We had one bizarre ice season here in Minnesota and have never been more geared up and ready for the open water season!
The Minnesota Walleye Opener
This year, we will be heading North for opener to fish Otter Tail Lake for the first time. We put together a quick Tips & Tactics video to show how we typically tackle the Minnesota Walleye Opener.
Our Walleye Tips for Minnesota Fishing Opener
Whether you’re a seasoned angler looking for new things to try or just getting into walleye fishing, we share our methods on how we go about finding walleye in May and our top tactics to target them which include:
Trolling Cranks: Best way to search for schools of fish and trigger a reaction bite
Pitching Jigs: Either working a plastic or the Minnesota staple, Jig & Minnow
Lipless Cranks: Casting onto a school of fish to trigger again that reaction bite
We break down from how we start the day to how we work each bait depending on fish behavior.
Lakes to Fish for Opener
This year, we decided to shake things up a bit and try a new lake for opener. In the past, we have not strayed too far from our top 3 lakes which have been very productive for us. So if your still planning your opener trip, take a look into these lakes:
Lake Mille Lacs
Leech Lake
Lake Vermillion
Check out our video from Lake Mille Lacs Opener
What we like best about Mille Lacs and Leech lake - both lakes are great to start a midnight troll on and beat the crowds.
Our Tackle Box Must-Haves
There are so many baits and lures on the market, it can be overwhelming knowing what to start with or what you really want to have on the boat. For the Minnesota Fishing Opener, there are a few Walleye Tips we have for you to include in your arsenal which have proven to be extremely effective for early summer fishing. Here are 3 of our favorite lures:
Shad Rap 9 - Purple
I will always start with something purple as my first crank when trolling - typically it is a Shad Rap 9 but I will cycle through a couple other profiles, sticking with purple, before I change my color (sticking with shad raps 7/9 or stick baits).
Lipless Crank
When going for the trigger bite casting, I like to start with either Gold, Perch or Purple colors which have been the most effect this time of year - I have both a size 6 and 7 in each color depending on the depth/wind.
Jigs, Jigs and Jigs
Just having an assortment of jigs to pitch plastics or live bait with and changing them out proactively will help you get your color scheme dialed in. Orange, Purple and Green are my first to throw. Hair Jigs tipped with a minnow can also be very effective this time of year.
Whatever you have in your tacklebox, don't be afraid to change things up but you have to be confident in what your using. Confidence in your bait goes a long ways.
That's a Wrap
We hope you found our tips helpful and can put some of these tactics to use this Minnesota Opener.
Always Remeber...Check Your Drag.
- Britney & Brett
