Houston's Fishing Report:

[Lee Borgersen]

         Houston's Fishing Report:
    Tough week of weather for fishing.

4/23/17

April showers not only bring May flowers — they should also help bring water levels up.

The rain is much-needed, especially for area reservoirs such as Island Lake near Duluth and Chippewa Flowage near Hayward. Having the right water levels makes life easier when launching/loading boats, navigating to shallow bays, etc. The Wisconsin fishing opener is in two weeks (May 6) and the Minnesota opener is in three weeks (May 13).

As far as the latest fishing report, it's been a sour week for fishing weather in the area but we have found some time to wet a line.

Lake Superior is seeing smelt action in the twilight hours, but it has been tough with this last blast of colder, windier weather. People are flocking to the stream areas and having some success with dip netting or running seine nets. The Wisconsin side has been better, and Minnesota Point has had a lot of action as well. The North Shore streams should be loading up now as well.

Shore-landing for Kamloops has also been a challenge with the recent strong winds. The more comfortable fishing this past week has been tributary stream fishing — however even that has been slower on account of the weather. Stream current flow has increased with this rainy week.

The St. Louis River now has most docks in for the season, but hasn't had a lot of traffic. Water temps are still a tad chilly, and the influx of cold rain and chilly days has not helped matters. Looking ahead, we will start to see more panfish success. Targeting shallow bays for sunfish, perch and crappies near timber will be the go-to areas. Wood structures like beaver dams that are submerged will heat up water faster than other areas. The walleyes are in the midst of their spawn cycle as we speak and should be left alone. We recently received reports of anglers honed in on spawning walleyes. This is not legal, and more importantly not ethical and can be harmful. If you see illegal behavior on any bodies of water, we encourage you to call the Minnesota DNR tip line — (800) 652-9093 or key in #TIP on your cell phone.

Inland lakes are now ice-free and most have or are in the process of getting public access docks installed. The best bet still is shallow bays for panfish action. Our best success has come from driving around the Arrowhead region and checking/fishing shorelines. A pair of rubber boots or waders can make for fun opportunities. The best tactic has been live bait, sinker and float.

Jarrid Houston of South Range is a fishing guide (houstonsguideservice.com) on Minnesota and Wisconsin inland waters, the St. Louis River and, in winter, on Lake Superior.