Captain Josh Hagemeister from Minnesota Fishing Guide Service gives us his latest Central Minnesota fishing report on July 10th, 2024.
Central Minnesota Fishing Report:
Central Minnesota fishing has been great for a variety fit species, including walleye, bass, and panfish. It’s a great time to get out and catch some fish.
Central Minnesota Fishing Report: Walleyes
The fishing has been great for walleyes as they move into their summertime patterns. Fish can be caught a few different ways. Right now they are fairly spread out. Look for walleyes on deeper structure on the main lake. Sunken humps and long sunken points are holding lots of fish. It seems like more fish are siting on the edge of these structures rather than on the top.
Pitching jigs has been one of the best ways to catch walleyes. Target depths between seventeen to twenty feet of water. Utilize your electronics to find active fish off the bottom. A jig paired with a nightcrawler or leech has been best. Work it along the bottom. A 1/8-ounce size jig in black, brown, white, and purple have been the hottest colors.
Anglers are also having success live bait rigging along the weediness at 1.5-2 mph. Use bottom bouncers matching 1-ounce of weight for every ten feet 10 you want to get down. Using spinners on cloudier, windy days. On calmer days a plain 2/0 red hook has been the ticket. Sometimes the spinner is scaring those fish away when they’re being more finicky.
You can also produce a few bites running leadcore down about twenty feet over the open basins of the main lake. Small 3-inch salmon flutter spoons in silver, green and blue can be very effective. Look for those thermocline and schools of bait out suspended.
Central Minnesota Fishing Report: Bass
Bass fishing has remained good as fish setup into their midsummer patterns. We have been finding fish between twelve and twenty feet of water. Focus on the weed line and look for bass on mid-lake structure such as humps. Jig and craws, drop shots, Carolina rigs, and ned rigs are all producing fish right now. Some topwater frog action in the evening is producing fish. Don’t be afraid to check out some deeper docks as it heats up in the shallows. Those fish will use this structure to shade themselves.
Central Minnesota Fishing Report: Panfish
Bluegill can be caught on the inside edges of weediness in eight to twelve feet of water. Use a chunk of crawler or leech to target bigger fish. Crappies can be caught a bit further out and they have been pretty suspended, usually about midway up in the water column. Micro tubes, hair jigs and small paddletails have been catching fish.
