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

Fishing report for 04 June 2022

Good day, fishing has still been pretty good for crappie/walleye.  Musky have been pretty slow with only 2 being registered on our chart here at the bait shop.  Good stable weather should help next week though!!

Musky–Smaller baits and slowing down presentations can help this time of year.  Bass sized spinner baits, small inline bucktails, and swimbaits on jig heads can all help put muskies in the net in spring.  Shallow warm bays with growing weeds is the places to look for as the musky will be in those areas feeding on baitfish.
Walleye–The walleye bite has been pretty solid  and continues to be from what I am hearing.  Fatheads rigged on jigheads cast out and worked along bottom seem to be the norm for catching.  Leeches are starting to make their way into the mix as the water is starting to warm up a little bit.  Shallower weed edges are still holding fish as the current water temps are still on the cool side.
Northern Pike–The pike bite has been consistent with lots of the walleye guys catching pike on their set ups.  Lots also being caught on bass set ups such as spinner baits and chatterbaits.  There is really no wrong way to fish for pike as they will eat just about anything and everything.  Any water from shallow weedy bays to sandy/rocky shorelines will all hold fish.
Largemouth bass–Chatter baits seem to be pretty hot right now for big largemouth bass.  Colors in green pumpkin, black/blue and white/chartreuse are all solid choices.  Big nightcrawlers under a float on jig/hook also works well for bass.
Smallmouth bass–I haven’t been hearing too much on the smallmouth bite as far as what is working to catch fish, but some nice fish are being caught.  Rocky points that transition out into the basin is a good place to start.  Jig heads with plastics that imitate crawfish, small crankbaits bouncing off of the rocks and livebait such as fatheads on a jighead all will work.
Crappie–The crappie bite has slowed down a little bit as the water temps have been hovering just above the 60 degree mark.  I am hearing the shallow weed bite on crappie minnows is still a pretty good bet, but you have to pick through some fish to get onto bigger ones.
Bluegill–Leaf worms/crawlers under floats on sandy shorelines will catch plenty of bluegill.  Small spinners with plastic grubs such as beetle spins will also catch some nice gils.  Haven’t heard of any records but they are abundant in all of the lakes in the area.  Bluegill should be starting to make beds as they get ready for spawn, and will be aggressive in protecting their beds.
Perch–Perch are in and around between the crappie and bluegill stealing minnows at will.  Shallow weed beds will hold perch and if you want to target them, its best to just fish through them until you get some nicer size to keep.  Crappie minnows on snell hooks underneath floats is probably the most common way to catch perch in the spring.
Tight lines, and good luck!
Greg