Hi,
I'm looking for advice on a lake to fish for game fish in Minnesota. We have a party of 8 experienced fishermen and require only nice cabins with a fireplace and preferably A/C. All we need are:a place that rents boats and motors,access to guides and a resturant or pub.Rustic is fine, as long as it's clean.Plentiful fishing is a proirity. Any help is greatly appreciated. Brad

You're looking for a lake recommendation in Minnesota? I'll monitor this thread to see what everyone says. Are you looking for walleye? pike? trout? Assuming your preference for A/C says that you will be there in the summer and won't like to go ice-fishing?

I know nothing about fishing in MN, even though I live here. But, if you're looking for all of these things, I'd suggest contacting some guide service and getting recommendations from them, especially if you're going to be using a guide. They are the experts when it comes to these things, especially the "plentiful fishing" part, which I would think is rather important.

Well I guess I'm your man on this question. I live in the county with the most lakes of any in Minnesota. 1100. But there are just too many cabin resorts to even give suggestions and all the lakes have game fish. The best way to go about it would be to Google minnesota fishing resorts. Many cabin resorts have their own web sites and there are sites which list amenities and contact info on hundreds of resorts.

Have fun up here in Minnesota, land of uff-da and 10,000 lakes.

I found a site which lists some good places for fishing.

http://www.resortsandlodges.com/lodg...minnesota.html

If you want to go waaaay up north, here is DH's favorite place . . . they ate walleye for breakfast, lunch and supper and brought home the legal limit too. Pretty big water, if that's what you're looking for . . . they all used downriggers, etc.
http://www.lakeofthewoodsmn.com/fishing.asp

For luxury, I'd say the Gull Lake area around Brainerd/Nisswa is tops.

For rustic and scenic with better fishing, I'd steer visitors to either the Gunflint Trail lakes (nice benefit is the North Shore Drive) or the Vermilion-Crane Lake-Kabetogama area.

Check the North East or North Central regions on jorr's link.

http://www.resortsandlodges.com/lodg...ota/index.html

I'm from MN, Lake of the woods was a graet reccommendation, but most of these recs are far north. BWCA is the most perfect place to go IMHO, but if you want somewhere not quite as far from MSP, I would recommend Lake Millacs, try googling it. Try this link to explore your options http://www.invominnesota.com/index.html

Minnesotan here. I had to laugh at your post (no offense). My husband wanted to know what was so funny, so I read it to him. His advice: "Close your eyes and point at the map."

You've had some good suggestions here. I second the Boundary Waters Canoe Area as THE best experience in Minnesota, but that is a paddle-only, wilderness camping experience - no motors allowed, no resorts, just backpacks and canoes (which you have to carry between lakes). Probably not what you're looking for.

Lake of the Woods, Leech Lake, Lake Mille Lacs (previous poster misspelled, so use this one if you Google), Brainerd Lakes area, Detroit Lakes area, Alexandria, Lake Kabetogama along the Canadian border, Gunflint Trail area, lakes around Ely (I like Shagawa - this area is a major entry point to the Boundary Waters, so even if you don't do a wilderness trip, you're right there on the edge), Grand Rapids area, Bemidji area...

In your position, I'd decide how far north I want to go, then search the Web for some resorts that look like what you want, then search for fishing reports in those areas.

Or, if you narrow it down, post back and we'll try to help with some more specific recommendations.

Welcome to our 11,842 lakes! (That's the real number; we're just being modest with that whole "Land of 10,000 Lakes" thing.)

My mom has a cottage on Deer Lake (just north of Grand Rapids on SR 38), so we go up there every year. Even though I didn't personally make it this year, my brother said the fishing has been unusually good this summer. It's a beautiful area!

As much as I love Lake of the Woods,whi9ch I've fished for more than 40 years on and off, if the OP was going there I'd suggest the Canadian side where the lake isn't so wide open and accomodations are a bit better. Most of the resorts out of Baudette lack charm and the scenery isn't great. It's a great meat fishery on the Minny side, but not a ``classic'' fishing experience -- if that's what the OP wants.

That's basically the story at Mille Lacs as well. The resorts there aren't all that much -- with the exception of Izaty's -- which is more geared to golf there days and has condos instead of cabins.

If the OP wants boats and motors, the BWCA won't work, but for the best scenery, lodges and fishing, I'd suggest concentrating on the northeast quadrant of the state.

Another option: rent a houseboat on Rainy Lake or Lake of the Woods.

As much as I love Lake of the Woods,which I've fished for more than 40 years on and off, if the OP was going there I'd suggest the Canadian side where the lake isn't so wide open and accomodations are a bit better. Most of the resorts out of Baudette lack charm and the scenery isn't great. It's a great meat fishery on the Minny side, but not a ``classic'' fishing experience -- if that's what the OP wants.

That's basically the story at Mille Lacs as well. The resorts there aren't all that much -- with the exception of Izaty's -- which is more geared to golf there days and has condos instead of cabins.

If the OP wants boats and motors, the BWCA won't work, but for the best scenery, lodges and fishing, I'd suggest concentrating on the northeast quadrant of the state.

Another option: rent a houseboat on Rainy Lake or Lake of the Woods.