Fish are biting ... somewhere

WABASHA, Minnesota -- There are always some fish biting somewhere.

That's one of the many lessons I've learned fishing walleye tournaments. Even in the worst conditions, somebody always finds a way to put a few fish in the boat.

Tuesday wasn't an ideal day to be on Pool 4 of the Mississippi River. The water level had spiked about 18 inches over the previous few days, thunderstorms rocked the area Monday night, the air temperature was in the low 40s, a northwest wind was howling at 15-20 mph, and the surface temp on the river was a chilly 54 degrees.

It was one of those days that could be challenging, even when you know the fish are biting somewhere.

One good place to look this time of year on Pool 4 is near Camp Lacupolis at the south end of Lake Pepin. It's where the river channel resumes below the lake, it offers a variety of depths and composition, and it's one of the first places numbers of post-spawn walleyes show up in late April and early May.

  Buy Photo

Other than a couple of bass boats scouting for the weekend's annual St. Jude Bass Classic, there was nobody in sight when I pulled into the area that blustery morning. I decided to make a trolling pass up the rocky Minnesota shoreline, which provided me some boat control in the wind and waves while I kept an eye on my electronics to see how many fish were in the area.

Considering the cold water temperature, partly cloudy skies and slightly reduced water clarity (about 8 to 10 inches), I settled on a No. 5 firetiger Shad Rap that provided a tight wobble at slow speed (1.2-1.5 mph). I pulled into position, started up the shoreline and a 17-inch walleye hammered the bait.

It was a promising start to the day, but the rest of that troll produced nothing and I didn't mark many fish on my electronics. I needed to relocate and experiment with other presentations.

I moved out to a 10-foot ridge that rises out of a deep hole closer to Lacupolis, but a couple of drifts in different depths with a blade bait told me I was wasting my time there.

My next stop was a long, sandy stretch known as "the willows" that runs along the other shoreline. I dropped a 5/8-ounce jig tipped with a minnow to the bottom, slowed my drift with the trolling motor and saw plenty of fish on the sonar. I had one bite that stole my minnow but no hook-ups, so I repeated the drift while dragging my jig instead of hopping it. That wasn't the solution, either, but at least I knew there were walleyes present.

  Buy Photo

I decided to make a troll up that shoreline with the little Shad Rap and everything came together. Over the next two hours I boated and released 11 walleyes between 16 and 18 inches, two that were less than 15 inches and had a couple others shake off before I could welcome them aboard.

I tried a couple of different crankbaits to see if size, action or color made a difference or enticed any larger fish. It did not. On that day in those conditions, the firetiger Shad Rap was the ticket.

It doesn't always work out that way. There are days when it seems like you'll never catch another walleye no matter what you throw at them. Part of the fun is trying to figure out the answers on any given day.

They're always biting somewhere.