A fishing report pays off

Got a nice e-mail the other day from AJ Schulz. He and his brother-in-law, Doug Storm, read last week's fishing report and decided to try Ballantyne this past weekend.

AJ reported they got into a few bass, with much of the action coming from the weedlines in the 5 to 10 foot range near the northeast basin.

AJ caught a nice 3 1/2 pound, 18 inch bucketmouth, seen here to the right.

Doug Storm also caught a decent bass (below).

I like receiving these types of e-mails. I say why be afraid to tell someone where you are catching fish? They still have to catch fish themselves, right?

I was fortunate enough to get out this past weekend with fellow staffer Tanner Kent. We both hauled in three apiece at Little Jefferson. Here is my 3-pound, 12 ounce hawg I caught. Not bad considering we fished the day after a tourney wrapped up.

Your weekend fishing report

Sunfish action is the big draw on area lakes right now. Madison Lake continues to kick out sunfish in roughly 8 feet, and bass action remains strong along the shorelines and in weedlines under 10 feet of water.

A few walleyes are hitting crankbaits along the shorelines of Washington in low-light hours. Sunfish action remains excellent on Washington in water less than 8 feet. Small northerns are being taken on Washington as well.

The fishing pier on Little Jefferson is kicking out a consistent sunfish bite on waxworms. Bullhead action is also strong next to the pier, and some crappies are being taken on minnows.

Bass action on Little Jeff remains strong along docks and overgrown shorelines. Concentrate on weedlines in 5 feet.

Northerns are going crazy for buzzbaits on Ballantyne, and the bass action has been strong there as well. Concentrate on the weedlines in 5 to 10 feet of water. An important note here is action was stronger when those weedlines ran near deeper water, such as the deep basin on the northeast side of the lake.

Francis is giving up northerns along the weedlines, but few with good size.

River action is slow. A few anglers are starting to get back out on the river, but fast currents and deep water levels have kept the anglers at bay. Expect the catfish action to pick up in a few weeks.

Some observations from a morning of fishing

There's always a few things to observe on an early-morning trip to the lake.

Pulling up at Buckmaster Bridge at Madison Lake early Thursday morning, I noticed how calm the water was. The wildlife was the only thing giving off sound, which I found to my liking because this meant I owned that little spot by myself.

At 5:30 in the morning, life can seem very peaceful. I snapped off a few photos of this peace before wetting a line. I meant to take some video to capture the stillness, except for a few birds chirping behind me and a few fish popping bugs off the top of the water, but then again, I was wetting a line.

After an hour and a half at Buckmaster, I moved over to the German-Jefferson Lakes fishing pier on Little Jeff. A few guys were fishing there, making jokes about taking their whopper catches to The Free Press for photos.

I suppose I could have walked over and offered to take their pictures with my cell phone, but again, I was wetting a line, and when the opportunities are too far and few between, pulling up a line to take a photo of a few guys fishing is low on the list of to-dos.

I did, however, give up on the fishing for a bit after they left, only because I noticed a man and a woman, both with wonderful fishing hats, settle into the pier for some panfish/bullhead fishing.

They looked very complete, the two of them fishing on the pier, standing side-by-side, talking quietly. I admired their togetherness and thought of how I could stand all day with my wife, Mollie, fishing, talking, loving life. Of course, with our son Tyler, we'd never be able to stand side-by-side and talk, because like all children, he has plenty of energy for all of us.

I asked the two of them if I could snap a couple of photos, and needless to say, Diane Fetzer and Doyle Schneider, both of New Ulm, were happy to oblige me. Diane joked she didn't know she'd have to be in a picture when they left for their weekly outing to Little Jefferson. They did, however, get their revenge when she took a few photos of me fishing.

Turnabout is fair play, right?

The quality of the photos I took of them aren't all that great, but that's mostly because I am learning how to maximize the quality of pictures taken with my Blackberry. I think, however, you'll get the point.

Anyhow, Doyle said they catch quite a few sunnies and bullheads from the pier — Diane's favorite, he assured me — and they've seen some nice crappies come off minnows there.

"There was a fellow out here who just left that caught a big bass," Fetzer said.

Must have been the fish they were joking about taking to The Free Press. Too bad I was wetting a line.

