Brainerd Guide
Fishing Reports

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 10-30-19
The water temperatures have fallen, and so have the walleyes. Most schools were in 45 to 50 feet of water this last week. The walleye bite has been fair. The crappie action remains good. Key locations are deepwater basin areas with silt bottoms. The crappies have been feeding on blood worms in these locations. Think of spots where first ice crappie action is historically good, these are the best locations at the present time. The grouse action has been fair. Their numbers are slightly down from last year. The woodcock migration has been good. There are plenty of birds in the woods at the moment. The dogs have been working well. Our newest pup, Bella, is ahead of the curve. It will be interesting to see how she develops. At only 18 weeks, she already has had multiple solo points on wild birds, retrieved several birds to hand, and started honoring the older dogs. We will be in the woods daily now. The cold temperatures have really cut down on the wood tick numbers. Stay in touch. Be safe in the woods.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 10-20-19
The open water fishing season is starting to wind down. The Minnesota deer hunting season is just around the corner. We still have a few trips on the book but I can see the end of our 2019 fishing season coming to a close. The crappie bite has been excellent on multiple lakes throughout the area. Key locations remain the deeper water basins. Jigging raps have been excellent baits in these situations. The leaves have started to drop. The dogs are ready to start hunting grouse again. We have several groups scheduled in the weeks to come. We were out grouse hunting last week right after the cold snap. We had 4 grouse and 12 woodcock points in two hours of hunting. It was exceptional!. The next day the temps warmed to 60 degrees and the woodticks were back out in force. We quit hunting after an hour. The dogs were literally covered in ticks. We will hit the woods again once we get a good freeze. We will keep you posted. Thanks again for such a great year.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 10-05-19
The walleyes have dropped into deeper water. Structures that drop quickly into main lake basin areas are prime locations. Key water depths are 30 to 45 feet. The high water conditions have made finding live bait almost impossible at local bait shops. Jigging spoons and raps have been good substitutes. The larger northern pike have moved shallow. Many nice sized pike were caught on Gull Lake over the past two weeks. The crappie bite is coming on strong. Hungry schools of these tasty panfish have dropped into the deeper water. Key locations are 30 to 40 feet. Search out basin areas. These schools show up well on the depth finder. The leaves have started to turn. We should be at prime fall colors in the next week or so. Thanks for the good year. See you soon.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 09-10-19
Cooler, more fall-like, weather conditions have arrived in the Brainerd Lakes Area. There is no doubt that summer is over and September is here. The walleye action on Gull Lake has been good. The fish have dropped off the weed lines and set up shop in 18 to 25 feet of water. The morning walleye bite has been better than the afternoons. There is still a lot of excess bait in the water due to this summer's cooler than normal water temperatures. The ciscos should start spawning soon. This will cause some of the walleye schools to drop even deeper. But I would expect most of the current walleye schools to stay where they are until their food supply gets chewed down a little more. The bass are holding just off the weeds on most lakes. What looks to be a nice school of walleye, hanging on the edge of the weeds, on the deep finder have mostly been bass. We have caught some real monsters by accident this last week. The big northern pike are back in the weeds. The crappies have started to drop on most lakes. September is such a fun month. There is literally so much to do. The grouse season will be opening soon. My two older dogs, Ava & Greta, are ready to go. My newest addition, Bella, is showing amazing promise but we won't be hunting her until later this fall. See you next week.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 08-28-19
The best walleye bite in the area has been on Gull Lake, The walleye bite on Whitefish and North Long has been respectable, but it has been spotty depending on the day. The surface water temperatures have dropped below 75 degrees on most of the big lakes. I even saw some maples changing color. Sure signs that September is just around the corner. The best walleye bait continues to be chub minnows. Rigging has been outproducing other techniques at the current time. 18 to 20 feet seems to be the magic water depth for walleyes but I have caught them as deep as 24 earlier this week. I expect the walleye to drop even further in the weeks to come, another sign of the current season. The smallmouth bass fishing continues to provide plenty of action with some really big fish showing up on every trip. The crappies have started to slide into deeper water. Happy Labor Day everyone. Thanks for making this summer one for the record books. We added two fishing guides to the chart this summer. Looking back, we should have tried to add a third. Michelle hates turning away clients but she has always been more interested in providing quality fishing experiences than just putting people into boats. Sorry if we could not keep up with demand, Thanks for your patience. We will see you on the water.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 08-16-19
