Fishing Report for the week of May 26, 2020
Leisure Outdoor Adventures Leech Lake Fishing Report
Jason Freed
President of Leisure Outdoor Adventures
507-450-7986(Cell)
1-855-LOA-Hook
www.leisureoutdooradventures.com
http://leisureoutdooradventures.blogspot.com/
It was a great week on Leech Lake with the Leisure Outdoor Adventures Guide Team this week. Leech brought days full of wind and some days with flat calm conditions. The lake is definitely in a transition right now and even showing bug hatches which at times has caused some up and down fishing reports. Fish are being caught anywhere from 5 feet of water out fo 16-18 feet of water. You really need to play the conditions for the day and adapt right now. Windy days work shallower or wind blown areas with jigs and shiners or leeches to produce fish, and find those key transition areas and that seems to be where the bait and walleyes are hanging out. On calmer days, finding green weeds and long lining a crawler or leech has been effective in locating fish.
The Main Lake rock areas are kicking out fish so look to areas around Battle Point, Sugar, Bear Island, Pelican and Pipe Island where as on the West End of the lake the flats around Goose Island and some of the wind blow points such as Little Stony, Ottertail, Big Hardwoods, Duck, and Pine Point have also had good days in 8-12 feet of water. Find the bait and the fish will be near by. Be sure to have different kinds of bait with you and don’t be afraid to switch things up.
Give us a call if you are looking to get on the water!
1-855-LOA-HOOK
Leisure Outdoor Adventures Guide Team
—Capt. Steve Nosbisch
Overall fishing in the Leech Lake area has been very good the past week. Walleyes, Panfish, Pike, and Bass are all bitting somewhere out there. Look to the shallow bays of Leech Lake and surrounding area lakes for panfish, bass and pike. Areas with green cabbage weeds or slightly greening reeds are sure bets to find some fish. Try a simple bobber rig with a small jig and crappie minnow for the panfish. A swim jig is a good choice for targeting bass and pike.
Walleye fishing has been up and down on Leech Lake this week. The fish are spread out in small schools, so continuing to move until fish are found is important. Pay attention to your electronics. Areas that have been wind blown in 6’-14’ are holding a lot of bait. The walleyes are not far from the bait. A jig and minnow still seems to be the bait of choice, but more and more fish are being caught pulling Lindy rigs tipped with leech’s and crawlers.
Outright Angling- Leech Lake Fishing Report for May 25th, 2020
Walleyes: The big holiday weekend was finally here, and anglers with cabin fever were here to catch fish! Five days in a row with a southeast wind had the walleyes stacked-up on west facing shorelines in 6-10 feet of water. A 1/8th oz jig and shiner minnow was still the best presentation going, but a live bait rig and leech got the job done for deeper fish that were slid off of structure. White 4″ plastic minnows on a 1/4 oz head also attracted hard strikes. Water temps have shot-up a good ten degrees in the past week, spreading out bait, and breaking up massive schools of walleyes. This next week may require a bit more recon as we begin to chase smaller pods of fish off of “community spots”. Typically, water temps in the 60’s will require a bit more experimentation, and varied presentation as the fish scatter a bit. Minnows along with leeches, night crawlers and crankbaits will all come into play in the coming weeks. The best part about water temps in the 60’s is that you can catch walleyes a variety of ways, as they start to feed on multiple food sources. Perch, shiner minnows, mayfly larvae, tullibees and even crayfish will be on the menu for hungry walleyes in the weeks to come. Now is the the time for fishing guides, and very seasoned anglers to shine, as community spots and simple presentations become less productive. Electronics become more important now too, as fish move off of predictable early season locals, and into the vast acres in search of the best available protein.
Muskie Primer: June 6th is THE long-awaited date for all MN muskie anglers. Biding our time by catching inferior fish (lol) until we can go into full-on muskie mode. Water temps at Leech Lake are ahead of schedule now, which means these warm water beast will most likely be h’angry for anything that moves (also lol). At any rate, you can bet our hooks are sharpened, and we are chomping at the bit to chase the most exciting fish in fresh water, the muskellunge!
Cheers and hook-sets,
Capt. Phil Bauerly
Dick Weinberger
dicksguideservice.com
651-492-1646
Water temperature and wind was the story this week. The water got into the low 60’s and the fishing picked up. The beginning of the week the wind blew and fishing was excellent with both numbers and size. The holiday weekend saw calm winds and fewer big fish but still plenty of action. Good numbers of 13-15 inch walleyes with an occasional 20+ along with a few perch and northern kept the young anglers attention. Shiners were plentiful and the bait of choice for most. With the calm winds some used leeches or crawlers with a slower presentation on the rocks and were rewarded for their efforts. The next 2 weeks should be some of the best fishing of the year.
Brought to us by-Fish On Outdoors with Bill Hornung
Crappie- As fish continue to move up plastics are starting to out fish live bait. Small 1/32oz jigs cast into new weed growth will allow you to locate fish. Once you find them you can throw jig/minnow and plastics at them. Low light is still the best time to get after them.
Bass- Smallmouth are relating to rocks, any area that has rocks in 9-12ft will hold fish. Jerkbaits and jigs are good options to throw at those fish. Largemouth are still in the shallow bays. Try spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, or swim jigs to find them then slow down with with plastics like a senko or ned rig.
Walleye- Leeches, crawlers, and minnows are still the best options.Fish seem to be holding in many different areas of the lake.Shallow fish in less than 5ft are jig/minnow fish. Fish in the 9-12ft are rigging fish, they also may take a jigrap or plastics.Try it all and keep moving to find active fish.
Good Luck. Fish On?
