Healthy 28incher

What a crazy year! Between starting a new job and buying a house, my trips on the water have been few and far between. I went from fishing a few days every week to maybe once every few weeks! Fortunately, things are settling down and I hope to be back out fishing with some amount of consistency.

Mid 20's

Not having been on the water in over 2weeks and missing last week’s Pool2 contest due to tilt/trim issues with my outboard, Dad and I got out yesterday with the hope of chasing down a few walleyes and enjoying the unseasonably warm temp’s. Flow and clarity looked similar to a few weeks prior however the water temperature actually increased showing 65-68degrees depending on the location. Primarily pitching firecracker/char paddle tails and bright colored DT-6 crank baits; we focused the majority of our time on deep wing dams and outside bends in the river where faster moving water was present. When we found fish, they seemed to be relatively concentrated and willing to feed. We’d pop a few fish right away on a spot, then nothing. Since this pattern held true on our first few spots, we turned to a “run n’ gun” approach primarily targeting those most aggressive fish – only sitting on a spot for 5 minutes tops if we didn’t get bit.

Dad with a nice one

The trolling bite seems very strong with good numbers coming on Flickershads and Jointed Shad-raps. 1.6-1.8mph upstream and 2.8-3.0mph down worked well and kept our baits in the zone. With the lower flow I found us trolling out further into the main channel and gradually zigzagging our cranks back and forth from shallower to deep. Similar to the areas we pitched, most fish caught trolling came from 10-14FOW on outside bends where flow was most prominent.

Sauger

Overall the bite seems to be shaping up nicely and I would expect things to only heat up as water temps begin to decline. The cooler weather moving in later this week will help with the water temps and any rain we can get to help bump up the flow I’m sure would be greatly appreciated.

See ya out there

Pete

Kristie and I purchased a house one month ago and while it’s consumed the majority of my time, it’s been a great experience.  Now that we’ve got a good portion of the overwhelming work done around home and are fully moved in – opportunities to get out fishing are becoming reality again.

Today I got out with Chad on Pool-2 for a few hours of pitching wingdams and trolling crankbaits.  Water levels are slowly coming back down, however still remain very high for this time of year.  Overall it was a slower day with one nice fish and a few smaller ones to show for our efforts.

After the last few weeks, I’m ready for fall.  Cool temps, aggressive fish, and pro-blue paddletails!

The Mangum Jig is proves to be the solution to this!  With an extra long shank, extremely wide hook gap, and a 45-Degree eyelet, this jig’s a proven producer that’s bound to help us as anglers tackle the frustrations of short strikes and big baits.

How can the Magnum Jig help you catch fish?

Mississippi River Satellite View

As most of us know, having a plan formed ahead of time can help eliminate a lot of water, fast. With the river as our target, there are many water variables such as flow, stage, clarity, and temperature. Toss in the air temperature changes, wind, and recent weather swings; one can start to understand why fish don’t always frequent the same spots. ‘Pre-Fishing’ from your computer before even hitting the water can be extremely effective when the right information is used. Fortunately for us, there are many different tools and resources out there that when used correctly, can really stack the odds in our favor.

First things First… Geographically understanding the stretch of river you plan on fishing plays a large role when putting together a game plan. Where are the boat launches located? If a strong wind is present, where can I escape from it? If flow is low, where are tight bends and bottle-necks in the main channel? Where are the wing-dams and mile-markers located?

Army Corps Navigational Map

All this information can be found by utilizing the Army Corps of Engineers Navigational Charts, Google Map’s, and Microsoft’s Bing.

Army Corps of Engineers Navigational Charts- Free downloadable PDF maps of the Mississippi River showing mile markers, wing-dams, and boat launches. While these maps don’t show depth couture, they are perfect for high level scouting and general information.

Google Maps and Microsoft’s ‘Bing’ allow you to view satellite imagery and gain a ‘Birds Eye’ view of the area you plan to fish. I lump these together not to say only use one or the other, but for use in conjunction with each other. Depending on the area you’re planning to fish, one websites satellite images may be more helpful than the other.

Another Mississippi River View

By geographically studying the stretch of river you plan to fish prior to launching the boat, you will be able to find spots and identify landmarks faster and more efficiently while on the water.

The water flow, stage, and temperature are also key factors that play into where fish are located and when they are there. To find out these pieces of information I like to use the Army Corps of Engineers website, RiverGauges, and the NOAA website. These websites offer current river conditions and better yet offer previous data from years past. Based off of previous trips on the river, you can compare past information to the current, narrowing down where you want to try and fish, before you even hit the water.

NOAA Stage and Flow

Along with the previous river information, past wind readings and air temperatures are also available. Using the website Wunderground, you can go back and obtain previous weather readings for the specific area you are fishing. This can be very beneficial as some area’s produce better with a strong wind than others and other weather patterns can be observed.

By utilizing the tool’s and websites shown above, we can go back in time and see exactly what the water flow, stage, and temp were at on a specific date, as well as the air temp, wind speed, and barometric pressure readings. All of this information is available for free and is easy to access. By knowing this information before hitting the water and putting together a plan based off of it, you can better utilize your time during short trips, spending less time searching and more time fishing.

Crossing the Hwy5 Bridge all I saw was ice shore to shore.  Keeping thinking warm-weather thoughts!

With all this snow on the ground and the river crest predictions getting higher and higher, I can’t help but wonder what this year’s spring on the river will be like.  I don’t mind high water in the spring; however it does no good if you can’t even launch your boat.  I’m just hoping to get a few trips in before the water really jumps!

Check out the Pic’s below!