The fishing has been good in the Brainerd Lakes. Whitefish and Gull Lake have been the best walleye lakes this last week. Minnows have been outproducing other baits at the current time. The best water depths on WF have been 14 to 16 feet, while the walleyes on Gull are relating to 18 to 20 feet, Windblown structures have been outproducing all other structures, especially on Gull. It seems to take a 10+ mph wind to get them going there. We have had many mornings this last week with double-digit catches on both lakes. The larger northern pike have dropped deeper on most lakes. Key water depths have been 20+ feet. A big creek chub is a pretty effective bait for enticing these toothy beasts. The smallmouth action has been exceptional. We have had several 40+ fish mornings on the big pond this last week. Key locations have been on the rocks in 9 to 12 feet of water. The summer is flying by. It will be fall before we know it. Give Michelle a call if you have any questions. We will see you soon.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 08-06-19
The walleyes have started to drop out of the weeds and they are biting! Gull, Edwards, and the Whitefish Chain have all given up plenty of eyes this last week. Key locations are just outside the weed edge in 14 to 19 foot of water, depending on the lake. The best bait option has been a minnow. Jigging and rigging techniques are both working well. Don't fish memories. Actively search for schools of walleye before stopping to fish. Key locations usually have a little wave action pushing into them. The walleye schools can be easily seen on a depth finder right now. Don't stop and fish single fish targets. These are usually pike. Push on until you start seeing multiple fish targets overlapping each other. That's the fun thing about walleyes this time of year. You don't find a few, you find a herd. The walleye bite should only continue to improve as more and more schools continue to fall out of the weed line. It's shaping up to be a great fall. Give Michelle a call if you are thinking of booking a trip. Thanks again the record year!
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 07-27-19
The water has heated up and so has the fishing in the Brainerd Lakes Area. The larger pike have dropped out of the weeds and have started to relate to deeper water. They have been fun to catch this last week. Key locations have been deep water points which taper into the main lake basin. The bass have been aggressive too. We have had multiple 50+ fish outings this last week. The walleye action has been fair to good, all depending on the day. Overcast days with a little wind have produced the most fish. Crawlers and minnows have been the best baits. I would expect the walleyes to start falling out of the weeds within the next week or two. They always seem to start dropping once the pike moved to the deeper water. What a summer it has been. It has just flown by. Thanks everyone.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 07-20-19
The bass have heated up in the Brainerd Lakes Area. We have had numerous 40+ fish mornings this last week. Key locations are the deep weed edge where the cabbage meets the sand grass. The bass are starting to school in many of these locations. Fish these deeper edges, paying attention to where fish are caught. It is not uncommon to catch 5 to 10 bass from a single location. The larger sunfish are showing up in the deeper water. Key locations are 10 to 15 feet. The larger northern pike have yet to shown up in the deeper water. The thermocline is much shallower than previous years. We had several days of good walleye fishing this past week, but the conditions had to be prefect to get the fish to go. The summer is flying by. It will be August before we know it. Give Michelle a call if you are thing of going fishing, We will see you on the water.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 07-12-19
The bass have heated up in the Brainerd Lakes Area. We have had numerous 40+ fish mornings this last week. Key locations are the deep weed edge where the cabbage meets the sand grass. The bass are starting to school in many of these locations. Fish these deeper edges, paying attention to where fish are caught. It is not uncommon to catch 5 to 10 bass from a single location. The larger sunfish are showing up in the deeper water. Key locations are 10 to 15 feet. The larger northern pike have yet to shown up in the deeper water. The thermocline is much shallower than previous years. We had several days of good walleye fishing this past week, but the conditions had to be prefect to get the fish to go. The summer is flying by. It will be August before we know it. Give Michelle a call if you are thing of going fishing, We will see you on the water.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 07-02-19
The walleye action was good this last week. North Long, Edwards, and Gull Lakes were all producing. The water temperature is finally getting close to normal. It still might take a few weeks to get the larger lakes heated up but the smaller ones are close to normal. The summer has been a blur this year. I can hardly believe it. Happy Fourth of July. The fishing will only continue to improve in the weeks ahead. See you soon.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 06-21-19
The walleye action has heated up in the Brainerd Lakes Area. Gull, Edwards, North Long, Round Lake, and the Whitefish Chain have all been producing walleyes. Key locations have been wind blown structures in 8 to 18 feet of water. The exact water depth depends on the clarity of the lake.and the weed growth present. While the cabbage beds are starting to develop, they are way behind schedule when compared to typical years. Gull has the least amount of weeds that I have seen in years. The walleyes have been the most active on days when strong winds and overcast skies are present. Leeches and minnows have been effective baits. The bass are still shallow. The majority of the bass are still relating to the backside of the weed edge. The crappie are roaming the outer edges of the cabbage weeds. Some larger pike are starting show up daily. The weather has final started to cooperate. Next week's forecast is shaping up to be one of the nicest weeks we have experienced so far. Life is Good!. See you next week.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 06-12-19