At least it was a pike

Not much happening with me on the fishing front.

I wish it weren't true, but it is. That's life I guess. As things start to pile up, and family responsibilities get the best of us, sometimes I guess we have to give up some of the things we love.

In this case, it's unlimited time on the water.

Nonetheless, I made it out to Madison Lake on Monday with my brother-in-law. We spent a good five hours at Madison, although an hour of it was spent enjoying a fine burger and a few cold ones at The Boat Landing before heading back onto the water.

Dave, my brother-in-law, pulled in a northern, a bass and a sheepshead on our outing, and just before the day gave way to night, I pulled in a 3.6 pound pike. Not bad. Could have been better, but not bad.

I'm hearing only scattered reports on the fishing front as well. I've had several people tell me that Lura Lake south of Mapleton is difficult to fish right now because of all the weeds. I know I've fished the south bay twice in the past month, and the weeds seem to be clearing on that end, so I'd recommend concentrating my efforts toward the Lura Lake Sportsmen's Club landing on that south side.

Sunfish action is out of control on some of the area lakes, if that is your thing. Walleye reports aren't coming across at all, so if you're still hooking into the 'eyes, feel free to drop me a line.

On a side note, John Cross spent some time with a few die-hard catfish anglers. He has something planned for this Sunday's print edition, and I believe he'll have an audio slideshow of the event. I'll post a link here when that is available.

Until then, chase some bass, the weather is perfect for it.

The tale of three bass

The bass action on area lakes has been excellent, to say the least. If it hasn't been excellent, then you're probably not fishing for lunkers anyhow.

I've caught my fair share of largemouths already this year, but three of the bass I've caught, from three different lakes, have boggled my mind, slightly.

The first bass, caught the Sunday of opening weekend in the rain while fishing at Buckmaster Bridge, came in at roughly 19 inches, and hoisting it up I thought that it'd catch 3 1/2 pounds on the scale — or 2 pounds, dead on. I was surprised by this, but I surmised it must have been a postspawn bass, fresh out of eggs and finally ready to feed again.

This past Saturday, while fishing the shoreline to the east of the fishing pier at West Jefferson, I pulled in another whopper of a fish. When I hoisted it out of my net, I started thinking that very few fish bass I've caught had the length of this baby (using the pliers in these pictures, I was able to give some scale; the pliers is 6 1/2 inches long). But when I threw this bucketmouth on the scale, it came in just over 3 pounds.

Seriously?

Well, Monday I took to the shores of Lura Lake, and I pulled in the best of them yet, and this one measured shorter but weighed in at 4 pounds, 1 ounce. A good fight, too. Later I caught about a 15 incher that weight just over 2 pounds. Go figure.

Everyone asks me why I'm seeing such a difference in the fish, and honestly, I don't have a good answer to that. The postspawn, empty belly scenario seems most likely, but the two bigger bass on Lura definitely had full bellies, and the 2-pounder looked as though it might still have had eggs in its belly.

Whatever the case, I'm just glad to be able to pull in quality fish from our area lakes.

Fishing report

I talked with the folks out at The Bobber Shop. I'm aiming to hit up area bait shops this year and provided better fishing reports.

In some cases, this works, in some cases, I might just have to drive out to the landings of local lakes and talk with some anglers.

Anyhow, the guys at The Bobber Shop also make time for me, so here is what they gave me for you, good fishing friends:

Walleye action, overall, is slow. Small walleyes are being taken in 14-20 feet of water on Madison Lake. Lake Hanska is also giving up some walleyes; river action for 'eyes has been slow.

Crappies are still pretty active on Lake Washington, and channel cats are starting to really take off in the Blue Earth river. No northern pike action is really being reported.

Personally, I worked West Jefferson for pike near the German and Jefferson Sportsman fishing pier, and while the pike action was slow, a lot of bass and some pretty big sunfish hit my Flat Rap (this should be good news for bass fishermen looking forward to Saturday's opener). A quick move over to Lake George drummed up a nice swirl on the Flat Rap, and because the water was so clear, I saw a second strike by a pike.

As always, if you have a fishing report you'd like to share, post a comment or e-mail Tanner or myself, and we'll pass it along.

