Lake Saint Croix
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Lake Saint Croix Fishing Reports
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Reports from all past years within a 60-day time frame
Species
Smallmouth Bass
Season
Summer
Technique
Wacky Rigs
Structure
Points
Forage
Minnows
Water Temperature
73°
Species
Sturgeon
Season
Summer
Technique
Live Bait Rigs
Structure
River Channels
Water Temperature
77°
First time out Sturgeon fishing this year. I usually net shad which is the preferred bait for Sturgeon fishing on the St. Croix, but populations seem down quite a bit this year. Very few pods observed on the electronics. Been that way all summer. We'll see if they all of a sudden show up in fall. Instead we just used crawlers and actually got into a few fish and one nice 52 incher. Usually I start shallow in 12-20 ft of water early in the season and fish deeper as we get deeper into fall. BTW, the hot bait is bogus because I couldn't select anything that I actually used and its a mandatory field.
Species
Smallmouth Bass
Season
Summer
Technique
Finesse Hair Jigs
Structure
Submerged Vegetation
Forage
Minnows
League TOC, ton of smallmouth in the system, ours mostly averaged 16". Fished around small points and docks. Vegetation in semi slack water produced the most
Species
Smallmouth Bass
Season
Summer
Technique
Topwater Prop
Structure
Open Water/Basin
Forage
Minnows
Water Temperature
83°
Caught both in one cast. Not big but fun!
Species
Smallmouth Bass
Season
Summer
Technique
Wacky Rigs
Structure
Rock Pile
Forage
Minnows
Water Temperature
76°
I caught 4 smallmouth bass on the Saint Croix River today. The smallies were around 10 feet deep off of underwater points.
Species
Northern Pike
Season
Summer
Technique
Bladed Jigs
Structure
Submerged Vegetation
Forage
Minnows
Water Temperature
76°
Straight retrieve between submerged weeds and rocky bank.
Species
Sturgeon
Season
Fall
Technique
Live Bait Rigs
Structure
Open Water/Basin
Forage
Shad
Water Temperature
77°
Water temps are still very warm and the fall bite might come a bit later this year. Still, there are fish being caught. In about 4 hrs of fishing in 13-20 ft of water, we caught 2 small sturgeon, 37" and 41." A smaller size structure seem to dominate catches early in the season. Larger fish become more common once water temperatures drop and turnover starts. I usually target shallower habitats early in the fall season (12-20 ft) and then move deeper once it gets deeper into fall. Get a cast net permit from the MN DNR and catch shad for bait. Sturgeon AND catfish love shad and your odd of catching more and bigger fish are much higher with shad compared with night crawlers or other cutbait. Don't pay any attention to structure or fishing dropoffs or points or whatever. Trust me, it makes no difference. Go to the flatest most random spot at a chosen depth and just plunk down. Your odds of catching fish there are just as good as anywhere else. Good luck. It should only get better once this hot weather gets behind us.
Species
Sturgeon
Season
Fall
Technique
Live Bait Rigs
Structure
Open Water/Basin
Forage
Shad
From here until ice up, the Sturgeon bite on the Croix will heat up. If you are new to the sport, check out this blog - https://www.omniafishing.com/a/sturgeon-fishing-st-croix. Sturgeon action has been steady the last couple of weeks with most fish being caught on shad (get your DNR invasive species training and tagged cast net). The shad are small this year, so bait up 3 or 4 on a VMC 7/0 circle hook and chuck it out there with 65-80 lb braid and a 3-4 oz sinker. Keep the line taught and wait for the tip to dance. Reel down and load up the tip of the rod and hold on! Target depths of 20-35 feet in open channel areas. Ignore other boats because believe me, the spot they are on is no better than another one much farther away. Find solitude and stay as far away from the big yachts as possible. Tight lines!
Species
Sturgeon
Season
Summer
Technique
Live Bait Rigs
Structure
River Channels
The sturgeon bite is starting to pick up and will only get better as the water temperatures start to cool into fall. Fresh gizzard shad are the bait of choice on a 6-8/0 circle hook and 2oz slide sinker. Get your cast net and DNR application approved to catch your bait! https://files.dnr.state.mn.us/recreation/fishing/bait/castnet_app.pdf. Gizzard shad pods are relatively plentiful in Andersen Bay in Bayport, MN. Use your electronics to find the pods and throw your cast net over them. Don't overthink the sturgeon fishing strategy. Sturgeon roam featureless bottoms. During late summer, I fish relatively shallow open channels 12-20 ft deep. As fall progresses, I move deeper a bit deeper (25-40 ft). If you can't get shad, fatheads and crawlers work fine. The best time of day to fish is when the massive yachts anchor/beach or go back to port. Bobbing like a cork after one of those things chugs by at 10 mph (which is way worse than 40) isn't fun.