Devils Lake Ideal For Fall Cast and Blast

There are several memorable days that stand out for me over the years as a fishing and hunting guide on Devils Lake but I will never forget the first time I heard the phrase “cast and blast” to describe fishing and hunting opportunities taking place in the same day. About ten years ago, I filmed a fishing show with the late Tony Dean and the plan was for him to hunt snow geese in the morning and fish with myself in the afternoon. I don’t remember the number of snow geese the hunters harvested that morning but it was a good day and I remember thinking that I had some big shoes to fill that afternoon out on the lake. After filming for about three hours, we caught approximately twenty walleyes… the largest weighing over nine pounds and the smallest larger than four pounds. All of the fish were released and as we started back for the resort, Tony shook his head and told me there is no other place on earth where you can “cast and blast” like this. I never forgot that.

Today I hear the phrase “cast and blast” used to describe many locations and events but I dare you to find a location that comes close to the quality of waterfowl hunting and walleye fishing that you can find in the Devils Lake basin come fall. Is every day stellar where birds fill the skies and fish bite every lure? Absolutely not but the opportunity is real and present.

Fall walleye fishing on Devils Lake is typically very good with several patterns occurring as summer fades into winter. We see large walleyes show up on shallow shoreline weed locations along with deep rock piles, classic sharp breaking structure and flooded timber. Devils Lake’s walleye population is in prime condition right now and fall is a great period to target these fish. While walleyes do indeed get much of the attention, large northern pike, perch and white bass often cooperate as well. Many of the bait shops and resorts have up to date information on general patterns, depths and locations along with productive baits and lures.

The Devils Lake Basin is ground zero for duck production in the Central Flyway and all forecasts indicate record flights of mallards and several other species. Along with duck numbers that might break historical records, the region is a major staging area for snow geese, sand hill cranes and Canada geese. There are many great opportunities for hunting in the region and the amount of public land is surprising. Some hunters for example just target ducks over water on Devils Lake and there are many ramps to access back bays that hold both divers and puddle ducks. I would recommend reading through the North Dakota Game and Fish Department hunting proclamations to learn about hunting over water out of watercraft in regards to anchoring, use of cover, etc but for hunters who possess boats capable of crossing open water, the lake itself is heaven for duck hunters with little pressure on much of the lake. Besides the big lake which holds a tremendous number of birds at times, notably bluebills and mallards, there are several waterfowl production areas and game management areas open to public hunting. Private land can also be accessed with permission and while not all landowners are receptive to hunters, some great hunting opportunities can be granted with a little effort. As a general rule of thumb, the hunters who put forth the most effort trying to locate landowners, birds and out of the way locations often experience the best hunting. As a hunter, that is all I could ever hope or want is that the opportunities are present and available if I am able to put forth the effort.

There are very few regions that can offer what Devils Lake can for both hunters and anglers in the fall. Some sportsmen just fish or just hunt in the fall but if you get the opportunity, attempt both as hunting and fishing compliment each other so well. For example, conditions like high skies and no wind might make waterfowl hunting difficult but these conditions might be perfect for vertically jigging walleyes off of a twenty foot deep rock pile. On the flip side, twenty five mile per hour winds and a little rain might make fishing difficult but could be the perfect day for duck hunting. The trouble in Devils Lake come fall is that there is typically too much to do outside and not enough days in the season to experience the full gamut of hunting and fishing opportunities present, a nice problem to have indeed. A website I would recommend for planning a hunting or fishing trip in the Devils Lake region is the Devils Lake Tourism website, www.devilslakend.com. By all accounts, this should be a memorable season for both waterfowl hunters and anglers on Devils Lake this upcoming fall season.