Pool 3 May 30-June 2

We fished the Prescott area and some of the Pool 3 wingdams and found a good bite late last week and during the weekend. On Thursday evening we found a bunch of small (11″-14″) saugers and walleyes and had to move around a bit to avoid these small fish and find the larger ones. Our biggest two were in the 21″-22″ range with about four others in the 15″-17″ range. On Saturday afternoon we boated about 6 walleyes that ranged from 16″-20″ in about three hours. On Sunday we had similar results jumping from wingdam to wingdam and two especially nice fish. My wife caught back-to-back walleyes that went 26″ and 27″. The 26″ incher really had a good girth and I guess it would have out weighed the 27 incher.

My advice would be to move if you’re just catching the small fish. We found a few decent fish mixed in with the small guys and vice versa but generally a location yielded either small fish or decent fish. Even if the small fish aren’t coming from deep water, Ron Payer, Director of Fisheries for the Minnesota DNR, told me that they estimate 10% hooking mortality due to puncture wounds. He also stated that barbless hooks don’t significantly reduce hooking mortality.

I hope the recent rains up in this area won’t muddy-up the water too much.

Oh, we also caught some sheepshead and white bass mixed in with the walleyes and saugers too.

Boone

Boone, wow 26 and 27 inchers are nice fish! Thanks for the pool 3 update!! I have been wondering if the wingdam fishing would be picking up there. You mentioned white bass. I have heard they are running larger this year. What technique did you use on the walleyes? I was hoping to do some crankbaiting on the wingdams this mid-week to avoid the cruiser on the weekend, but with all this rain I assume the water to up and very dirty. Crankbaiting wingdams are one of my favorite ways to fish the river for any species. Grinder

Grinder,

We mostly fished the wingdams by slowing back trolling Dubuque rigs across the upstream face of the rocks. This technique is kind of a combination of trolling, vertical jigging, and lindy rigging. Sometimes the fish hit the jig but most days the trailer bait will catch the most fish. My wife’s two big fish hit a leech on the trailer hook. Fatheads and crawlers also worked just as well. I often use a 1 oz. jig but even with this heavy of jig my line is often way out behind the boat, often less that 45 degress, because of the depth, current, and boat movement. We also anchored and threw some cranks and sweep some 1/4 oz. jigs with twister tails across the face and this also produced some fish.

It seems like the Pool 3 wingdams really start to pick up when the flow through Dam #3 drops below 30,000 cfs. I haven’t had a lot success fishing the wingdams, even very close to shore, when the current is really strong.

I run around in a grey Alumacraft Lunker with a 40 hp Honda. Stop by if you see me out some time.

Boone

Boone, I made it pool 3 on Wed for 1/2 day and had some success, catch a varity of fish, white bass (fun but not large) 5 Smallmouth, 5 Walleye and sauger. No large fish except I lost a large walleye at the boat. Caught the Walleyes to my surprise trolling brown crankbaits, the Smallmouth on the riprap cranking. A fun day on the river with nice weather and almost no cruisers to bother with.
The water was a bit dirty and swifter than I prefer, but still caught fish. I like the flow to get down to 15,000- but maybe 30,000 is ok for cranking wingdamns. Gota try that Dubuque rig also. I drive tan and black Crestliner 1700 with a 80 Yahama. Wish it would stop raining. Thanks for the info. Grinder