July 1, 2011 Kabetogama Lake 2011

35 W heading into Minneapolis early, early morning.

This past week I took my annual Walleye fishing trip to Kabetogama Lake in Northern Minnesota. This year is the 4th consecutive year I have been going up and there is no signs that this tradition will end. From the Twin Cities it's about a 5 1/2 hour drive up there, so I get up about 430am, get the coffee going and hit the road. There are anywhere from 5 to 7 other guys that go up there for this trip, mostly family, and they come from all over the area and scatter at different times when we leave, so I usually drive up alone. 5 1/2 hours with virtually no other cars on the road is a very long time. But it's well worth it.

Kabetogama is located in Voyageurs National Park in Northern Minnesota along the Canadian border. It is considered a border lake because it's accessible through a chain to Namakin Lake to the East. There is a large hydro dam on the border of the US and Canada so you cannot cross the border via a boat.


View Larger Map

The lake itself it huge, it's roughly 15 miles from the west shore to Namakin and about 5 miles north to south at the widest. From the map above you can see it's full of islands. On any day, in any weather the sight is always nice to look at.

Even when nasty weather starts to move in you can see it coming for an hour before it reaches you. With the openness and size of the lake, you can just move to a corner that won't get passed over from a shower if you are lucky, or stay put and get wet.

The main fish to go for in this lake is Walleye, Minnesota's fruit when it comes to fishing. They are excellent eating, hard as heck to catch and harder to find. It's taken us years to learn how to do it right and we are far from experts. This lake has a slot limit on it, meaning that any Walleye we catch between 17 and 28 inches we have to throw back.

22" Walleye

This lake was severely over fished and the walleye population took a severe hit, so the slot is designed to make sure the baby making fish are making baby fish. This year's fishing showed that it's working. The past few years it took us a few days to catch enough eaters, 12-17 inches, for a shore lunch. This year each one of us hit our daily limit and we had a fantastic, stomach filling shore lunch each and every day. There have been lots of complaints and arguments against slot limits on lakes but the DNR know what they are doing and it's proven it does work. Populations need to be kept in check for the health of the ecosystem of the lake, keep a balance of all the species in the lake and ensure that the next generation that comes up to fish Walleye have Walleye to catch.

Shorelunch location view

Shorelunch

There really is nothing more tasty than fresh Walleye from a Northern Minnesota Lake, from the water to the frying pan. So good. Bring on some fries and you are a happy fisherman. This year we also had fantastic weather, it was hot but not unbearable and the wind was just perfect for good fishing.

I have been home for a day and already starting to think about the next time I can get back up there, what I would so differently, where we would go, what gear to bring and not bring and so on.

The trip is just not about fishing but getting away from everything and being out there. I could not catch a fish and would still love it. There is something about being in the middle of no where, no one around, just you in the boat with the sun on your shoulders. Gulls, huge pelicans, bald eagles flying over head. Deer on the shore taking a drink. The sight of an occasional bear. Or just sitting back watching the clouds swirl in the wind. Nothing matters up there. You hit the boat in the morning and don't go back to shore until sunset. Serenity.

I have been all over the world and seen many, many different kinds of sunsets. When it comes to the dynamic range of colors, clouds, light I still say Minnesota has the best sunsets you can find. Winter or Summer it doesn't matter. 

How can you not look at this and feel so insignificant and small when it comes to the grand scale of the Earth?

End of Line

Posted in: Fishing,Kabetogama,Minnesota,Outdoors,Photography