Shallow Spring Eyes

For decades, generations of Mark Arneson's family have cut holes through the ice at Lake of the Woods to reach walleyes during frigid Minnesota winters.

But, the cold season seems to last forever in the North Woods. As much as they enjoy the hard-water fishing, they're ready to enjoy the excitement of early open-water fishing.

"Everybody is sick of drilling holes," said Arneson, a descendant of the clan that operates Arneson's Rocky Point Resort. He started guiding at age 14, about 20 years ago.

Millions of walleyes, some reaching 12 pounds and more, that crowd the Rainy River on their annual spawning run are among the first targets. "It's just phenomenal fishing," he said.

Adult fish begin showing up on the main lake soon after the eggs are laid and left on their own to hatch in the river. That's when Arneson said many anglers miss out on the best fishing early in the year because they overlook an important fact - if people like to soak up the sun's rays after a long winter, so do walleyes.

Indeed, the impact of warm water on cold-blooded fish is multiplied tenfold over what warm air does for warm-blooded humans. Even slightly warmer water ignites the aquatic food chain and creates opportunities for hungry, post-spawn walleyes to feed on smaller fish drawn to the plankton that start to multiply as temperatures rise. As a result, no matter whether you're fishing Lake of the Woods or your own home lake, finding relatively warm water in early spring is the key to finding active fish.

Lakes follow the same pattern year after year. In general, most warm from north to south. Northern sections are first because that's where the sun is more direct earlier in the year. Then, fish migrate toward the south as the sun warms the water there.

But, water also warms along shorelines, and those shallow areas are places too many fishermen overlook, Arneson said. He's not talking about the 8 to 12 foot breaklines where most boats concentrate. He's talking stuff just 1 to 4 feet deep. The biggest mistake he sees anglers make is not going shallow enough.

"We call it 'polishing the props.' We will have to load everybody up in back to get the front of the boat up sometimes," he said. "They (Other anglers) will fish 6, 8, 12 feet water, but they won't go into that 4 or 5 or so. There's a whole group of fish nobody is targeting."

The pattern isn't limited to Lake of the Woods or even to natural lakes. We've seen it in reservoirs in the lower Midwest where we've caught big walleyes and saugeyes nestled among the limbs of fallen trees where the combination of shallow water and wood that transmits the sun's heat its fluid surroundings turns on the fish.

Lake of the Woods has stained water that helps keep fish shallow all day. The same will happen elsewhere with water that color. But, walleyes in clear lakes move shallow early and late. Don't miss the move to the shallows or you might miss the best action of the day.

River jigging

Just after ice-out and before the shoreline action begins, boats from Arneson's Rocky Point Resort join the armada of fishing craft that focus on the river to vertical jig. As always, the key is to use live bait (or frozen shad if you live in the north country where live bait can be scarce that time of year) and a jig heavy enough to get down to the bottom in whatever combination of current and wind you face. Arneson uses a quarter to three-eighths ounce. The new X-Change jig from Lindy Legendary Fishing Tackle makes the choice simple. It's a simple matter of snapping one jig head off and another on to change weight or color. The hook stays tied in place.

In most rivers, anglers concentrate on river bends where water slows on inside turns. Best spots are sandy or rocky areas where walleyes lay eggs. Look for other slack water created by current breaks, including points, the intersection of current from tributaries with the main river and holes carved in the bottom over time.

Most fishermen usually slip jig, letting the boat slide downstream using their electric trolling motor to match their drift speed to the current to keep their line directly below the boat. At the Rainy River, anglers prefer to anchor over even slight depressions in the bottom and intercept migrating schools as they move through the area. Holes located with the help of GPS mapping technology may be no more than a foot deep.

River action slows as the spawn finishes or when tributaries thaw and funnel dirty runoff into the main river, but the jigs stay tied on as boats move downstream and station themselves in big bays at the mouths of the river. Anchoring still remains the primary choice for boat control as walleyes disperse into the main lake at depths of 28 to 35 feet.

Polishing the prop

It isn't long, however, before the boats from Arneson's Lodge are moving toward shoreline sandbars. "After the fish have cleared into the main lake, you may be fishing as shallow as 2 to 3 feet of water," Arneson said.

Abandon the jig in favor of a Lindy sinker and a spinner rig. Arneson's personal choice for his main line is fluorocarbon. He likes the shock-absorbing qualities of non-braided line. Despite the shallow targets, he uses three-quarter ounce Lindy sinkers to keep the spinner close to the boat to avoid tangling with other lines. They fish don't seem to mind. But, without something to help handle the shock, fish can pull free.

The guide boats drift or use their big motors and stir up sand behind them. The fish don't seem to mind that either. But, smaller boats tend to use their electric trolling motors to motor up over the sand bars. Speed should be just enough to keep the blade spinning. Arneson uses smaller #2 or #4 sized blades. Hammered gold is his favorite, but he admits just like with jigs, you'd get 10 different answers on the question of blade color if you asked 10 different people. The key, he said, is to use what you have confidence in and don't hesitate to change up if you aren't catching fish.

"I think presentation and placement are more important than color. If there's no fish under you, you could throw anything at them. You just have to keep moving until you find them," he said.

One tip: Just as in rivers, Arneson prefers using GPS mapping of the lake rather than using his sonar on the shorelines. Why create more "noise" with a ping that might spook fish when the cone is so small at those depths that the likelihood of seeing walleyes on the screen is slim to none? An exception might be to use side imaging sonar from Humminbird when you run along farther out deciding what sandbars to try. You can see where fish and cover are located.

Points that reach to the deepest water are more likely to hold the most fish. Find where the sand touches mud or rocks and target the transitions from one bottom content to the other.

To get into some of this early season walleye fishing, try contacting Arneson's Rocky Point Resort at www.arnesens.com.