THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER IN FALL
When I go outside to hook the boat to my vehicle I see a thin covering of frost etched over the hood and front windows. “I guess it is fall,” I say to myself. The week before, I finished the last bass fishing trips for the year and noticed the bass action starting to decline. It is an indication we are getting farther into fall and it is time to start fishing for walleyes and sauger on the Mississippi River.
I pick up my fishing buddy, Rod Ellner of Hudson, Wisc., and we head for the Mississippi River neaw Red Wing, Minn, It is suppose to be a beautiful fall day in northwest Wisconsin. It is sunny with blue skies and hardly a cloud in the sky. The weather forecasters on television told us the night before we could expect warm temperatures and light winds.
Once we get on the river we find the weather people are a bit off. Although we had the sun, a cold wind blew down the river and it seemed a lot colder then normal. But we aren’t going to let a bit of wind and cold stop us from fishing walleyes and sauger on the Mississippi. We launch the boat, heading up river to the dam.
WATER DEPTH MAKES A DIFFERENCE
The rule of thumb for fishing walleyes and sauger on any river is to fish shallow water when the river is high and fish deeper water when the river is normal or low. The water seems low this fall as it normally is. We cruise around in over twenty feet of water until I see fish on my fish finder and drop anchor in twenty five feet of water.
The wind blasts us and once we bait hooks and drop them overboard we slip our hands into gloves. The “light winds” we expected were probably about twenty miles an hour. We also notice there is an unusually strong current for this time of the year and switch to heavier jigs. In the next two hours I never get a strike and Rod catches a sheepshead and one small walleye.
This is not looking promising and so it prompts a move. We slowly motor closer to the rocky bank and find a hole where I see fish on the fish finder in nineteen feet of water only a boat length or two from the bank. We drop anchor and start again. Within a few minutes Rod has another small walleye and finally I felt a sharp tap on my line.
The fish surges off and my spinning rod is bent as the rod tip is plunging. A moment or two later I pull in a fourteen inch walleye which I release. This is looking much better and in the next couple of hours we steadily get strikes.
CATFISH
Rod pulls back on his spinning rod. “This is a big fish,” he says. I quickly grab the net. The fish puts up a stiff fight and a minute or two later Rod finally gets the fish alongside the boat. It is about a four pound flathead catfish.
We pick up a couple of sauger which would have been keeper fish if we wanted but we release all our fish.
Half an hour later a fish hits my bait and races off. There is nothing tentative about this fish. The drag on my reel gives out line and the fish and I are into a see-saw battle which lasts some minutes. Finally I get the fish next to the boat and Rod nets it for me. It is about an eight pound channel catfish. It is amazing the numbers of different species that can be caught in the Mississippi River.
By late afternoon the wind is still blasting down the river and the sun is disappearing as we pull in the anchor for the run back to the boat landing. We caught and released about two dozen fish including three catfish and about half a dozen keeper sauger. It was a good day of fishing for the first fall trip on the Mississippi River.
LOTS OF FISHING LEFT
There is at least another month of good fishing on the Mississippi River. I normally fish the river until about Thanksgiving and sometimes if the weather cooperates by staying somewhat warm I have fished into the first week of December. There are two things about fishing the Mississippi River in the fall. As the days go on the weather will only get colder. But on the positive side the longer it goes into fall the better the fishing will be.
How long one fishes on the Mississippi River, and there are those who fish the river all winter long, depends on how much cold one is willing to put up with. I have fished in blizzards and ice storms later in the fall and as the season progresses I make sure to put a bag of ice salt in case the landings get icy.
Although we are fishing for walleyes and sauger those who like catfish have plenty of those around as well. Over the years I have noticed bigger fish are found later in the fall as the air and water temperatures begin to drop.
The Mississippi is a river of change. Things can change from day to day and sometimes within a day. Right now the river is low which is normal for fall, however, I do recall one fall a couple years ago when the river was unusually high. As long as we do not get a lot of rain the river will probably remain low for the rest of the year.
FAVORITE BAITS
There are any number of baits which work well on fall fish on the Mississippi River. My favorite is a jig and minnow. For jigs I normally use the Fireball Jig made by Northland. They have a short shank hook with a little metal loop at the back of the jig to clip on a stinger hook. The stinger hook can be important when fish are finicky and hitting lightly. Color does make a difference. Anything with chartreuse usually works for me. The few times when chartreuse hasn’t worked then my next choice is gold.
The key to catching walleyes and sauger in any water including the Mississippi River is to get your bait to the bottom and keep it there. The size of the jig will be determined by the current. I usually carry a supply of jigs in half, three quarter and one ounce size. I change the size of the jig depending on the speed of the current so I can maintain contact with the bottom. To work a jig, drop it to the bottom. Lift the rod tip up about a foot and then let it fall back to the bottom.
The other bait which is especially productive during the fall are blade spoons. Blade spoons such as Heddon Sonars, Cicadas and others all work well. Again color can matter and like with jigs my favorite color is anything with chartreuse. The firetiger color has chartreuse and is my first choice. The second choice is gold. As with jigs it is critical to get the bade spoon to the bottom so I carry half and three quarter ounce sizes, adjusting the weight of the spoon to current. Using a blade spoon is easy. Drop it to the bottom and then rip it up with a quick two foot lifting of the rod.
It is going to get colder as the days of fall continue but as it gets colder the fishing will get better on the Mississippi River. The best is yet to come.
Editors Note: Mike Yurk’s column is sponsored by Warner’s Dock in New Richmond, Wisconsin. Warner’s Dock is the premier marine dealer in northwestern Wisconsin. They have a complete supply of new and used boats, motors, and trailers as well as other marine supplies plus a complete maintenance staff for all your boating needs. They can be contacted through their website at www.warnersdock.com or by telephone at 1-888-222-3625.