Hello, my brother and I (ages 48 and 42) are planning our first trip to the BWCA with our 2 teenage sons (ages 15 & 16) for June, 2017.  We are interested in catching walleye, smallmouth & northern pike, in that order.  Also, we'd like as much solitude as possible.  We don't mind paddling every day, although I'd prefer a 1-day layover about halfway with some great fishing.  Currently, I am planning on a 6-day trip.  We are also willing to utilize a towboat and/or shuttle if needed.  What I am looking for are suggestions on good routes that will yield solitude, great fishing (especially for walleyes) in the first half of June (I am also willing/able to move this trip to later in June if the weather & fishing would be better), and some decent wildlife siting possibilities.  Thanks in advance for your help!

Originally Posted by: Tuck46902

One last thing... are there other forums/message boards for the BWCA? Thanks again!

There is a list of a few others under resources. There are a couple of others that I can think of that I will have to add to the list.

Oh - and the original reply was not from me, it was from Sluggman42. You'll have to thank him for the great info!

Tuck,

Just to touch on a couple of your questions. As for the solitude, I guess that it kind of comes down to your definition of that word.  I've been going up to the BWCA for a long time so I would agree with Ben that Insula is not the most isolated area, it's on a fairly main route, and as it's well known for being a good fishing area you will find other people.  That being said, "other people" could quite likely be numbered in the single digits on any given day.... so it's not like you're headed deep into the unknown, but it's still wilderness, half a dozen people daily is pretty frickin awsome in my book.

Although both along the same general route and not terribly isolated, Lake One to Moose or Snowbank would both likely fit your general criteria for time of the trip. 

As for trolling...  http://www.titelok.com/product-p/rh-5615.htm  This is a link to the rod holder that I use, there are a few different types, but I have never had a problem with these.  If you plan on using them for a few years, they're worth their weight in gold, I have a couple that are close to 20 years old and have no issues whatsoever.  The C-clamp goes over the rail of your canoe, and I use two pieces of plywood, 1/2 or 3/8's ect... square blocks about 3"x3" held together by a piece of webbing 6 to 7 inches long... just stapled onto the blocks.  You need these if you're using a Kevlar (or similar) canoe.  With aluminum and probably any plastic variety, you just clamp em on.  When in the back of  the canoe I typically put the rod holder just in front of the first crossbar, though that will vary by canoe type and your preference.  

As for what and how deep I troll, it just depends on the situation.  I am first off extremely partial to Rapala lures, they are the best things I have ever used for this situation.  I base most of my decisions on the average lake depth that I will be in with adjustments to what I see.  For instance, I just got back from a trip starting on Snowbank lake.  I don't have a single thing in my tackle box that I would be afraid to troll through most of Snowbank, same goes for many other deep lakes.  McKenzie maps are great for getting average depth ideas.  Other than that, I look for points of land/islands that will possibly indicate where there is underwater structure.  When I go in the fall, I try to stay more than 12-15 feet deep if the lake allows due to typically warmer water ect.  With your trip being in June you may be able to get away with going shallower, though I'll defer to someone who fishes more than me on that subject.  Just to give a for instance, on our way back out last week, we went through Dissapointment lake.  I trolled almost exclusively with my Rapala Tail Dancer 20' trolling depth.  (different sizes go different depths, they mark em)  With that lure I did quite well with Smallies and Pike, no walleye though.  That may be due to wrong approach or just fishing at the wrong time as the fishing in general was slow.   Dissapointment had a "average" depth of 30' in the middle of the lake so I figured I was going to be safe most of the time.  In that case it proved out true, but it won't always.  Earlier in the week I was on Thomas Lake which gets over 100' deep in several areas, but found lots of shallow areas and underwater structure.  

If you don't mind snagging up from time to time and heading back to try to pull your lure free then it's a great way to fish as you're traveling.  You probably lose a little time due to snags, caught fish, and the overall drag caused by the lures, but I feel the tradeoff is well worth it.  With trolling I've found many areas that I can go back and fish later, specifically for bass and walleye as they tend to school.  Without that I'd be lost as I am not a serious fisherman by any stretch of the imagination.  All of my 35"+ pike and 25"+ walleye in minnesota have been taken with this method so again I can't recomend it highly enough. 

I'm going to close with a shameless plug for a specific lure, Big Joshy Swimbaits... if for nothing else than my cousin makes em.  But they work for me, I figgure they'll work for anyone.  http://www.bigjoshyswimbaits.com/

All the best, have fun and good luck fishing. 

Tuck,

For solitude and decent walleye fishing, I would also recommend Alpine.  It is out at the end of the Gunflint trail, one portage out from Seagull.  Lots of walleyes, particularly in late May and early June in the channel on the NE side of the lake.  Just something to note for future trips.  I highly recommend Rapala lures also.  I was running 5'-9' lures and some 3'-5' shallow runners and caught fish on both this week.  I tend to use the shallow lures for smallies and northern in the coves and around grass/structure and the mid depth or deep lures for trolling.  Campsite 345 is definitely the better campsite on the channel.  We caught walleye while fishing from the campsite.  First round of mayflies were hatching yesterday (Saturday 06/04/17)

Quick shout out to Deb and crew at Seagull Outfitters.  They were awesome.

CJS