April 7th Fishing Reports

[Mayfly]

ALEXANDRIA ? Christopherson?s Bait & Tackle, Dana Freese, 2 blocks east of Big Ole, (320-763-3255) Crappies and sunfish are biting on waxworms in 6-8 feet of water on Lake Le Homme Dieu, Darling, Ida and Geneva.

ANNANDALE - B.J.?s Bait & Tackle, Bill, west side of Clearwater Lake, between the two public accesses (320-274-3730) We will reopen at ice-out.

ANOKA ? Action?s Fishing, Jack, 809 West Hwy 10 (763-422-4890)We will reopen at ice-out.

BATTLE LAKE ? Ben?s Bait & Tackle, Josie, Junction of Hwy 78 and 210 (218-864-5596) Crappies are biting on West Battle in 8-14 feet of water mainly in the late afternoon and evening on crappie minnows and green jigs. South Turtle and West Lost are producing sunfish for fishermen using waxworms. There have been some tullibees caught on Pickerel and Molly Stark.

BEMIDJI ? Bluewater Bait & Sports, Mark Cook, 1 mile north of the Hwy 2 & 71 Intersection (218-444-2248) No report to give. The ice conditions are very poor. It will be at least a couple weeks before the ice goes out.

BIG STONE ? Bud?s Bait & Tackle, Greg or Jim Rasset (320-839-2480) No fishing report, ice is very unsafe.

BLACKDUCK - Timberline Sport & Tackle, Carl Adams, Junction of Hwy 71 and Blackduck Lake Rd (218-835-4636) The fish are biting anywhere that you can get on the ice. The ice conditions are getting worse and the shoreline is starting to break up.

BRAINERD LAKES AREA ? Brainerd Guide Service, John Blong (218-825-8965) Warm weather is starting to turn the ice dark in the Brainerd lakes area. The ice is already starting to recede from the shore on some of the smaller lakes in the area. It shouldn?t be long, if the current weather holds, before we start seeing some open water in the area.

CHISAGO CITY ? Frankie?s Live Bait and Marine, Brad, Corner of Hwy 8 and Co Rd 77 (651-257-6334) No fishing report, ice is very unsafe. Do not attempt to travel on lake. Hopefully there will be open water after the 10th.

CROSSLAKE - Holiday of Cross Lake, Lee (218-692-2708) Call us for a report!

DETROIT LAKES - Dick Beardsley?s Guide Service (218-846-9230) The ice fishing in the Detroit Lakes area is now done with for the most part. Heavy rains last week and more in the forecast for the end of the week along with the warm temps has really put a dent into the ice. Dick would not advise anymore travel on area lakes. He will keep everyone updated on when the ice will be off area lakes. The last couple of years it has been around the 15-20th of April. Looking at around the 10-15th of April this year. Get that open water fishing equipment ready to go!

DULUTH - Fisherman?s Corner, Scott, 7 miles north of Miller Mall on Hwy 53 (218-729-5369) Some are catching Loopers on the North Shore. Ice conditions are poor. Use caution on the lakes.

DULUTH - Marine General, 1501 London Road, on the edge of Lake Superior (218-724-8833) The fishermen trolling on the Knife River in Two Harbors have been doing well on Cohos and a few cantaloupes and lake trout. Most have been using stick baits and fishing the surface. The rains this past week have blown the rivers out of control. They are on the high side and are hard to fish, but some fish are being caught. Shore fishing has been good if you are able to get out. The French River and the Sucker River are the hot spots for looper fishing.

EDEN VALLEY ? Mike?s Bait & Tackle, Mike, right off Hwy 55 (320-453-2248) No report. Ice is pulled away from shore. Our guess, if it is nice this week, that there will be open water by this weekend.

