Category: Sportsman’s Journal Notes

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Butch’s Top Ten Walleye Lakes

  1. Lac Seul (Ontario) One of the best walleye lakes in North America. Very large body of water, over 120 miles long. Tremendous structure, all types of walleye habitat. Gravel bars, rock bars, sunken islands, feeding flats, and weedlines. A walleye fisherman’s paradise. Great northern pike fishery also.
  2. Mille Lacs (Minnesota) The most popular walleye lake in the Midwest. Always challenging to fish. The best walleye fishing is found near shoreline structure, the mid-lake gravel humps, and the mud flats. Walleye fishing is excellent throughout the year. Also, within the last few years, Mille Lacs has become a top muskie producer.
  3. Dogtooth (Ontario) Home of the trophy walleyes. Tough lake to fish, but can produce world class walleye fishing. Also has an excellent population of lake trout, splake, and smallmouth bass.
  4. Lake Of The Woods (Ontario / Minnesota) Tremendous walleye fishing throughout the year. Winter walleye fishing is excellent. Also has some of the best muskie fishing anywhere in North America. Can get rough for smaller boats, especially in the larger southern parts of the lake.
  5. Rainy Lake (Ontario / Minnesota) The secrets out, Rainy Lake is becoming one of the most popular destinations for the avid walleye fisherman because of the slot size. Because of the size regulations, the walleye population has exploded, providing a wide range of year classes. The lake also has some of the finest smallmouth bass fishing anywhere in the country.
  6. Winnibigoshish (Minnesota) Big Winnie. Another tremendous natural walleye lake. Located in north central Minnesota, Big Winnie rivals any of the other large natural walleye lakes. Very interesting lake to fish for walleyes. The lake has excellent shoreline structure as well as mid-lake humps and sunken islands. Big Winnie also has an excellent population of perch, which are sought both summer and winter.
  7. White Otter (Ontario) One of Butch’s favorite lakes to fish anywhere. Has an excellent population of both walleye, and lake trout. White Otter is also a wilderness setting with no cabins. Because of its exceptional clear water, the best walleye fishing is early morning or evenings. Cloudy, windy, and rainy days are also excellent for walleye. The best lake trout fishing occurs on clear sunny days, which makes White Otter a dual lake. Walleyes in the morning, lake trout during the day, and walleyes in the evening.
  8. Boulder (Minnesota) One of Butch’s favorite lakes to fish walleyes locally in his hometown of Duluth, Minnesota. It is a stained, dark water lake with a lot of rock structure. Caution should be used when fishing in larger boats. Boulder has several year class sizes of walleye, with some trophies present.
  9. Leech (Minnesota) Another premier natural walleye lake located west of Big Winnie. Being very large in size, weather can be a factor. Year after year, Leech Lake produces a vast number of walleye. Leech Lake is also known for its great muskie fishing. Some parts of the lake also produce slab crappies.
  10. Sakakawea (North Dakota) Butch first fished Sakakawea back in the 1970’s before anyone knew much about it. The number and size of walleyes were astounding. A lot of the fish ran in the 7 to 10 pound class. Since then, the walleye population has fluctuated. Because it is a huge reservoir system, some year classes are better than others. Recent reports reveal excellent walleye fishing with some trophy size being caught. It is also one of the top sauger lakes in North America.