Lake Winona Fishing Reports

[JIvers]

The red I see right behind the blue gill flap rules out a purebred bluegill, plus the other markings on the body aren't right. It doesn't have the markings of a pure green sunfish, either.

Note the description of the light and dark lines radiating back from the cheek to the gill cover on a warmouth sunfish: http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/Home/species_...82/Default.aspx

The sunny in the post looks to have a large mouth, and I'm pretty sure it's not a green sunfish. I can't tell for sure what color the dark lines or bars going back from the cheek to the gill cover are. Since those don't look bluish to me I'm going to guess warmouth. That species has a larger mouth than the bluegill as well.

Here is a picture and description of a pumpkinseed, which would be my second guess. Note how the bars running from the cheek to the gill plate are supposed to be bluish on a pumpkinseed, and I don't see blue on those lines in the fish from Winona: http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/tabid/6727/Default.aspx

Warmouth are present in Lake Winona, as are pumpkinseed and hybrid sunfish: http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/lakefind/showreport.html?downum=85001100

My third guess would be bluegill-green sunfish hybrid; I see more of those down here than I do pumpkinseed or warmouth. This fish doesn't really look like one of those.

[pikerliker]

It looks like a rock bass to me except for the eye's which should be red?

[itchmesir]

it's definitely a hybrid.. my guess would be green/warmouth.. or a greenseed

[JIvers]

I've read some reports of fish kills in South Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin due to the heat and lack of rain; nothing like that happening around Winona, I hope?

There were crappie die-offs on Lake Winona during heat waves in the 1990s when I lived there; I don't know if the dredging would help with that or not.

I suspect the river, or at least the main channel and areas connected directly to it, would be less susceptible to heat-related die-offs than lakes, especially when the water levels are still up. The water in the river is probably just as warm, but moving water would have more oxygen in it, I would think.

[md79]

Water temp on lake winona is 85-87. Me and the wife were out there yesterday and today and didn't see any dead fish. The fishing was slow caught 6 bass, wife caught a 3 pound sheephead and I got a 20 inch northern on saturday morning. only caught 3 bass today.

[itchmesir]

I haven't been to the lake.. I'm surprised there are no dead fish.. the smell of the lake would say differently.. as it smells like dead fish every time you drive by there.. but im guessing the aerators are keeping the DO levels manageable

thanks for the report

Mind telling what depth you were finding your fish in?

[JIvers]

Water temp on lake winona is 85-87. Me and the wife were out there yesterday and today and didn't see any dead fish. The fishing was slow caught 6 bass, wife caught a 3 pound sheephead and I got a 20 inch northern on saturday morning. only caught 3 bass today.

I'm not surprised the water is that warm, but wow.

At those temps, if you are planning on releasing your catch, be sure to get in the boat or on the shore, and then back in the water, as quickly as possible. Fish get stressed very easily when it is that warm.

IIRC, the crappie kills on Lake Winona in the 1990s were due to an algae bloom and warm water. The algae bloom put a normally mild toxin in the water that crappie, especially white crappie, could not handle in combination with the stress of warm water.

[itchmesir]

I remember that kill... tons of fish everywhere.. I would imagine that the dredging has had something to do with the lack of a kill.. you'd think all that organic material that was at the bottom would release nasties into the water when it gets that hot

[md79]

cpl of the bass,the northern and the sheephead we caught trolling in about 16-20 fow and the rest of the bass were caught shallow

[oleWalter]

Just got in from an hour or so, sitting on a dock and drilling through the ice while standing on the dock. Didn't mark anything but it sure feels good to get back out on the ice (well dock) for the first time this year. My eyes had been missing the christmas tree lights of my Marcum. There was approx. 2 inches of ice.

Looking forward to getting the SE MN boards up and going for the ice season.

Skol Vikes

[JIvers]

Who'd have thought we wouldn't have safe ice around Winona on December 14?

I was planning a trip up that way next week, but if I go anywhere in southern Minnesota it looks like it will be the Faribault-Waseca area. Their lakes usually freeze up a little sooner than even the shallow backwaters around Winona.

[TwinkeeDink]

This rain surely isn't helping. Got my mind set on trip to Red and possibly LOTW 12/26-30!!!!

[Gordie]

Hey guys how's the fishing going down in your part of the state?

[507_MRcrappie]

I went out last weekend on Sunday on lake winona did pretty good on crappie kept what I wanted to fry up. Has anyone did good last weekend on the lake on the warm weather? Here a little clip

[Backintown]

On 1/30/2011 at 3:02 AM, RJMOEN said:

Caution about Airport...the one with the swings. We went out last year(well into driveable ice everywhere else) and ran into thin spots with the spud. Didnt fish it, not sure how such a small lake had spots I could chip through on second hit. Buddy told me its over 50' deep. Not sure if this is true and no one will go with me to check...if anyone knows more about this lake I'd be interested to hear it.

I've gone swimming out in airport lake and noticed that in the summer the water is surprisingly cold as though it's spring fed. The deeper I dove down the colder it got and I would say i managed 25 ft, could see down to 35ft, and it kept dropping off at a fast rate. i would not be in the least bit surprised if it reached 50 ft.