The recent weather has been hot – and so has the fishing. At present time, wide arrays of species are providing excellent action in the greater Wausau area, for those anglers knowing where to find them. Panfish anglers have had abundant opportunity to score on good catches of bluegills and crappies. With the even increasing water temperatures as of late, look to the deeper weed edges as well as mid-lake humps to hold the true ‘bull' gills. If deeper wood structure is present, it will hold fish as well. Tiny jigs suspended under a slip bobber and baited with Berkley 1" Micro Power Nymphs or Power Tubes have been deadly. The same presentations are working well for the nomadic schools of crappies which can be found suspended off deep weeds or channel breaks.
Terrific smallmouth bass action is available now, with anglers doing very well fishing the rip-rap and wood below the Weyerhauser paper mill down to Mosinee. Texas-rigged tubes such as the Pro Finesse or Power Bait series are highly productive. Pitching a weedless jig tipped with a leech or night crawler into the various woody snags will produce some large fish. Anglers fishing the low-light periods of morning and evening can expect good action using surface lures like the PT Pro Popper and Frantic Fred.
In addition to excellent smallmouth fishing, the walleye fishing has been terrific. The same blow-downs and snags holding smallmouth are holding good catches of nice walleyes as well. Again, weedless jigs tipped with live bait will produce fish. You'll want to make sure you're spooled up with a premium fishing line such as Berkley Trilene XT to help avoid break-offs in the heavier cover. For the troller, some good catches are coming to those pulling lead core line and crankbaits such as Flicker Shads, Wally Divers, and Firestick Minnows. Look for deeper stretches of old river channel to hold the larger concentrations of fish.
If you are an Esox angler, the action has been excellent for both northern pike and musky. Numerous northern pike in the 30" range up to 42" have been caught and released as of late. Lures made of rubber or rubber plastic combinations such as Depthtails, Shallowtails, and Suzy Suckers have been tough to beat. Work the deepest weed or stump field edges parallel, staying about a cast length away. Speed has been a trigger as of late with the high water temperatures, work your baits quickly and erratically to both cover water and trigger strikes. If you find yourself on the water early or late, there is good action to be had on surface baits. Lures such as Topraiders and Top Dancers have not only been productive as of late, but rather entertaining as well!
The high water temperatures really put a stress on fish who are intended to be released, especially the larger predators such as northern pike and muskies. To help ensure a successful release of your catch, being by not playing the fish to exhaustion. Use a quality net such as those by Frabill to contain your quarry while removing the hooks. If you must take a picture, do so quickly and get the fish back in the water. Support your catch upright until it is able to power itself away. Remember, CPR – catch, photo, proper release! I'll see you on the water!
Tight lines,
Joel
