Early ice Walleyes on Minnetonka

I’m going to be taking some Veterans out ice fishing when the ice is thick enough on Lake Minnetonka. I’m hoping to be out the last week of December or the first week of January. These types of trips are more about camaraderie and fellowship but it would make a big difference if I can put them on Walleyes. Lake Minnetonka has proved very difficult (at least for me). Any tips or advice on this topic would be greatly appreciated. If anyone wants to help and remain private here is my email.

[email protected]

Thank You!

I’d pick another lake where you’ll have better luck. Clear water gets tough in day conditions.

I fished the east side pretty good early last winter for a few weeks, and caught some eyes but far and few in between and typical walleye stuff. Rocks, sunrise/sunset, etc.

Good luck.

Thanks, I picked Minnetonka because it’s easy for everyone to get to. Might pick a different lake but I might just stick with it if they don’t want to drive very far.

Thanks!

Not very much of a day bite at all in the winter. Every once in a while, but if you are out from 2:00 pm until after dark, you have a chance, my best luck is overnight.

Dusty Gesinger wrote:

Not very much of a day bite at all in the winter. Every once in a while, but if you are out from 2:00 pm until after dark, you have a chance, my best luck is overnight.

Yes Tonka is notorious for eyes only after dark. Plain hook & minnow….no secret here, those fish spook easily.

I didn’t catch any on minnows, artificial for me.

Just target another fish or drive-Yep we here in the Metro would all love to drive 15 minutes and get a limit of eater walleyes. No, not gonna happen. Drive an hour in any direction and it would still be a challenge. Good Luck.

tim hurley wrote:

Just target another fish or drive-Yep we here in the Metro would all love to drive 15 minutes and get a limit of eater walleyes. No, not gonna happen. Drive an hour in any direction and it would still be a challenge. Good Luck.

Simply not true. It takes time and alot of fishing but once you put together patterns throughout the year the hour within metro is good stuff.

Easy way out to say theres no fish, the hard but rewarding way is to find them when few else do.

You can catch walleyes in the metro, but for a group of vets-just get them all some action-IMO
We have had governors fishing openers where they pick a metro lake with good populations of walleyes-then they get the best possible guide for that lake, they are fishing at a very good time of year, great time of day. Then they troll, one hour of trolling is equal to how many hundred holes? And they(the team) may get a couple. I would fish a weedline were you also have a shot at a pike or bass, put on a buckshot where you could also geta 9” crappie, and grill some brats for heavens sake. Again IMO.

nhamm wrote:

I didn’t catch any on minnows, artificial for me.

Ive never even had them sniff artificial….as soon as you moved it, they were gone.

nhamm wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>tim hurley wrote:</div>
Just target another fish or drive-Yep we here in the Metro would all love to drive 15 minutes and get a limit of eater walleyes. No, not gonna happen. Drive an hour in any direction and it would still be a challenge. Good Luck.

Simply not true. It takes time and alot of fishing but once you put together patterns throughout the year the hour within metro is good stuff.

Easy way out to say theres no fish, the hard but rewarding way is to find them when few else do.

I completely agree with this. I used to think the same thing about a very popular metro lake I fish. Gave up on it for 2 years of catching mostly tip up bait perch, but kept seeing people posting great fish so last season I decided I was going to figure out it. Put the work in and figured out the pattern for both walleye and crappie. Now I rarely fish any other metro lake.

It’s all about time spent and the work you put into it.

Cool send urmanc some coordinates, put all his guys on a bunch of fish-he can post pics-would love to be wrong on this one.

Metro water on ice for me 45 min of fishing today

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Couple solid 12-13” eyes, no wonder there’s not good fishing in metro area

Bahhhhaahaa

His very first post on this site…………

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M14 what size crappies do you catch? Little jelly gotta say, I drive just outside of the metro to get larger fish.

These kind of posts will steer people away from this site, that’s unfortunate.

Great fish watisituya

There really is no spawning in the metro for eyes, therefore any fish we take isn’t being withdrawn from some prime age class. Fish is a fish, it gets dumped in by the DNR for us to enjoy. Ill take fish that size all day long for my 2 young kids who love to eat fish as much as I do, it poses less of a risk for mercury and other contaniments.

Let’s find something to do fellas except prove people wrong or insult the size of ones catch.

Catch em, eat em-why not? As said they are not spawning anyway. Wanna throw back a pig go to Mil Lacs.

Totally agree, just ignore the guys who feel the need to judge.

Also get a kick outta the “then feel free to share your coordinates” mentality. Figuring out patterns and applying them successfully has very little to do with GPS coordinates, unless you’re also suggesting folks share a log of weather conditions, times of day, successful baits etc.

nhamm wrote:

These kind of posts will steer people away from this site, that’s unfortunate.

I agree too Nick. But when I see posts like that or others that seem to get off track, I look at the time of the post and consider the day. Certainly not an excuse, but Friday night at 11:00 PM you can find a pattern. I have been guilty of it too, posting after having some liquid refreshments. I’m not saying that was the case here, but you can sometimes tell with posts later at night. Maybe give the guy or (guys) a little slack. Some of us post differently…day and night.

Not necessarily related to ice fishing, but for open water…

I moved to Stillwater 14 years ago. On a 3-4 hour trip fishing when I first moved, I’d be lucky to get 1-2 fish (of any kind of fish). (on the st croix)

The fishery hasn’t changed; I’ve just learned over the years of different spots and techniques. Some of which I have learned through online forums, but also through talking to friends, and also trial and error. Now (again, open water), it would be surprising for me not to bring a few keeper walleye (or more) back home.

Walleyestudent Andy Cox wrote:

Some of us post differently…day and night.

Thank you walleye student and you were absolutely right. I’m sorry if I offended the poster. That’s great that he got on some fish, but regardless if there is no natural reproduction in a lake personally I still like to practice c&r on Smaller fish so maybe some day those fish will grow a little bigger and let my kids enjoy them. That is just my personal opinion and didn’t mean to offend anyone, to each their own.

No offense taken here… criticism is a part of life. Plus life is too short to get upset over someone’s thoughts online… I prefer the smaller 13-15″ fish to eat. That being said I’m not out pounding 13″ fish from any body of water stocking up a freezer, my other half doesnt eat fish so I rarely get the opportunity to eat them. Usually catch and release for me.

Also if it makes anybody feel any better. These are from an abandoned rearing pond. I have been checking on them for the last two years and they are finally worth keeping to me.

But i do appreciate the support everyone else

If anybody cares, I was on 5″ of ice fishing an outside weededge, the metro season has started for me!!

7-9 a.m. this morning. 10 ft. 5 eyes 13″ to 17″ good enough for me for the metro!

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