Wannabe Tullibee Angler in Bemidji looking for tips

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Spruce
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Wannabe Tullibee Angler in Bemidji looking for tips
I'm a student at BSU in the Bemidji area interested in trying to target tullibee/cisco. I accidentally caught a couple 'bees while walleye fishing, but never targeted them. I've fished the Bemidji area countless times for walters and perch and even started off my semester slamming in some slab bowfin in the area but I've never fished cisco. I tied up a few flasher rigs with spoons and tiny tungsten jigs for the tullibee (something I saw online). I have seen a dead tullibee at Diamond Point and was interested in trying for them on that pond, but am also open to maybe trying Cass or another lake if they have good numbers (I'm just looking for a fun bite more than size as I don't feel like keeping any). I did catch a nice-sized one in Big Lake one time on a Leech Spoon. I've done a bit of looking into the sorts of places people sometimes find them. Any tips/recommendations for general areas or techniques would be helpful, thanks!
Corey
Corey's picture
Tullibee

First, have you read my artical here:

https://www.roughfish.com/content/tactics-and-equipment-catching-winter-ciscos

Second, having fished ciscoes in many different lakes, it's important to realize that in some lakes they are just about impossible. Mostly lakes where they run small and feed on plankton. Look at the Lakefinder reports. If they top out at under a foot, that's a lake where the numbers might be high but catching them is very tough.

Second, if it's a big lake with resorts and ice house rentals and whatnot, they almost always know the spots. Talk to them. Otherwise, on big lakes, they can be very hard to locate. You're better off trying to find a smaller lake with a good population of large-ish tullibees, because on a smaller lake it's hard to be completely wrong about where you look for them. While on a large lake, you really need to know where they like to be. Every lake is different. For example - Leech: very difficult. Mille Lacs: pretty easy, if you talk to a resort that tells you exactly where to go. Pillager: easy but pressured. Lake Bemidji: I have no idea, seems like a few big ones, so if you talk to a resort or bait shop they might know a spot. Otherwise, look for deep mud flats, points, dropoffs, and deep channels connecting major lake basins.

Hope this helps.

 

Spruce
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Pillager

Tried Pillager yesterday, managed to scrape out two 'bees and a small bluegill. I fished in about 42-45 feet in the northern section of the lake. I marked lots of fish, but only some chased and very few committed to biting. The water clarity seemed strangely poor where I drilled some of my holes, so I'm not sure if that had anything to do with it. Was an interesting experience, I'll probably try it again soon. The two 'bees I caught were on just a tungsten jig tipped with a couple waxies, but I missed a bite on my spoon and jig flasher rig.

Koehn Bakken

Spruce
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I will say, I definitely had

I will say, I definitely had forgotten how long that tulibee smell lingers in a shack! Think I'm going to start calling them Stank Trout or something along those lines lol

Koehn Bakken