The Ely area has been getting pounded with storms the last few weeks. Those storms have left us with higher than normal water levels and some great fishing! If you’re a bass fisherman, the time is now for an amazing smallmouth experience! Anglers have had no problem finding them and catching them. Small and largemouth bass have been hitting top water lures such as poppers, floating Rapalas, and spinners. Some bigger fish are also hitting aggressively in deeper water on leach

It’s been all smiles from Packsack anglers this year! Fall Lake and Basswood fishing has been tremendous as expected! Even with a recent heat wave, anglers have still been finding their limits of walleye, bass, and pike! Recent reports for walleye are that they are still being caught in shallower water 4’-8’ of water, but are also being caught in 14’-16’ of water. Most anglers using live bait have ditched the minnows for bait that is easier to keep alive like leeches or crawl

Fishing in the Ely area remains good through the first 2-weeks of June! Despite some cold weather, Packsack anglers have been having good luck fishing on Fall Lake, Basswood and Newton Lakes! The walleye bite has continued to be strong as the fish have been roaming to their summer homes. On Fall Lake the power dam is still producing numbers, but lack of size has been the common complaint. Leeches seem to be the trick to catching some larger sized walleyes on Pipestone Bay, se

The walleye bite continues here on Fall Lake and beyond! Even with a full moon, Packsack anglers have been able to bring home some hefty stringers of good eating walleye! A recent cold snap has kept the water temps in the mid-50s, most of the fish being caught are on the smaller 14-18-inch size. Hopefully as the water temps rise, the larger females will begin feeding again. Bait of choice has still been jig and a minnow, but a few anglers have been able to pick up dinner by t

Welcome to the first edition of Nick’s Fishing report of 2019! Well, it seems this year’s Fall Lake Ice out was right on point for a great walleye opener! Anglers fishing Fall Lake and Basswood reported catching plenty of fish for dinner and even some to take home. Post spawning walleyes are setting up in 12-14 feet of water and anxiously awaiting lunch. Fall Lake has been producing stringers of golden walleye, the power dam has been the place to be for catching the smaller 1

Dear Friends, We know many of you are anxiously awaiting news about your permits for your 2019 BWCAW reservation. We thank you for your continued patience with this, at this point we don’t have a lot of new information, but enough to keep you updated. The Forest Service has not yet set an official date for the new “Go Live” event in which we can begin to reserve permits. The TENTATIVE date of Wednesday, February 27th at 9:00 am has been rumored but not yet confirmed. Yesterda

Reports coming from the area lakes are that the Fall bite is on! Yes, it’s that time of year when the Fall colors start to appear, the mornings temps are cooler, the portages are quieter, and the fish are starting to forage. The walleye bite on Fall Lake and Basswood has been heating up. While we aren’t seeing a whole lot for size, it’s the numbers that have improved since mid-August. Anglers have been using primarily crawlers to catch the bulk of the walleye but trolling wit

The Ely area fishing reports have been a mixed bag for the mid part of August. The windless bluebird days of August found anglers reporting that the fish bite has been as absent as Nick’s Fishing report. Those that were catching fish were reporting big bass and panfish. In the past week however, the temps have dropped and the action is back on! Packsack Anglers seeking walleyes have had the best luck making the long trip into Jackfish Bay of Basswood Lake. 18-22-inch walleyes

Ely area fishing has remained strong as we enter the dog days of August. Packsack anglers are still bringing their limits of walleye and bass home for dinner! The walleye bite has remained steady for those willing to take the time to figure them out. Larger sized fish are remaining elusive as the smaller “eating” size fish are still active. Anglers have had the best luck catching them in depths of 18-22 feet and in areas of high currents. Leeches are still the preferred bait

The past couple of weeks Fall Lake has been blessed with some beautiful weather and some great fishing! Despite some bluebird days, anglers are having no problems finding enough fish to eat and take home! Guests that have stayed at Packsack for the last 20-years have reported that this year has been the best ever for fishing. Packsack anglers are still hammering the smaller (and a few bigger) walleyes on Fall Lake and in Pipestone. Jackfish has been producing the larger 20-pl

Ely area fishing remains spectacular heading into July! With the mayfly hatch wrapping up, anglers are hitting the mark for walleye and bass. Fall Lake has continued to produce walleye of all sizes. Just this last week, several walleyes in the 20-27-inch have been caught right at the Power Dam. The topside of Newton Falls is also producing fish, most of them smaller sized but just right for eating. Newton Lake also has been producing good numbers of walleyes, one Packsack gro

Mayfly don’t bother me! After another successful week of fishing in the Ely area, some lakes are starting to experience the annual Mayfly hatch. While this occurrence has affected fishing for some, others have had no problems finding their limits of walleyes and bass. The walleye bite on Fall Lake has been exceptional, with Packsack anglers finding their limits of good sized walleyes just at the Power Dam. Pipestone Bay, and Jackfish Bay of Basswood Lake are also producing s

Summer is in full swing here in Ely and for mid-June, the fish bite remains exceptional. Anglers fishing Pipestone and Jackfish have been hammering the walleye, not only finding numbers but also some good-sized fish. Fall Lake has also been producing numbers of smaller walleyes at the power dam and as of late, right off of our docks! Many Packsack guests have had success fishing for Northern Pike this last week. Tales of toothy giants going after crank baits and spoons are be

Fishing in the greater Ely area remains hot! Despite some crazy weather patterns, many Packsack anglers have found success on Fall Lake, Newton and Pipestone Lakes. Plenty of large Walleye are still being caught. There were reports of some nice 22-25-inch Walleye were caught on Jackfish this last week, while one angler even pulled a 27-inch bug eyed monster from the Power Dam here on Fall Lake! While not all anglers are getting their limits, they are finding enough to eat. W

Anglers visiting the Ely area in the past two weeks have been treated to not only outstanding fishing, but also some beautiful weather! The post walleye spawn has produced some massive fish on Basswood Lake. Some anglers reported catching fish up to 30 inches, and numerous fish in the 24-28-inch range. Newton and Fall Lakes have consistently produced some smaller 14-20-inch walleyes for our guests looking for dinner. Minnows have still been the bait of choice, but with the wa

And just like that, the Minnesota Fishing opener is over and the season is underway! With our late ice out, the fishing in the Ely area was tremendous! I am happy to say that all of the anglers I spoke with this weekend were able to have a delicious fish fry! Anglers fishing on Pipestone were having a hard time finding fish under 20 inches to fry, not a bad problem to have! As anticipated, the Power Dam on Fall Lake was busy with boats and happy fisherman. Nothing of great si

The largely anticipated 2018 Minnesota Fishing Opener is this coming Saturday, May 12th! With most of the Ely area lakes being just recently Ice Free, the conditions for Walleye should be ideal! Fall Lake lost its Ice on Friday, May 4th. Since then, the Perch bite has been hot! Water temps are in the mid to upper 40’s. We have seen many jumbo Perch caught right in our bay here at Packsack. The last two days the crappie have started to settle in and I expect that will only get