Fishing Reports
302 Fishing Reports
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Spawn)
Technique
Bladed Jigs
Structure
Flooded Brush
Forage
Bluegill
Water Temperature
60°
Missile Baits Spunk Shad 4 1/2" / Goby Bite
Out of Stock
Daiwa Tatula X TW 100 Casting Reel Right / 7.3:1
Out of Stock
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Structure Jigs
Structure
Laydowns
Water Temperature
50°
First bass tournament of the year (team tournament) we drove down from MN to Iowa. First time fishing Okoboji. We learned a lot about the lake. It is heavily pressured and features many tournaments. It was also walleye opener so the lake was very busy. It's been a cooler spring than average so the vegetation growth was behind. We caught some quality fish but it was a grind. Structure jig on laydowns and docks seemed to be the best bet. Subtle presentation. Fun time to open up the season.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Buzzbaits
Structure
Laydowns
Forage
Bluegill
Water Temperature
64°
Bass are cruising the shallows. The water clarity is minimal which makes it tough to see fish on beds but it seems like some are starting to settle in on beds. I caught a few smaller fish on a chatterbait as well.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Soft Swimbaits (Sm/Md)
Structure
Docks
Water Temperature
53°
Bass spent the day in 10-15’ super finicky then moved up shallow at sunset to feed along rock.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Post-Spawn)
Technique
Swim Jigs
Structure
Lily Pads
Forage
Bluegill
Water Temperature
63°
Smaller fish were up shallow around laydowns and pads. They were eating a swim jig and a frog. I moved to the outer edges of the pads and was able to catch some larger fish. I made a 2nd pass flipping a Texas rig which caught a good number of fish. Biggest was just under 3.50lbs.
Reaction Innovations Skinny Dipper Sungill / 5"
Out of Stock
Daiwa Tatula X TW 100 Casting Reel Right / 7.3:1
Out of Stock
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Crankbaits 13'+
Structure
Ledges
Forage
Shad
Water Temperature
60°
Had an Iowa Kayak Fishing Club tourney on Saturday and it was a struggle to find bites. The day before was very windy and hot. Tourney morning was windier and temps dropped to the 30s. Managed to catch a nice one early in the morning with a deep diving crankbait. Caught some small ones and got some bites off of a white swim jig and small swim bait. There weren’t a lot of fish submitted for the tourney but the quality was great. There are some big bass in Rathbun, if you can find them.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Spawn)
Technique
Lipless Crankbaits
Structure
Rock Pile
Forage
Minnows
Casted from shore over shallow rocks. Around 4ft of water. Varied the retrieve. Was fishing on the wind-blown side after a couple days of 20+mph winds. 14.75” at 2lbs
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Crankbaits 0-6'
Structure
Rip Rap
Forage
Shad
Water Temperature
60°
Went out for a few hours before noon and target riprap banks. Fish seemed to be moving shallow. A lay down on the rocks was a high target area
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Spawn)
Technique
Soft Swimbaits (Sm/Md)
Structure
Rock Pile
Forage
Shad
Water Temperature
50°
A bit chilly in the morning so I started slow rolling the dark sleeper around rock piles and other structures in the 8-10’ range. Tried a few other baits but they wanted the swimbait profile
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Hover/Mid-Strolling
Structure
Humps
Forage
Shad
Water Temperature
44°
Dealing with a significant warming trend and heavy practice pressure out there today. My primary plan was getting hammered early, so I had to make an adjustment and scrap the original game plan. I ended up hunting for isolated offshore structure. Found a few key submerged humps and drop offs. It was a grind, but we kept the trolling motor down and put a few in the box. Beautiful day touched 86 degrees air temp.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Bladed Jigs
Structure
Submerged Vegetation
Forage
Bluegill
Water Temperature
63°
Record high temps here in Iowa had water temps on the rise. It was around 47° when I launched in the morning and some.of the shallow areas were over 60° by the afternoon. Bass were up in the shallows having a feeding frenzy. My biggest fish was 3.65lbs. Top 5 were right around 16lbs. At one point I was getting bit on every cast. Everything from .5-3lbers.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Hard Jerkbaits
Structure
Ledges
Forage
Crappie
Water Temperature
49°
A slight warming trend led into a windy day in the low 50°s. Wind was out if the south east at around 15-20mph. I first found 13-15" fish close to some wind blow flat rocky banks with a jerkbait. After the bite slowed I changed to a ned rig and caught a few more out of the area. After catching around 10-15 bass I moved on looking for better quality. The best size came after finding schools of crappie on my down and size imaging. I could see bass on the edges. I was able to follow the drop off and picked off around 20 fish. Highlighted by a pair of 5lbers.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Hard Jerkbaits
Structure
Rock Pile
Forage
Bluegill
Water Temperature
46°
It was clear skies with 10-15mph winds. Gusts around 20mph. Air temps got into the 60s. The bites was slow but I managed a few bass on the edges of the rock piles. The biggest was 3lbs 10ozs.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Post-Spawn)
Technique
Grass Jigs
Structure
Submerged Vegetation
Forage
Crawfish
Water Temperature
60°
flipping submerged vegetation
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Lipless Crankbaits
Structure
Open Water/Basin
Forage
Crawfish
Casting out deep with a stady retrieve in
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Post-Spawn)
Technique
Texas Rigs (Worming)
Structure
Points
Forage
Crawfish
Water Temperature
69°
Evening started out slow and heated up as dark neared.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Spinnerbaits
Structure
Submerged Vegetation
Forage
Bluegill
Water Temperature
58°
50-30 mph gusts the weekend we went. It made fishing most of the lake difficult so we hid behind points and spent a lot of time in the canals. Fishing was tough caught a few on a Bassman compact spinnerbait and the good ol wacky rig. Also my buddy and I managed couple on the glide.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Post-Spawn)
Technique
Frogs/Toads
Structure
Submerged Vegetation
Forage
Bluegill
Water Temperature
68°
Lots of pressure and most of the perimeter is covered with thick hydrilla. Got several big bites off of a texas rig with the Rapala Crush City Bronco Bug and the 6th Sense Vega Frog Gill Fest.
