The Alexandria area continues to kick out some great fish. Walleye, northern, bass, crappie and sunfish have all been plentiful. The walleye gave us a hard time for about a week or so, but we quickly located them again and have been catching good numbers and size as of late. The crappie also continue to be quite aggressive and are averaging 10”-12” which is perfect eating size.
The majority of our walleye are being caught in 12-22 feet of water. Lindy rigs tipped with leeches and night crawlers have been working, but crank baits seem to be producing the nicer walleye. Trolling #5 and #7 crank baits just over the weeds or next to them at 1.5-2.5mph has been producing good numbers and size recently. Covering as much water as possible seems to be the key to locating these hungry walleye. Also, always keep an eye on your locator for suspended fish. When walleye are a few feet off bottom they’re generally much more active than the walleye that are holding tight to the bottom.
The crappie are even easier to find and seem to be littered in 10-12 feet of water. I’ve actually been trolling small crankbaits as big as #5 and still catching them. Although crankbaits may not be the best bait for crappie, they do help you locate schools of active fish quickly. If you can catch a few crappie in a given area on a crankbait, then chances are you have found a decent sized school of fish. Simply stop the boat and drift that area with a small jig and minnow under a bobber and have fun. The aggressive nature of crappie makes locating them quite easy with the right presentation.
The days are getting shorter and the temps are getting cooler. These are both signs that the infamous fall fishing is near. Over the next couple months I will be posting some impressive catches of both smallmouth bass and walleye. Those are my two favorite species to target in the fall. As do other species, these fish go on an absolute terror eating everything they can to get prepared for the winter ahead. At times they become so full they look like they just might pop, and yet they’ll still eat more. This is one of the most enjoyable times to fish because there are less anglers and the fishing is outstanding. As always, if you have any questions don’t hesitate to contact me.
