10 Fishing Conditions (Read 16963 times)
Fishslayer89
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Fishing Conditions
May 23rd, 2005 at 1:34am
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this year seems to be cool so far... any guesses at how the fishing during the week of June 19 will be affected? will smb be catchable? will the eyes, northerns, and trout stay really shallow?
  
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Old Salt
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Re: Fishing Conditions
Reply #1 - May 23rd, 2005 at 2:32am
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Everything will be catchable. The weather will stabilize and be really, really nice, with highs in the upper 70's, and lows in the low-mid 60's. The sun will shine each day, and the breezes will be gentle. No storms, no worries. Leave the raingear at home, and pack only shorts and t-shirts. Wink 8) 8)

As for the fishing, jigs will work the best, followed by crankbaits, then spinnerbaits. Fish will range in depth from 0-60', except for lakers. Wink I ain't tellin where they will be. Wink

If you're wondering how I know this, its the same week Snowdog and I will be in Q, and we always plan for this kind of weather on this week in June. 8) 8) Trade secret. 8)
  
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VoyageurNorth
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Re: Fishing Conditions
Reply #2 - May 23rd, 2005 at 6:11am
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Right now northern pike are a little slow but the smallmouth are biting pretty well.

Walleyes are doing better when you use a rainbow or fathead minnow.

Not much of anyone buying crawlers right now.
  
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Fishslayer89
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Re: Fishing Conditions
Reply #3 - May 23rd, 2005 at 10:33am
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thanks, so what depth will the eyes be at? more shallow because of the cool weather? sorry to be so nitt picky but I am a good angler for everything but eyes and desperstely want to catch some
  
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Pondo
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Re: Fishing Conditions
Reply #4 - May 23rd, 2005 at 10:41am
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FS-
If you find a bunch of Smallies, you can usually find Walleyes in the same area, just a little deeper.
  
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MooseTrack
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Re: Fishing Conditions
Reply #5 - May 23rd, 2005 at 12:29pm
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This weeks guiding was a bit tough for eyes.  Basswood surface temps were 45-50 and the eyes were a bit finicky.  Spinner rigs tipped w/ minnows were the ticket when fished shallow and slow.  Smallies were getting more aggressive.  Caught some big northers in the bays!  Walleye fishing should improve with some stable weather.   Smiley
  
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Mk631
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Re: Fishing Conditions
Reply #6 - May 23rd, 2005 at 1:58pm
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Quote:
thanks, so what depth will the eyes be at? more shallow because of the cool weather? sorry to be so nitt picky but I am a good angler for everything but eyes and desperstely want to catch some


You still have time to pick up & digest "A Boundary Waters Fishing Guide" by Michael Furtman.  It's a good resource for all the Big-4 species.

I'd give you actual advice, but most of the walleye I've caught have been by accident.  Someone said recently that you catch most of them near dusk, and I've seen that before even close to the surface at that time of day.

edit...I found the quote...
Quote:
you can catch 80% of your walleyes the hour, hour and one half right before dark in water under 10 feet.  Soon as the sun hits the treetops be ready for some quick action.  If you can stand the wind, try shallow rocky bays that the wind is blowing into.  Good luck. --------Pax
  
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Snow_Dog
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Re: Fishing Conditions
Reply #7 - May 23rd, 2005 at 3:58pm
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Fishslayer,

Best advice is to troll as you paddle.  Stay in the 10-25 foot zone as much as possible (easier with a depthfinder, but not too difficult to guesstimate without) as you troll.  Use shad raps, walley divers, large husky jerks, #18 floating rap, or the like.  Odds are, you'll scratch up a mixed bag which includes walleye.  You'll catch more pike and possibly bass than walleye, of course, but I've put many a walleye on the stringer while trolling just this way.

Anytime you catch a walleye and you have time, you can stop and fish the area more thoroughly with your favorite walleye presentation (jig, slip bobber, lindy rig, whatever).  Odds are if there was one walleye around, there's more, and if that one walleye was aggressive enough to hit a crank, then some of the other walleye will be willing to bite a slower presentation.
  
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Snow_Dog
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Re: Fishing Conditions
Reply #8 - May 23rd, 2005 at 4:22pm
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Pax was also correct about hitting shorelines that have been pounded by the wind.  The longer the wind has been blowing from the same direction, the better.  Focus on the 8-20 ft depth first, then slide up closer and attack the area from the shoreline to 8 ft deep or so.  An anchor makes all this far easier.  Obviously this works best if its on a reef, island, point, or whatever that's got good walleye habitat to start with.  If you are trying to fish a smooth granite shelf you are wasting your time.

Start with a medium-deep crank that runs down 8-12 feet or so and just crank it right down the dropoff or parallel to it.  If walleye are active, they'll hit it and it's lots faster and easier than traditional walleye fishing.  Once you've caught any active fish in this area and the action's slowed, slide up shallower and use a shallow-running crank.  If it floats you can cast right up next to shore.  I have been amazed at times how shallow these fish can be in the middle of the day.  I have caught them in 2 feet of water under these conditions, even with the sun out as long as the wind is blowing at a decent clip.  You'll probably nail some bass in this close, too.

A couple years back I took my nephew (Old Salt's son) out to just such a place.  We'd passed it every day for most of a week as we fished a 10' reef in the middle of Cirrus.  The reef produced quite a few walleye, but it wasn't real fast fishing most of the time.  My nephew wanted to fish bass, so I slid up to the windward side of an island just off a point with lots of rubble on the shoreline of both island and point and anchored at about 12 feet.  From the bow, this gave him great access to the shoreline and we tied into a couple of bass quickly before the action slowed.  I fired a cast out to the side and had a strike as soon as my lure banged off the first rock.  Walleye.  Another cast.  Another walleye.  Another cast.  Another walleye.  My nephew lost interest in the bass and tied on a walley diver as well.  Pretty soon we were both catching walleye fast and furious and he was grinning from ear to ear.  We nailed about a dozen walleye off that spot in 20 min or so before the action slowed.  The sun was out the whole time and it was early afternoon, definitely not "traditional" walleye conditions.  The constant wind against that shore for about 3 days straight was the key.
  
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Kingfisher
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Re: Fishing Conditions
Reply #9 - May 24th, 2005 at 4:49am
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 I fired a cast out to the side and had a strike as soon as my lure banged off the first rock.  Walleye.  Another cast.  Another walleye.  Another cast.  Another walleye.

Some good information by all. I want to emphasize the point above. Don't be afraid to bang rocks regularly with your crankbaits as this is sometimes the key to triggering strikes. I've used a sinking rattle trap to find the bottom even in deeper water and "dig" it all the way back on the retrieve. They seem to hold up to it pretty well and usually don't snag. Make sure to check your last 2 feet of line for nicks and abrasion often and retie if needed. Don't want to lose the big one!
  
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