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Posted

Just wondering if crappie fishing is hot anywhere. I tried washington and madison a couple of weeks ago, but didn't have much luck. They should be moving into shallow water soon. mojoman

Posted

I am NOW pumped for opener!
Went to Lake Francis (Southern MN.) today... and would be pleased if I do as good for "opener" as I did today.
I caught about 60+ crappie, 30+ bass, a good dozen pike, and enough walleye to know they are hitting & where! They are on the drops... next to weeds in the AM early, and in 26' in the bright of the day.
And wow... what a great day out on the water!
Francis Crappies are in the Public Access EAST bay... North-West of the swimming beach (right in front of the first dock) in 8 to 15 feet of water. They are THICK !!!
Every cast with a beetle spin dressed with a Minnow or 1/4 crawler... or Bio-Bait was working too. They would hit tails... even the big profile Ring-N Grubs, though the best bite was on "swim" above the weeds delivery and with no bobber, using a 1/32 jig with a crappie minnow thru the lips. These craps are chasing minnows!
HAMMER time!
Catch-n
Dave Hoggard

------------------
Fishermen are catch-n on
Catch'n Tackle
For Bass, Walleye, Pike, Lakers, Trout, Panfish
Used by FishingMN Family

Posted

Catch N', sounds like you had one heck of a good day. thanks for the info, i think i will have to give it a try sometime this week. i too have caught them on the east by the beach, but they never had much size to them. were there any size to the ones you caught today? i seem to catch bigger crappies on the west side of the lake. congrats on your big day! mojoman

Posted

No... as you say, not much size to them.

I did keep a few of the larger ones, a tad over the size of my hand.
Fried up chrispy brown, some fries tators, spoon of Bush's Baked Beans, hunk of sweet onion... and you got some mighty good eat'n!
Catch'n
Dave Hoggard

------------------
Fishermen are catch-n on
Catch'n Tackle
For Bass, Walleye, Pike, Lakers, Trout, Panfish
Used by FishingMN Family

Posted

We caught 6 really nice Crappies on Tetonka Saturday. Oh yes they were so good. They were our first fresh fish meal of the year.
We also caught 2 Walleyes one nice size Northren 2 Bass 1 Perch and 2 Sheep Head. It was a great first day out fishing for the year. Yes I think opener will be a lot of fun this year. I'm just hoping for a little nicer weather then last year. If anyone is still looking for a place to go and stay that weekend Best Point has some cabins open for that weekend and Memorial weekend.
<><Mary><>

Posted

Hi,

I wanted to get my wife and kids into some fish on Mother's Day. How do you get to Lake Francis from Owatonna. Also what is the recommended bait. Thanks! FS

Posted

Take Hwy 14 south, when you get to elysian you will see some boat lifts on the left, turn right there.

Or you can stop at one of the gas stations and ask where to go from there

Posted

French Spanial. The easiest way is take hwy 14 to Waseca then hwy 13 to Waterville then 60 to Elysian. The access is on cty 11. So take a right at 11 (right in town) go through town and you'll see the access as you round the lake a little ways. Crappies do just fine on a bobber/minnow rig. Or you can use light jigs retrieved over the weed edge, and of course as Catch'n mentioned the beetle spin fished the same way. There are 2 places in Elysian to get bait Billy's and Pit Stop 60. Good Luck.

------------------
Good Luck & Good Fishing. Lucky

[This message has been edited by LuckyFish (edited 05-08-2004).]

Posted

Thanks, I'll give it a try. FS

Posted

Was on Roberds yesterday(Sat). Caught some fairly nice ones(10-12") in 23-26 ft of water se of grassy island(3-4 ft off bottom). Nothing shallow & plain hook & minnow seemed like the ticket......

Posted

Sorry FS luckyfish is right I was on the wrong highway.

