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Bemidji Area Lakes MN
Fishing
Anglers are finding crappies moving into the
shallows in many lakes. The best activity has generally been
later in the day, after the sun has had a chance to warm the
water. Crappies move into the shallows to feed this time of
year, with bass, crappies and sunnies usually spawning when
water temperatures reach between 68- and 72-degrees. Crappie
anglers can often tell if crappies are male or female in the
spring, and this is helpful when practicing selective harvest
and returning large females to the water. Male crappies are
much darker, with dark scales on their cheek plates and
heavier black spots down their sides all the way to the bottom
of the fish. Female crappies, on the other hand, have light
colored cheek plates and their black spots are less dense,
especially towards the bottom of the fish.
Detroit Lakes Area MN Fishing
The panfish bite remains good on area lakes.
Anglers are having the most success on warm and sunny days.
Most crappies have been suspended a few feet down in 4-9 feet
of water. The best approach has been a small jig under a
bobber and tipped with minnow or plastic. Sunfish seem to be
biting everywhere in the shallows. Stay on the move until you
locate a school of larger fish.
Lake Mille Lacs MN Fishing
Lots of crappies have been pulled from the
channels and harbors. While recent cooler temperatures have
brought this action to a halt, milder temperatures are causing
the action to heat up once again. Flu flus in a pink or white,
tipped with a panfish leech or crappie minnow seems to be
working best. Some anglers also recommend a purple or blue
lindy toad. Bay and Borden have been good producers. Expect
the shallows to give up the majority of fish, especially
during lowlight hours. Once the 2012 fishing season
opens on May 12, there will be a new 17-28 inch protected slot
for Lake Mille Lacs walleye, and one walleye 28-inches or
longer may be included in the four-fish limit. DNR fisheries
staff expect the good winter bite to carry over into this
summer.
Lake of the Woods MN
Fishing
Hard water walleye action was exceptional
earlier this year, and all signs point to similar fishing
success as of May 12. A large lake specialist reports that 14-
to 20-inch walleye are more abundant than usual this year,
with walleye measuring 12- to 14-inches not as prevalent.
Sauger measuring 12- to 15-inches are also more abundant this
year. The Lake of the Woods fishery is healthy and in position
to keep anglers happy.
Rainy Lake MN Fishing
Sand Bay has been a great spot for walleye
action on Rainy Lake.
Lake Waconia MN Fishing
Crappie
anglers have been taking good numbers of fish from Lake
Waconia. Most of the action coming from 7-9 feet of water in
Waconia Bay. A good perch bite also being reported, with quite
a few keepers mixed in.
White Bear Lake MN Fishing
Crappies are biting on White Bear and Bald
Eagle lakes. Most of the fish can be found in 7-8 feet of
water. Anglers fishing White Bear Lake report lots of 11- to
12-inch fish.
Willmar Area Lakes Fishing
Fishing has been very good for anglers pursuing
crappies and sunnies, especially on sunny, warm days. Areas to
check out include Florida, Andrew, Long, Willmar and Foot
lakes, as well as Diamond Lake's Dogfish Bay, and all bays on
Nest Lake.
Minnesota Fishing Tips
Minnesota Walleye Fishing
Try to target any piece of
shoreline structure that sustained wind and waves have been
bashing for days. Bait will get pushed into the
structure, and even if the walleyes are holding at varying
levels of the water column, those conditions will pull them to
those kinds of spots.
Minnesota Muskie Fishing
A 10-12 inch sucker is
tough to beat for big muskies. Try fishing just before a
front that's accompanied by an east wind, especially in the
summer for a trophy muskie catch. Here are a few more
tips for successful muskie fishing:
1. Jerkbaits - If a
muskie follows a jerkbait when you're making short hard
twitches, don't abandon those movements when you get to the
boat. Keep slow twitching right into the turn, this is
where a muskie often tags a jerkbait.
2. Minnowbaits - You
can work these baits either fast like a bucktail or with slow
twitches like a jerkbait. Stay consistent. If the
fish follows on twitches, keep twitching. If the muskie
follows on a fast retrieve, maintain that speed.
3. Bucktails - As
soon as you spot a fish on the retrieve, speed up. This
can trigger a strike before you reach the boat. Once in
the 8, keep thing nice and smooth--speed up in the straight
stretches, and slow down on the turn. Keep the turn big
and wide and if the fish won't commit, give the bait a twitch
or two.
4. Long Rods - Use
8-9 foot rods, which get the lure out away from the boat, as
well as deeper. Long fishing rods also ease wide turns
while the extra length allows adding more speed in the
straightaways.
Minnesota Largemouth Bass Fishing
Largemouth bass love to
hang out under heavy cover in the warm summer months.
Here are a few tips on how to land soft, precise underhand
casts for landing that big largemouth bass:
1. The Setup -
Heavy-cover fishing requires strong line - 20 to 25 pound-test
mono. Start with a 1-ounce lure in your left hand about
even with the reel. While keeping slight tension on the
line with your left hand, put the reel in free-spool and press
your right thumb against the spool to prevent any movement.
2. The Swing - Hold
the rod at waist level, extend straight out in front of you.
Your casting-arm elbow should be bent and relaxed. Let
go of the lure to start a pendulum-like swing. As the
lure swings, raise the rod upward and outward by about a foot.
Release thumb pressure on the spool so the lure flies with a
low trajectory. If it lands right in front of you, you
released the spool too soon. A high-flying lure means
you let go too late.
3. The Landing - As
the lure reaches the target, thumb the spool to slow its
flight and lower the rod slightly so the bait hits the water
with a gentle blip. Above all, remember that you're
swinging the lure to make this cast, not throwing it.
Minnesota Smallmouth Bass Fishing
During the warm Minnesota
months, big smallmouth bass seem to turn on when it's really
hot and muggy and the barometer is falling. If you can
fish just before a storm moves in, you'll have a better shot
at a trophy bass. As for water clarity, 3-4 feet of
visibility is a good place to start. Clear water often
makes smallmouth bass more skittish.
Minnesota Jumbo Perch Fishing
Jumbo perch can often be
tough to catch on Minnesota Lakes, here are three tips to help
make that big catch:
1. Tackle - To put
off small perch, try for a walleye-size jig. Dress the
jig with a Berkley 3-inch Power Minnow and tip the hook with a
2-3 inch shiner or fathead.
2. Two-Stage Fishing
- In early June, big perch hug boulder-strewn bottoms in 8-12
feet of water. They're difficult to see on a depthfinder,
so troll these areas until you find them, then anchor and make
short casts. As the water warms, the perch will move
deeper to more gravelly areas, where they're easier to spot on
sonar.
3. Rocks & Gravel -
Key on rocky points and reefs in the lake's main basin,
particularly the edges of these structures where the boulders
transition to gravel. Here, jumbo perch feed on minnows,
crayfish, and any tidbits walleyes leave behind after a
feeding binge.
