Fishing report for 18 June 2022

Good morning, looks like hotter stable weather starting today and lasting for the foreseeable future.  Hopefully that will get some musky moving as the bite for them has still been pretty slow.  Overall I am hearing of good fishing for everything else, and that is the nature of the beast with musky fishing so it shouldn’t really surprise anyone!! Here is this weeks rundown….

Musky–Tough bite on the musky fishing so far this year, but warmer stable weather should get fishing moving in the right direction.  All of the fish on the board here have been caught on bass/walleye sized baits both live and artificial.  Fish should still be in and around shallower structure and small inline spinners are a great way to find active fish.  If fish are following but not committing to faster baits, slow it down and size it down.  Glide baits, dive and risers such as a suick can be great to tempt negative/neutral fish into eating.
Northern pike–The pike bite has been good, with lots of reports of catching pike while walleye/bass/crappie fishing.  Look for fish in and around weed beds, points, bars and anywhere you are finding baitfish.  Spinner baits, crankbaits, and inline spinners all work great for catching northern pike.
Walleye–The walleye bite has been good all spring and continues to be.  Lots of fish being caught with leeches on plain hooks or small jig heads underneath slip bobbers. Walleye are relating to the deeper weed edges in the lakes in our area.
Largemouth bass–The largemouth bite has also been good thus far.  People finding fish in and around weed beds, shorelines with weeds/structure close, and kind of all over in the water column.  Most catches are still on live bait, mainly fatheads underneath bobbers while walleye fishing, with a fair amount getting caught on crawlers underneath bobbers as well.
Smallmouth bass–The smallie bite has been solid so far, with good size fish being caught and good numbers being caught also.  Most bites are coming on live bait such as leeches/fatheads under slip bobbers in and around structure.  Downed trees and wood has been holding fish is what I am told.
Crappie–Crappie are starting to scatter a bit and the bite has slowed down, but good fish are there if you can find them. Live bait (crappie minnows) is still the number one choice for targeting crappie, but you may have to search for them a bit to get on a good bite.  Crappie are using the deeper weed edges as they are starting to transition to their deeper water basins for summer.
Bluegill/Perch–Not a whole lot to report on the bluegill/perch bite…..Pretty standard stuff as far as targeting them goes, a plain hook under a bobber with a good chunk of nightcrawler will always catch fish.  Docks, sandy shores, and shallow weed edges will hold bluegill/perch all year long.
I hope everyone enjoys the nice weekend, fair temps and no rain should make for a good one!!
Greg

Fishing report 11 June 2022

Good morning, somewhat stable weather this past week, with off and on rain forecasted for today.  Next week the mercury starts to rise substantially and that should get fish moving.  Crappie and walleye action has still been pretty good considering the cool nights and lower water temps we are seeing right now.

Musky–Musky fishing has been slow at best.  I am still hearing reports of inadvertent musky catches on walleye and crappie set ups more than on musky baits.  The warm weather should start to get musky active and in no time we will be fishing top water water baits on every calm sunny night we get.  Smaller offerings for musky are still a good bet as the fish are still in their post spawn period and still recovering from that.
Walleye–The walleye bite has stayed pretty good with fish moving to the deeper weed edges adjacent to the basins they will make home in the summer.  Slip bobber rigs tipped with plain hooks and leeches have been producing fish.
Northern Pike–Pike action has been pretty good, same with the musky a lot of fish being caught while walleye/crappie fishing.  Spinner baits/smaller inline spinners and plastic swimbaits/crankbaits can all be good choices for northern if you want to target them.  Shorelines with downed trees/weeds and weedbeds in bays are all solid choices to catch fish.
Largemouth bass–Largemouth action has been good, although from what I am hearing not with typical bass presentations.  Mainly bobbers/float fishing with nightcrawlers underneath them have been producing some nice largemouth bass (at least on/around the quiet lakes).  Bass should start to push to shallower sandy bottom shores as they approach spawn, but currently they are still relating to shallow weeds.
Smallmouth bass–Some smallies are being caught in a little bit deeper water.  Look for 10-15 FOW with rocks and sand bottoms.  Pitching jigs tipped with plastics/livebait are good options for nice smallies. Also using slip floats with live bait close to bottom are catching fish too.
Crappie–The crappie have finally spawned from what I am hearing, although this probably varies from lake to lake.  Fish are pushing out a little deeper into the weeds to hide from predators.  Look for good numbers of fish in the 7-15 FOW range and relating to weedbeds.  Traditional bobber/float fishing with a plain hook and crappie minnow are working well.  Guys are also tipping small jigs with gulp! alive minnows underneath floats and having good success as well.
Bluegill–The bluegill have not finished spawning yet with multiple people reporting the female fish they are catching have big bellies still full of eggs.  They should be moving into shallow water and making beds soon, so sight fishing with nightcrawlers or little spinning baits like beetle spins should catch aggressive fish protecting their beds.
Perch–Not much to report on a perch bite at all.  From docks/shorelines to weedbeds in bays with crappie, perch kind of roam everywhere.  They will eat chunks of crawler while panfishing and crappie minnows while crappie fishing.  Just get a line in the water with something small on it and you will find perch!!
Greg