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6/14/10
Water temps are dropping and ice fishing season is right around the corner. I awoke to ice on the pond in my back yard the other day. The ducks and geese who have called the pond home for months had a hurried look about them as they continued to feed in the open water areas. I have not been fishing but hope to hit the Mississippi river with my new 8 weight rod for a few smallies. Deer season has most Minnesota sportsmen out in the woods. If you haven't put your boat away for the winter like I have then get out on an area lake and take advantage of the warm weather. I too will be headed out for whitetail in a week. Make sure you check the blog for details on the hunt.
6/14/10
Water temps in the high 60s has most spawning activities complete for all but the latest spawners like bluegills. Weed growth is surprisingly slow with the warm spring we have had. Look for fish shallow and look for the thicker weed growth. A recent cold snap had fish a little less active so slow down until the temps return to a little more normal.
3/12/10
Weather has been very warm and rainy and ice conditions are getting sketchy at best. Won't be long and I will start bank fishing for carp as they move into the open, warmer north end of lakes in schools. Otherwise get your gear ready for open water.
1/24/10
Rain over the last couple days has sloppy conditions on top of area lakes. It should
also encourage feeding down below. 1/100 and 1/64 oz jigs tipped with a wax worm
has produced both crappies and gills in 14-
1/15/10
I have been out in my recently acquired wheel house and catching panfish on the outside
weed lines. 2 pound test and a 1/100 or 1/64 oz jig tipped with a wax worm has been
my main tools. Night bite has been 16 feet down over 22-
12/28/09
Happy Holidays! Guys have been out on area lakes for a couple weeks now. Ice conditions were starting to get real good before the recent big snowfall, over a foot through most of the metro. Most lakes will have slush conditions now and for probably another week at least. I have been out a couple times and have struggled to find active fish. I have heard reports of decent crappie catches being caught but I have not been targeting them. Guess I should be. Another week or two till we can drive on the ice. Then I will make a harder attack on them.
12/6/09
A Very Warm November has us a little behind on ice making. The pond in my back yard did finally freeze over this past week. Weather forecasts have us below freezing for the next week. Hopefully we will get hard water soon. Check my blog soon for a complete list of winter fishing events.
11/9/09
This is the time of year when fishing takes a back seat to hunting for me. Smallies can be caught on the rivers right now but the deer are starting to rut and the ducks are in the air. After a very wet October, Farmers have finally started to get the crops out of the fields. That means Pheasant hunting will start to improve on the public land. Send us your hunting pics and we will get them posted for you.
9/19/2009
Water temps have remained high with our unseasonably warm weather. This has fish
staying in the deep haunts typical for summer. Weed growth has started to diminish
however so find good weeds and you will probably find concentrations of fish. Texas
rig crawfish patterns for bass and don't be afraid to throw frog imitations once
the sun gets high. Look for healthy pads. Many have started to brown. The bigger
bluegills are holding on the deeper weed edges from 14-
6/9/2009
The Bass spawn has pretty much finished and Blue Gills have now taken over the shallows
in most area lakes. Water temps in the high 60's had the shallows alive last week
but a severe cold snap has slowed much of that down and dropped the water temps back
into the low 60's. Work heavy cover in the 4-
5/25/2009
65 degree water had bass on beds this weekend while I was out on Minnetonka. We managed a couple fish on the outside weed line too that looked to be pre spawn still. Winds and clouds prevented us from doing any sight fishing.
5/20/2009
Warm weather will most likely have bass on the beds for this weekends opener. Check your water temps as some may have already done their thing. Should be a great chance at fishing all three phases of the spawn. The walleye opener was met with cool weather. I managed to get out and catch a few small northerns on Super Vibrax spinners. High winds the past week have kept many anglers off the water. Musky guys have a couple more weeks before they can get out there on June 6th.
4/30/2009
Weather has been very warm. A recent cold snap however will probably slow the bite. Look for gills and crappies up shallow and look at northern bays first. They will tend to warm fastest. I haven't been out much but did catch a few white bass on the Mississippi river near St Paul a few days ago. Walleye opener is right around the corner!
4/10/2009
Warm days have melted most of the ice on many lakes. Some southern bays may still have ice on them however. Check your local conditions before heading out. Carp are up in the warm shallows. Crappies I can only assume are not far behind but I haven't chased after them yet. Get the dust off your boat and get out on a lake near you.
2/12/2009
Three days and nights in the mid 30's to 40's with rain have all but eliminated our snow cover. Lake conditions were a little sloppy, but colder weather is moving in and should allow things to solidify again. I have heard that auger extensions are needed on many lakes like Mille Lacs, Leech, and Winnie. Especially if fishing out of a wheel house or permanent. You can get away without one if fishing in the open in the Minneapolis metro area. I haven't been out on the ice but can only assume the warmer weather would heat up the bite some. I did go out on the upper Mississippi last weekend to try for a few Smallies but only managed one two pounder. Everyone we talked to said it had gotten real slow.
Good luck out there and let me know if you catch any.
“Fishing is much more than casting and retrieving and playing your catch. It’s the wind in your face, and the sound of wakening birds as the sun peeks over the horizon. It’s discovering the magic in each new place and unlocking the mysteries that lurk above and below the surface.”
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Are they biting? How did you do? Etc....
