Fishing Report May 2024
May 29, 2024
The walleye bite on Woman Lake remains spotty, as inconsistent weather has limited the number of days we could be on the water. It seems every day is either too windy or steady rains. Water temperatures are approaching 60 degrees so I think the bite would kick into high gear if we had some stable weather. The bass are spawning or getting ready to spawn. The shallow water crappie bite, which has been great, has now run it's course as the crappies are now migrating out to their spawning reeds and flats.
May 17, 2024
Walleye fishing has been spotty during the daytime this week as fish have been challenging to find on the sonar, and then when found they have been in a neutral or negative feeding mood. The night time crankbait bite on the shallow sand flats is still going ok. Slow troll Rapala style baits along the 5-9 foot deep shoreline sandflats after dark and you will find some walleyes. The shallow water crappie bite is still active in the black bottom bays and channels. I have been fishing a small fathead minnow about 15 inches below a bobber and working the shorelines and lilypad edges with some success. I am hopeful the walleye bite will heat up by Memorial Day weekend, which it traditionally has done.
May 13, 2024
The Minnesota Walleye Fishing Opener was a real success with beautiful weather, good fishing, and a truly spectacular display of the Northern Lights for two nights in a row. Water temperature on Woman Lake is in the 55-56 degree range and the walleyes are currently staged on primary shore related structures like points and shoreline breaks. The preferred depth was in the 14-17 foot range, but at night they were on the 4-8 foot shoreline sand flats. They will likely remain there for a couple weeks before they start to dispurse to structures in the main lake basin like reefs, bars, sunken islands, and rock piles. The crappie bite is also very active in the shallow black bottom bays, channels, and harbors at this time. Once the water warms up more (before the end of the month), the crappies will move out to their main lake haunts and spawning structure. Check out the Catch Photos section (button on top header bar) on this website to see some of our fish and some amazing Northern Lights photos taken from my dock. We caught 15 walleyes with six of them in the 20-24" range, and none smaller than 16" (all on shiners or crankbaits), as well numerous large northern pike and plenty of crappies.
May 6, 2024
The ice on Woman Lake went out remarkably early this spring, however the month of April has brought mostly clouds, wind, rain, and cold weather. Water temperatures on Woman Lake are still quite cold for now, and the water is crystal clear. Warmer weather is forecast this week, and the MN Walleye Opening Day on Saturday, May 11, is just 5 days away, so we will soon see how this impacts the walleye bite. For the most part, high winds, rain, and cold have prevented much fishing at all so far. I tried fishing crappies over on Little Boy Lake the other day, and the water was still too cold (48 degrees on the main lake) for the typical crappies movement into the shallows to start, but we did catch some nice bass and northern pike. The good news is the water will warm up soon, we just don't know how soon. We may get the benefit of a decent shallow water crappie bite at the same time the walleye season is open. Those two things often do not overlap. The season is upon us, so get your gear in the boat and be ready to get on the water.