It’s hard to believe we were fishing on the ice less than two weeks ago and now most of the lakes are ice free! The strong winds and rain cleared off the ice quickly this year, so we should be in store for a very productive walleye opener. Walleye opener is less than 2 weeks away, but the majority of the walleye will have already spawned. This is a good thing for anglers because fish will be in their usual opener locations looking to feed. Most shallow rocky/gravel areas will be holding the walleye you’re looking for. Any type of minnow or minnow imitation bait will work this time of year. Being the water will still be very cold, make sure to fish your baits extra slow. This will prove to be key in getting bite come opening day.While many anglers are waiting for opener, keep in mind the crappie fishing from shore has already started to pick up. This is one of the few times of the year where fishing from shore can be as good or better than fishing out of a boat. Alexandria is blessed with many lakes, so finding a spot to catch crappie from shore is not a difficult task. As usual, the shallow bays or shorelines on the north side of the lakes heat up the quickest, so these are the areas that have had the best crappie fishing this week. The more nice sunny days we get the warmer the shallow water bays get, so more and more areas will start to produce fish. A crappie minnow set 1’-3’ feet under a bobber has been working very well.Over the next couple months the fishing in the Alexandria area will be about as good as it gets anywhere. So whether you’re after walleye or panfish, they will be biting well!
