Chicago fishing, Midwest Fishing Report: Coho, crappie, rainbows, browns, walleye, largemouth, openers

Good afternoon Dale Sand Pond was loaded with Men and Women fishing for spring trout fishing at Sand Pond Adeline Geo Karris Illinois Beach State Park. Pond was full all around with more then 70 cars this past Saturday 7:30 AM. Was a beautiful day. Thanks Eddie

I’m going to hit up horsetail probably 5pm hopefully they still bite lol. . . . Crappie are just starting in the preserves, this warm weather might get them going. Rain might slow things down this weekend

Similar to the previous 2 weeks . . . crappie still going

Hey Dale, Here is a recap of this past weeks fishing. Area lakes- once we got past last weeks cold front, fishing has been improving with the above average temps. Bass have been decent on jerk baits worked over the top of emerging weed beds. Vary the cadence until the fish tell you want they want. Each day seems to be different. Crappie are slowly starting to stage and grouping up. Once you can locate them action has been decent on a variety of plastics under a float. A few bluegill can be caught with this presentation as well. Here is the nature pic of the week. Waterfowl are not the only ones trying to pair up. This guy is drumming to find a mate. TTYL — Ken Husker O’Malley Husker Outdoors Waterwerks fishing team

Hi Dale, I found a wide range of water temperatures in recent days. Not too many fish, but a wide range of temperatures. A park district pond near home had warmed into the mid-50s. An office complex retention pond was just below 60 degrees (I only fished the latter, without success). If this trend continues, I think I may be using small poppers on the local ponds by next weekend. . . . We’re headed in the right direction. A few more days or a week and things should really get moving. Pete

Hi dale With one day left of Spring break I felt good enough to take some casts on Monday. I headed to Twin Lakes in Palatine for some early morning bass. Not sure if it was the black cat in my back yard or the brief rainbow that appeared as the sun rose but I was able to at least get one fish to go. The wind was up and the weather did not seem conducive to fish catching. One of those mornings where you just can sense it might be tough. The one fish to hit fell to a Mepps #5 in line spinner in white and red. A young boy was very impressed as he saw me land and release the fish. I said I will send your picture to the man at the new paper and he smiled as he went along his walk. Other anglers did not report any fish being caught. The water was very cold and stained. One shore angler was saying the bite was very slow and he had not caught anything using minnows. Hopefully the weather will turn for the better and the bite should improve. Tight lines and good health Rob

so i got my butt kicked at the river yesterday, thought i give a lil report, got sum good bites under the bridge with sum grubs, other than tht Carp are hitting pretty good When I asked, he added: it felt like crappie bites, my brother Jesse is holding the Carp.

Hi Dale, . . . Saturday afternoon, we went to Silver Springs to sight in a turkey gun for the upcoming season. On the way home, we stopped just to look at a Fox tributary near its mouth with the Fox. There was a school of large suckers in a deep pool, easily spotted in the low clear water. But even after a day with temperatures approaching 70 degrees, water was only 42; I doubt much would be actively feeding under those conditions. We’re headed in the right direction. A few more days or a week and things should really get moving. Pete

Fishing Report 4/5/2021 Mike Norris . . . . . . Big Green Lake – Big Green is Wisconsin’s deepest inland lake and is slow to warm. Water temp is only 38 degrees on the main lake but boaters are finding active lake trout in 90 feet of water. Try catching them on Northland Rattling Spoons or a white jig tube. For information on guide trips reach out to me via my Facebook page at mike.norris.7773 or email me through my website at www.comecatchsmallmouth.com

Good morning fellas….here is a quick fishing update Brown Trout fishing has been going fair to good in recent weeks and with the rains predicted in the near future the Brown Trout fishing should just get better. Trolling the shallow water both on the lake side and the bay side of the peninsula will be the area to target. Floating Rapalas, Thundersticks and Mauler spoons are just a few of the top baits Pike fishing is going quite well and that fishing will also get better as we move through spring. Both trolling and casting spawn/staging areas with jerk baits, spoons and plastics has been effective along with drifting large sucker minnows. Walleye fishing is starting to pick up as the water continues to warm. Casting and trolling crank baits at night along with rip jigging with Rippin Raps, Hair jigs, Blades, Paddle tails and shorty Howie Tubes. Concentrate your efforts along the secondary shoreline drops, especially during the day and the primary shoreline drops in the evening and after dark The stream fishing for Rainbow Trout was off to a strong start then started to dwindle due to the lack of run-off. Again, that fishing with definitely ramp back up as we finally get some much needed rain to get those Lake Michigan tributaries rolling again. The catch and release Smallmouth bass fishing is also just starting to get rolling as some of those fishing are starting to push into the shallow bays as the water starts to warm. Jerk baits, Howie tubes, small paddle tails and hair jigs just a few of the top baits to use early in the season. Thanks; Lance LaVine Howie’s Tackle 1309 Green Bay Rd Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235 Ph: 920-746-9916

They tell me the Illinois River don’t have big crappie- I disagree We smashed good ones today let go a bunch too- keeping only ten with his personal best going on his wall-

This was the Easter egg I was looking for lol Spawned out female. 25in caught in kankakee river on a live shiner Released

I would guess [the walleye weighed around 4lbs because of the length? No more than that. Let me tell you it was a very light hit, then a great fight. Pulled drag that was pretty tight. Thought I had a big catfish. Caught a smallmouth before that that jumped and pulled but didn’t fight as much

Hi Dale - Fished the Kankakee today and was able to land several smallmouth and a couple largemouth mostly undersized with a few decent ones mixed in. River is in pretty good shape with a slight stain on main channel. Had success working a slight mudline on Crainkbaits actually landing 2 on same cast. Pic attached are the Smallies that were caught together. A first for me.

