Is it possible to fish mille lacs at night without ever having been there before? I will have a map of the lake but I don’t know where the best place to put in is or if there are any
hazards to look out for. What kind of lighting do people use when they fish at night?
The biggest concern I would have if I were you is getting yourelf into a location where you’re halfway protected from the wind if it’s blowing…in my opinion, the rough water is the most difficult thing about fishing the lake, particularly if you’re on the lake for the first time at night. Otherwise, it’s pretty straight forward…this time of the year you’re bound to find fish on the initial break lines where the water goes from 7-9 feet to 12-16 feet. These spots are typically within a couple hundred yards of shore, so you don’t necessarily have to run to the middle of the lake to fish Mille Lacs effectively. If you can find a spot like this with weeds, gravel, etc. then better yet. The north end of the lake has some real nice sand/weed breaks around the Wealthwood landing. If you decide to give this a shot, be very careful backing your boat away from the dock, as it is VERY shallow for the first hundred yards or so. Trim up your motor and you’ll be fine. I’ve also caught fish between the Garrison landing and north to the Harbor Inn which is just up the road a mile or so.
While I haven’t fished it much, the south/southeast end of the lake is loaded with rock piles, some of which come up pretty shallow. First time out at night I might stay away from this area until you can get a look at it during the day.
Otherwise, just be careful of the weather and try to find a relatively protected area for your first time out at night. If you can get a night with the moon out, you’re going to love it…it’s an amazing experience, particularly if you find a few willing walleyes! Good luck and let us know how you make out.
Figure_8em
Great tips Figure8em! I was in that relative area of present rockpiles last night and there was a spot that went from 6′ to 1.5′ instantly…………….and yeah, we made contact………..but everything’s okay. Must be that we were crawling pretty slow but it could’ve been U-G-L-Y……….ugly!
I second the moonlight recommendation!
Did you have any luck fishing the rocks, aside from finding the rocks themselves? Sorry, couldn’t resist….did the same thing earlier this year and will be replacing my prop at year end. Did you happen to come across any green, toothy critters while you were at it?
Yeah…………caught some hell……. 
There was a little green in the ‘eyes we caught so I think they were trying to disguise themselves as a “big toothy”……………..40” wanna be’s! 
The bite is still a bit difficult. The only thing I can think of is that they’re eating well. Otherwise we’d have ’em jumping in the boat!
Thank you very much Figure_8em/all. I really like this forum. I don’t see much of the usual bickering that goes on in most other forums and every time I have asked some newbie question I have recieved great advice. One thing I did not see was what kind of lighting you use? I was thinking of buying a spotlight that I can connect to one of my battries to use when navigating from place to place. Any comments pro/con?
If you see some fool out on the lake sat night changing baits for no aperant reason and fishing where the fish are not that will probably be me
I use the “miner’s lights” that have an elastic band that goes around your head…Gander Mountain has them for a few bucks a piece. They’re really nice, as they allow you to work with both hands free when you’re changing lures, taking off fish, pulling line out of your motor (yes, my brother pulled this stunt last year), etc. Between my boat lights and the “head-light”, I generally have enough light to get my work done. I also carry a big flashlight just in case, but rarely use it.
As far as navigational lights, I guess it wouldn’t hurt to have a big light, but I think you’ll be close enough to the shore most of the time that you may not need it. Again, follow the breaklines, and if you find a fish, don’t be afraid to go back over the spot and see if he/she had any companions down there.
Hope this helps….be sure to check out the reports from James and others before you go, as they’re very helpful in giving you the details of what’s working and where.
If your lucky enough not to have any cloud cover, you won’t need a light to navigate. Use your night vision, it works pretty darn good. I carry a mag lite flash light and also wear a head lamp. Both are neccessities for untangling fish quickly for safe release. A spot light is also handy to have along. A GPS is a must!!
I actually suggest using as little light as possible. A spotlight won’t be able to help you spot what’s below the surface of the water when you’re at speed anyway and PLEASE don’t be one of those inconsiderate types that spotlights every last fish hooked as it comes back to the boat. You’ll spook fish, blind the people around you and kill yor own night vision. In my boat, we rarely turn on anything other than very small headlamps… usually when handlanding a fish or unhooking one once its in the boat. As far as actual navigation goes, a good map is sufficient and GPS is irreplacable. Stick to the shoreline breaks, particularly near Garrison where it’s almost bright enough to read due to the town lights, and you’ll catch fish and be quite safe.
Again, these guys aren’t kidding when they say the landings are shallow for that first 100 feet or so!
Good luck!
Quote:
Thank you very much Figure_8em/all. I really like this forum. I don’t see much of the usual bickering that goes on in most other forums and every time I have asked some newbie question I have recieved great advice. One thing I did not see was what kind of lighting you use? I was thinking of buying a spotlight that I can connect to one of my battries to use when navigating from place to place. Any comments pro/con?
If you see some fool out on the lake sat night changing baits for no aperant reason and fishing where the fish are not that will probably be me
Here’s a link to a thread on fishing at night on Mille Lacs. You may be able to gleen some extra helpful info from this that hasn’t already been covered.
Thanks for the info everyone. I did pickup a spotlight for times when the moon is not helping. I appreciate the comments about not “shinning” other boaters.
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