Mille Lacs continues to kick out walleyes at an astonishing rate. The bulk of the fish have moved deeper in recent days and are relating to 12 to 18 feet of water. The shiner bite is starting to slow. A big ribbon leech is the ticket now. The walleye action in the Brainerd Lakes Area was fair this last week. We could really use some more heat. The crappie have finished spawning on most lakes. The deep water cabbage is the prime location for finding crappie at the current time. The largemouth bass are still shallow. Key water depths have been 4 to 6 feet. Slower retrieves have been outproducing all other techniques. The bass action will only continue to improve as the water temperatures warm. Jig/worm combos have provided the most action in recent days. The smallmouth are still spawning in the shallows. Clients have landed some truly giants in the last few days. We are booking up fast for the Fourth of July weekend. We still have a half a dozen slots left open but they are filling fast. Thanks for all the calls. It's been a wonderful season so far. Key posted. We will have a new report and a ton of new pictures in the week to come.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 06-07-19
Fishing continues to improve with the recent warmer weather. The walleyes have fallen out of the extreme shallows and have set up shop in 7 to 12 feet of water. The night-trolling bite on Gull Lake was excellent this last week. The walleye bite on Mille Lacs was a bit slower this past week due to the big bug hatch. The smallmouth bass are currently spawning on the big pond. Key locations are rubble areas in 2 to 4 feet of water. The crappie are just about finished spawning on most area lakes. The majority of the crappie have fallen out of the pencil reeds and are relating to the first weed edge outside the shallows. The warmer water has kicked the bass into another gear. The weatherman is calling for a week of beautiful weather. It is amazing how quickly the memories of winter fade when the sun is shining and the temperatures are in the eighties. Have a good week. Get the yard chores done. The fishing will only keep getting better now that summer has returned to the Brainerd Lakes Area.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 05-31-19
Warmer temperatures have finally arrived in the Brainerd Lakes Area. The bass, crappie, and sunfish are all in the shallows. Key panfish locations are sandy bottom patches near pencil reeds. The best water depths have been 3 to 6 feet. The majority of the bass are located on the shallow backside edge of the weeds. Good lure choices for bass have been jig/worm combos. The best colors have been black, blue-fleck, and crawdad. Light jig-heads, 1/16 to 1/8 oz, with 3x strong hooks work best in these situations. They allow the lure to glide through the shallower water with minimal snags. The local walleye action has been fair. The exception has been at night. There has been a good night-trolling bite on Gull Lake this past week. The only problem is it doesn't start until several hours after sunset. The "big pond" continues to kick out fish from the sand in 9 to 12 feet of water. The mud also produced some fish this week. The mud bite should only get better as the shiner spawn ends and the walleye start moving out from the shore. Smallmouth bass have started to spawn. They should be on their beds through next week. Thanks for all the calls. It's been our busiest season yet. Give Michelle a call if you are thinking about going fishing. She will get you on the book. Life is good! The fishing will only get better now that the water is warming up.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 05-24-19
Colder water temperatures have pushed crappies into deeper water. They are currently holding out from the shallows on the first deepwater break. Key spots have been patches of cabbage weeds. Fan-cast likely spots while moving slowly with an electric trolling motor. Don't drop the anchor until after the first crappie is caught. Then cast back to the same general area to pinpoint the school. It's amazing how many crappies can hold in a 10-foot circle during cold front conditions. I had a similar experience several days ago. We fished almost three hours without a bite, only to catch 50+ crappie once we found our first fish. Cold fronts require you to cover large sections of water to find condensed schools of fish. Mille Lacs continues to produce walleye. The sand has to be the best option. Hordes of hungry walleye are taking advantage of spawning shiners in these locations. Snap-jigging a shiner minnow continues to be the most effective presentation. Let's hope the weather starts to straighten out. All we need is some heat. The bass season opens this Saturday and most of them haven't even started spawning yet. Happy Memorial Day Weekend. Please bring some warmer weather when you head north this weekend. Keep posted. We will see you next week.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 05-17-19
