Alexandria Fishing Reports

[carpmanjake]

look what i have been missing... i have yet to hit the ice still. been to busy working almost everyday. nice fish

[Chad Peterson]

What a great for weather last week. Stable,warm and the fishing was awesome on many of the area lakes. The panfish bite continues to be strong and it should continue for weeks to come. The weather system that came through last night will make it tough for the next day or so, but will become stable by Monday.

Yesturday, I went out in the rainy and cold to hit a few lakes with success. The crappies and sunfish are running in the 15-19FOW and are right off the bottom 1 to 4 feet off. It was a one after another crappie day and mixed in were sunfish.

The crappies were running 9-11 inches and sunfish were 8-9 inches. At times you could stay in one hole and catch 5-8 fish, then of course it's time to move to the next hole. The Northland Impulse plastics have been my go to presentation with no meat. By using these plastics, you can get right back down there without baiting up. These also help to keep your hands warm too. The one thing that I don't like is wet and cold hands. The 1" mini-smelt and the stone-fly on a small jig has been the presentation. The color doesn't matter in most cases and if you like plastics, give them a try.

Now that we are getting into January and February, the fish are going to start looking for that oxygen. So, the one thing that we start doing is looking for green weeds. Normally, start looking in the north ends of the lakes as the season gets later. It's a cycle or pattern that you can follow. The spring time when the ice come off, the north part is going to be the warmest and where they will spawn. We still have plenty of ice fishing to do until then, but that is what happens between now and March.

Remember to pick up the trash when leaving the lake and to be stewards to the fishery. There is at time trash and other items that are left on the ice. We all see it and it only takes a few minutes to leave the lake the way we came on to it.

Until next time, be safe and I will see you on the ice.

[Chad Peterson]

A brief report from yesterday and today. The panfish were bitting great and now that this cold front is coming through, it's going to take a few day's for them to get going. It's not only cold, but it's down right brutal as we got off the lake this afternoon.

This morning, the crappies and sunfish were some what active and the one's that were caught were nice fish. A little work and moving around finding the one's to bite was the way we had to get them. Fishing today with Ben,and he had to work the bigger gills to bite. Here's a 9"er on the Northland Bro's Bloodworm with a Impulse tadpole!

We were fishing anywhere from 14-18FOW and the crappies were caught in 14FOW and I was using the Forge Minnow tipped with euro's. The bite was very good up until the wind switched to the northwest. And it really started to whip up.

The crappies ranged from 10-12.5" and the gills were all over the map as fas as sizes. The biggest was just over 9" and were release for another day. Until next week, be safe,be warm and I will see you on the ice. Remember to be a good steward and release those bigger fish.

[Chad Peterson]

The month of February has started out to be a good one, especially for temps are concerned. Warmer weather and right before the upcoming snow strom has proven to be great on the ice. Today,I met up with a few friends to ice troll for crappies and it was a pretty good day. We punched about 40-50 holes next to a break next to a deep basin and just worked in and out off the break in 14-19FOW to catch some very nice slabs. One of the keys today was that the active fish were high in he water column and those were the better sized fish, whereas the one's that were a foot off the bottom were some what smaller and at times not in the mood to play. The other key was moving to find those high crappies, so hole hopping was the game today. With the warmer weather, I certainly did'nt mind. And it was about time to, I was getting sick of the colder temps over the past couple of weeks.

We were using Northland Forge Minnows,Bro's Bloodworms and small gill getters tipped with euro's or waxworms.The crappies were on the move and later this month they will start moving in shallow. Looking for oxygen and bait fish, and when talking shallow we are talking 12-15FOW od shallower.

Travis with a nice 12"er.

Oxygen will be key this month and the panfish will start looking far any green weeds and don't be hesitate to move shallow. Some of the best action is in the weeds.

With the strom getting close and the barameter moving is another key to get out there enjoy some awesome fishing. This is one of my favorite time to get out and we saw a lot of fish on our Vexilars as we were trolling today. Almost every hole had fish in them.

Until next week,be safe and I will see you on the ice.

[Grainbelt]

Hi Chad, Can you still get around with a truck on the lakes there? I see it's snowing again there now. Thanks, Nice reports!

