Fishing Report June 2023

June 19, 2023

Woman Lake experienced a continual series and big mayfly hatches in the last week, 5 hatches within 7 days, something I have never seen in my 17 years on the lake.  Naturally the walleye bite has been tough as a result.  We have caught nice 19-21" walleyes everyday, but only a few each day, and all were caught on leeches.  The northern pike and bass bite has been slower as well.  There was no bug hatch yesterday, and I don't see one tonight, so maybe the effects of the hatches will diminish soon.  If so, the walleye bite should pick up quickly.  The walleyes are definitely showing up on main lake basin structures now, and it appears leeches are now the preferred bait.  Most of our fish are being caught in 18-20 feet of water.

June 13, 2023

The walleye bite has not yet reached traditional mid-June levels, and on top of that we have experienced a cold front last weekend and two mayfly hatches to make fishing difficult.  The warm weather has continued, and hopefully the effects of the bug hatches will disipate soon, as is typical.  On my depth sounder I am now marking a few walleyes on main lake structures like reefs, bars, and sunken islands, so maybe the migration of some walleyes to the main lake basin has begun.

June 5, 2023

The unseasonable warm weather has continued, and surface water temps on Woman Lake have already reached typical late June levels.  I do not remember ever seeing water temperatures this high (73-74 degrees) in early June.  The walleye fishing is improving, but remains somewhat confusing with the warmer and extra clear water this spring.  The walleyes have not firmly settled into their traditional June locations, as yet, so you will need to do some searching to find them.  Last time we were out, we caught 8 walleyes, all on minnows, and zero on leeches.  The leech bite should start soon.  The shallow water crappie bite has run it's course, and the crappies can now be found in the larger reed beds.  The smallmouth bass are finishing up their spawning, and will disperse to their mid-depth rocky structures soon.  Northern pike are quite active.