A few weeks ago I went out for the first open water fishing of the season with Cozy. We went down to the dock in Wayzata because they have a circulator there. A circulator is a machine that is often put under permanent docks in the winter to keep the water from freezing and wrecking the dock. It basically just keeps the water moving. I was just messing around with my fly rod and didn't expect to catch anything, but actually found a lost bluegill. First fish of the season was on a fly and it was cool because even bluegills are fun on a five weight fly rod. Not a fish that normally deserves a picture but it was the first of the season so... here ya go.
There was almost no snowmelt this year due to the warmth. This means an earlier ice out, an earlier spawn, and much lower water level than normal for the first two events. Although this can be good for the fish populations, it throws off their natural migrations and makes them a little harder to predict.
After fly fishing off Wayzata dock, I went out to the Crow River when it broke and tried for a little catfish. I only fished for about half an hour and it was pretty bright out, so it didn't really surprise me that I didn't get any bites.
I also had the opportunity to fish the Zumbro River down in Rochester last weekend. I was at Camp Victory for a church retreat and woke up before breakfast (and everyone else) to fish the river in the mornings with my fly rod. No fish showed up... the flies I was using were primarily for bass and the water was still too cold for the bass to be moving around much.
Finally, I managed to get out today at French Park on Medicine. We just got a lot of rain, so the water was relatively dark. The overcast skies stuck around, complicating things. I don't like dark water with overcast skies because it complicates lure selection for me. Normally, you are best choosing bright colors on sunny days and dark colors on cloudy days. You choose natural colors in clear water and bright, exotic colors in stained water to help the fish find the lure.
I didn't have any luck with flies, so I downgraded to jigs. No luck with jigs, so I downgraded to live waxworms. Minimal luck with waxworms, so I downgraded again and added some Gulp for flavor and finally started getting fish. I missed a couple and released the bluegills, so at the end of the day I only ended up with a few crappies. But it was a great day, got a couple fish, and got outside.
This is crappie time! Get out on the docks and shores, it's the best spot to find them now. Good luck and have fun.
Tight lines,
Bradley
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