Pine Knot Outdoors: As seasons turn, so does the bite

I half-walked, half-skipped to my truck. I had just polished off my second week of teaching summer school. Much like the fish I’ve been chasing, I’m transitioning to my summer pattern.

In the last two weeks, I’ve fished the St. Louis River, Island, Chub, Big, Pike, Sturgeon, Pelican, Gunflint, and Saganaga. What I’ve gathered, besides filets, is that fish are transitioning from their spring locations and patterns to their summer haunts.

The crappies are almost all past spawn. I’m no longer concentrating on shallow, visible fish. My efforts have moved offshore. How far depends on the individual lake and the location of developing weed beds in the 7-12 foot range. I fan-cast these areas with 1/32 or 1/64 ounce jigs tipped with a variety of small plastics. Once you connect with one crappie, slow down and work the area for a while.

Largemouth and smallmouth bass have been the least predictable. Many are post spawn, some are in the act of spawning, and a small cohort has yet to build their beds. The good news is that all three varieties can be found in fairly shallow water. I’ve been targeting shorelines and adjacent points and flats in the 2-10 foot range. When faced with open areas and sparse weed growth, I like to throw Rapala X-raps or other baits designed to cover some water. Denser weed growth and spot on a spot locations call for 7-inch Berkeley power worms or 5-6 inch Senkos worked as tight to structure as possible.

St. Louis River walleyes are slowly but surely working their way downstream. Above the Highway 23 bridge is still holding plenty of fish, but Spirit Lake and the Arrowhead flats sections have been hosting larger concentrations. Farther downstream, the harbor, Allouez Bay and the south shore of Lake Superior are kicking out big females that have fully recuperated from the spawn. Long lining crankbaits or crawler harnesses will produce on the flats. Crawler harnesses behind bottom bouncers is a solid tactic if fish are utilizing the deeper channel edges.

Lake walleyes have also wrapped up spawning. In the last couple of weeks, I’ve located walleyes using all types of structure. Consequently, they are susceptible to a wide variety of techniques. For numbers, concentrate on incoming current areas and shallow flats adjacent to where spawning occurred.

For bigger fish move out of the bays and target main lake structure. This past weekend we landed mostly male walleyes in the 16-23 inch range close to shore. Our bigger fish, including my sister-in-law Julie’s monster 32-incher, came miles from where it dropped its eggs 4-6 weeks ago.

The further north you go, the bluegills are still building and using their spawning beds. Pike are patrolling weed beds in the bays, but don’t overlook isolated rock piles in the largest section of the lake. Big, dominant pike often stake claim to these areas.

Soon, fish will settle into their summer patterns and become more predictable in their locations. For now, it pays to be flexible and open-minded in your approach. Understanding seasonal fish behavior and migrations exponentially increases your odds of locating and connecting with fish of all species and sizes.

Bret Baker is a lifetime resident of Cloquet. He is a proud husband, father, educator and outdoorsman. Bret began guiding fishing trips when he was 16 years old. Today, in his 40s, his passion is to introduce people to the tremendous outdoor adventures available in our region.