Lake Geneva 4/16/12 through 4/22/12
By Dave Duwe
The normal spring temperatures have arrived. Fishing remains okay overall. The most consistent bite has been for bluegills in Abbey Harbor, Perch by Fontana Beach and Lake Trout around the main lake points.
Bluegills are being caught in 3-4 ft of water. They are being caught on Thill bobbers fished with lindy toads. I tip the ice jig with wax worms or leaf worms. Boat fishing is the best way to have access to the Abbey. The boats have started to arrive and I don’t think they are allowing people to fish off the piers any longer. The bluegills seem to be in the slightly deeper water where the outboard motors have washed away the sediment.
Perch are being caught in the shallows in 3-4 ft of water. The best location is by Rainbow Point and in Fontana. The best bait has been large fat head minnows fished beneath a bobber. It seems this week the bigger the minnow the bigger the perch. The water is ultra clear so make sure you go into a spot in stealth mode.
Lake Trout fishing is open right now. They are being caught on slip bobbers and shiner minnows or vertically fished right off bottom. The easiest way to catch them is when they are in 10-12 ft of water off the main lake points. A few last week were also caught in over 100 ft of water right tight to bottom. The best locations are by Black Point, Fontana Beach and Conference Point.
Good luck and I hope to see you on the water. For guide parties, please call Dave Duwe at 608-883-2050
Daily Reports
4/14/12 - Delavan Lake, 65 degrees, winds were light out of the SW. Water temp 51 degrees. Caught 30-40 crappies, kept only 5, also caught about 40 small bluegills and kept 8. There was some really good action, however the size was a problem. The best success was coming in 3-4 ft of water. I fished in Viewcrest Bay and the inlet channel. Crappies were caught on small purple plastic and the bluegills were caught on leaf worms.
4/13/12 - Lake Geneva, 60 degrees, winds SW at 20 mph. Water temp 48 degrees. Caught a whole bunch of perch, 10 were kept over 10 inches. The fish were in 3-4 ft of water in Fontana. It seemed the bigger the minnow, the bigger the perch. I used large fat head minnows for the best success.