We are definitely behind schedule this spring in the Brainerd Lakes Area. The majority of lakes I've been on this last week, about a dozen, had water temperatures in the upper forties to lower fifties. We need some heat around here. The walleye bite has been fair to poor this last week. The one exception has been Mille Lacs. There has been a good bite on the "big pond" in 8 to 10 feet of water. Windblown shorelines with slow tapering sandy bottoms have been the best locations. The best presentation has been snap jigging a shiner minnow on a 1/8 oz jig. The shiners minnows have finally started to run. Most local bait shops now have a good supply. The bass spawn is way behind schedule. I have seen very few on beds so far. The sunfish are just started to move into the shallows, I have yet to see any sunfish on beds. The crappies are relating to the first break outside spawning locations. Fish fast until you find the first one and then anchor. The good news is the weatherman is calling for warmer weather in the week to come. It is nice to see soft water again. See you next week.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 05-10-19
The weather has been unseasonably cold for the last few days in the Brainerd Lakes Area. (We received about an inch of snow last night.) The shallows are empty right now. The colder temperatures have pushed the crappies into deeper water. They are relating to stands of cabbage weeds on the first deepwater break. The minnows have left the shallows too, so the chances of having spot tail shiners available this weekend are poor. The majority of walleyes are going to be deep. The exception will be walleye still spawning in current areas. The bulk of the walleye forage, easily seen on the depth finder, is in 26 to 32 feet of water. The good news is the weather looks good for this weekend. Keep posted. We will see you on the water.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 05-24-19
The water temperatures have heated up and so has the crappie bite in the Brainerd Lakes. Key locations have been shallow, muddy, backwater areas with plenty of sunshine present. Small jigs, tipped with crappie minnows or puddle jumpers, continue to be the bait of choice. The suckers have finally started to run in the creeks and rivers, a sure sign the walleye spawn if complete. There is no doubt about it. We are behind schedule this spring in the Brainerd Lakes Area. I talked to several bait dealers this week. All predict a shortage of spot-tail shiners opening weekend of the Minnesota walleye season, May 11th. The cooler than normal water conditions have delayed this year's shiner spawn. Keep posted. I will have more information in the days to come.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 04-29-19
This weekend's weather was a bit cooler than the last few days. It was just another reminder of how quickly the weather can in change in the Brainerd Lakes Area. The good news is 95% of the lakes are free of ice. All of the ice will all be gone well before the May 11th Minnesota walleye fishing opener. The good news is the crappies have been biting. Key locations have been shallow, backwater area with muddy bottoms. These locations warm quickly when the sun has a chance to heat the bottom. Good presentations have been small 1/16th oz jigs, tipped with either crappie minnows or puddle jumpers, and then suspended below a casting bubble. Slower retrieves work best this time of year. The water is cooler than normal and fish metabolism is still low. The crappies are willing to eat. They just don't want to chase right now. The long term forecast is looking good. Things should only get better as things continue to warm. Keep posted. I will be posting more pictures next week.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 04-22-19
Spring is finally here and it is such a good feeling. The smaller ponds are alive with the chorus of singing birds and frogs. I haven't seen any mosquitos yet, but rest assured, they will be arriving soon. Most of the smaller lakes are completely ice-free. Larger lakes like; Round, Hubert, Edwards, and Merrifield Bay were still covered with ice. But the ice was black and slushy looking, so it won't be around long. Gull Lake was 70% open on the upper end. There was even someone out crappie fishing on Bar Harbor's docks. All of the docks are in at the public landing by Zorbaz. There was even one trailer in the parking lot. I guess it is time to get serious. I just starting putting the line on a bunch of new reels last night. I love this time of year. I always kid my wife about it. Everyone else gets their presents at Christmas. Fishing guides get theirs in Spring. The UPS truck has stopped by several times already this week. I am sure there will be a few more stops before its all over. Little Grete, our youngest GSP, will be down at Rice Creek with me this coming Saturday, Stop in at the main booth and say Hi.Keep posted. I will update things in about a week.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 04-16-19
The sun has returned to the Brainerd Lakes Area and so has more seasonable springlike temperatures. It is 65 degrees outside and Life is GOOD!. The power of the sun is amazing. We had 6 to 8 inches of snow in the yard yesterday and now it is just about gone. The ice is pulling away from the shores on Gull Lake and the ice on 371 Bay of North Long is looking black. The current forecast is calling for an extended period of high's in the '50-'60s with lows well about freezing. These are the perfect conditions for getting rid of ice. Hopefully, these conditions will hope until the end of the month so we can be ice-free by May. Keep posted. I will update with some more pictures later in the week. Our last chukar hunt of the season is just around the corner. It has been a good, but brief season this year. The dogs are looking good. Stop down to the Reed's Gun Fair at Rice Creek Preserve in Little Falls next week if you are looking for something to do. The Game Fair starts on Friday, April 26th and runs through Sunday the 28th. I will be at the main booth on Saturday. I will post some more pictures soon.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 04-11-19
