The fishing has been pretty good this May. I'd say spring but when the temps are knocking the dust offa 90 you gotta think we're in the summer months already. Water temps have risin faster than gas prices and the fish are confused to say the least. It's still no problem to catch them but most of the rules we go by this time of year are mute. Just fish.
Well, that's ending right now. Our forecasts are more normal now, highs in the 60s and lows in the 30s and 40s. That means we'll finally start to develop some fishing patterns we are familiar with. The longer daylight hours will green up the weeds even more and that's where we are gonna find those critters.
I fish all over the place, not just 3 or 4 lakes, so I gotta admit getting a good handle on a particular lake can be challenging. But the more I do this the more I see similarities in the lakes, as long as they of the same type (size, water clarity, etc). Our best walleye bites lately have been in the noon to 4pm period. Weird, huh? But it is what it is. The water temps shot up so fast ALL the species figured it was time to make hay. At a time of the year when most fish would not be any closer than the first break away from the spawning areas, they were right in the spawning areas. Some lakes they are done, for others, it was a false alarm. They are gonna start over. Which is good. A spread out spawn is a healthy and fruitful one.
The live bait of choice has been minnows, minnows, minnows. Crawlers and leeches have not been producing very well. Well, they're gonna start any day now. Be ready, Plastics have enjoyed early success because of the warmer weather and later bites.
As far as individual species right now the crappie fire is just starting to burn. Look out. Where last week they were cruising the beds, the last few days I have seen them bunching up outside of the spawning areas on the Livescope at around 10' of water. Not very active feeding yet but getting ready. Same with bluegill. A few on the beds but most in deep water waiting to hit the shorelines. I can always tell they are getting ready by watching them approach a bait, any bait, and then swim away with out biting on the Livescope.
The walleyes seem to all be on the first break and just out side the green weed line. They are moving quickly looking for food. We've had no problem catching them but finding them was a challenge. One day we couldn't keep up with them so we decided to put the spot lock on and wait for them to come back. They did.
This is the last weekend before Memorial Day. Can you believe it? Get out there and enjoy it before the crowds descend on your favorite spots. Good luck out there!
We hope you can find the time to come in to the shop during your time here in the northwoods. We have switched the inventory over to open water items. The number one comment we get is our guests can't believe the size of our selection. I put some photos up on the Facebook page. Our selection is second to none anywhere in the northwoods. Our additional warehouse is finished now to help handle all the inventory we will have. If you can't make it in you can always order from our website, www.deweycatchemandhow.com and we'll ship your order to you. Lots of SPECIALS on Livescope right now. Also, keep checking our Facebook page and the website for new arrivals. The newest offerings from Garmin, Humminbird, Blackfish and others are just starting to trickle in.
After that our normal weekly hours will be:
Monday thru Thursday from 6am to 7pm
Friday from 5am to 8pm
Saturday from 5am to 7pm
Sunday from 5am to 6pm.
Our minnows all come direct from trappers in central Wisconsin. Right now we have crappie minnows, regular fats, Tuffys (XL large fats), Blacktail chubs, walleye suckers, Mud Minnows and Northern minnows. We have plenty of waxies right now and leeches. It's been a tough year for leeches so far. We have plenty of them but they are on the smaller side. The crawlers are awesome right now. Best I've seen over the last couple of years. We sell them by the 12 ct, 24 ct, 100 ct and flat. All come in bedding while flats come in dirt or bedding. If you want a flat please call ahead so we can have it ready for you when you come, especially if you want the crawlers in bedding. We also have great jumbo panfish worms.
Jeff Bolander, owner of Dewey, Catchem and How Bait Shop and Guide Post at www.DeweyCatchemAndHow.com
Reports at www.UpNorthFishing.com
Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/DeweyCatchemAndHow