Minocqua, Lac du Flambeau, St Germain, Boulder Junction, and Manitowish Waters Wisconsin open water and Ice Fishing Report
Good news on the fishing front. Just about everything is active and catchable. I've been out a bunch lately and we've been getting 7 species or more each time. And numbers have been great, too. My opinion is if you can't remember how many fish you caught that's a good thing.
Although we are suppose to get some leeches in today, they are almost non-existent so we haven't fished with them. But crawlers have been dynamite. Minnows haven't worked near as well. We actually tried pretty hard yesterday to catch a fish on minnows but it was a no go. Viewed on the Livescope the fish would come up to them and swim away. We switched back to crawlers and the good bite continued.
The fish are french-kissing cover right now. Stumps, rocks and weeds are their haunts. Again on the Livescope, we watched fish hugging the stumps and they would not venture out more than a foot or so for the bait. Precision casting was key.
Walleyes are hugging the bottom in wood and rocks, crappie are suspended about half way down and bluegills, perch and sunfish are searching the bottom for food. One day we found crappie in 32 fow on the bottom but they were very bashful.
In general the flowages are pretty productive but watch yourself. Water levels are around 10' below normal so don't let that rock, stump or sandbar get you! Just navigate the river channels and look for cover a fish might like.
LM and SM Bass are still on fire. Plenty of action to go around for sure. Get that 1/2 crawler and light jig and throw it at the weed edges and something will hit it. If the action slows keep inching out deeper. Same thing if you're throwing plastics. For example, don't be afraid of wacky worming in 30-40 fow.
Dragging your favorite stick baits over mudflats and next to deep weed edges is also working well. Experiment with different lengths and running depths to dial in the correct MO for your area. So many variables there.
Leeches are probably done for the season. We might have a few pounds coming today. I know, a sad day for many. But there are alternatives. One really good one is the leech plastic by Gitzit and Gulp!. Very unique shapes that allows the bait to float up and down like a real leech on jig being retrieved or even on a slip bobber.
Labor Day weekend is upon us. Pretty warm temps, also. As we say goodbye to most of the out-of-towners we would also like to thank you for your support. We are very grateful for the summer we have had. Be careful heading out. But while your here take the kids out, find a deep weed edge and enjoy the smiles.
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We got a big WAREHOUSE WINTER PRE-SEASON SALE and an END OF SEASON SALE going on now. If you're thinking about a new Auger, Shelter, Flip-Over, Hub, clothing and/or any type of electronics, now may be the best time to buy them. Most items are at cost or below. See the web site for details. The sale is limited to items in stock, in-store or on the website. No special orders. Blackfish gear is still 20% off right now. The END OF SEASON SALE gets you at least 25% off pricing on Rods, Reels, Rod/Reel Combos, Beaver Dam Tip-Ups, Musky Lures and more items when you buy two or more.
Right now for live bait we have Jumbo Crawlers, Small crawlers, Panfish Worms, Wax worms, Crappie Minnows, Regular Fatheads, XL Fatheads, Blacktails, Redtails, Walleye Suckers, Medium and Large Musky Suckers.
Our normal weekly hours are:
Monday thru Thursday from 6am to 6pm
Friday from 6am to 8pm
Saturday and Sunday 6am to 6pm
Let's squelch a few rumors. The shop is for sale. Business is great but Linda and I are ready to retire. WE ARE NOT GOING OUT OF BUSINESS! If you have an interest in owning and operating the largest non-franchised bait shop in Wisconsin, call our Realtor, Eric Johnson, at 715-892-1234 or call Jeff at 715-892-2751.