Tips for open water basin trolling

[BigGameBalls]

Thanks for all those who helped me out in my planer board newbie thread. This weekend it's time to put the boards to use. I plan on pulling some spinners on the flats of Mille Lacs with them but the main reason I'm getting into boards is to pull cranks to get after the open water summer walleyes.

Mille Lacs is the primary lake I fish. I hear a lot about open water trolling. I look at a map and say "where the heck to I start"! Can someone help me out with tips on how you go about scouting for these fish? I understand the concept of driving around and looking for baitfish cloud and fish near by but how do you narrow it down?

Should i be searching areas inbetween 2 flats? Should I just be out in the middle of no where? Does wind direction or a specific depth play a factor?

[Rod Holder]

I would not approach fishing Mille Lacs exactly the same way as fishing open water, structureless fishing as is done on Erie and I can now say, after this year's NTC, that I have fished both. I would target my trolling passes on Mille Lacs related to either the gravel bars or the mud flats. Be prepared to catch lots of slot fish which will have to be released. My partner and I caught numerous slots pulling Flicker Shads either over the gravel bars there in late May or along the drop offs from gravel bars. The mud flats ought to be in full swing now too.

[Tim Ellis]

I open water troll Mille Lacs quite often and can tell you i would recommend pulling deep cranks such as Deep taildancers, Deep thundersticks and/or deep reef runners 140'-150' back over the deep basin south of 7 and 9 miles flats. Troll speed 2-2.3 mph and have fun!! We've been putting 40-50 fish a day in the boat using this technique with 1 to 2 over 28" every trip. Run with the boat on plane at 10-15 mph and when you mark bait balls with arches turn around and troll with the waves back over the marks. Right now the bait fish population is low so watch very close for any bait or arches and since the bait is low the eyes are hungry!!

[BigGameBalls]

Originally Posted by Tim Ellis

I open water troll Mille Lacs quite often and can tell you i would recommend pulling deep cranks such as Deep taildancers, Deep thundersticks and/or deep reef runners 140'-150' back over the deep basin south of 7 and 9 miles flats. Troll speed 2-2.3 mph and have fun!! We've been putting 40-50 fish a day in the boat using this technique with 1 to 2 over 28" every trip. Run with the boat on plane at 10-15 mph and when you mark bait balls with arches turn around and troll with the waves back over the marks. Right now the bait fish population is low so watch very close for any bait or arches and since the bait is low the eyes are hungry!!

Ever try the hot n tot's? I've got quite a few of them and with fireline they will get down in the 25'-30' range.

I've also got some bigger deep walley divers and some deep husky jerks too.

[Tim Ellis]

I have never tried Hot-n-tots however once the peak water temp is reached mid July to mid August I bet they would do well. Besides the deep cranks I already mentioned I have had good luck with deep husky jerks, shad raps and even flicker shads let out 150' (15' down).

[BCLII]

Mille Lacs is big! First thing to do is figure out where you want to fish, North end sand, the mud flats, or the southern gravel bars. Pick one area (nothing less then 30 fow.and stay off any of these by at least 1/2 mile. Plot out 1-2 mile runs with runs being 1 mile apart. Troll with the wind. look for balls of bait in the water column with at least 4-5 arches, this is where good electronics come into play(side scan). mark and troll over these areas, they will produce. Natural colors on the bright days(gold,silver;blues,black) and bright colors on the cloudy days(fire tiger, chartreuse,pinks,reds...) Tim is right on, you will catch 40-50 fish a day. Last Thursday alone, we caught and released 61 fish.
Good luck and have fun!

[BigGameBalls]

As a more "traditional" walleye fisherman presenting my bait no where near the bottom is new to me. Is there a general rule of thumb where I want my baits as a starting point and is there "too high"? I'd like to put together a gameplan of lures to try before I even get out on the water. I do have a trollers bible and line counters. I'll be running 3 lines. 2 on boards and one straight out the back of the boat.

[Rapscallion]

When trolling open water (Erie) I try to target my baits about 5' above the marks I'm showing. It can be even more than that in clear water and the fish will rise to the occasion.

[Burr]

Originally Posted by BigGameBalls

As a more "traditional" walleye fisherman presenting my bait no where near the bottom is new to me. Is there a general rule of thumb where I want my baits as a starting point and is there "too high"? I'd like to put together a gameplan of lures to try before I even get out on the water. I do have a trollers bible and line counters. I'll be running 3 lines. 2 on boards and one straight out the back of the boat.

An approach I have used is to divide the water column into 4 quadrants, and put one bait in each quadrant. As the day, and the catching progresses - start zeroing in on the active quadrant. Sometimes leaving one line out varying in each of the other 3 quadrants that are not the current target.

That being said - that approach works better in states that allow more than one line per person. You're planning 3, so your already a line short!

I'll say this - don't think it's a waste of time to fish the top 10 fow over 30-40 depths. People don't catch fish there because they don't fish there, and electronics is not going to mark much in the top 10 feet. However, it may surprise you. It has me....

Mille Lacs is odd. Typically I find a body of water is either long skinny baits (smelt forage base), or short fat baits (Shad type). On Mille Lacs, it all works, just not at the same time...

[Tim Ellis]

Originally Posted by Burr

An approach I have used is to divide the water column into 4 quadrants, and put one bait in each quadrant. As the day, and the catching progresses - start zeroing in on the active quadrant. Sometimes leaving one line out varying in each of the other 3 quadrants that are not the current target.

That being said - that approach works better in states that allow more than one line per person. You're planning 3, so your already a line short!

I'll say this - don't think it's a waste of time to fish the top 10 fow over 30-40 depths. People don't catch fish there because they don't fish there, and electronics is not going to mark much in the top 10 feet. However, it may surprise you. It has me....

Mille Lacs is odd. Typically I find a body of water is either long skinny baits (smelt forage base), or short fat baits (Shad type). On Mille Lacs, it all works, just not at the same time...

I couldn't agree more on the top 10' of the water column as i always run at least one line high within 10' of the surface on the outside boards and it often catches fish and bigger fish also.