This last round of snow has really put a damper on any thoughts of spring in the Brainerd Lakes Area. The ice was just starting to turn dark and pull away from the shores on multiple lakes before we got dumped on by this last storm. I think we have received about 9 inches of the heavy, wet, ugly, stuff at my house with another few inches still to come. It will be several days before it has a chance to melt. Things are getting serious now. North Long Lake had about 20 inches of ice this last weekend. All this snow hasn't helped matters. Any way you look at it, we still have about 3 to 4 weeks before we open water on the big lakes. With opening day of walleye fishing just 30 days away, I'm beginning to think we might still have ice on the larger lakes when the opener of fishing season starts. I wish I had better news to share but I don't. Ice conditions will be marginal from this point on for the rest of the year. That being said, we won't be giving any more ice fishing recommendations for the rest of the season. The only bright spot has been chukar hunting. Ava and Greta are really developing into a nice brace of pointers. Too bad the snow had to come. We had a hunt scheduled for this weekend but then cancelled because of the snow. Next weekend will be our final hunt of the season. Stop in at Rice Creek in Little Falls and see us. See you next week.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 04-01-19
I guess I spoke just a little too soon, I finally thought winter was over and then we get snow flurries last night. The good news is most of the snow is gone with the exception of a few banks in the woods. The ice on the smaller ponds has started to turn black while the ice on larger lakes is still white. The crappies have been biting right at sundown on several local lakes. Key locations are just outside the weed edges in 9 to 14 feet of water. The panfish bite has been good too. The sunfish have been active throughout the day. Key locations are pockets inside of healthy weeds. The forecast is calling for cooler than normal temperatures for the remainder of the week. It looks like a bad April Fools Joke if you ask me. I was hoping we would see darker ice on the big lakes by now but it just hasn't happened. The only bright spot has been Chukar hunting. We've had several groups out this spring. The cooler than normal temperatures have kept the fields frozen, which has kept the mud down. The dogs haven't missed a beat since winter. We had dozens of beautiful points over the weekend with only one bumped bird. We have several more hunts planned over the next three weeks. Give us a call if interested. See you next week.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 03-25-19
Old Man Winter has finally loosened its grip on the Brainerd Lakes Area. We still have 4 to 12 inches of snow, even more in the woods, but the first signs of spring are definitely here. It's sure nice to see some patches of the earth again. The local lakes are almost free of snow but still have 3 to 4 feet of ice. The good news is the weeds in the lakes are getting sunlight and producing oxygen again. There have been a few scattered reports of winter-kill on smaller ponds and slews this season. That being said, the rest of the lakes are in good condition. The panfish are in the shallows. Key locations are in 6 to 9 feet of water near healthy weed beds. Small teardrop jigs tipped with waxworms are effective baits right now. The local forecast is calling for daytime highs in the 50's over the next few days. This should really get things moving. The key to spring thaw is nighttime temperatures. Lows above freezing keep the water running. I hope it is earlier but my ice-out prediction this year is April 20th. Our first chukar hunt of the season was postponed last weekend. There was just too much water in the fields. We will try again this coming Saturday. I have a group of four going out in the morning. The dogs are ready. The weather looks great. I will post some pictures next week. Looking for an adventure? Reeds Sporting Goods is having their annual Rice Creek Gun Fair from April 26 through April 28 at Rice Creek Hunting Preserve in Little Falls. MN. Every major gun manufacturer will be present. There were over a hundred booths last year. Prices are unbelievable, there are no taxes, and you have the opportunity to shoot every gun before you buy. Stop in and say Hi. I will be in the main both with one of my dogs on Saturday and Sunday.
JOHN

Brainerd, Minnesota
Fishing Report: 03-17-19
Happy Saint Patrick's Day. With a little luck, we might see some open water around here in the next 4 to 5 weeks. Most area lakes still have 4 feet of ice with about 18-24 inches of snow coverage. Last week's rain helped a bunch but we still could use some warmer weather. The lakes are pretty sloppy right now. Many have several inches of water standing on top of the ice right under the snow. I haven't been ice fishing in weeks. I just got back from Islamarado, FL this last weekend. I must be getting older. 80 degrees and sunshine sounded a whole lot better than snow. Fishing in Florida was good. We went out for six days. We caught kingfish, tuna, sailfish, tarpon, and a host of other species. It felt good to fish soft water again. This spring is gearing up fast. The dogs are looking good. We have several chukar hunts booked in the weeks to come. Ava and Greta are really working well as a team. Both dogs will honor each other points now. The guide chart looks good. We still have a bunch of open dates left but there are already forty some trips on the book. Everything is pointing to another busy, busy summer. I guess I better go. See you next week. Enjoy the warmer weather.
JOHN