Minocqua Area Fishing Report
Last week’s cold, clear, calm nights followed by sunny warm days cancelled each other out keeping surface temps on average around 61-65 degrees. High winds over the weekend kept anglers off the water. Chance of rain this Thursday and Friday may do the same, but this is the week to be out there.
Pike: Very good. Filing up on bait fish in the shallows. Spinnerbaits fished in 3-5’ weeds scoring hard hits from chasing fish. Jigs with chubs, swimbaits good second choices.
Musky: Good-Improving. Bucktails, 7-8” twitch baits and topwater still best choices for casting. Sucker action picking up. Shallower water, 5-10’ best, use floats to keep suckers off weed tops. Good action starting Friday on suckers, will only pick up as water temps drop into the 50’s.
Largemouth Bass: Good. Not as many anglers targeting bass, but some big ones caught this week on spinnerbaits meant for pike. Fish to 20” – 5#’s.
Crappies: Good. Action slowed by weeks end but still decent catches of nice crappies to 13”. Slip-floats suspending medium fatheads as well as 2-3” twister grubs fished over mudflats in 12-14’.
Walleyes: Fair-Good. Action dropped off by weeks end, yet big walleyes (27-28”) showing up during heavy wind Saturday taking chubs on jigs moving up from deep to feed in 8-12’ weeds. Calmer days require deeper fishing, yet, not real deep – 15-22’ best.
Perch: Fair-Good. Wind making fishing tough. Big perch on medium or large fatheads on 1/32 to 1/16 oz jigs in 3-6’ weeds/wood. Half crawlers also working.
Smallies: Fair. Few reports.
Bluegills: Good. Not a lot of effort, but those fishing sunny afternoons catching limits on worms, tiny grubs in calm flats of 4-8’.
Keep casting blade baits (bucktails, spinnerbaits) and top water as surface teps of low to mid 60’s is not cool for this time of year. Muskies, pike and bass will chase at this time. Suckers have been useful for muskies with wind use bladed quickset rigs to improve odds.
Trees not peaking yet, but probably at 60-70%. Good time to take advantage of both beauty and fishing in the northwoods.
Kurt Justice
Kurt’s Island Sport Shop