Lake Saint Croix
Published: Updated:
Lake Saint Croix Fishing Reports
Stay up to date with the latest fishing reports from Lake Saint Croix. Reports are submitted by local anglers, fishing guides, and our team of fishing experts.
Filter by
All Species
All Seasons
Sort by
Reports from all past years within a 60-day time frame
- Species
Smallmouth BassTechniqueWacky RigsSeasonFallStructureLedgesI caught 10 smallmouth bass using wacky rigged Senkos. It was windy and cool, so it was tough to detect the bite.
- SpeciesSmallmouth BassTechniqueWacky RigsSeasonFallStructureLedges
The smallmouth bass bite on the Saint Croix continues to be good this Fall. I caught 20 smallies today using wacky rigs on drop offs.
- Species
WalleyeTechniqueVertical Jigging Mid Depth (10-19')SeasonFallStructureLedgesWater temperatures are quickly dropping and this is the time of the year when the jigging rap bite starts to pick up on the Croix. We had some spotty success but gizzard shad were popping at the surface everywhere and lit up the electronics. We caught 4 plump walleye from 17-20 inches. About 2 hours later, they regurgitated a dozen or so half digested shad. So fishing could be challenging the remainder of the fall since predators in the system have all the food they could possibly want. Therefore, reaction baits like jigging raps might be your best bet for hooking into a few before ice up. And oh, one last bit of advice for fishing jigging raps. Use a medium action rod with a stiff enough tip to handle a heavy jigging rap, but not too stiff that it pulls the bait out of the mouth when you rip up. Or use a longer mono/fluorocarbon leader on a stiff tipped rod. Something that absorbs shock but still give you a decent hook set.
- SpeciesWalleyeTechniqueVertical Jigging Deep (20'+)SeasonFallStructureLedges
The days and nights are getting cooler and we're heading into fall pattern for walleyes. This time of year, they strap on the feedbag to fatten up before winter. The big challenge to contend with on the St. Croix is the massive numbers of shad that light up your electronics all over the river. Predators in this river are well fed! Still, the walleye will still chase after your bait, but you'll need to be in the right place at the right time. The bite the last couple of days has been slow, but 2 3/4 jigging raps on steep ledges in 25-30 FOW seems to be the hottest bait (for me, the fish didn't care for trolled cranks or live bait rigs). I marked a ton of walleye-sized arches on these ledges (of course in the proximity of shad "bait-balls") but was only able to pick up one here or there on the jigging rap. Of course, on the river, you really have no idea what kind of fish you are marking. Drum (Sheepshead) and walleye seem to mix freely, so don't be discouraged if you seem to be catching mostly drum. Stick with it, weed through the drum, and you may be rewarded with some nice walleye! Another thing to consider is that the walleye bite can change quickly and techniques or areas that did not produce fish one day, can produce the next.
- Species
SturgeonTechniqueLive Bait RigsSeasonFallStructureRiver ChannelsAs the water cools, sturgeon fishing heats up! Sturgeon roam all over open channel areas and holes 25-50 ft along the St. Croix river, mostly between Stillwater and Prescott WI. October is the best time of year to be out on the water soaking shad or crawler fathead concoctions on 7-8/0 circle hooks on a leader with 2-4 oz flat washer sinkers. Read this blog to know how to catch a living dinosaur and gear up! https://www.omniafishing.com/a/sturgeon-fishing-st-croix
- SpeciesSturgeonTechniqueLive Bait RigsSeasonFallStructureRiver Channels
This is THE time of the year to be out Sturgeon fishing on the St. Croix! Fresh (never frozen) shad are their preferred forage and very abundant right now and if you have the appropriate permits from the MN DNR to catch them with the cast net (advice: its worth jumping through the hoops to get the cast net permit). Look for the gulls, and the shad will be there. Bottom structure is not really important and I've been known to stop at random places in the river channel, plop down, and have good success. But when you can find mid channel areas with lots of bait activity on your depth finder, that's going to be the best spot to be which is where we were on this outing. We caught 6 sturgeon in 3.5 hours with 3 over 50," with the biggest being 53" and never moved spots. Each time the little bells on the rod tip jingled just a bit, we'd have a fish on the end. We'd load up the tip and the 7/0 VMC circle hook dug into the fleshy lips of the sturgeon perfect every time. The river was calm and peaceful and I sometimes have to pinch myself to realize how amazing of a fishery and environment the St. Croix is.
- SpeciesSmallmouth BassTechniqueShakey HeadsSeasonFallStructurePilings
I fished just north of St Croix Lake in the River, and was able to find some smallmouth on October 15th. The bite was pretty tough but we found the best bite by bridge pilings that had a deep water drop off next to it. I would throw the shakey head with the craw next to the pilings and work it to the boat. The water was pretty dirty, so using the black craw and the Junebug color worked the best. The bite was pretty tough, and the water was cold but we were able to find some fish.
- SpeciesWalleyeTechniqueTrolling Deep (20'+)SeasonFallStructureLedges
Walleye are on the chew as the water temps cool. Trolling lead core and a long line of 15lb fireline 200 ft out was the ticket. The walleye in the pic was plump and had a big tailfin sticking out of its gut as we pulled out the hooks. Also picked up a few ok sized white bass on jigging raps.
