Park Rapids Area Fishing Report
Submitted by Smokey Hills Outdoor Store
The weather has been absolutely beautiful in the Park Rapids area and much of the next ten day forecast promises more of the same. Many of our local lakes have a surface temperature of nearly 80 degrees by mid-afternoon, this means that fish will be more active in the morning and evening. Make sure that your electronics are “up to snuff”, you will need them to put fish in the boat this week!
The ever sought after Park Rapids walleye have left our local anglers scratching their heads in recent days. It’s time to think outside the box and fish different areas of the lake. We have been selling more lead core line as the big ‘eyes are deep. Weighted line can make all the difference in getting your lure in front of their nose. Lures such as Rapala’s™ “DT-20” are usually reserved for use by bass fishermen, but will be helpful on this week’s walleye hunt. Most of the prey gathering at depths of 20 feet or more have a black or dark colored back. Use a Sharpie™ marker to “paint” the back of your Rapala™ and increase the odds that they will make a meal of your hook-laden crankbait. Sunken islands as deep as 40 feet have been and will be holding fish in the coming days. Remember to let your sonar be your sixth sense on the walleye hunt, you can’t catch them if they’re not there!
Warm water temps are great for swimming, skiing, tubing….oh, and catching giant razor toothed Minnesota muskies! Attaching a sucker minnow to a 3/0 circle hook under a heavy pole float is a good way to kick back, relax and wait for a giant to attack. Pick a sunken island or point near deep water and let the anchor down. This method has been tricking muskies for years. The more active angler will have success throwing a classic Musky Mania™ “Double Trouble” inline bucktail spinner. Even when the bite is not hot, this approach will produce “follows” and keep your interest in making another 100 casts.
Many of the local bass tournaments are being won by those anglers fishing at depths of 10 or more feet of water. Success will still be found fishing in the lily pads and pencil reeds, but the large concentrations of big bass will be found in the deep growing cabbage and coontail weeds. Wacky worms, bass jigs and crankbaits are all good choices for catching them out of the deep vegetation. Largemouth will be there from now until the weeds die off in the fall and the same technique will continue to yield a positive catch day after day.
The story on the area bluegill and crappie is much the same as the two previous weeks with fish schooling near steep drop offs on weedlines. A green colored FluFlu™ jig paired with a crappie minnow will put more crappies in the bucket than fishing with a wax worm tipped jig. Cast the weedlines until you find a fish, mark the spot and start bobber fishing. They are a schooling fish and where there is one, there are more. The same method will work for bluegills minus the crappie minnows, trade them for a nice juicy angle worm and the ‘gills will respond.
If you are in the market for a new Ice Castle, Smokey Hills Outdoor Store is the place to come for one of the best selections worldwide. We are the only dealer to stock multiple King’s Castles. Our current inventory exceeds 60 units and we also have a great staff to help you design a custom Ice Castle to personally suit your needs. We are so very grateful and thankful for your support. We will continue to set the bar higher and we are excited to see you very soon!
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| Park Rapids local angler Stephanie Hafner with her recent bluegill catch. (Photo courtesy of Smokey Hills Outdoor Store) |