When my wife and I were first married, she fished with me quite a bit. She grew up with a sister and two brothers. Each spring her parents would buy the kids a new Zebco 202 rod & reel combo. Her dad told me that it was easier to just replace them each year than to try putting new line on them. I owned one or two of these when the boys were young and they worked great until you needed to replace the line. If you did get it replaced, they did not seem to work all that great, so I understood his logic.
If you are itching to do a little tenting with little cost, the Chippewa National Forest has many opportunities for you.
If you enjoy getting back to basics… The Chippewa National Forest offers a range of camping opportunities! The Forest has several developed campgrounds, but for a more rustic experience, there are over 60 maintained dispersed campsites on the Forest. In addition, most of the Chippewa National Forest is open for primitive camping, which can occur anywhere except in developed sites or where otherwise posted. Dispersed camping is open year-round!
There are no fees for dispersed camping; however, there are some rules intended to protect the resources. Access is typically by foot, boat or canoe. Dispersed campsites are located along most lakes and rivers, offering the perfect opportunity to explore the many canoe routes in the forest.
Each year I visit Spider Lake, and when I do, I and whoever I am with look for an open campsite. We will pull up to one of these designated campsites and have lunch. There are times when all of the campsites are occupied. That’s when you have to improvise. After a few hours of fishing, it is nice to be able to get out of the boat, stretch your legs and eat a little lunch.
I haven’t caught a smallmouth in a couple of years, but the lake has them. Years ago when we camped there, I would hit the lake early in hopes of catching a walleye or two. Smallies would bite just like a walleye, but after you hooked one you knew instantly because the line would tighten, and your lure would be heading straight to the surface. That was always a thrill because they are fighters, and they seem to like to break the surface.
There is one spot that I like to visit each time that I am there. One year I hit that spot in early morning and trolled a Shad Rap across the hump, and when I went off the east end, I would catch a walleye, and when I went off of the west end, I caught smallmouth. Sometimes, when you fish alone and catch fish, you don’t have a witness unless you keep some fish. Keeping legal walleyes is not only proof, but pretty darned tasty to boot. Spider Lake has no slot limit for walleyes, but it does for northern. That slot is 3 keepers 24” and under. Luckily, there are plenty of pike in the 23-inch range which makes them prime for the pan.
There is an abundance of sunfish, but they don’t run all that big. I have found slabs in the fall fishing deepwater humps. Crappies seem to run larger, and I have had pretty good luck with them in late evening during the early summer, and in the fall.
Until next time: If you are looking for a little adventure without going all the way to the Boundary Waters, tenting at one of the many National Forest dispersed camping sites just may be what you are looking for. Go to the DNR website to check out an area that might interest you.
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