Ice is gone and water temps are in the low 50’s. The majority of the fish just spawned and the bite is getting better every day. The fish went real far up this spring so this should be a great year for the upper lakes. Whitebass are just starting to show up as well.
Good to hear some info that direction Rich. I know several guys will be coming over to fish the NTC this year. Although,you will be fishing it as well, some general info,and or any safety or hazard issues navigation wise would be valued and appreciated! 
Anybody do any anchor fishing over there? 
Anchors…what are those? 
The NTC is at a great time. That weekend usually brings in some of the biggest weights of the year. The reason it is so good is that the fish are everywhere throughout the system and feeding.
Here are just a few of the patterns you could use to bring in a great catch:
1) Winnebago-This is the largest lake. Dirty water is key. By dirty I mean where you can just barely see your prop.
Trolling the east and west shores and reefs in 4-10ft of water is great for numbers and an occasional 20-24″ fish.
Anchoring on reefs will produce great numbers but rarely will you catch any large fish. We use this fill out limits when we are really struggling. Slip bobbers and jigs is the norm. The windier it is the shallower the fish will be.
Shallow weeds are another pattern. Dirty water is key. If you can see your jig on bottom you need to leave. These weeds are found in 1-4ft of water. This is a great pattern which can bring in very good weight. Weed Weasal’s and crawler is the best.
2)Poygan-this is the second largest lake.
Fish will be in the canes. Again, dirty water is key. Pitch jigs to the edges and drag them a few feet away then pitch again. More then likely the tournament will be won here. If it gets rough don’t be afraid to anchor on key areas and slip-bobber. The biggest fish I have ever caught on this system came from the canes and some of my personal biggest weights came from them as well.
Trolling the west end or Clarks bay. #5 shad raps 25ft back will get you started. Perch colors are very popular. You can also troll along the buoy line in Lake Winneconne. You will catch lots of fish using this pattern with the occasional huge fish (25-28″).
3) Butte Des Morts-smallest lake and very similar to Poygan. Sunset point and Oakwood point are community spots but always hold fish. The canes are also good. Trolling in the middle of the lake is a good pattern but usually Poygan is better.
River in Oshkosh and Winneconne-If there is current it might be won here. Lots of tournaments are won in the river in Oshkosh. Winneconne will still have fish but the larger fish will be in Oshkosh. If I went into detail here I would catch too much flack from the locals so I have to leave it at that.
As you can see there will be lots of patterns available and more then likely they will all be going.
As for Hazards, it is not too bad. If you launch at Menominee Park (Millers Bay) there is a island right in front of the launch. Be sure to use the SOUTH channel. The north one has some shallow rocks and you can hit if you don’t know where they are. From that launch to the river stay out a ways from shore as there are some shallow rock humps along the way.
I hope this helps.
That’s some solid information there Rich. Almost everything I learned 1n 18 years growing up fishing there, summed up in 3 or 4 paragraphs. Not everything, but almost. 
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