Croix bite?

Planning on hitting the Croix this weekend. Anyone got any good walleye or smallie info?

I will be fishing the Croix for first time this fall on Sat. I will post results if I make it out. In general, fish the steep breaks, move around until you find fish then vertical jig on top of them. Points seem to hold the most fish-or at least they are easiest to find there. I have done fairly well in the past fishing the Afton area and expect to start there.

They’re doing ok in Prescott. Jig-n-minnow.

Mike

Check out Turk’s web page. He is a guide that runs the Croix. http://www.croixsippi.com He just updated it today

The fish have been snappin at a good pace. I like to troll until you locate some fish then you can fish a jig or spinner. Personally I like to continue trolling, this is not a effectie way to fish pockets of fish if your not familiar with the break or point. Boat control also has to be exact (ie.,speed,constant depth) I know many people say that anyone one can troll, well your right , but not everybody can troll correctly. The fish on the croix are very picky since they see many a lure over the course of a season and like the lures to be dragged and or stalled at regular intervals. Turk and I caught the majority of our fish during the championship doing exactly that. Lots of guys were doing the same, but just couldn’t figure out what makes the nuetral and negative fish to strike.Good luck and FISH ON!!!

Hi CRR….

nice post…. but I have some questions….

first… you state:

troll till you locate fish then use jig or spinner… I understand vertical jigging, but do you have a way to fish a spinner that is NOT trolling? If so can you fill me in on that? thanks!

2nd…

I assume you are trolling cranks, though you dont really say…

for this time of year, what brands, colors, sizes and trolling speeds do you use? could you elaborate please?……..

thanks in advance… and congrats to you and turk for your tourney win… Impressive…..!

I could be wrong-but I think that he trolls cranks quickly around areas that hold typically hold fish. Spinners would be trolled a little slower and focused a more on located fish.

In my somewhat limited Croix experience, if you find walleyes, there are usually more around and it is relatively easy to take a limit if you want. The hard part is finding them. Lake St Croix has a ton of water that looks good for fish. You can get a bunch of fish on a spot one day and they will be gone the next. Fall is a little more predictable than summer. I will be jigging and maybe pulling cranks deep if I dont locate fish on my usual spots.

Dave B,

Right on – trolling spinners because they can only handle a certain speed until they are rolling through the water is slower and usually should be used for shorter runs and target found fish vs. trolling cranks fast across a long 3/4 mile run.

I will totally disagree that it is fairly easy to take a limit on the Croix! There a few faces that often take limits, and I don’t mean because they release them, not many fisherman take limits unless it’s really snapping, look at the pictures at Brothers Bait and Beanies there are many limit photo’s… In that last WWA Team Challenge Championship many fisherman had a hard time turning fish let alone weigh 5 or 6 fish per day. Anyway the reason I’m righting this is we have such a low population of big fish that limiting out on 16 to 20″ eyes is a is a big thing out there and a two man limit a helluva day. It still is a metro area fishery after all, and it’s the best…

Keep Catchin’

Turk

Dave B,

Right on – trolling spinners because they can only handle a certain speed until they are rolling through the water is slower and usually should be used for shorter runs and target found fish vs. trolling cranks fast across a long 3/4 mile run.

I will totally disagree that it is fairly easy to take a limit on the Croix! There a few faces that often take limits, and I don’t mean because they release them, not many fisherman take limits unless it’s really snapping, look at the pictures at Brothers Bait and Beanies there are not many limit photo’s…

In that last WWA Team Challenge Championship many fisherman had a hard time turning fish let alone weigh 5 or 6 fish per day. Anyway the reason I’m righting this is we have such a low population of big fish out here, and it can be damn tough that limiting out on 16 to 20″ eyes is a big thing out there and a two man limit a helluva day. It still is a metro area fishery after all, and it’s the best…

Keep Catchin’

Turk

Fished the Croix all day Wed. Turk and CRR are correct, scattered pockets of fish. Usually, this time of year there is fairly predictable shallow bite. Hasn’t materialized yet this year, at least not for me. Number wise, we had a great day. Lots of saugers from the usual areas running from less than 10″ to 17″. Picked up a few 17″ eyes and one real fat 24″. Only a few of the fish came in water less than 20′ deep, with 25 being the average and some from as deep as 30′. Pulled cranks with snaps, rigged, and jigged. Caught fish on all, but the majority came on jigs and fatheads. The fish really start to bunch up now. Make sure we release the pigs. Keep it vertical.

In reference to your questions , I like to use cranks of all sorts, let the fish dictate what they want. When I say I’m trolling I mean that I’m usuing the big motor and running at speeds of 2-3 miles per. When I fish spinners I like to hover over the area and sweep my rod foward at different speeds and patterns, then I’ll move with the rear or bow mount just a little then repeat the process. Once you have figured out where the fish are sittng then you can concentrate on that area much more intensely. I hope this helps, se you on the water.FISH ON!!!

thanx CRR for your info….

perhaps I should take this to email? as I dont wish to bore anyone here, nor pump secrets that are not to be revealed

but if you dont mind I would like further clarification on some of your post

1. I understand about using various brands of cranks….

but I also understand that you would most likely have a

schedule of preference, perhaps based on time of year or other conditions….. I was interested in hearing some details regarding your thoughts for your choice at THIS time of year and on into iceup

what brands do you use?

and in what order would you try them…

larger sizes or smaller?

what is your color spectrum?

also your spinner tactic… Ive not tried anything like that… it interests me…..

what bait are you using at this time of year?

color/size of spinner

length of leader

3way, slip, or other weight system…..

once again I apoligize if this goes to far, but its a great chance to learn more about the mysterious croix and its large eyed denizens…..

personally I dont feel its an easy place to fish, with the exception of a few periods of time when the fish are generally available to most everyone, outside of that, scraping together limits of nice fish is a spotty undertaking…. there are plenty of small fish, but the supply of willing biters in the 17+ range seems small…… when I say limits I mean that only as a yardstick for success, I never keep an actual legal limit….

I practice C&R though… as it seems do most of the rest on this board…. I find that admirable… with great fishing skill should come great responsibility….. we owe it to this sport and to the resource to respect the environment and its inhabitants…..