Morson reports?I'm heading up Thursday for several days.

Have the walleyes left the reefs yet? I worried that may be the case now as the water temps start their long, slow cool down. Looks like a mega cold front this week with highs only in the 60's and lows in the 40's forecast.

Lets see those reports!!!

[marknamy]

Wild Thing,

I'd love to help but haven't been up for two weeks. At that time we caught fish on the reefs west of Morson. My dad got back last night and they caught fish in Miles Bay on reefs and points.

I'm headed up on the 24th for a week's vacation. Hoping to hear some good reports prior to leaving.

[Wild Thing]

Thanks marknamy, it's been 15 days since I've been up there. They were smokin' on the reefs then -- but Aguust is usually my toughest month, never quite sure where they go to... until December when they get back to the reefs!

I hope to sneak some new bass spots this weekend by watching the tournamnet guys in my spottig scope!!!

[bubs]

hey wild thing how long does it take you from duluth to morson.

[Obabikon]

A boat of guests caught 20+ slab crappie on a beach in Miles Bay today. Walleyes are on the humps, northerns have shut down, Muskies are out there lurking like they always do! Anyhow, the fishing is good, even with the poor water clarity. However, this cold front has a tendancy to shut them down. CAN WE PLEASE GET A STABLE WEATHER PATTERN!!!!!

[LOW Lover]

I talked to my son who is fishing about 12 miles from Morson this AM and he said the muskie fishing is really slow, but they are catching all the walleyes they want.

LOW

[jda53]

You already answered my question about muskies being slow- are they trolling, or casting? Walleyes all they want?Trolling, live bait, jigging, any depth recommendations? We are up there for 4 days, leaving this Fri. Just wondering where to start. Any idea if the smallmouth are hitting? Thanks, sorry so many questions just getting anxious and exicted. Burned out at work and really looking forward to a few days on the water with some friends.

[Wild Thing]

Bubs

It takes me four hours of driving. If I really haul donkey and the kids don't need to pee too often, the trip total usually ranges from 4:15 to 4:30 through the Falls. If I suspect a bridge backup I'll go through Deer River-Baudette and that's usually 4:30 or a little more....

Thanks for the reports, dudes!

[LOW Lover]

My son left me a message this afternoon and they finally got a musky to play. He caught 41 incher, not sure on the bait. If I was going to be up there, I would use some big X-Raps for muskies. With that said, with the weather change who knows what is going to trigger the rascals to play.

I am sure the boys are jigging on reefs for walleyes.

Hope this helps!!

Low

[bubs]

thanks wild thing. a buddy has to come over from two harbors on sat. we use taildancers when we fish for walleyes and do good on them in aug. find big clumps of fish on the finder and troll around and through it

[Wild Thing]

Uffda.

I'm home with my tail between my legs. Had the worst fishing in years up there, maybe ever. After a summer full of great days and only a couple slow days, maybe we were due.

Two of us fished four hours friday and 3 hours saturday morning and caught a total of -- get this -- 5 keepers. Tried crawlers and minnows. Deep and shallow.

And this is just 16 days after some of the best reef fishing ever. What gives? Probably the massive cold front and the seasonal movement of walleyes off the humps. But I really can't recall it ever being that bad.

Friday was slow and saturday was just plain dead.

They were not on the reefs at all. Not even perch or rock bass! It's as if something sucked all the fish out of the lake! We caught a bunch of small (6-9-inch) saugers on the reefs Friday and I knew something was afoul. Those fish usually are afraid to come up that far.

A few days of warm, stable weather may put them back on the reefs. But if I was fishing again I'd be looking toward other spots, maybe weeds or rocky shore or current.

Or maybe I just don't adapt well. I dunno.

The weather was great, 72, sunny and low winds, so we made a 56-mile boat trip to Nestor and back. Saw two different bears swimming between islands, one with two cubs! Fun for the kids and the grandparents on board.

Fed up with fishing so I spent Sunday re-rigging decoy lines. Only 21 days until duck season!!!!!! Then the fish won't have me to kick around until December....

That's my report. Sorry to anyone heading up!

