Minnesota fishing guide Toby Kvalevog from Leisure Outdoor Adventures gives us his latest Leech Lake fishing report on July 1st, 2024.
Leech Lake Fishing Report: 7-1-2024
The fishing has been starting to pick back up as patterns swing into mid summer. There is plenty of action to be had out on Leech Lake whether you are chasing walleyes or musky.
Walleye: Leech Lake Fishing Report
Conditions: Walleye fishing has been good, but not great with significant slow down in fishing success over the past few weeks. This is largely due to the continued mass of forage in the lake. Between crayfish molting, mayflies hatches, and perch fry the walleyes have plenty of food options.
Because of the mass amounts of forage, it’s important to target walleyes during primetime. Peak feeding windows early in the morning or late in the evening are the best times to fish right now. We are also seeing a nice bite window around ten to eleven in the morning.
Location:
The mid-lake humps in fourteen to twenty feet of water have had the best walleye fishing. Target those fish slightly deeper on sunny, calm days. On windy day you can find fish on the tops of the mid-lake structure. Some schools of walleyes can also be found along the weedy bays in ten to fourteen feet of water. During lowlight conditions they may be as shallow as six feet of water.
Portage Bay and Sucker Bay have been the best areas for the weed line bite. Main lake rock reefs and flats with a mixture of sand grass are other good areas.
Baits:
Slip bobbers and leeches and have been the biggest producer this past week and will continue to get bit as summer progresses. A darker colored jig paired with a leech has been the most effective.
Crank baits have also been working well. The best colors have been perch and crayfish. Fish these along the edges of the weeds.
Rapala Jigging Raps have been good especially on those windier days. Remember to work fast and create that instinctive reaction bite for these predatory fish. A few fish can also be caught on a 1/8-ounce jig paired with a leech or nightcrawler.
Anglers are also having some success pasting jigs paired with plastics. Use paddle tails or Eye Candy Minnows. Orange, Black, or Smoke Shad have been some hot colors in plastics. Most anglers are using a jig in a 1/4-ounce size.
Muskie: Leech Lake Fishing Report
Muskies are both shallow and deep right now as summer patterns emerge. Trolling crankbaits over deeper waters in the main basin have been working. Focus on areas like Walker Bay, Dakota Bay, and Agency Narrows. Trolling around three or four-mph has been quite productive. Crankbaits in cisco, perch and walleye colorations have been the best.
Classic shallow early summer spots has been productive for anglers looking to cast for muskies. Fish the weedy bays and weed beds. Anglers are starting to see a few fish show up on rock piles as well. Muskies are just beginning to get into their summer patterns and the action has been pretty good. Throwing blades is always good in the weeds, whether that’s double cowgirls, bucktails, or a big spinnerbait.
Pike: Leech Lake Fishing Report
Pike can be found in the weeds in that six – twelve foot range of water, with some nice sized fish being caught. Throwing spinner baits and smaller buck tails for these aggressive fish.
