Fishing on the versatile By Jon Stolski
Gull Lake Chain It’s an excellent choice to catch your favorite fish
The Gull Lake Chain is arguably one of the most versatile chains of lakes, not only in central Minnesota, but anywhere in our state. Recreating on the lake is popular, but from a fishing standpoint it has great populations of nearly all the game species of fish found in our lakes. Even the mighty musky has some representation. Most fishermen focus on walleye, bass, northern pike and panfish when they target Gull. Muskies, although once native to the lake, are now being stocked on an every other year basis, with fishable populations in the near future. A true “mixed bag” can be caught on Gull Lake almost any time of the year. So, whatever your favorite fish to catch, the Gull Chain is an excellent choice for a good day on the water.
Walleye
The Minnesota state fish can be found in Gull in quantity and size. Early in the season, from fishing opener in mid-May to the middle of June, is a great time to target “eyes” on Gull. Focus on the many points and flats on the north end. I always start shallow (6-12 feet) and work my way deeper. Like many of our lakes with zebra mussels present, the water has become extraordinarily clear. Years ago, backtrolling with a leech or shiner was the ticket. Find a point where the wind was blowing in and eventually you’d catch fish. Now, fishing right under the boat is not productive. I like to use a jig and minnow or jig and leech during this time, casting out away from the boat and starting out with a very slow retrieve back. Use your trolling motor and keep moving until you catch one. Note the depth and location, and odds are the fish will be in that depth in other locations as well. With a late ice year like this one, the weeds will be slow to grow, so the fish will be searching the shallows for food. If you see big schools of minnows, odds are you are in the right area. As the summer goes on, from the middle of
Dan Borgeson, left, and Jordan Borgeson show their catch of crappies on the Gull Lake Chain. Contributed photo
June to the first few weeks of August, I start to change my approach. Now, the key to finding the walleyes is finding the nice “green” weed beds, particularly cabbage weeds. The walleyes on Gull love cabbage weeds. The big stands of cabbage are usually growing in 8-16 feet of water, and when you see the “red tops” sticking up out of the water or right to the surface, you are in a great spot. You can still pitch out a jig and minnow or jig and plastic. I like paddle tails, but my current favorite presentation is either slow trolling a small spinner and nightcrawler with a small bullet weight, once again trying to keep your bait away from the boat. Or, using a slip bobber
and a leech, casting out away from the boat. Focus on the “pockets” or openings in the weeds and there usually are walleye cruising around. These fish will hang around this cover most of the summer, using the weeds for cover and as an ambush area. It is common to catch other species - bass, perch, panfish - while using this technique, so you will have plenty of action. As the nights start to cool, usually by mid-August and through the rest of the fall, my focus starts to turn deeper. Fish off the weedline, typically in 20-32 feet of water or more and you will find fish. Now I tend to use a Lindy rig and a Check Us Out On Facebook
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