John Carlson
05-17-2010, 10:50 AM
The Chain has been a little on the slow side for Walleye but other area lakes are doing pretty good. Most of the fish are being taken in the evening or early morning around shallow wood and weeds. Slip Bobber or Jig and minnow has been working as well as minnow style crank baits. Smallmouth and Largemouth Bass are giving some great action, Look for them in their shallow spawning areas as they move thru their spawning patterns the next couple of weeks. Bluegill are hot and heavy in their shallow spawning areas right now. We have been finding a lot of 7.5 to 8.75 inch fish in the shallow reeds or wood. Look for their "Beds" on the sandy bottom areas of the lake. My 3 year old son and I have been doing well using a small wire hook with about a foot of line under a weighted bobber, I add a small split shot about 4 inches under the bobber. We have been baiting the hook with 2 or 3 waxies. I like keeping the split shot high on the rig because it lets the waxies on the hook fall slow when you cast it. It really seems to help when the fish are in a neutral mood they can't seem to pass up on a gob of waxies falling slowly in front of them. This really is a great time to get kids out on the water fishing, Even if the fish are small the action is fast and with light action rods a 8" plus gill pulls pretty hard, even for this Musky Guy. Attached is a pic with some of the Gills that my son wanted to take home for supper.