Jeff's Guide Service
05-15-2010, 07:47 PM
Hi folks
Well we had a good week of fishing but the weather was awful – just when we thought it couldn’t get worse – it was sure a physical beating those first two weeks. The upside was a great walleye bite. We boated good numbers of decent-sized fish every day. Seven to eight foot weeds have still been key to finding fish. The same applies to wood. We’re finding fish in the wood in that 7-8’ mark, and the heavier the snags, the larger the concentration of fish you’ll find. Jig-and-minnow combinations are still working well, although fish are beginning to switch to larger bait. We’ve been using a lot more redtails and black chubs as of late. Leeches will still provide anglers with good action and we’ve caught a couple of fish while playing around with crawlers, although that bite is not quite ready yet.
CRAPPIES have pretty much remained in a holding pattern. I haven’t had too many reports of fish moving into their beds, and my personal experiences with catching crappies have been in those 7 to 8’ weeds that are located adjacent to their spawning areas. Some warm weather will probably trigger a pretty good crappie bite.
NORTHERN PIKE have also put on a pretty good bite. We are finding those in weeds ranging from 5 to 8 ft. Jig-and-minnow combinations are working pretty good as these fish are not quite ready to chase any fast moving lure.
We finally had a nice warm day on Saturday and without wind. The downside was the fish went into shock. It was the toughest day of fishing so far this year. We had a hard time mustering walleyes – we only caught a few, but we did catch a bunch of northern. So the day, while being extremely enjoyable, wasn’t overly productive. Now this weather pattern looks like it will continue for a few days more at least. Water temperatures are going to warm back up rapidly – they gained a lot of ground today. Look for fish to resume their very strong weed bite and if temps start busting the 60’s, be sure to try a crawler or two along the way – they will change to meat fast. Bug hatches are beginning already, but not mayflies.
I fished with John Gillespie of Wisc Waters and Woods and the show will be airing next weekend, May 22 & 23. Tune in to catch some Vilas County fishing activity.
Good luck fishing. Jeff Winters
Well we had a good week of fishing but the weather was awful – just when we thought it couldn’t get worse – it was sure a physical beating those first two weeks. The upside was a great walleye bite. We boated good numbers of decent-sized fish every day. Seven to eight foot weeds have still been key to finding fish. The same applies to wood. We’re finding fish in the wood in that 7-8’ mark, and the heavier the snags, the larger the concentration of fish you’ll find. Jig-and-minnow combinations are still working well, although fish are beginning to switch to larger bait. We’ve been using a lot more redtails and black chubs as of late. Leeches will still provide anglers with good action and we’ve caught a couple of fish while playing around with crawlers, although that bite is not quite ready yet.
CRAPPIES have pretty much remained in a holding pattern. I haven’t had too many reports of fish moving into their beds, and my personal experiences with catching crappies have been in those 7 to 8’ weeds that are located adjacent to their spawning areas. Some warm weather will probably trigger a pretty good crappie bite.
NORTHERN PIKE have also put on a pretty good bite. We are finding those in weeds ranging from 5 to 8 ft. Jig-and-minnow combinations are working pretty good as these fish are not quite ready to chase any fast moving lure.
We finally had a nice warm day on Saturday and without wind. The downside was the fish went into shock. It was the toughest day of fishing so far this year. We had a hard time mustering walleyes – we only caught a few, but we did catch a bunch of northern. So the day, while being extremely enjoyable, wasn’t overly productive. Now this weather pattern looks like it will continue for a few days more at least. Water temperatures are going to warm back up rapidly – they gained a lot of ground today. Look for fish to resume their very strong weed bite and if temps start busting the 60’s, be sure to try a crawler or two along the way – they will change to meat fast. Bug hatches are beginning already, but not mayflies.
I fished with John Gillespie of Wisc Waters and Woods and the show will be airing next weekend, May 22 & 23. Tune in to catch some Vilas County fishing activity.
Good luck fishing. Jeff Winters