Lake of the Prairies Walleye Ice Fishing Smashfest

Early this winter, I had to run an errand in the town of Roblin, Manitoba. Obviously whenever I travel to other parts of the province, I will always have my fishing gear with me. One of the most prominent fishing destinations in the western region is Lake of the Prairies. I have fished Lake of the Prairies for pike previously but never for walleye. I only had one morning to fish there so I figured I would just catch a quick limit, do my errand and head home. Little did I know that I was going to be in for a surprise.

Lake of the Prairies

Lake of the Prairies is a large reservoir that straddles the Manitoba-Saskatchewan border. The Shellmouth Dam on the Assiniboine River was built to control water levels to prevent flooding downstream. There are quite a few underwater features such as humps, points and the old river channel that can be taken advantage of. Lots of access points throughout the lake exist and you can access some decent structure on foot.

Accommodations and supplies can be found in the towns of Russell and Roblin. The area has Manitoba’s best downhill skiing opportunities as well. If you get bored of Lake of the Prairies, there are also many stocked trout opportunities in the area.

While Lake of the Prairies is known for its excellent walleye fishing, big pike, perch and carp can be found as well.

The Equipment

If possible having digital underwater contour maps is extremely crucial as the structure can be difficult to find. Looking at the shoreline will not necessarily tell you exactly where structure is. Finding the old river channel will be impossible. Anglers Edge Mapping (for Lowrance units), Lakemaster Manitoba (for Humminbird units) and both of their mobile versions have maps of Lake of the Prairies. I personally use Angler’s Edge Mapping on my Lowrance unit but as long as you have a map, you’re all set.

Electronics are a must as they help gauge the fish’s behavior and allow you to jig your lure accordingly. If you don’t happen to have mapping, your electronics will be a way to find dropoffs and slopes.

For rods, I prefer a medium action rod or perhaps even two of them. Being able to change presentations quickly can be useful, so I like to have two rods ready and rigged with different styles of lures. Make sure to use a fluorocarbon leader about three or four feet long as it makes your line more invisible.

As for lures bring an assortment of lipless rattling crankbaits, spoons and jigs. Have a tub of salted minnows to tip your spoons and jigs.

I would also bring an IFishPro tip up as my set line. You could also use a deadstick presentation but an IFishPro will allow you to stay further away from your line. Deadsticks require more attention as a fish can drag it down if unattended. You could also use a traditional tip up, though I prefer the IFishPro due to the ability to fight the fish on a rod and reel. Your set line should have a split shot with either a live (preferable) or a salted minnow on a small hook. Having a set line lets me cover more water simultaneously.

Fishing Lake of the Prairies

As I was new to Lake of the Prairies and reservoir walleye fishing, I asked a few contacts in the area for advice and they put me on some general areas to try. Using the maps I was able to find the recommended structure. I arrived in the dark and started fishing when the sun was about to crack above the horizon. It was a warm day with temperatures above zero. I had to walk quite a distance but fortunately the ice was bare making walking very easy.

When I arrived at the slope, I devised a plan. I would start from the shallow water (around 12′ deep) and make my way down gradually to the deep part (around 22′ deep). The maps would allow me to be exactly on the precise location of the slope without having to drill test holes. I would set the IFishPro in the shallow to start while I fished slightly deeper.

It took me a few holes to find the right depth. Soon I started seeing fish on the electronics. Eventually I managed to get into some nice walleyes. The fish were quite aggressive often inhaling the lures deeply. As soon as the bite slowed, I would drill more holes at different depths. I would then move my IFishPro to the hole I just fished.

Eventually I caught the biggest walleye of the day which was 26″ long. The ice was only a few inches thick and was crystal clear so the entire fight could be seen under the ice. You could really see the walleye making small runs and head shakes. I did end up dropping another large walleye right at the hole.

I gradually kept making my way deeper down the point over the morning. Around 10 AM the bite started to slow down considerably. The fish started to become warier and appeared less frequently. Soon it was time to do my errand and I left around noon. I would later learn that Lake of the Prairies has a very time sensitive bite. Morning and evenings are when the action is most heavy.

Overall, I caught about 15-20 walleyes that morning with some very nice sized ones. The IFishPro was not very productive, maybe only catching about three fish. I was actually unable to finish my limit as Lake of the Prairies has a specific slot size that has to be met. Such a regulation is clearly a benefit as the walleye population was very healthy, though it was hard to catch dinner because of it.

Final Words

Honestly I don’t know why I have never fished Lake of the Prairies for walleye before. All I wanted was a limit and it turned out to be a very good bite. While I would not travel there just for the walleye, I might devote a little time there if I’m fishing in the area for other species. I would definitely like to try Lake of the Prairies in open water one day.