Fishing Report for week of May 11, 2020
Swanson’s Bait & Tackle
218-675-6176
What an Opener!?!
Walleye action on local lakes was spotty. Leech Lake produced some nice catches for some and tough conditions for all. Fish on Leech seemed to be scattered along wind blown shorelines in weed, sand, and rock areas. We found fish on rock edges in 10-13ft with minnows on rigs. conditions will change as water warms this week.
Crappies are holding off the edges of shallow water. Live bait is still working the best.
Good Luck – Fish On!
Leisure Outdoor Adventures
Well Walleye Opener is Walleye Opener and Rain or Shine, or wait SNOW, will stop us from fishing and enjoying this day we get once a year. Here is your Leech Lake Fishing Report from this past weekend. With the current Covid state in MN, our team of guides spent the weekend fishing with their families on Leech Lake and other lakes throughout Central Minnesota. On Leech Lake, active walleyes were found throughout the lake if you were willing to put some time searching for them. Fishing wind blown shoreline breaks and feeding flats in 7-12 feet of water seemed to provide the best action. Some of the windblown points also kicked out fish, but those areas didn’t seem to have as good of fishing. Finding bait was the biggest key to success. If you found bait using your electronics there were fish nearby, including some bonus jumbo perch. An 1/8th oz jig with a spottail shiner or rainbow was best and when the wind picked up going to a 1/4oz also helped at times. Pay attention to your jigging cadence and what is working any given day or hour. Some of the best fishing is still ahead of us here in May and sounds like some nice weather as well. Until next week.
Leisure Outdoor Adventures Guide Team
–Jason Freed
President of Leisure Outdoor Adventures
507-450-7986(Cell)
1-855-LOA-Hook
www.leisureoutdooradventures.com
http://leisureoutdooradventures.blogspot.com/
Outright Angling- Leech Lake Fishing Report for May 11, 2020
The great MN tradition of fishing opener has came and went, and we saw decent numbers of anglers here at Leech Lake. The bite was tricky, but fish were stacked-up pretty well on typical 6′-10′ flats, a bit of weed growth held the bigger schools. Getting them to bite took a small jig (1/16 or 1/8 oz) and small shiner minnow pitched away from the boat. Slow and small presentations worked best for getting bites from these fish, that were a bit shocked by the chilly conditions. The next warming trend will surely get the walleyes feeding even better.
Crappies and perch are responding to the exact same presentations, and were likewise spooky and a bit lethargic. Persistent anglers can cash-in though, if they put a little time in. I predict that just a bit of an up-tick in water temps is going to get all of these species feeding heavily.
Get out on the water, and please be safe.
Cheers and hook-sets,
Capt. Phil Bauerly
https://www.outrightangling.com/
Steve Nosbisch Fishing Guide
With opening weekend now in the rear view, hopefully soon we will be able to put the ice fishing gear away until next year. Overall it was a decent opening weekend on Leech Lake, but mother nature decided to throw us a good old fashioned Minnesota snow storm Saturday morning. The ground was completely covered and accumulating quickly by late morning. It is a good thing the fish didn’t seem to mind much.
Although the Walleyes seemed more spread out this year than they have in the past, staying persistent kept putting fish in the boat. Along with being persistent, staying mobile to stay on top of fish is key right now. 6′-13′ of water was the best for my boat this weekend, but as always this time of year things change quickly. A simple jig and minnow or Lindy Rig and minnow is all that is needed to catch fish on Leech Lake right now. Begin looking for fish on shoreline areas that are windswept. Those areas will typically hold the fish that are more active and willing to bite.
On some of the area lakes there seems to be plenty of Bass (catch and release only) and Northern Pike in the shallow weedy bays. Swimbaits are a good choice to target both the Pike and the Bass right now.
Steve Nosbisch