Countdown to opener: West Jefferson

The fishing pier provided by the German and Jefferson Lakes Sportsmen Club at West (Little) Jefferson is a local hotspot for shore fisherman.

The panfishing next to the pier, primarily sunfish and crappies, is a big draw and a good place for an outing with the family.

Bass and northern pike can also be found along the entire south shoreline, especially to the east of the pier. To the west of the pier, extending to the opening of the culvert-like walkway that goes under Le Sueur County Road 105, the shoreline fishing is tight, with sharp rocks making standing near the water difficult with the exception of a few entry points. But fishing from the elevated position is still manageable, and the tight shoreline provides excellent casting angles to drop your lure into the 12-foot or so hole in front of the pier.

Now, back to that shoreline extending east of the pier. When the water is high, it'll take some walking along the shoreline to find a good entry point to cast. Now, if you're fishing panfish, none of this matters all that much. 

But this stretch of West Jefferson is excellent for northern, and, in the not-so-distant future, bass fishing. And 30-inch pike or 4-pound bass aren't unheard of in this stretch of the lake. So finding a spot down to the water where you can land a fish is a must.

The shoreline stretches a good ways until you come to private property, so I'd highly recommend working your way down as far as you can. There's a red, thorny bush of some sort far down that east shoreline. Work as close to it as possible and you might pull in a nice northern this weekend. 

Two things of note with this stretch of shoreline fishing: Rocks are plentiful on the lake floor, so expect a snag or two if you don't keep your bait up off the floor; plenty of locals will flock to the pier early in the spring with reports of walleyes being taken out of that deep hole in front of the pier.

Is this true, or is this a good piece of fiction? I'm going with a combination of both. Walleye exist in West Jefferson, no doubt about that. I watched Tanner pull one in while we were fishing plastic worms for bass. 

And I know a local who lives just down the road, and he assures me people are catching an occasional walleye off the pier. But if you're after walleyes Saturday or whenever you are out fishing, this hotspot probably isn't the best spot for you.

Good luck! 

Countdown to opener: Minnesota River near Courtland

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has a public access just south of Courtland off of Highway 24, which connects Highway 14 at Courtland with Highway 68.

Fishing directly on the river in this area is a little more difficult, but a series of beaten-down walking paths on the west end of the parking lot will lead you down to the river.

The better fishing, in my opinion, can be found in the back water on the east end of the parking lot. This narrow stretch of water next to the river has easy access points off to your right as you drive into the parking lot, but a hidden path, wedged between the boat landing and the clean opening to the Minnesota River backwater, provides a chance for anglers to sneak back into relative obscurity and work through excellent underwater cover (timber, rocks, weedlines) as well as overhanging trees.

Here's what you need to know about this backwater. Three years or so ago, winterkill took most of the good fish. I stopped out and talked with a local about it, and he said the variety of fish on the shoreline amazed him. We're talking sunnies, crappies, walleyes, northerns, largemouth bass, carp and bullhead.

Before the winterkill, Tanner and I caught quite a few northerns and bass from that little backwater. And since the winterkill, I've caught one northern, but stopped wasting my gas. But with the recent flooding from this past spring, I'd venture to say that the likelihood some of the fishing population has been naturally restocked is pretty good.

And since there wide, relatively flat opening to the backwater, the area is a good place to take a child river fishing without actually fishing next to the dangerous, spring currents. If you do decide to venture through some of the thick trees to get to a more inaccessible fishing points, be prepared to a) check for ticks, b) check for ticks.

One final thing about this backwater: Spring fishing before the winterkill was pretty decent, but as soon as summer took hold and the water levels dropped, carp and bullhead occupied the shallows while the game fish moved into the deeper waters on the south end (which are accessible, but again you'll have to force your way through tight-knit trees to make it to the water).

In the past, buzzbaits, spinnerbaits and Rat-L-Traps drummed up a lot of our catches (I can remember being bit off a half dozen times or so by big fish, too), for both northern and bass, but we also had a lot of luck fishing plastics, which oddly enough, brought in a few small northerns. But will the backwater being turned over from that winterkill, all bets are off on what might attract them now.