GRAND RAPIDS - Rapids Tackle, Don Wendt, 2 blocks west of Jerry?s Liquor Warehouse (218-326-9838) The ice conditions are still fair. Check before you go out, as they change day by day now. We haven?t seen too many folks out the past few days. The rain kept most inside. Fishing is still pretty good when you get out. Slyvan Bay, right in town, has been giving up some nice crappies and ?gills. Small ice flies tipped with waxies or larvae seems to do the job. There has been a good sunfish bite on Splithand. Bowstring has some perch and crappies going at mid-day. You can get some perch, crappies and bluegills by putting a boat in the Mississippi and going to the warm water discharge at the MPL plant in Cohasset. We will continue to keep you posted as long as we have fishable ice.

GREY EAGLE - Nancy?s Bait & Tackle, Rex, on CR 2, four miles east of the Rock Tavern on Big Birch Lake, four miles west of Upsala (320-285-2405) No fishing report, ice is very unsafe. Some are falling in trying to get onto the ice. If we get anymore rain, the ice should go off. Call for a updated report.

HACKENSACK - Swanson?s Bait & Tackle, Jim Tuller, Hwy 371 on the north end of Hackensack (218-675-6176) No fishing report, ice is very unsafe. Travel at your own risk.

KABETOGAMA-NAMAKAN ? Gateway Store, US Hwy 53 & CO Rd 122, 30 miles south of Int?l Falls-Canadian border, Phil Hart (218-875-2121) Anglers had a tough go on Kabetogama and Namakan after mid-week, as heavy rains made conditions miserable. Saturday anglers could get out on the ice, but fish did not cooperate and Sunday the rain again returned. Ice thickness still allows anglers to reach most areas, however, the snowmobile portages are now bare ground. The park service has removed all trail markers due to deterioration of ice, and as of this writing, most the snow has disappointed.

LAKE OF THE WOODS ?Area Tourism Bureau, Jane, near junction of Hwy 11 and Hwy 172 in Baudette (1-800-382-FISH) The Rainy River now has open water west as far as Baudette. Much of the river is open shore to shore up to this point, with Clementson Bay opening as well. Birchdale, Frontier and Vidas Landings are open and plowed, ready for boats of all sizes. However, reports are that the river did muddy up this past weekend, bringing walleye fishing to a screeching halt. But if you?d care to try for a monster of the deep, lake sturgeon season is open for catch and release until April 23rd, and reports are that anglers trying for them are catching them. While it is still possible to get out on the lake, dissolving shore ice is prompting many to simply call an end to this year?s ice fishing season. Access points to the east are starting to get sloppy, and most resorts in the area have packed up until the spring opener rolls around on May 13th. To the west, the lake is still accessible at Zippel and Long Point, with ATV?s being the preferred travel option. Walleye season closes on April 14th. All snowmobile trails were closed as of Friday, March 31st, with absolutely no travel of any kind recommended on the ice of Rainy River.

LEECH LAKE ? Anderson?s Resorts, Tim (1-800-516-0077) Call for a report.

MANKATO ? The Bobber Shop, North Riverfront Drive (507-625-8228) No report to give. The ice conditions are very poor.

MILLE LACS ? Lundeen?s Tackle Castle, Bill Lundeen, Onamia (320-532-3416) Access conditions are beginning to deteriorate, so be sure to use caution. The walleye and northern pike seasons are closed. The 2006 opener is May 13.

MONTEVIDEO ? DJ?s Sporting Goods, Jon Dahlvang, east Hwy 7, south side of Hwy, (320-269-7265) No fishing report because the ice is going out.

NISSWA - Dave?s Sportland Bait & Tackle, Jason, 2 miles south of Nisswa at the Intersection of Hwy 371 and Cty Rd 77, next to Schaefer?s Foods (218-963-2401) What a difference a week makes. The lakes are starting to break away from the shorelines and we are starting to look forward to open water. A few days of sun and rain made fast work of what was remaining. A few anglers (as of Monday) were still venturing out on the ice chasing crappies and sunfish. The fish have started to move up on the shallow weed flats and just off the edges. From now until open water that is where to look. Crappie minnows, waxworms, or plastic tails on a small jighead have all produced decent results. Stay tuned or call for the latest on the lake conditions.

