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Posts: 696
Location: Northern Illinois | My parents are in the process of purchasing a lot on Big Lake on the Wisconsin side of the Cisco Chain of Lakes. I have never fished it but obviously that will change if they do indeed purchase this lot.
Questions:
1) What are the types of structure that are commonly fished?
2) Water clarity? (Lure colors)
3) Night bite?
4) Lure choices? (Specific lures that people have been successful with)
5) Specific lakes better than others?
6) What other species are good on the Chain?
Any other information is appreciated!
Thanks! |
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Posts: 1036
| Hey Brett. I fished the Cisco a few times last spring, but for walleyes. I was guided for one day by Rob Manthei and he really knows the chain well, for muskies and walleyes. If you really want to learn it, hire him a time or two.
We did very, very well on walleyes. Rob said that there was a very good smallie population in the chain and crappies were good too. And he does like the musky fishing in the Chain.
http://www.robmanthei.com/
715 477 2042
The chain seemed to be a little dark as far as water color. Tons of structure. Some good weeds/weedlines, good contour drop offs and good rock reefs. Nice islands to fish too. Lots of timber close to shore that should hold muskies. |
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Posts: 572
Location: Germantown, WI | Nice chain, fun to fish. So much structure..... I did welll on bass the few times I've fished it.
Question- can a wi guide cross into Michigan to guide? Heard that they couldn't from a wi guide I tried to hire a few years ago on this chain? Also told me that you can't hold guide licenses in both states..... Manthai better be careful if that is true or he will loose his guide license!
Edited by dward 4/11/2013 9:56 PM
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Posts: 393
Location: Hopefully on the water | Brett, you can fish any type of structure out there that you prefer. There is a bunch to offer in the chain. My Inlaws had a lot out there for 4 years. We loved it and saw fish at any ace we thought looked good and some that we just screwed around on. Water clarity changes throughout the chain so you can find what ever you alter looking for. North into Michigan was clearer water and the WI side we tend to found darker water comparing to the MI side of things. Buy both your WI&MI liscense and enjoy it.
Other species out there are plenty. Bass, walleye & panfish can be caught in lots of places. It is a great body of water up there. |
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Posts: 1453
Location: Kronenwetter, WI | dward - 4/11/2013 9:54 PM
Nice chain, fun to fish. So much structure..... I did welll on bass the few times I've fished it.
Question- can a wi guide cross into Michigan to guide? Heard that they couldn't from a wi guide I tried to hire a few years ago on this chain? Also told me that you can't hold guide licenses in both states..... Manthai better be careful if that is true or he will loose his guide license!
I would go out on a limb here and say rob might know what he's doing. |
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Posts: 572
Location: Germantown, WI | Sure. I was just sharing what I heard from a guide I tried to hire about 5 years ago. |
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Posts: 1036
| Cowboyhannah - 4/11/2013 10:38 PM
dward - 4/11/2013 9:54 PM
Nice chain, fun to fish. So much structure..... I did welll on bass the few times I've fished it.
Question- can a wi guide cross into Michigan to guide? Heard that they couldn't from a wi guide I tried to hire a few years ago on this chain? Also told me that you can't hold guide licenses in both states..... Manthai better be careful if that is true or he will loose his guide license!
I would go out on a limb here and say rob might know what he's doing.
Thank you for posting that.
And to be fair, we were fishing walleye on opening week. We fished only Wisconsin water. |
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Posts: 10
| I have a cabin on Thousand Island and agree with the other posters. Water clarity varies on location on the chain, with the clearest water found on Thousand Isalnd and the 3 small lakes to the north -- the 2 Africas and Record. Varied structure throughout the chain, including rock bars, humps, islands, points and weeds. Bass population appears on the rise, both species. Musky -- and walleye for that matter -- seem more numerous on WI side, though size is smaller.
I've fished with Bruce Becker a couple of times and as long as you have both a WI and MI license, you can go anywhere. |
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Posts: 572
Location: Germantown, WI | Then my information was probably wrong. Maybe it was his way of saying he didn't want to guide on that body of water. Wasn't trying to ruffle anyone's feathers. |
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Posts: 2515
Location: Waukesha & Land O Lakes, WI | Brett Carroll - 4/11/2013 8:29 AM
My parents are in the process of purchasing a lot on Big Lake on the Wisconsin side of the Cisco Chain of Lakes. I have never fished it but obviously that will change if they do indeed purchase this lot.
Questions:
1) What are the types of structure that are commonly fished?
2) Water clarity? (Lure colors)
3) Night bite?
4) Lure choices? (Specific lures that people have been successful with)
5) Specific lakes better than others?
6) What other species are good on the Chain?
Any other information is appreciated!
Thanks!
I have a place on Palmer, but do a bunch of fishing on the Chain, mostly on Big Lake.
There's a ton of water on that chain and my suggestion would be to pick it apart starting with Big. My first question to you would be, where is your place going to be located? Not looking for an address or anything, but starting close to home is always a good start.
Big lake's water clarity is above average when not in bloom, it's clarity has helped me emensely with the night bite for walleyes over the years. It's a very good place to start to learn how to approach different structures. It offers rolling bottoms, sunken islands, some weeds, really nice points and some sharp drops.
Problem is the Rusty Crays. The weed edge I caught on of my biggest fish on about 14 years ago is now nothing but sand. |
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Posts: 696
Location: Northern Illinois | The place will be on the West Shoreline in the southern part of the lake just below the channel that leads to West Bay. |
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Posts: 1036
| If it were me, I'd throw topwater on that dropoff in the chanel between the two lakes in the evening. Work the drop, then around the island, then the shoreline in the chanel with all the wood. |
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Posts: 2515
Location: Waukesha & Land O Lakes, WI | Brett Carroll - 4/16/2013 7:54 AM
The place will be on the West Shoreline in the southern part of the lake just below the channel that leads to West Bay.
There's some really nice humps out in front of your place. If you start there and work north, rolls. Work south twords the Cisco Chain marina, you'll run into weeds. |
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