Good morning from the Quiet Lakes, I’m not sure we are going to get to the forecasted +/- 3″ of rain they were calling for. It looks like most of the heavy rain went south and it has been light and scattered here at best. It appears this coming week is going to be great weather with temps in the mid to upper 70s and very little chances of rain until Friday. Hopefully stable weather brings some better fishing as the bite has been tough as of late. Water temps are still hovering right around the 70 degree mark.
Musky–The musky bite has been decent this past week as we just filled up our first musky board here at the shop yesterday. Small bucktails and spinnerbaits have been the best lures so far. Fish are in and around weed beds right now and that should continue throughout the summer. A few fish have been seen/caught on top water baits also so start shallow and work deeper if you have no action.
Northern pike–Pike have still been hitting everything lately but most of the pike caught have all been on the smaller side. Small crank baits, spinner baits, and live bait have all been working to catch pike right now. Pike too are in and around shallow weeds.
Walleye–The walleye bite has been tough, most anglers have gone to live bait and slow presentations such as slip bobbers and leeches. Jigging fathead minnows is another option to try. Walleye are still coming up shallow at dusk/night and are probably not very deep during the day yet. I would look for fish in the 8-12 FOW range during the day and fish anywhere from 3-8 FOW as twilight sets in.
LMB–Anglers are fairing ok on a largemouth bite, spinnerbaits and live bait seem to be the best right now. Bass are pushing shallow and starting to hit on topwater baits as well. Fish lily pads and other typical summer weed patterns.
SMB–The smallie bite has gotten cold over the past week and I have very little to report on it. I believe they would still be coming up shallow at night, but during the day or high light periods I would fish deeper rocks where they transition to the basin. Jigs with plastics or deep running crankbaits should be good during the day, and leeches or live bait or topwaters should produce at dusk.
Crappie–The crappie bite has gotten a bit better, but fish are still sporadic and have been on the smaller size. Crappie minnows fished under a bobber or small plastics on a jig in and around weed beds have been the spots to fish.
Bluegill/Perch–It sounds like bluegill have not spawned yet, and no reports of fish beds in the shallows. Work weed beds in 4-5 FOW for panfish and as the water warms up this next week you may find fish up on shallow sandy shorelines.
Hayward has its Muskyfest going on this weekend so if the fishing sucks head to town!! Have a great weekend and we will talk soon.
Greg