It's a jaunt from Mankato, but sometimes a trip to a good fishing hole can be worth it. Good luck.

Countdown to opener: East Jefferson and German Lakes

One of my favorite area shore-fishing haunts is Beaver Dam Road, which runs betwixt East Jefferson and German Lakes.

There's an access to East Jefferson with plenty of space to fish, and the shorelines are accessible on both sides of the road. Both lakes feature fine populations of panfish, bass, walleye and northern ... but, unless you visit on a weekday afternoon, you're likely to find a gaggle of folks chasing them from the bank.

A pair of waders, however, can get you into a much different - and I think, more successful - fishing scenario.

On the German side, a little distance from the shore is a large patch of tall reeds. In May and June, I've had a lot of luck catching northern pike by chucking buzzbaits -- I prefer double-bladed models like these for their added stability and buoyancy -- through the middle of the stick-ups for explosive strikes. Waders come in handy because you'll be able to move around to the outside edge where the fish are more likely to hold.

(Always be careful handling northern pike in waders. If I hook up a fish, I usually start slowly backing toward shallower water in order to handle the fish a little easier. If that's not possible, keep the rod tip very high so the fish won't wrap around your legs, and use a gill hold to grip the fish while removing the hook.)

Another good tactic for fishing northern in the stick-ups is to use a jerkbait. There are a variety of sizes and models, but I prefer 3'' to 5'' floating or suspending baits (as opposed to sinking). Throw them near the windblown edges of the stickups, or on edges near deeper water, and give them a wide, sweeping jerk with your rod. Let the bait sit for a few moments (longer in colder water) and repeat.

On the East Jefferson side, a pair of waders will lead you toward a series of progressively deeper shelves that lead to about 12-16 feet of water. Cast your favorite walleye setup -- as a walleye minimalist, I usually use just a simple jig with a leech -- out past the shelf and work slowly back. I landed my biggest shoreline walleye (about 25'') doing just the same.

Be advised, however, that wader-wandering in waters unfamiliar often leads to miserable - and soggy - rides home. Be careful where you step, and be sure to pack a reel that offers a good casting distance.

Feel free to leave a comment on your own shore-fishing haunt - we'd love to hear from you!
Fish on!

Countdown to opener: Madison Lake

Today, John Cross wrote a column and interviewed Minnesota Department of Natural Resource Waterville Fish Hatchery manager Hugh Valiant about the upcoming walleye opener.

John's column and Hugh's Top 10 list of area lakes were good information for people venturing out, presumably, in a boat. But what about those people who either don't own a boat, or have a boat with a motor on the fritz (that last one I threw in to describe me!)?

So as our anticipation rises, Dear Reader, for the 2010 inland water fishing opener, we'll take time in this blog to preview area lakes and rivers with great shore-fishing spots. Feel free to chime in with a comment or two if at anytime you feel there is a great shore-fishing spot we've missed.

Today's lake: Madison Lake
Is there anyone who enjoys fishing that doesn't enjoy stopping out to Buckmaster Bridge of Blue Earth County Road 48 for a morning or afternoon of fishing?

Buckmaster, as stated here numerous times in this blog, is a great spot to fish from shore, especially if fishing with a family. Sidewalks, concrete fishing stations and ample shoreline make this a great destination.

Buckmaster also offers a natural current that runs under the bridge, between the much larger lake and the subsequent bay. Weedlines run along the shoreline on the main lake, providing cover for a large variety of fish, including the ever-so popular walleye and the feisty northern pike.

The one pitfall with Buckmaster is that everyone knows it is a GREAT fishing spot. So traffic, especially on weekends and nights, can be pretty heavy, which means learning to share the shoreline with others (in the coming weeks, Tanner and I will take a closer looks at shore-fishing etiquette, but for now let's concentrate on the lakes).

Farther down the road, just past the entrance to Bray Park, is another lesser-known fishing spot. It can best be explained as the section of 48 that is squeezed by Madison Lake, and a small pond on the opposite side of the road (the DNR website just calls it unnamed lake).

Once the weeds and algae swallow the small bay, shore fishing can be difficult here, but until then, anglers will hook into panfish with an occasional walleye, northern and bass. (But remember, the bass opener isn't until May 29, so throw them back.)