Lake of the Woods Tourism Fishing Report 04/23/24

On the south side… The large basin, also known as Big Traverse Bay, is ice-free. Zippel Bay and Four Mile Bay are also ice-free. Everything is lined up nicely for the MN Fishing Opener on May 11.

With walleye/sauger season currently closed, most anglers are focusing on sturgeon and pike. Some sturgeon fishermen fish at the mouth of the Rainy River, but most sturgeon are fished in Four Mile Bay or the Rainy River. Therefore, pike is currently the target species on the south coast and in several bays.

Pike fishing is a unique opportunity this time of year, as LOW is border water with Canada, the pike season is open all year round. The limit is 3 pike per day, one of which may be over 40 inches. All fish 30 – 40 inches should be released.

Back bays hold pike as they go through the different stages of spawning. Dead bait under a bobber, spinners, spoons and shallow diving crankbaits are all viable options.

Four Mile Bay, Bostic Bay and Zippel Bay are all small bodies of water and boats of various sizes work well.

On the Rainy River… Great news this week as we learned that the sturgeon will not be placed on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s endangered species list.

The organization had to make a decision by June 30 and including the sturgeon on the list could have put an end to the sturgeon fishery. Fortunately, after looking at the many success stories across the country, including LOW and the Rainy River, sturgeon fishing and successful sturgeon management continues.

A good week of sturgeon fishing on the Rainy River. According to some sturgeon enthusiasts, the fishing will get even better as water temperatures rise.

Four Mile Bay at the mouth of the Rainy River near the Wheeler’s Point Boat Ramp is still producing good numbers of fish, as are several holes along the 42 miles of navigable Rainy River from the mouth to Birchdale.

The sturgeon season runs until May 15 and resumes on July 1.

October 1 – April 23, catch and release
April 24 – May 7, harvest season
May 8 – May 15, catch and release
May 16 – June 30, sturgeon fishing closed
July 1 – September 30, harvest season

If you are fishing during the sturgeon harvest season and wish to keep a sturgeon, you must purchase a sturgeon tag for $5 prior to fishing. One sturgeon per calendar year (45 – 50″ inclusive, or over 75″). Most sturgeon fishermen are a blob of caterpillars or a combination of caterpillars and frozen emerald shiners on a sturgeon rig, which is an 18″ leader with a 4 /0 circle hook paired with a roller sinker. Local bait shops have all the tackle and bait.

Up in the NW corner… A few spots of rotten ice, but generally most of the corner boasts open water. These parts look ahead to the MN Fishing Opener. Based on the late ice fishing success, it should be a good one.

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