[marknamy]

Not a good report at all. Headed up on Friday for 11 days. I guess I'll have to try every location and tactic. That's why they call it fishing and not catching.

I'll post a report when I get back.

[rockpt]

We were up from Aug. 10-19. Nobody in camp was catching walleye on the reefs. A few days the action was pretty good on the rocky shoreline breaks and areas with current using bottom bouncers and crawler harnesses but high winds made boat control a challenge. Jigs and minnows were very slow the whole week.

Crappie were already biting in Miles Bay. One group brought in a cooler of slabs and we caught several incidental crappie bottom bouncing for walleye.

Muskies were slow for the camp too but we did manage a fat 40". She came in fast after a Suick and chased the figure 8 but wouldn't bite. Lazily followed a Cowgirl a couple minutes later. Then my wife caught her a minute later on a black and silver Mini Buchertail...go figure. Miles Bay is pretty thick with algae but water south of Boomstick and west of Rubber was pretty clean.

We ran all over the lake from Miles Bay to south of Dawson to NW of McPherson. Boat ran like a champ until we were powering up from the last spot on the last day of the trip and throttle cable broke. Timing couldn't have been better.

The white dog Stella set a new record falling out of the boat twice in one trip. Once helping to land a walleye in windy water and again forgetting where the side of the boat was while following my Suick on the backcast.

Back up Oct. 5-14 for the fall trip.

[Duhrapala]

Heading to Morson/Miles Bay on Sept. 10 for a week. Have only been there once before. Any helpfull tips for Musky and Walleye would be appreciated by this rookie.

[rockpt]

Check the reports here the week before you go. Walleye should be in fall pattern of neckdown areas with current. Jig and minnow or crawler. They'll school up in the flats in front of the neckdowns or where creeks enter the lake, like in NE Miles Bay near Thompson Creek.

Try saddles, rock points and open water reefs for muskie. Especially try SE tips of islands. If your serious about muskie, read Pearson's Muskies on the Shield before you go. Black and silver bucktail is a great muskie lure for Sabaskong.

Where you staying?

[Duhrapala]

I appreciate the info. We are staying on a houseboat rental, probably near Comegan Island. Will topwaters work on muskie this time of year?

[rockpt]

I would think topwaters would still work. Too early for the serious fall trolling.

Watch your map and try not to take out a lower unit or beach your boat. Every trip we hear radio chatter between houseboats and Terry about hitting rocks, beaching a houseboat and needing to get towed back into the water, etc. A few weeks ago there was a guy who rented a houseboat out of Morson and he kept Terry and Loren busy all week. Last morning of his trip he had to call Terry to unbeach his boat and an hour later he called back and had hit a rock just south of Comegan. I'm not one to revel in other's misery, but it got to be a little amusing.

Good luck and post a report when you return.

[Wild Thing]

Small fish in current and weeds.

Well it wasn't great but a little better than the last trip two weeks ago. Fished for about 4 hours on Friday and caught a few walleyes in wind-blown current with Benelli Dude and his dad and four kids. Mostly small fish on jigs and Gulp and jigs and minnows. Hit and miss but enough for a meal. Threw back a few really small fish.

Didn't fish Saturday with howling se wind and too many onshore chores. Did manage to miss on 4 big honkers that came in to a bay to the call. Miss-timed my pop-up and shoot routine! Uffda... need more practice on the clay pigeons.

Big NW wind sunday and I caught a few where huge rollers were coming between two islands -- just nosed into the current with the bow mount and caught them on the edge of the calm water. Small fish on jig and Powerbait twister tail.

On Sunday night it calmed down and B-dude's dad and I caught several fish in 6 feet of water in and near the weeds! They had caught a lot of nice ones that way on Saturday.

Decent fish but nothing huge... first time I've ever seen walleyes caught right in the phragmities!

Definitely a fall pattern now for anyone going up.

Heading back up on Friday night for two last days of fishing, then it's feather flying time starting Monday for the rest of Fall!

[Tman2]

Wild Thing,

Do you have a cabin up there or stay at a resort? My buddy has a cabin just west of Blueberry that we'll be at. He'll be hunting and I'll be fishing.

Tman