Minnesota Fishing Reports - 2017

[geneoh]

It's like if a jig and a Texas rig has a baby. Comes through cover pretty easy. 

[sully420]

23 hours ago, OperationEagle said:

Sully...I want to get to that point of being able to get bit in all conditions...looks like you are working your way there if not already there.  When it gets sunny or if it starts to heat up, my production drops like a rock...no matter if I target cover.  Thanks for sharing your technique and whats been working for you.

Just keep at it. Its fall now so i would target the hottest part of the day. Bass will always be in cover the trick is finding the best cover. Some tips, the best pads will have 3+ feet of water under them. If you have miles of pads i guarantee the bass will be in the deepest pads or in the pads with the deepest water next to them.

If you are fishing milfoil or coontail or cabbage look for the cleanest grass, as in grass thats crisp and isnt full of slime and junk stuck in it. Look for the most defined edges with deeper water near but not super steep. You want around a 5 foot depth change not a 20 foot change off the weed edge.

Work the edge with a crank bait or a spinnerbait then work it back over with a jig or slither rig 5 to 10 feet into the grass bed and flip back to the edge.

I dont fish for 20+ bites a day I fish for 5 

This should be a good pattern untill the water temp drops below 50 degrees. And it workes better on lakes with less visibility. On clear lakes you need to find the depth the bass want to be in a weed bed and fish that depth of weeds. Lots of guys do well reeling a chatter bait or a swimbait over big weed flats to find where the bass are holding.

Good luck hope you find some lunkers before the ice comes.

[gim]

I agree, 50 degrees is the specific temperature you will want to watch for.  Anything below that, and its over.

[NathanDLTH]

All my bass lately have been shallow, 2-5 ft of water this includes smallies n largies. Everything from tubes to jigs and wacky senkos. Popped a nice largemouth in St. Anthony last night on a jig. The bites on for the fall. 

[sully420]

12 hours ago, gimruis said:

I agree, 50 degrees is the specific temperature you will want to watch for.  Anything below that, and its over.

I going to try to get them on a jerkbait and hair jig when the temp drops beliw 50°. 2 baits i havent developed any confidence in yet.

[Jmhalvo]

How are Harriet and Calhoun these days? Tried Cedar to no avail

[sully420]

23 minutes ago, Jmhalvo said:

How are Harriet and Calhoun these days? Tried Cedar to no avail

How did you not get bit on cedar? What were you doing technique presentation cover wise? I'm about to fish Harriet after work today I'll let you know.

[Jmhalvo]

I bank-fished the west side with a fluke and a swim jig. I have used my kayak there before...nothing

[Jmhalvo]

Yesterday the fish waited til low light. Not fall yet I guess

[OperationEagle]

Thanks jmhalvo for the report back. How did you do sully?

[sully420]

5 hours ago, OperationEagle said:

Thanks jmhalvo for the report back. How did you do sully?

Ok, started with a lipless and got a bunch of pike. Went to a jig and found some bass on the deep weed edge. If you can brave the rain on sunday Harriet should be good, i use a 3/4 oz spinner and a 1/2 ounce jig and work the inside bends and ends of points. The north beach should have some good fish as well. Look for the 12 to 15' edges and fish slow.

[Jmhalvo]

Switched from stained to ultra-clear water today- totally a fall pattern. No wind, high sun mid afternoon and the shallow bass bite was on! Chatter over the tops. Larger northerns in 6 feet confirms fall 

[punch]

Fished a super muddy lake tonight and we did really well on a black & blue swimjig with a blue craw trailer. Fish were hammering it VERY shallow.. like right up on the bank in 3-5 feet of water. Got a big ole 4lber on a popper too as the sun started to set. Water temps are still like 64! We got fall weather happening but the lakes are still very warm. 

[gim]

I went to Mille Lacs today for about 5 hours.  It was rough, with like 4 footers by 9am and the fishing is friggin' TOUGH out there right now.  I only caught 2 smallmouth and 1 pike in about 5 hours of fishing.  I saw a lot of fish on the sonar in multiple spots but they wouldn't go on anything.  I think the pressure has gotten to them.  I'll probably wait until next spring to try it again out there.  Water temp was 60.5 degrees.

[FryDog62]

Water temps came down to the upper 50’s today on a little river by my house.  21 incher on one of the new Maxscent “General” wacky worms..

[SecretAsianMan]

thats a beast frydog!

[Jmhalvo]

While I like the Slither Jig, I do not like $8.00 pike bite-offs....so back to 4.5 inch tubes. Hard to tell if it matters anyway.

[Jeff H]

8 hours ago, Jmhalvo said:

While I like the Slither Jig, I do not like $8.00 pike bite-offs....so back to 4.5 inch tubes. Hard to tell if it matters anyway.

Won't be too long and we'll be looking at a good jerkbait bite again....with $8-$16 pike bite-offs.  I've lost 3x more tackle in my last 2-3 outings than I did all spring and summer long. Them gators are on a tear this fall!

[geneoh]

I've lost a few megabass 110's to pike and that's just the worst. Last year I broke off on my first cast on a brand new 110. I about turned the boat around and just went home. 

[NathanDLTH]

I've lost multiple whopper ploppers, braid and backlash. Tough on the bank lol!

[Jeff H]

On 9/30/2017 at 7:48 PM, FryDog62 said:

Water temps came down to the upper 50’s today on a little river by my house.  21 incher on one of the new Maxscent “General” wacky worms..

Mighty big fish from a little river! Nice catch!

[rascalP]

On 9/26/2017 at 8:18 PM, gimruis said:

I agree, 50 degrees is the specific temperature you will want to watch for.  Anything below that, and its over.

NOT over.  I had one of my best crankbait bites ever at 43.  Its over when you back the trailer in and it just rolls out onto the ice.

[Jmhalvo]

Great bite today on swim jigs- when they’re going like this it’s really good for confidence in large jigs. I’ve been too light for too long! Also upped to larger Chatter

3 minutes ago, rascalP said:

NOT over.  I had one of my best crankbait bites ever at 43.  Its over when you back the trailer in and it just rolls out onto the ice.

Specifics? The traditional cold water susp jerkbait?

[geneoh]

Bite is good right now! Fishing pads and weed edges with a jig. Wt:63

 

Shoutout to Sully, he helped me get confidence in a jig and it's completely changed how I fish. 

 

Get out out when it's raining if you can. 

 

[rascalP]

    A few falls ago we got blown off the river where we spend alot of time in fall.  We went to a small lake not expecting much. I started throwing a jig thinking ultra slow and my buddy starts throwing a spinnerbait of all things. I said a "I don't think so" under my breath and he promptly catches one. Well, on goes a fat rap or DT - not sure which and it turned into a "knowin your gonna get bit" bite.

   I watched a John Gillespie where they were breaking ice to get on a big shallow eastern Wisconsin lake, and they're whacking them with lipless crankbaits - not lift/drop, but a steady retrieve.

   I'm trying hard to get over preconceived ideas on patterns.

  Friday, day 2 of the BM AOY on Mille Lacs had 3 anglers doing well on 3 different patterns,  (gotta check out "Skeets magical morning") on a cloudy day, no less.