Fish509
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Was up sun night in St. Alban's and Garrison Reef. We scrapped up eight with five in the box. Best color was clown #12's. A buddy was on the east side and caught nine in three hours. Too dramatic of a water cool down or what? Mon went to Leech with similar results. Any ideas on when the fall frenzy is going to happen 
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James Holst
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Quote:
Was up sun night in St. Alban's and Garrison Reef. We scrapped up eight with five in the box. Best color was clown #12's. A buddy was on the east side and caught nine in three hours. Too dramatic of a water cool down or what? Mon went to Leech with similar results. Any ideas on when the fall frenzy is going to happen
This same rapid cool down scenario happened 3 years ago up there. It was also combined with a big blow that churned up the shallows to the point where it dropped water clarity for nearly a week with the clarity for the first 2 - 3 days being markedly reduced. It took over a week for the bite at night to start rolling again. However, guys did quite well during the day during that stretch. Anyway, this is by no means a concrete answer but it is some food for thought.
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James Holst - In-Depth Outdoors TV Host
IDA Guides Guide Service
Ph. 507-271-0362
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Jason Halfen
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A guy with a lot more fall trolling experience than me recently taught me the following lesson:
We need a few days of calm, sunny weather to get the fall, shallow eyes into a nighttime feeding pattern.
Wind and clouds during the day should translate into a reasonable daytime bite. Try pitching cranks to some of that shallow structure you're trolling over at night.
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Jason Halfen ~ IDO Pro Staff
Guided walleye and smallmouth bass fishing in western Wisconsin:
JasonHalfenOutdoors.com
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Mike W
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I think its just going to take some time. THe bite last night seemed better than what we had last weekend. It still was not even close to what it should be but we did catch a few bigger fish and they sure had some fat on them.
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Mike Westman - www.HomeTownplumbing.net
Your twin cities plumbing experts!
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I TRY HARD
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Thanks for netting my fish fish509. It was fun.
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I try hard.
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Lip Ripper
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I'm not sure when it will be good, but I hope it is in aobut 3 hours as Lip is heading u to give it a whirl! I'll report back in the am with the results. 
Watch out fish here I come!    
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Lip Ripper (aka Rob Stenger)
GameHide Pro Staff /
Northland Concrete & Masonry
BfishN Tackle /
Stone Construction Inc
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GMAN
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Quote:
I'm not sure when it will be good, but I hope it is in aobut 3 hours as Lip is heading u to give it a whirl! I'll report back in the am with the results.
Watch out fish here I come!
How did you do Lip  
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Chris Tuckner
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I believe calm warm sunny days help the bite more than anything. If you think back to Biology class and the food chain...photosynthesis is what gets things rocking, which gets the minnows feeding in and around the weeds. I believe the weed help hold what available warmth is available this time of year, and then again the smaller perch and shiners relate to the higher temps and cover. It may be as subtle as a degree or two. I cannot count the times I have driven around the lake in the evening and watched the gulls bombing like mad!! It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out what and why they are doing it. This colder stirred up water I believe is keeping these bait fish out in the basin until they get the call.  There isn't a thermocline in Mille Lacs persay, so the triggering mechanism to get these baitfish and walleye to move shallow is different from year to year. I can only point to over 30 years of experience and no scientific reason for it. But it never fails that IDO folks find out a pattern that will put fish in the boat during this time. Like was mentioned above and in other reports, rocks will usually always put SOME fish in the boat this time of year. Mostly slot style fish because of the minnows and crayfish available are usually of the size of their liking. As we pinch the dates down toward the November full moon, I see it getting better and better. Sooner or later the weeds will start to lay down leaving bait fish exposed in the warmer shoreline water. The best is obviously yet to come.
My boys and I are heading up Thursday for MEA break, and again the last week of the month.
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Lip Ripper
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Gman see my report!
Interesting Tuck!
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Lip Ripper (aka Rob Stenger)
GameHide Pro Staff /
Northland Concrete & Masonry
BfishN Tackle /
Stone Construction Inc
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Jack Naylor
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Nicely written Chris, I agree.
Jack
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USA- Home of the Free, Because of the Brave !!
Blue Max Taxidermy 30 Years Experience
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Fish509
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Thanks for the responses. When I was out last we noticed the weeds were up and thought that was a bad sign. The fish we caught, were generally caught when you would clear your line of weeds, then during the pause the fish would hit. Be up this sunday, black Skeeter WX1880. Anyone notice if the weeds have dropped yet? Was thinking about starting in the rocks on the east side unless I hear differently. Only been fishing Mille Lacs in the fall for four years. It always seems the rocks are better earlier in the fall and as the water cools, the dead or dying weeds with transitions to rock are really good.
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Chris Tuckner
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If you are having issues with weeds, don't be afraid to mix it up with bent lip Shad Raps, X-Raps and shallow Frenzys. Also, slow it down and pump the rod...and release....let it fall back on a tight line and wait for the strike. Using floaters for this will keep you out of the weeds if that is where you are getting bit. Also, move farther out or inside the weed edges. The sweet spot changes from year to year. It may take a few passes to define where it is. I know last year the hot "Beds" I had marked from years prior were in some cases not there!  But new beds were!  So roam and find the good patches and mark them for reference later. I would hit them no fewer than a half dozen times over the course of a night. Especially if I am marking fish in or around the area in deeper adjacent water. Those fish will be in there at some point during the evening.
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When's it gonna get going?