[Chad Peterson]

We will see, but after a foot of snow and more on the way, a snowmobile or by foot is the way to get out.

[Chad Peterson]

Over the past few weeks the fishing has been up and down, but with a little work plowing through the snow there are panfish to be had. This past week before the snow came the bite was excellent and those crappies were holding in the outer edges of the deep basins. During the day they are in 18-26FOW of water and are just crewing around until the evening hours where they will slide in shallow looking for the bait fish. They will be in that 12-15FOW where the weeds start. Sunfish will also be mixed in with the crappies and this always makes for a fun time fishing.

As March come in, the panfish are starting to stage and put on the feed bag. This is one of the best times to fish panfish as we approach the spring. Ice conditions are great out there, but the snow has been somewhat difficult to get around. Have that sled available to get in those key areas where these panfish are. Lately, I've been targeting big gills and they have been in the same areas where the crappies are. The Northland Impulse plastics have been lethal and with just a small jig tipped with the tadpole,smelt minnow or the stonefly. The stonefly has been the go to plastic lately.

March brings great fishing for perch, gills and crappies, so get out there and enjoy the bite as well as the nice warm weather.

Switching gears, I was invited to work with some of the Pro-Staffer's from Northland Tackle to fish rainbow trout on Red Lake. This was a blast and a nice change from the panfish. Don't get me wrong, I love fishing panfish, but this was a different animal fishing these trout.So,we broke out the walleye rods and 6lb test line and the way we went. Once we got there, the lake was not that big, but it was a deep one. We were in an area where the trout were filtering through and were 10-15 feet below the ice. But the depth was 45 feet, and once we put down the flashers all I saw was a blank screen. My first thought was that there's no fish here. Again,this was a different animal if you haven't experienced this, but if you put your jigging spoons down at that 10-15FOW they just came in and smacked it. At times you wouldn't see or know you when they were going to bit the spoon.Wow! For 3 hours it was non stop action and the funny thing about the day was we only drilled 14 holes. You could just sit back and wait for a ton of bricks to hit your spoons.

The trout were caught on many different presentations such as, Northland puppet minnow, eye dropper and spoon,and the buck-shot rattle spoon. Just tip it with wax worms and you were set. All in all, it was a great day on the ice and over 40 trout were caught.

Until next week, be safe and I will see you on the ice.

[paceman]

Those rainbows are such a pretty fish! Sounds like it was blast catching them!

[clayton08]

Lucky guy you are. Ill be up in the alex area this weekend fishing a lil lake that most people dont know about off the top of my head 5 people fish it and we all know each other. Been catching 14-16 inch crappies out there and bull gills usually get at least one each day and all are released for next year or the year after. Gotta love hitting lakes everyone else drives by.

[Chad Peterson]

Took a mini-trip Friday afternoon before the snow came..........again! I really am getting tried of this snowy weather and with that it makes it tough to get to prime spots. But, the melting will start and all things will be good.

Friday's trip was good and fishing in 15-17FOW and the crappies were active from the start. Punched about 15 holes and every holes had fish in them which was good to see for a change. Most of the crappies were high in the water column and once the presentation was in front of them, it was game on. The Northland Impulse mini-smelt, and tadpole was all that was needed to catch these fish. No meat! The presentation has proven every time out this year and would have it in your arsenal of plastics not only on the ice, but open water is just around the corner.

As the weather starts to warm up and the water melts down the holes, it will a feeding frenzy for the weeks to come. And who can't wait for that, as March bring some of the best panfish fishing!

Until next week, be safe and I will see you on the ice.

[carpmanjake]

i was able to get out this weekend in the rain and snow. while toughing through a couple hours of rain and snow i was able to land a few nice jumbo perch and decent crappies near an outlet on the chain. they liked the "cat and mouse game" with a jigging spoon and minnow head. success anywhere from 4 -8 FOW for the perch, and 6-14 on the crappies

[Chad Peterson]

Finally, some warmer temps this weekend after seeing below zero temps. earlier in the week.I don't about you, but it is time for spring time temps.

This weekend started out great fishing for crappies in 17-23FOW and they were 2-4 feet off the bottom. And at times there was no question which one's were going to bite. Before you could get your lure in range they raced up and hammered it. We were using the Northland Forge Minnow tipped with a waxy or euro's. Dave caught a few nice crappies today.