Within an hour of each other [we got two browns] ...... we get this rain , it should really go off as the alewife move in ..... the coho are crazy big for this time ..... late April early may sized fish .... hope your holiday was excellent... be well Dale

Browns were on set lines (bottom) . . . coho were a mix of float lines and the power line. . . . bite started way out . . . then moved in as the chop progressed shallow. . . . that disturbed water is so important with this clear water. . . . we need some turbidity. . . . 3/5’ down for the coho.

2 hours today at Montrose 2nd limit this week

Yes. Night crawlers were the ticket today. On Monday we alternated minnow, worm etc

. . . Guys that are putting in the hours are being rewarded. Bass are doing well and some reports of drum. . .

Similar to the previous 2 weeks coho . . . still going

Good morning Dale Coho fishing still good. Powerliners are doing better then rod and reel. Still some nice brown trout and steelhead around. Large minnows and nightcrawlers still seem to be the baits of choice. I would anticipate that the water is starting to warm up this week so guys casting some spoons and crankbaits should start getting a little more action. For those interested I have had no smelt reports.

guys are getting browns, steelies, and a few cohos are showing up off the pier.

Waukegan 4/5 Hi Dale In Waukegan coho are starting. Only a couple of serious boats are in now so reliable information is sparse. Some coho are being taken in 25 to 65 trolling dodger and peanut flies or body baits. For boats targeting coho the shallower waters 25- 35 have more then the deeper water Big lake trout are plentiful in 60 feet. The trout are suspended all over the water column. Suspended spoons as well as typical laker taker Mo Rigs are working. The bright rubber skirted Jimmy Fly Green Guy and Green Goby were best. It’s will still be 2 weeks before my running gear is on and I’m in so my reports may be sporadic until then. It’s already an above average start of April. Capt Scott Wolfe 630-341-0550 www.schooloffishcharters.com Manipulator - Waukegan

A very unusual warm early April has most of our lakes completely ice free. The few exceptions being the largest lakes, Fence and Trout. But with air temps hitting 80 degrees on Monday (4/5) that won’t last long. It’s rare to see such an early ice out with open water and such nice weather. Anglers are out checking on Crappie spots, Perch spots and getting the kinks out of their equipment. Crappie: Good-Very Good – Anglers finding Crappies filtering through standing weeds in 6-8’ of water. Spooking easily, so long cast required with small floats and minnows or tiny hair jigs. While still a long way off from spawning, some anglers reporting Crappies moving close into shallow brush. Most likely to soak up warmth that helps with their egg production later. Yellow Perch: Good – Below dams that are open to fishing (The Rainbow Dam closes April 10th as a sanctuary until May 1st). Jig and medium fats or pieces of crawlers, lindy rigs or floats in the eddies work. Bluegill: Poor – Just no reports as of now. Most interest in Crappies and Perch. With ice off so early and so much warm weather, expect almost all Walleye spawning to be finished by May 1st. A good post spawn bite should occur, but lots can happen here in the Northwoods between now and then. Catch & Release Bass IS open. Panfish (Crappie, Bluegill, Yellow Perch) IS open. NO Walleye fishing is open up here with the exception of the research Lake Escanaba with its one over 28 regulation. The closed season is to give some species a break from harvest and pursuit. Please be aware and respect these rules. Rules like these and bag limits are meant to ensure opportunities for the future, so everyone can enjoy for years to come. Kurt Justice Kurt’s Island Sport Shop Like us on FaceBook

Willow slough good for boat fisherman gills,crappie on jigs tipped with beemoth Coho action on the portage river walk is hit or miss everyday has been different Trolling for coho has been all over the place from good to slow you find a pocket of fish work that area. East Chicago up and down the wall to Gary light to the mouth of the ditch and the mouth of the port of Indiana are the areas that have been getting worked. Brads thinfish and dodgers and peanut Flys best baits Crappie at lake George in Hobart around the bridges and log jams using crappie minnows

Area Anglers are having good luck trolling for Coho in 15-30 FOW with a few kings showing up. Guys are trolling flatlines with thin fish and 3 colors of leadcore with small spoons. The rivers have slowed down a lot with just a few steelhead being caught. There are some catfish being caught. The inland lakes are starting to do much better a lot of nice crappie and some bluegill.

Fishing Report 4/5/2021 Mike Norris . . . Petenwell Flowage – For walleye work current breaks from below the Pettenwell Dam down to the mouth of the lake. Both vertical Jigging and casting jigs with minnows work well. Water level is down so careful navigating in rocky areas. . . . For information on guide trips reach out to me via my Facebook page at mike.norris.7773 or email me through my website at www.comecatchsmallmouth.com

FYI. Water low in Winneconne, but Walleye starting to bite. Friends (3) had limit by 9am yesterday. 13-16 inches. Limit is 3.

Sorry I missed you Dale, damn phone went out this morning. Water temp today was 55 degrees. The walleye spawn should be done in the next few days. Females are coming down now, males will follow in a week or two. I’m thinking we should start picking up a few white bass by the weekend

Wolf River – Walleyes are active and can be caught vertical jigging with a jig and minnow. Water temp is in the low 40’s. The walleyes should spawn this week with the incoming warm weather.