Sorry for the off-schedule TW sends this week! Sick kiddos are no fun. All good tho, and still trying to kick things out in-between bathroom runs lol. Anywho, here we go!

Fish-head Scott Mackner (aka 330 Maniac) has been leaning into some seriously BIG crappies this ice season in MN, and has actually broken his personal best multiple times...

...but I think this PB is going to stick around for a while lol. He iced a massive 16.75-incher that weighed 3 lbs and gave his Tuned Up Custom Rods Bullwhip the workout of a lifetime!

And here's your 'prove it' of the week. ????

Wait until you see what he’s been catching all these 15”+ crappies on...

Scott: “I've been preaching it for years now...if you want a big fish, use a big bait.”

That big bait is a Fiskas XL Walleye Series tungsten jig paired up with a 3" Northland Eye-Candy Grub.

I’m not positive what exact size tungsten he's has been using, but here’s a look at the sizing chart:

Go big or go home, and Scott's not going home! Congrats on the new PB, man! And thank you for not keeping everything a secret. ????

I have shared this quick 30-second video before but always have a lot of requests to bring it back. It’s an acoustic-telemetry study from 2016/2017 on Lake Erie that tracked walleye movements for an entire year.

It’s always been a dream of mine to tag-and-release a bunch of fish to see where they disappear to throughout the season...so I always find this stuff fascinating:

[Heads-up there’s a little bar along the bottom with dates]

Wish there was one of these for every lake. Awesome stuff from NYSDEC (thank you!) hopefully there’s an updated one coming????

...legally use this rig in Minnesota, I probably would have said “yeah right, I wish!” and taken that bet. ????

* Illustration by Peter Sucheski

That graphic is from an awesome Scott Mackenthun write-up in Game & Fish called Under the Ice: Drop-Shot Rigging for Pressured Panfish.

It’s not that I don’t trust Scott (he’s a GREAT and incredibly knowledgeable dude) but you just obviously can’t believe everything you read on the internet...whether folks are purposely being deceitful or they’re just flat-out uninformed.

To be safe, I did a little digging thru the 2024 MN Fishing Regulations (93-page PDF) and sure enough I found this listed on page 29:

MN DNR: “You may use up to three artificial flies on one fishing line when you are fishing for bass, crappie, rock bass, sunfish, or trout. There are no restrictions on distance between the flies.”

Well I’ll be danged! ???? Learn something new every day!

Few excerpts from the Game & Fish write-up below:

While most ice-anglers aggressively fish baited jigs beneath flashers, a drop-shot’s subtle presentation can trigger bites from wary panfish. Lindy pro-staffer Bob Bohland realized this roughly 15 yrs ago at a North American Ice Fishing Circuit event at Chisago Lakes in MN. He and his fishing partner had noticed that many of the bigger bluegills and green sunfish were glued to shallow weeds and becoming really picky. Fish were quite spooky, too – the result of anglers running and gunning all over the place. They were also keying on small forage – refusing anything larger than a size-16 fly – however, these dainty offerings were taking too long to reach the proper depth.

It was then that Bohland began piecing together a solution. Could he simply tie up a few Palomar knots, add a drop-shot weight and a few small flies, drop the rig down and coax these fish out of the weeds? It took a little research on the legality of such a technique, but he eventually got clarity – Minnesota allows the use of up to three flies on a fly rig, including those fished through the ice. Bohland took it a step further and tipped the flies with plastics and live bait. His newfound technique produced phenomenal results.

“As we found out, we could sit in one hole and watch these fish, give subtle motions to our flies we were putting down there and make the fish commit. It really was eye-opening.

“Discovering he could fish flies with live baits or plastics also freed Bohland up to experiment with colors and plastic body styles. And with today's many hand-poured and production plastics – including mayfly larvae, caddisflies and stoneflies – designed with precise details of segmentation and appendages, he had ample options.”

Whole bunch more info on some other sneaky panfish tricks in the full-write up here.

The use of diesel heaters in portable ice-fishing houses (typically hub shacks) seems to be quite the trending topic these last couple season.