Have been working with Dave for the past two years and he has become a pretty good stick. After punching about 50 holes in the area we were fishing,I landed a surprise........a 3lb bass. Boy did it fight and what a blast on UL gear too.

The lake conditions are good on some lakes, but others that I have tried are bad. Drill a few holes and up comes the water, what a mess. With the next week or two, all depending the warm up the snow should melt off and make getting around easier. It looks like a slow melt and a late ice out in the Alexandria area. I would guess it will be the third week of April. Most lakes have plenty of ice.

Today, we headed north of Alexandria for the crappies and it was a little slower, but the ones we caught were quality fish. We were fishing in 30FOW and they were just filtering through all day. Most of them were 2-6FOW off the bottom. The Northland fireball jig and Impulse Tadpole, Stonefly, and Mini-Smelt was all we needed to get these crappies to bite.

The way to get them to bit was that you could jig to bring them in, but as soon as they were even with your presentation...........stop! Just hold and watch the spring bobber move slowly and game on! This was the way they were being caught today.

Until next week, be safe and I will see you on the ice.

[Chad Peterson]

What a little warm weather will do for fishing is amazing. The panfish bite is going very good on many of the area lakes in Alexandria and they are starting to head in the shallows. The lake conditions are still very good for ice with 24+ inches. It will be a late ice out for sure this year. I remember last year fishing in the boat, but the ice will be around for a couple more weeks.

The crappies and sunfish bite will continue to get better as the snow and slush melt and goes down the holes. I breath of fresh air for all species of fish and also get the weeds going. Most of the panfish have been coming out of 10-14FOW and at time will find them in 4-6FOW right under the ice. That is a blast watching them come from the side and hammer that presentation.

The Northland Impulse plastics have been the go to presentation. The tadpole,stonefly and the mini-smelt on a small jig have been very productive and at times you can catch up to 10 to 15 fish on one piece of plastic. Now until ice out, remember to up size that presentation as the crappies and sunfish become more aggressive. The one presentation that is one of my favorites is the Forge Minnow tipped with wax worms, and at times wax worms are not needed. Just dance the Forge Minnow in front of them and they just hammer it.

The next couple of weeks will bring some of the best panfish bite and remember to let the bigger ones go to grow. Recycling fish is a good thing and it feels good to know that we are doing our part to keep the panfish population strong for future anglers.

Until next week,be safe and I will see you on the ice.

[Chad Peterson]

At this time last year, we were fishing in the boat. What a contrast from last year to this year. All I can say is it's make up time and the ice is more than welcome to stay another 2+ weeks if need be. Ice conditions are great.....STILL! Of course, there is some melting at the landing and the shoreline, but overall, great ice. Measured about 24" on several of the lakes that we fish and the weather outlook has no change to the temps. until the following week that has some high 50 degree temps.

The panfish bite has been very good and will just continue to get better. Once we do get melting from the snow and all the refreezing of the slush-snow mix on the ice, it will be game on. But, now the bit is very good on both sunfish and crappies. The fish have move in shallow over the last week and if you look in 5-10FOW on flat shelves next to deep water,they will be there. Also, look for that transition from deep water to a flat shelve than into a spawning area. Weeds will be there and that is what they will be looking for......! With weeds come oxygen and the weeds that we found were green. The Aqua-Vu Mini was showing nice green weeds and all kinds of life; from little bugs and fish.

We started to fish in 12FOW and really didn't mark much, so I decided to move into to shallower water, and after punching about a dozen holes the fish were found. Sunfish were riding 2-3 feet off the bottom and the crappies were right under the ice. When fishing the sunfish, I was noticing marks high, so I quickly switched from a small presentation to the Northland Impulse tadpole. The tadpole has really become my go to presentation and as soon as I started to jig it,they hammered it. Wow, a nice 12" crappie and caught several throughout the afternoon.

The pattern is going to stay the same as far as staging. Shallow water is where they are going to be and once the REAL melting begins, the fishing will be even better. It's important to remember to be selective when taking panfish and let those big girls go so we have them for future generations. This so helps keep the good gens in the lake.