PARK RAPIDS ? Delaney?s Sport Center, Kevin, East 1st St (218-732-4281) Call ahead for a report. Some are still fishing, we are guessing that there will be one more weekend of fishing. Travel by foot only. Straight Lake seems to be the easiest lake to get out on. The bluegills are biting here and also in the Crow Wing Chain of Lakes in 12 feet of water. Big Man Trap has been producing crappies in 20 feet of water, suspended.

PELICAN RAPIDS ? Park Region Sport Shop, Lee Brenna, Intersection of Interstate 59 and 108 in downtown Pelican Rapids (800-962-8553) No report, ice conditions are poor. Everyone is done fishing because the ice is slush.

RAINY LAKE ? Rainy Lake Tourism (1-800-FALLS-MN) Spring fishing is very popular on Rainy River. A large population of lake of the Woods walleye run upstream in the spring to spawn. Anglers catch many larger walleye than are commonly caught on Lake of the Woods in the summer. Plus, there are a lot of fish running upstream so the fishing is good. There are flyers available explaining the slot and possession limits for Walleye, Sauger, lake Sturgeon and northern Pike. The flyer also shows the location of ramps in and near International Falls, as well as downstream toward Lake of the Woods. This flyer is available at the International Falls Convention and Visitors Bureau at the Chamber of Commerce building, 301 2nd Ave. International Falls or visit our web site.

RED WING ? Four Seasons Sport Shop, 2301 W Main St (651-388-4334) Right now the water is moving pretty fast, but some are still catching fish. Try up by the dam in 20-26 feet of water and use ringworms, sonars, fireball jigs with stinger hooks and a minnow. Fishing conditions are rough but some are finding fish in Black Water.

SAINT CLOUD ? Corky?s Gas & Bait , Main Street in Rockville (320-251-1567) Fishing here has come to a stand still. It is unsafe to be on area lakes. Some are fishing the Sauk River and the river in Cold Spring. Be careful, these rivers are high!

SAINT CLOUD ? Stop Light Bait, Honest Don, 8th Avenue SE, St. Cloud (320-255-9689) The ice is deteriorating on most area lakes. Some lakes are free of ice already. Some ice fishermen are now traveling north to get to lakes they can still get on. In the past week we have heard of some good catches of perch, sunfish and crappies. Anglers need to call ahead to verify conditions. The Mississippi River fishermen are fishing already and catching a few crappies. Suckers have begun to run in some rivers.

SPICER - Mel?s Sportshop, Hwy 23 and Ruth Street (320-796-2000) We got an inch of rain last Thursday night which pretty much killed the ice fishing. It rained again all day Sunday and now some bays and channels are starting to open up. With warm weather predicted all week, I think we?ll be fishing the bays by the weekend. The first waves of panfish move into the shallows as the ice retreats. Remember, they?re not in to spawn, but are following the warmer water to feed. Flu-Flu?s, Timber Wolf flies, Gypsy jigs and Fire Fly jigs are some of the best early season lures. Add a waxworm, Power bait or Gulp to the lure and fish it as slow as possible. Using a bobber or Thill float and by barely moving it can some times produce limits.

STARBUCK - Minnewaska Bait, Larry Jensen, Hwy 29 near the Starbuck Marina (320-239-2239) The Starbuck Marina is open and there is open water. When the water temperature rises a bit, we will start catching crappies. Another area that will be the first to produce crappies is the area near the fish hatchery. Try using crappie minnows and small jigs.

WACONIA - Mase?s In Towne Marine, Cindy, corner of Lake and Elm (952-442-2096) Closed for the winter season! Stop by and see us in the spring!

WAYZATA - Wayzata Bait & Tackle, Tim or Bob, half mile west off I-494 on Hwy 12 (952-473-2227) Fishermen are scouting for open water this week. Half of Gray?s Bay is open. Try using small jigs and minnows in 3-5 feet of water in the afternoon.

WINNIBIGOSHISH ? Walleye Visions, Tom Neustrom, 21622 Airport Rd, Grand Rapids (218-327-2312) Call or check our web site for updates.