Photo by Ron Sinfelt.

Minnesota's heartland is loaded with lakes -- beautiful lakes that are absolutely loaded with fish.

The Brainerd area lays claim to the lion's share of these waters, and Gull Lake is probably the most prominent and the first one that comes to mind, especially if you're thinking about walleyes. Year after year, Gull consistently produces walleyes as a direct result of natural reproduction combined with regular stocking efforts.

However, as good as Gull can be, there are other less obvious lakes that have the potential to produce even better results, but only if you give them a try.

Some of the better options are completely overlooked by most anglers simply because they don't fall into the "classic walleye lake" category and are more apt to be classified as bass/panfish lakes. Most of the Brainerd-area lakes are of the bass/panfish variety, but don't be fooled, because there's walleye gold in those lakes.

Consistent stocking programs have helped bolster existing walleye populations and have also created fisheries where they did not exist, and it's the latter that gets overlooked most often. Natural producers like Gull already have a reputation for kicking out walleyes and receive more than their share of attention. Attention means pressure that can result in a well-educated audience and fewer biters to go around.

North Long, Round and even the upper lakes of the Gull Chain are more apt to fall into the bass/panfish category but do have fishable populations of walleyes, and receive a lot less pressure. Those in the know have been cashing in on this incredible opportunity for years and have tried to keep a lid on the good news. Solid numbers of fish in the 15- to 20-inch range is what the fuss is all about, and that can make for a quality experience no matter where you are.

They say that timing's everything, and there's no doubt that the first-ice period is probably your best bet for hooking up with "off the radar" walleyes. There are many great opportunities for getting your pole bent, but it's just that you may have to make a logistical change, or adjust your tactics.

"I like to get out as soon as possible, but I'm not willing to walk that far for it," said professional angler and full-time Nisswa guide Richie Boggs. "By early January, you can usually find safe ice everywhere, and I can pretty much go wherever I want, which opens up all kinds of options. When I start working main-lake structure, I'll wait until there's enough ice to safely support a four-wheeler or a snowmobile. There are just too many spots to check out and only so much time in a day, and you can't cover enough ice on foot."

Even though there are plenty of other great opportunities close by, Boggs can't ignore Gull and will still spend at least some of his time working specific areas that he has confidence in.

"Gull has it all, including slow-tapering flats that break quickly into deeper water, as well as a ton of offshore structure like deeper bars and humps," Boggs said. "It has hard sand breaks, breaks with gravel, breaks with rocks, as well as rock- or gravel-covered humps. It also has hard breaks off of old weedlines, which is another potential hotspot.

"A lot of anglers concentrate on the main lake, but there are fish from one end to the other, including the southern bays of Wilson and Steamboat," Boggs continued. "I'll start with breaks in the main lake or back in a bay, head for the humps, and then maybe move back to the breaks or maybe to another lake."

Pro fisherman John Janousek of Nisswa is another fan of Gull Lake.

"Anglers will start with shoreline breaks and then completely give up on them once they head for the deeper structure," Janousek said. "They'll spend the rest of the season driving right over active fish trying to find the next hotspot, but they could be missing out!"