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Msg 1 Posted: 10:13 AM 05/19/10 (CST)
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Springtime in Minnesota is the season of clear water. If you're an angler, that presents a real opportunity you won't get the rest of the year. So, grab your favorite pair of polarized sunglasses and spend some time looking at fish and underwater structure. You won't get another opportunity to actually see the fish where you'll be fishing until next year at this time.
Cruise very slowly through the weeds and rocky areas on your favorite lake, using your trolling motor and look down. If you're quiet, you'll discover that the fish aren't that frightened of your boat, and you'll be able to see fish and structure you didn't know was there.
I did a lot of this yesterday on Bald Eagle Lake, where the water was clearer than I've seen it for a long time. I could see the bottom at least 5' deep. So, I spent little time fishing and decided to go into all those areas where I'm usually casting, just to have a look.
Besides, I normally fish for bass, and that season isn't open yet.
The lake weeds aren't fully grown yet, so I could see clearly what was in those shallows and weed beds where I usually fish. It was amazing! There were bass and northerns in there that were way bigger than most of the ones I usually catch. There were also thousands of panfish, which is probably why I'm not catching those big ones...they're eating the sunnies and crappies and perch they're swimming with. I even saw a muskie at least 50" long swim under my boat.
The real surprise was that the fish seemed pretty unconcerned about the NOTLUND GARCKY III passing over them. Even in places where the water was only 2' deep, they either stayed where they were or swam off slowly as I passed over. Any sharp noise from the boat, though, and they scattered, but returned quickly. Interesting information.
I also saw rocks where I didn't know there were rocks. New structure to fish later in the year. I even found, and retrieved, a nice mushroom anchor someone left on the bottom. Lots of rusty old lures on the bottom, too, but I have plenty of those, so I left 'em there.
Anyhow, the point of doing this is to explore the lake in a way you can't do later in the year, when it gets mucked up with algae and other stuff. I learned a whole bunch of stuff about the places I usually fish, and found a couple of new areas I'll be targeting later in the year. I made mental notes of all of this.
So, put your boat on the water right now and just explore. It's a treat to see all those fish, and you'll learn a heckuva lot about your favorite lake. Knowledge makes good anglers, and knowledge like this is worth more than a whole tackle box full of the latest offerings from the tackle makers.
MineralMan
O So Minnesota Blog -- Fishing Page
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