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Fishing Report - Opening Weekend !
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Panfishing on the area lakes has picked up the past few days with the warmer weather. With the weather forecast for the weekend, it looks as though good fishing should continue for the weekend. Water temperatures on the area lakes was reported to be in the mid to upper 50’s. Crappie anglers have done well on many area lakes. Nagawicka, Pine, Okauchee, Lower Nemahbin, Waubesa, Delavan, Cherokee Marsh, and Golden are a few of the better lakes. Look for the crappies to be holding near green weeds, but don’t over look downed trees or wood. A 1/32 oz jig or #8 hook dressed with a small fathead or rosie red minnow has worked best for crappies. Jig and plastic combos have also worked well. Cubby Mini Mites and Nail Tails, Dick Smith’s Panfish Grubs, tubes jigs, 1” twister tails are all good choices. Bluegill fishing was good on many of the area lakes. A few of the better lakes have been Okauchee, Lower Nemahbin, Lower Nashotah, Nagawicka, Monona, Mendota, Waubesa, and Crystal Lakes. Again, look for the bluegills to be holding near green weeds in 4 to 8 feet of water. Giant redworms, waxworms, spikes, and panfish leeches have all worked well for gills. We also have wigglers and hellgrammites coming in for the weekend, which are also great baits for gills. Bait these on a small hook or jig and suspend under a slip float for good results. Jig and plastic combos along with black ant flies are also deadly for gills. The Wisconsin gamefishing season opens this Saturday, May 6! Largemouth bass will be in pre-spawn this weekend. They will be found cruising shallow weedlines and flats looking for prime spawning areas. Early in the spring, the key to finding fish is often finding new weed growth in 3-8 feet of water. The Worm pre- rigged worms, “wacky” rigged Senkos, Rapala Husky Jerks, tubes, swim jigs, and the new Rad Lures Chatterbaits are good choices for spring largemouth. For anglers looking to use live bait this weekend, large golden shiners, small chubs, nightcrawlers, and large leeches will work best. Smallmouth bass will also be in pre-spawn patterns. Look for the smallies to be cruising around shallower rock bars. During cloudy conditions, look for them along steeper drop-offs. Tube jigs, wacky rigged stickbaits, small jerkbaits, skirted grubs, and smaller jig and pig combos will work well. Leeches, nightcrawlers, jumbo fatheads, or small chubs are good live bait choices. Walleyes will be found near weeds or structure in 8- 15 feet of water. A jig, live bait rig or a slip bobber rig baited with a jumbo fathead, leech, or nightcrawler will work best. Morning and evening hours will be the best times to catch walleyes. The DNR is again stocking trout into Lower Genesee, Lower Nashotah, Fowler, and Ottawa Lakes. Trout are very easy to catch early in the season and it’s a great time to take a kid out fishing. Small fatheads, small rosie reds, wigglers and giant redworms will be the best bait choices for the trout. Bait these on a #10 or #8 hook and suspend under a slip float. Small Rooster tails or Mepps spinners, Small spoons, and flies will also take these fish. Trout can be found anywhere from the surface down to 25 feet of water over deep water. Don’t forget to purchase an inland trout stamp before fishing for these trout. Spring can offer some excellent musky fishing. Smaller baits usually work better for early season musky’s. Rizzo tails, Mepp’s Musky killers, 6” Grandmas or Jakes, small Bulldawgs, Tiger Tubes, and swim jig and twister combos are good choices early in the season. Small musky suckers, large suckers, and large chubs rigged on a circle hook or lift off rig will also work well. Target weed edges or drop-offs, however some aggressive fish will follow crappies and gills into shallower water for an easy meal. Pewaukee, Okauchee, Oconomowoc, Fowler, and Lac La Belle will all give up opening weekend muskies. Northern Pike should also be aggressive during opening weekend. Northerns will usually be found near weeds, and always will be found near food. Mepps spinners, spinner baits or crankbaits will all provide good action. The better live bait choices include medium or large suckers, chubs, or large or jumbo golden shiners. Northern pike are found in most of the area lakes.
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Good Luck ! |
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Summer Hours (starting Friday May 5th) |
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We will have the Largest Selection of Live Bait for the weekend! More than we ever had for Opening Day!
Small,
Large & Jumbo Fatheads
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email: dicksbait@wi.rr.com phone: (262) 646-2218 web: http://www.dicksmithslivebait.com ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ |
