I fished the crack of dawn to early morning bite on Lake Francis (located just outside the town of Elesian, MN) on Saturday. I could not keep the bass off…they were everywhere! The bass were hanging from 4 feet to 14 feet…and seemed to be hungry every where I went. The panfish were not cooperating though, I am thinking due to the cold-front that came through on Friday night. I could not find them in the shallows. I had suggested to my neighbor that it might be a good spot to get panfish the day before and he did fairly well, picking up enough sunfish and crappie to make it a good trip. And he said the sunfish were good sized.
Fishing on the West end of the lake, working the shorelines and stick-ups should start producing as soon as we get some warm stable weather. I use a crappie minnow or 1/4 of a crawler hooked on a 1/64 oz. jig head below a weighted bobber, or a crappie hook with a split shot and weighted bobber. I do throw a beetle spin a lot also, dressed with live bait…. I use it to locate feeding fish. I usually end up going back to a bobber, once locating active fish.
I was the only boat on the lake till 10:00 am. There was only three cars at the access when I left at noon. Too cold! No one was fishing at the Morristown dam when I drove past, and no fishing being done at the bend of the river there for stripers either. A bit too early yet, come on warm weather…. Hawger