Mississippi River-levels dropping-temps rising

From White Bass to Walleyes to Catfish, reports around Everts Resort on Pool 4 near Red Wing, MN have been improving over the last month. With the very cold, slow start to the fishing this spring many of us here were thinking about taking up golf.

White Bass- The Lake City DNR's office has been out sampling and tagging this under utilized fighting fish. If you haven't fished for these crappies on stariods, they will not disapoint you with their fight or the taste in the frying pan. The easiest way to get into a mess of these scrappers is to watch the shoreline in the morning or evening. They will school and bust the surface while feeding many times under an over hanging tree. Using a Shad Rap works very good but casting a popper plug under the trees gives and explosion of water just before the rod starts bending. Once on them, putting 25 or so in your bucket isn't too hard and is down right fun!

Terry and his Daughter Mallory

Flathead Catfish- This years Flathead Cat fishing was sent into a tizzy like the other fish. As the water temps rose to the fishing levels, the river went out of it's banks and so did the fish. All of that is behind us now and we're back on fish. Live bullheads around the 8" size have been working well. Suckers in the 8 to 10" size are still working and I wouldn't be afraid to cut one in half using it for cut bait on one of the rods.

Since bait shops with bullheads are pretty hard to find, I'll list a few that I know of that generally have a good supply in stock.

Four Season Sports in Red Wing

Everts Fishing Resort on the River

Walleye-

Here's River Rat Randy and his client with a few keepers from today's walleye guided trip.

Denver Rigging has been very effective in bringing fish to the boat. We've just started hearing of fish being taken off of the wing dams by pitching jigs with Moxies and Pulsars. Good old Ringworms will work as well. Dragging plastics in the WI Back Channel will put a smile on your face although as the water is dropping the dead heads and sand bars are getting closer and closer to the surface. Be careful out there!

Don't forget the lead core and long line tolling on Lake Pepin has been strong for quite a while now as well.

Channel Catfish-

Channel Cats are plentiful and can be fished at any time of the day or night. Just last week there was a group of nine staying at Everts Resort and over their three day stay they cleaned over 300 channels cats!

Inexpensive! Just use one of your heavier walleye rods, attach a 2 oz sinker, a swivel, a 1 foot leader using you're fishing line and finally a #6 treble hook. I bend down the barbs on the hook for ease of taking the hook out. Poke your hook into a jar of Sudden Impact and toss it out. If you don't feel the bump of a fish in 15 minutes move close or further away from shore or move to another location. Really, it's a simple as that! Oh, don't leave your rod unattended. Channels are noted for pulling rods and reels into the river.

Don't forget sturgeon season is just around the corner on the St Croix River!

More information can be found at the bait shops listed above. Or send an email to me I would be glad to help you out.

In the mean time, get out there and enjoy the Summer of 2013!