May 28, 2020 at 2:02 p.m.
Anglers found success on first weekend of musky season
Anglers found success on first weekend of musky season
Jeff VanRemortel has been fishing musky for a good number of years and has hauled in some beasts in his day. Opening weekend brought many chances to connect with some big musky. An angler needed to know where to be, however, to get in on the best action, he said.
VanRemortel said he saw much better action in shallow, stained water and on smaller lakes and river-based waterways.
These areas had the best bite, as they were further ahead in the way of water temperature, he noted.
Water temps over the past weekend varied from the mid 60s to even some low 70s on smaller bodies of water, he said.
Bigger lakes, those 300-800 acres or more, tended to have lower water temps, with most being in the low 60s with surface temperatures not breaking the high 60s, he said.
A week earlier water temps in the 48-52 degree range were common, he added. With the warm weather and sunshine, water temperatures rose quickly.
The angler said he and his party were seeing males around bull rushes and typical shallow, spawning areas.
Fish were also moving in shallow, weedy bays. Emerging vegetation was important in targeting musky last weekend, a pattern VanRemortel said he expected to continue for those headed out this weekend. The weeds also exploded over the last week with the sunny weather. He reported weeds that were almost non-existent a week ago were now a couple feet tall in some places. He also reported anglers looking to hook into a big musky need to target shallow areas at this time of the year.
The baits that worked well for him included baits such as the Dr. Eagle topwater. He also had good luck with smaller jerk baits along the liens of a 7-inch Shallow Raider. VanRemortel expected smaller top waters, smaller jerk baits and buck tales to be good producers for the beginning of the season. In low light conditions, such as early in the morning or later in the evening, top water action really heated up.
As far as colors, the hot color would depend on the water conditions.
The clearer the water, the more natural colors he would throw. In stained or murky water, more vibrant, colorful offerings seemed to be the ticket. He stated he did not have much luck on either big or small rubber offerings on opening weekend, but felt that could change moving into this weekend and the coming weeks.
Looking ahead to this week, he felt things would stabilize and only get better now that water temps are not spiking. Action, he theorized, would heat up with temps stabilizing, making this weekend a great time to get out and look for that "fish of 10,000 casts."
Panfish and walleye
In the way of smaller fish such as panfish, Jeff Smith from J&J Sports said the fishing action was great across the Northwoods with the warming water temperatures.
He talked to many anglers over the weekend and was also out himself. He reported seeing musky, crappie, perch, bluegill and largemouth bass cruise through the shallows all in one place.
The panfish, he said, were likely moving into the shallows as the day warmed up and if an angler was lucky enough to be in an area where they were moving up, they could catch them pretty quickly.
They were hitting best on minnows, but anglers even had good luck with small plastics, he said.
Walleye were still a little shy, Smith said.
Anglers were focusing on downed trees in the water or new weed growth when targeting walleyes. New weed growth was one of the most important elements in finding walleyes over the weekend. As with musky, early morning and later in the evening were the hotter times for finding bites.
All fish, he said, seemed to be starting to move shallow. With water temperatures warming as quickly as they did over the last week, most fish are starting to think about spawning.
Smith noted he did see bluegills were starting to make some beds, but did not see they were actively spawning yet.
For the coming weekend, he said anglers should stop by and grab some minnows for best results. Wax worms, too, were getting some action. If an angler has small plastics such as paddle tails or twin tails, even a small curly tail offering, those, too, should provide some action for the coming weekend. Smith said anglers could use a bobber or not, whatever their preference might be. He advised to simply keep trying different things and to look for fish in the shallows or relating closely to the shallows. Those areas should bring the best action this weekend.
Beckie Gaskill may be reached via email at [email protected].
Comments:
You must login to comment.