As of October 11, 2024, the fishing scene at Lake of the Woods in Minnesota is thriving, especially on the south end. Here’s what you need to know for a successful day on the water.

### Weather and Conditions
The weather has been mild, with cooling water temperatures now at around 64°F, which is ideal for fall fishing. Sunrise today is at 7:34 AM, and sunset will be at 6:23 PM, giving you a full day to catch some great fish.

### Fish Activity
Walleye and sauger fishing remains excellent, with anglers reporting good numbers of fish being caught. Yesterday, many anglers found success in depths ranging from 24 to 31 feet across the south shore of Lake of the Woods. You can expect to catch a mixed bag of fish, including walleyes, saugers, jumbo perch, pike, smallmouth bass, and even the occasional muskie.

### Best Spots
Hot spots include areas right in front of the Lighthouse Gap, where the Rainy River enters Lake of the Woods, and westward to spots near Morris Point, Zippel Bay, and Long Point. The Rainy River itself is also producing some nice walleyes, especially with schools of shiners moving up and down the river.

### Best Lures and Bait
For walleyes and saugers, jigging with frozen or live emerald shiners is highly effective. Successful jig colors in the stained waters include gold, glow white, glow red, chartreuse, orange, and pink, with gold combined with any of these colors often being a good choice. Drifting spinners with night crawlers or trolling crankbaits is also working well. A two-hook crawler harness paired with a spinner blade in colors like gold, gold/pink, pink, orange, glow red, or glow white is a solid go-to setup.

### Additional Tips
Utilize sonar technology to locate schools of fish over deep muddy and sand to mud transition areas. If you're targeting smallmouth bass, the lake and Rainy River are both producing a good bite. Sturgeon fishing is also picking up as water temperatures cool, though it's catch and release from October 1, 2024, to April 2025.

With the right gear and knowledge of these hot spots, you're set for a fantastic day of fishing at Lake of the Woods. Enjoy your time on the water