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • SkunkedAgain
      If you fished with me more often, you'd never have to make this statement...   38" of ice - love it. I'm really going to have to dig around for my auger extension. I don't think that I've needed it in over a decade.   Too bad nobody has a locomotive chugging across the ice to do some logging, like the good old days.
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the South Shore...  Ice fishing remains strong across the south shore of Lake of the Woods out on Big Traverse Bay.  Resorts and outfitters on some parts of the lake have ice roads extending over 16 miles staying on nice schools of walleyes and saugers.  Many fish houses are over deep mud.  Some are on structure.  It is always fishing of course, but overall, February has been very productive for most anglers.   Extensions are being used on ice augers as the ice continues to thicken.  The thick ice this year will be good for the extended ice fishing season Lake of the Woods enjoys with fish houses out through March 31st, walleyes and saugers open through April 14th and a pike season that never closes. Most fishing activity is taking place in 26-32 feet of water.  Anglers are finding a healthy mix of walleyes and saugers, with a good number of jumbo perch in the mix this year.  Some big eelpout are also showing up.  Anglers are reporting plenty of fish for fresh fish frys and usually extra fish to bring home.   The one-two punch of a jigging line and deadstick is the way to go.  On the jigging line, jigging spoons with rattles tipped with a minnow head have been consistent.  Lipless crankbaits and jigging rap style lures also doing well.     Lures with a light have been working well in the stained water.  Please remember, in MN, lures with a light or water activated light can be used as long as the battery is mercury free and the hook is attached directly to the lure and not as a dropper line.     On the deadstick, a plain hook or a small jig with a live minnow 6 inches to a foot off of the bottom.    Some days, mornings are better, other days, it's the afternoons.  There is no distinct pattern, they could come through at any time. On the Rainy River...  The start of the day and end of the day have been best for those targeting walleyes on the river. A jig and minnow or a jigging spoon tipped with a minnow head is also producing some fish. Some big sturgeon being iced by ice anglers targeting them.  It is a catch-and-release sturgeon season currently.   Although ice conditions on the river are good, they can vary significantly due to the current, so anglers should always consult local resorts or outfitters for the most up-to-date safety information and fishing advice. Up at the NW Angle...  Ice fishing has been strong in the islands area of Lake of the Woods. Resorts continue to move their fish houses around, staying on the best schools of walleyes.     Anglers are catching a nice mix of walleyes, saugers, and jumbo perch with an occasional pike or tullibee as well.     Big crappies are still being caught just over the border.  Fish houses are available, check with a NW Angle resort for info on crappie fishing.   Lake of the Woods enjoys an extended ice fishing season with fish houses on the ice through March 31st and walleye and sauger seasons open through April 14th. Perch, crappie, and pike seasons remain open year-round.    
    • leech~~
      Maybe you should put rattle wheels down, if your going to sleep for 6hrs! 🤭 😆
    • JerkinLips
      Monday was my worst day of winter fishing on Vermilion in the last 4 years.  Caught only one 14" walleye in nearly 8 hours of fishing.  Missed two other bites and was marking very few fish.  Maybe the fish were taking Monday off after a big weekend.   No more water came up on the ice under my house.  Think it was because I haven't banked snow around it for a couple of weeks so the bare ice around the house is getting very thick.  I measured 38" of ice under my house and the Ion barely made it through even with the extension installed.  Needless to say I banked around the house this time.  Another lesson I learned today is don't drill holes if ice is frozen on your blades.  I did that on one hole and it didn't center properly and drilled at an angle on the edge of the opening.  Hope I can correct the location and angle on my next trip up.   Not much change in the surface lake surface conditions.  The drifts may be a little higher and are definitely harder.  There are still a few bare ice spots on the lake.  Very little activity on the lake today.  There are about 3 dozen houses from McKinley Park out to Birch Island.  Another person pulled there house off today, and I am sure many more will pull theirs off this coming weekend.  Only 13 days left of walleye season.    
    • leech~~
      A good start for never picking up a bow!   IMG_1910.mp4
    • leech~~
      Um, #metoo   leech~~ Author 'we have more fun' FishingMN Builders Posted January 26 My whole goal for the rest of this season.  Is to watch KC lose and Taylor cry!  🥳
    • smurfy
    • Wanderer
      Smurfy is happy.
    • Dash 1
      Great looking food. So far not much of a game and I thought the halftime show was worse I've seen. 
    • leech~~
      Oh is there a Superbowl game? 😋😋
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