Until next week, be safe and I will see you on the ice.

[timjones]

Nice fish! You sure do have a nose for those crappies.

[Chad Peterson]

Nice fish! You sure do have a nose for those crappies.

Thank you for the kind words. A lot of time on the ice and just keeping a good information in my fishing log book helps.

[Chad Peterson]

Well, is this week that the weather turns.....? The pattern sure looks that way and I certainly hope so. After another round of colder weather and about 7 inches of new snow, I've had enough.

There is enough ice for about 2-3 weeks of ice fishing, unless spring shows up, and think most anglers want want to get out in the boat. Yesterday we measured 24+ of ice and of course the slush/ice on top. Fishing has been good to very good this week until the weather changed on Thursday with all the snow. They are still in shallow water from 6-10FOW and they were right on bottom to a foot off. At first we tried a bigger presentations to see how the mood was and it wasn't what they wanted. They were just looking and passing it by, so time to down size. We used the Northland Gill Getters and Mud Bugs tipped with one wax worm. You never know want the fish will be in the mood for and I play that on the weather conditions. High sky and high pressure was the the changer on Saturday. There were times when they went nuts and at times you just got down right puzzled.

Overall, it was a good day,but staying on the move was a key to find active fish. We drilled around 75 holes and worked a flat most of the morning. This next week should be better as the weather will stable and warmer, so the slush will melt off.

Until next week,be safe and I will see you on the ice.

[Big Bobber]

2-3 weeks will bump real hard into opening weekend!!!

[KeepLearning]

If I come up tomorrow, will I still be able to ice fish somewhere?

Thanks

[Pistol Pete]

yes, you may have to walk out though. some of the landings are tough, bring good waterproof boots also

[Chad Peterson]

The landing were rough today, and by Sunday it will be real messy. Bring water boots out. There is still 24" of ice.

[Chad Peterson]

The crappies and sunfish have been going well the last few weeks and here are a few slabs.

[clayton08]

nice fish

[jerkin'm]

What are you seeing for water temps in the area? Has it turned over yet?

[Chad Peterson]

Water temps are around 51-53 degrees. It's getting close, but I will be out tomorrow to see what's going on.

[Chad Peterson]

Well, Saturday started out wet and cold, but we marched forward to locate those crappies and sunfish. Mike and I met up early and the fog coming off the lake was breath taking. The slow rolling fog with a hint of sun in the background as we launched. Mother nature her moments at times and yesterday was one of them.

Water temp was 51.3 degrees all day and did not move much. Fish were in 15-19FOW right next to the deep basins, and some had already moved in the basins. We caught a lot of small crappies in the basins, but the bigger fish were caught in that 15-19FOW. Presentation needed to be slow and plastics is all we used. Mike was using the new Clam jigs and plastics and I was using the Northland tadpole and stonefly.

The one thing that is fun at times, is landing those bigger northerns. But we caught alot on those little and it did get nerve racking at time. But, one of our last fish towards the end of the day was a nice pike. Pushing 5-6lbs.maybe? But a nice fish over all.

Gills averaged 7-10 inches and the crappies were somewhere smaller, but get some in the 12" range.It was a great day to get out and fish after a long week at work. Dressing warm is a key player in being able to stay out there on the water. The Clam blue suite was key, and Ive personally have had mine for 8+ years and it's warm and keeps you dry. This year I will be moving to the Lift Suit which has the features of the blue suit but adds safety when your out on the water.

Until next time, be safe and we will see you on the water. Check out my facebook page at HSM Outdoors. Take Care!

[Guest]

Great read and heck of a fun day!!

[JeremyCampbell]

Nice fish guys! Chad,it was nice meeting you at the expo.Your recycled fish sticker is going on my sled.

[Chad Peterson]

That's awesome Jeremy. We really believe in Recycled Fish and if everyone just could see what we see with our fisheries they would be more catch and release anglers out there. Good to meet you as well.

[fishingoverall]

60 - 70 feet of water?  What a great sportsmen you are.   Next time see if you can reel those fish up a bit faster.   Keeping 11" and 12" fish too...wow.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgsxI-y-gjE

 

Edited November 12, 2015 by fishingoverall