I’ve seen a lot of wild designs in the random FB groups I’m following, but this one posted by Nick Baumann has to be one of the absolute cleanest setups I’ve seen, and one of the few I’ve seen designed for flip-over style shacks:

Nick Baumann: “Wanted a built-in direct vent heater...came with too many cons so I put together a portable diesel heater with a direct vent option.”

Pretty dang incredible design!

He said it cost him “$300 something? [and took about] 35 hours in the shed with a dremel.... I lost track.” And he figured it “should last 24 hours according to [his] math” and is “about 17k BTUs.”

Now just add one of these to the get-up and I’m guaranteed napping on the job. ????

Can be tough to keep up on all the regs...but you’ve gotta! This was a Q that I really wasn’t exactly sure about, so did some digging and came across this post specifically talking about MN’s Lake of the Woods, and breaks it down in fish-English:

Individuals may not possess fillets in their day/sleeper houses unless:

1. They are in immediate preparation of a meal (the oil is heating) and carcasses are available for inspection

2. Or a licensed fish packer has filleted and packaged them to be consumed while their guests are on the lake. If a licensed fish packer filets your fish, make sure to have proof (which they can provide) and know you have to cook and eat the fillets while on the ice. It is unlawful to return to shore with filets from a licensed fish packer.

Any filleting for transport should be done on shore or at the resort just prior to individuals traveling. This means if you have fish you want to bring home, you cannot clean them on the ice. Bring them to shore whole and clean them on shore for transport.


For those who really like to dig into state law, click here for the MN link.

And of course every state is probably going to be slightly different, so do your digging.

1. MN: Can still target walleye/sauger on LOTW thru Apr 14!

The rules are different for Lake of the Woods as it is border water with CAN and benefits from extended seasons. ...the walleye season remains open thru April 14 [and pike never closes].

And your ice season just got 25% longer!

Quick reminder: You’ll need a new MN fishing license starting Mar 1.

2. SD: Lake Francis Case walleye abundance/size up...

...but catch rates are down.

...catch rates were down to about 0.5 fish per hour, meaning an angler on average takes about two hours to catch a walleye. That is lower than usual, something he credited to abundant shad and the effect of zebra mussels filtering the water, allowing fish to inhabit parts of the reservoir that they hadn’t inhabited previously.

“We’re starting to see fish maybe inhabiting some different areas of the reservoir that haven’t been traditionally in other times because of the clean clear water. A lot of anglers have said they have had good fishing this last year, but didn’t catch them in the areas and ways they traditionally had. They had to try some different things to find where the fish had moved to.”

3. PA: Lake Erie had highest walleye harvest in 20 yrs

The PA Fish and Boat Commission...conducted a Lake Erie Boat Angler Survey in 2024 of boaters launching from Walnut Creek, Northeast Marina, Lampe Marina and East Avenue Boat Launch.

...calculated 31,251 boats launched for 242,828 hours from the 4 sites

...estimated 513,042 walleye were caught and anglers harvested 318,220 of them.

Anglers were catching 1.69 fish per hour and 43% of anglers caught their limit of 6 fish.

The survey revealed there are roughly 72 million walleyes in the Great Lake.

4. MN: Mille Lacs anglers will be able to keep walleye this spring

Could keep exactly 0 out there last spring. They’re still negotiating on how many for this opener, but it could be more than 1...

“Whether it be 1, 2 or 3, and that can change over the course of the year as well. We have that opportunity to do that. You know, really, I think the most important thing for people is knowing that they can, they can take fish home to eat,” said Brad Parsons, the MN DNR’s Fisheries Section Manager.

“Our meetings with the tribal representatives, we all understand the lake is in a much better spot than it has been....”

The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe has harvesting rights on Mille Lacs Lake and plays a big role, along with the DNR, in setting the walleye limit for the lake.

5. MI: Proposed walleye reg changes for couple lakes

Big Manistique and Milakokia Lakes. There’s currently a 15” minimum size limit and a daily possession limit of 5 walleyes on both lakes...

The proposed regulation change adds a protected slot limit in which anglers would not be able to possess any walleye between 18-23” in the daily possession limit. The daily possession limit would also be changed to 3 fish. Anglers could possess fish 15-18” and only 1 walleye 23” long or greater.

