Spring Fishing

[John Myhre]

As we go into the memorial weekend it looks like we are finally past the cooler weather and water temps are on the rise. Yesterday I saw then soot from 60 to as high as 65 in the shallows where we were fishing. Crappies have been in and out, depending on the lake you are on, but this warm up should put them shallow. If you are not finding them shallow, look just out in say 6 to 10 feet, thats were we were finding them Friday. But keep your bobber set at around 2 or 3 feet, that seemed to produce the best bite and they definately prefered minnows over the plastics.
Walleyes we have been finding shallow in the evenings which we usually do at this time every year. I often schedule guide trips in the afternoon to evening or half days in the evening this time of year as I find that to usually produce the best walleye fishing. Us a light jig with a minnow and keep moving. The lighter jigs keep you from hanging up on the weeds and moving allows you to find more active walleyes. We have been finding them in anywhere from 4 to 8 feet most of the time in the evenings but deeper during the day. They are starting to hit leeches so if you find a good spot that holds some fish you can anchor down and set out slip bobbers with leeches too, but stick with the jig and keep moving till you find them. Lately it seems that small areas are often molding more fish so it pays to move till you find a concentration of them.
With the musky season opening and the water warming the action for them should steadily get better as the water warms and weeds develop. But on opener I will be trying smaller baits and soft plastics for the most part looking for action. Smaller baits are generally better early however if do not overlook the larger baits totally. With the right weather conditions I have seen some of the seasons best muskies come on big baits early in the season. Really, consider what is small to a 50 inch fish? In short, if you think conditions are right for then to turn on, don't be afraid to throw something like a big minnow bait.
Bass action has also been good. As of yet we have not been targeting them but have still been picking them up while fishing for walleyes and panfish. Bass fishing for both largemouth and smallmouth in the Hayward area is currently about as good as you will find almost anywhere so if you enjoy fun fishing and just plain catching lots of nice fish try bass fishing this summer.
On a side note, If you would like to learn more about fishing and have a great day on the water try a day on the water with one of the many great guides in the Hayward area. Along with regular guide trips I am offering something new, a 3 hour family instructional guide trip, 2 adults + 2 children.
Hope you all have a great holiday weekend