The much needed rain arrived to the Lake Winnebago region and really invigorated the area rivers. On the Wolf River the gage of the water rose from 4.25 feet to over 6.0 feet in the three days. Water temperatures also spiked from 40 to 49 degrees in New London. Lake Winnebago had water temps in the low to mid 40’s during the weekend.
There is a clearly formed mud line coming out of the major rivers in Fond du Lac and Oshkosh on Lake Winnebago. Area river clarity has become deeply stained with the recent rainfall.
On the Wolf River, New London has had steady action for walleyes. There are a lot of females moving through the area, with about 2/3 of the females in post spawn mode. Many of the males are actively spawning. A jig and a minnow is the best method to target these fish in the mid depth ranges. Orange is a great color on the Wolf, especially with the dirtier water. Blue is an excellent color when clear water is found.
In Fremont on The Wolf River, the dirty water has limited walleye catch rates, but this may be temporary. Strong populations of walleyes are being seen.
On the Fox River in Oshkosh, medium sized walleyes are common. Perch fishing has been slow by most reports. Overall, the fishing has been mediocre, driven by water clarity. In Eureka, the main spawning run for walleyes is complete, and the carp have moved into this area.
Lake Winnebago has seen an uptick in walleye populations along the west shore reefs. Many of the post spawn males are on the rocks, recuperating from the swim back home. With the weak populations of forage, these fish are aggressive. My suggestion is to target these fish with slip bobbers and leeches/minnows. The north shore, a typical spawning area for sauger, has been fairly quiet.
The channels, harbors, and feeder creeks attached to Lake Winnebago have started to fire up. These warm water areas attract the bluegills and crappies in large numbers. Sunday started to show some decent catch rates. I would expect this week to be excellent.
Moving onto the Bay of Green Bay and Fox River. In De Pere (Fox River) multiple gates have been opened at the dam, and the walleye responded with an excellent bite on Thursday and Friday. By Saturday, the Lowrance graphs lite up with fish, but the dirty water made it almost impossible for the fish to find the bait. This area needs to have 2-3 solids days without rain to let the sediment fall out of the water before it starts to pick up again. Muskies have been common this week in this stretch of the river.
At Oconto, the best bite on the system was seen very close to the mouth of the river. At the mouth there is a jig bite direct outside the break wall. This is a morning bite and shuts down with boat traffic. We found a solid trolling bite in the same general area but in the 11-16 foot ranges. We netted ten plus cookie cutter walleyes all in the 26-28 inch range. All fish were post spawn. Purple and white shad shaped baits were dominate behind the Off Shore Planner boards at 77 feet back.
At Peshtigo, some big fish were being reported on jigs and plastics outside of the mouth of the river. The majority of the fish here are pre-spawn. Many of the walleyes are running in excess of 28 inches.
At Menomonie (MI), the main spawning bite has not started just yet, but some pre spawn walleyes are being caught.
The next several weeks will conclude the spawning runs for most area walleyes. With the warm temperatures and relatively dry conditions, the fishing should remain excellent for all area game fish. I encourage anglers to check regulations related to the different water bodies they may be fishing. Also remember to dry and inspect your boats as you move between waterways to prevent the spread of invasive species.
I’m taking next weekend off as work duties calls. Please forward your reports to me at [email protected]. If I receive enough reports I’ll try to get a report out next week; if not look for a report in approximately two weeks.
In the meantime, be sure to stop by River Haus in Fond du Lac to get your live bait and terminal tackle. Tell Don we sent you! Now….Get on the water and go catch some trophies! Don’t forget about our master angler program for the Winnebago system. Full details can be found on the main page.