The MI DNR invites the public to comment on proposed walleye regulation changes [which you can do here].

6. MN: DNR adds angling limits for several species

The MN fishing regs for 2025 will include daily and possession limits for American eel, yellow bass, whitefish, cisco, and burbot. Those and other changes are available starting on page 13 of the regulations book.

That news release ^ doesn’t mention exactly what the new burbot limit is, but I was able to find a FB post from Minnesota Fish & Wildlife that states the burbot (aka eelpout) possession limit will be 4 starting on Mar 1. Love to see more respect put on their name

7. MN: Public input needed on fisheries mgmt plans for 151 lakes

8. Northland expanded its Tungsten Stand-Up Jig models

The Tungsten Stand-Up Jig and its Short Shank brother are now available across 4 popular sizes and 12 proven colors. Molded from Tungsten that is 70% more dense than lead, the Stand-Up Jig is designed to keep your bait off the bottom – and in the strike zone.

Walleye pro Tom Huynh digs ‘em, and says the 45-degree hook angle paired with a buoyant plastic like Northland Eye-Candy nails that natural baitfish look.

9. MI: Friday cutoff for MWT full season signup

That’s the Michigan Walleye Tour. They also said that individual tournament registration opens this Sat morning at 12:01am.

If you are wanting to sign up for the Detroit River Tournament [Apr 5-6], please set your alarm clocks so you don't miss out. There will only be 75 spots available and they will go extremely quick. I would not be surprised if Detroit is filled by 2:00am based on last year's response.

10. OH: Warriors Wangling Walleye charity tourney is Apr 25

9th-annual derby out of Port Clinton.

Warriors Wangling Walleye is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization founded to honor, engage and assist veterans of the United States military and their families by capitalizing on the outstanding sport-fishing on Lake Erie. By hosting this tournament each year, they raise funds to support a variety of programs which help veterans thrive in their communities.

11. Whitewater intros new Luswea Joggers

Built with soft, stretch fleece for warmth these joggers are designed for all day comfort on and off the water.

12. MN: 17th-annual Minnesota Fishing Challenge, May 31

This Gull Lake derby raises a TON of funds for a great cause...Mn Adult & Teen Challenge drug and alcohol rehabilitation programs that help people find freedom from addiction!

13. Interesting Wired2Fish read on fishing innovations

First asked FB followers to share their thoughts about what "the biggest innovations in fishing" have been over the years. Then they compiled results and put together a little background info on each leap forward in fishing tech nominated in the comments.

14. Grundéns releases new spring/summer collection

Too many new items to show ‘em all here, but here’s a look-see at a few, including their "King of the Lakes" walleye hoodie in the top-left.

15. MN: Nick Lindner is speaking at the next TCWU meeting

Happening Thurs, Mar 6 at the Bloomington Event Center.

16. New St. Croix 2025 Ice catalog just released

17. DC: USFWS is now saying ice fishing can "spread" stuff

Invasive species and diseases don't take the winter off. They can spread through bait, gear, and even frozen water, threatening fish populations and water quality.

There’s a section in there that says to “let everything dry completely before heading to a new body of water.” That should be easy enough for the frozen-solid gear in the truck bed. ????

I know this is a little different than usual...

...but the comments made it extra funny, SO many puns lol:

The perfect tool for any carp-enter

A real bass kicker

 Build anything you need, to scale

That’s what I’m talking a-trout!

Can't be Koi using this as a weapon

Idk guys I feel it would work kind of crappie tbh

Hahahah

Can you imagine experiencing THIS?! From Warren Fisher while ice fishing on Green Bay, WI:

“Had to do a double take when I looked down the hole and saw this fish swipe at my bait. A quick game of cat ‘n mouse and I watched her gills flare and my Jigging Rap disappear.”

That would be wild for any size walleye, but especially when you’re talking about a 32", 13-lb giant! ????

National Professional Anglers Assoc.

MN-FISH

Target Walleye LLC

422 Laurel Street

P.O. BOX 541

Brainerd, MN 56401

 (218) 824 5026