It’s been a few weeks from my last report here from Pool 2. I have been blessed with a second child into our lives about a week ago, a baby girl by the name of Megan Frances DeZurik. She is a little sweetheart and needless to say my time on the water has been limited a bit to help take care of the chaos at home with a toddler as well. Everyone is well and I am getting back in the groove again now this week to chase these spring time walleyes. Just in time in my opinion!
From my last couple of trips this past week I have seen some subtle changes moving forward for the better from where we were a few weeks back. Some big fish have started to make some predictable movements within the system. Some recent reports of some big females being caught on the north end of Pool 2 as well as spread out down the river. Every year about this time we see numbers of bigger females becoming active in their pursuit of favorable spawning runs. This is one of the best times that know of for a shot at a catching some bigger than average fish.
For me getting back in the groove, I have only had the chance to check out some of my old standby shallow water spots that produce for me this time of year. The results have been a little inconsistent, but as always persistence pays off more often than not. The day bite is about to take a turn for the better I think in the coming days with some natural spring run-off to change the look of the river. This change will promote more midday feeding opportunities for these walleyes that up to now have been lowlight hunters. Only mother nature has control of this factor, but we as anglers love to make assumptions and try to stay one step ahead.
My main attack this past couple trips has been pitching my old faithful YUM plastics coupled with BFT’s Precision jigs. 3/32oz -1/8th oz jig sizes has been my most productive sizes for taking these walleyes shallow. Some fish have been as shallow as 2 feet of water, and some as deep as 15 feet of water, with the average depth being in 5-7 feet of water. The bite has still been a little inconsistent for this “go big or go home” approach, but odds tell me if you are looking for that shot at a true trophy for a photo, now is the start of it! With water temps starting to rise a bit and spring day temps doing the same, the fish are responding. I have caught quite a few carp on these plastics in the past couple of trips. This is a good thing in my mind, this tells me that the carp are starting to get active as well and that is the timing that the walleyes start to put the feedbag on before their ritual spawn. Call it what you will…but it’s a sign!
I should have a report up early next week again to hopefully have even better news for anglers looking to get that old or new boat out of storage for a day of spring fun on the river!
steve
congrats on the new addition. they are a trip aren’t they? my wife and i have a 16 month old she’s a blast. just a shift in priorities for a while, but i think i’ve got the misses convinced i can get her on some sunnies this summer out on tonka. should be fun.
Steve,
Congrats on the new addition
Glad to here about the new arrival. Now get those little buggers in the boat and you can run 3 rods!
Congrats on the new babie Steve and also congrats for getting back out on the water. That can be tough after the second child. Looking forward to future reports, hope all is well at home
What a Blessing Steve! How about posting a pic of that little beauty soon! As a three time GrandPa I can attest to the joy of new arrivals!
Congrats Steve, as we talked when we were out last fall, kids are a true blessing, enjoy!
Glad to see the big ones are still making it to your boat. I’ve been trying to get over there from work in the evening but its been no go so far. Are you still working some of the same areas we fished together?
Terry
Congrats on the new addition and thanks for the report. I saw you a couple nights ago at the PDQ and was going to stop and introduce myself, but was running short on time. Hope to see you on the water this weekend.
Steve congrats on the new child. Also great post again. Thanks for your time, your tips, your help.
Thanks again
Adam.
Hey stive, Congratulations on your daughter! One more fisn’n buddy.
Good to hear the bite is pickin up a little bit. Hope to get out next week.
I never really pictured you as a carp fisherman. I will look for a good carp recipe for you. I got to imagine they are very tasty out of the Miss. JK.
Make sure you give that little girl a hug when you get home.
Hope to see you on the water.
Hey Steve,
Congrats to you and the expanding family. The little ones are great, they just don’t stay that way very long. Glad the hear Megan and mom and all are well.
Nice fish too, keep those reports coming.
dave
Great post Steve. I enjoy the tips and put them to use when possible. One question, when looking for shallow fish, what kind of structure/area do you look for(sand, rocks, what….) Any help would be appreciated. Congrats on the newborn!
Steve,
Congrats on the addition to the family. Enjoy them all you can because they will grow up fast, very fast.
Hope to see you on the water.
Steve: Congratulations on the new baby! Get some sleep when you can.
Kelly Wendlandt
Congrats Steve! You must have a pretty good wife to let you get back at it so quick! Let me know if you have any openings coming up.
Brian
Congrats Steve! Kids is great! I’m hoping to get out on Monday at the Lilydale ramp and explore from there. I’ll report providing I have something to report.
dd
Thanks to all of you for the kind words and suport! I will be sure to pass along the generous support to the rest of the family. We are having a blast with all of this. Lets just say that little baby Megan looks like a spitting image of my wife…..thats a good thing!
tmack,
The flows and levels may go up a bit in the coming days and weeks.
Pretty much the same areas where you and I were a few months back have still been producing fish, however keep an eye on the current levels and flow here and adjust accordingly!
Goldpig,
Hope to meet you next time around!
Was that the DQ in Anoka? We have been known to satisfy that nasty ice cream fix after dinner!
Your the luckiest man in the world,congrats to you and your wife.
Stuart
Congrats on the new little one, great to hear mom and baby are well!
I see I’m not the only one busy changing dirty diapers these days…
My little guy is just short of a month old; so far, this week has been pretty quiet, all things considered. My mother-in-law went back to PA on Monday, plus my oldest son (age 6) is on Spring break. So, my wife has had to keep track of a 6 year old, a 3 year old, and a newborn all on her own this week for the first time while I am away at work..she’s doing a great job!
As you stated in your report, “Chaos” is an appropriate term… 
Good luck and keep the reports (when you are able, of course) coming!
Congrats on the new addition. My wife and I found out we were expecting last saturday. First time for everything.
Say, we are heading out of Lilydale ramp today. Any thoughts on which direction to head? I am figuring we will stick to the shallows where we can find them.. Any thoughts would be appreciated..
Dan
It was the PDQ gas station in Dayton.
gopack,
Congrats on your new news!!!
There have been some big fish caught in the last week or so near the confluence area. Sounds like the simplest thing going was the old jig/minnow combo, but plastics and hair may have a shot in the limelight as well.
A little gopher told me to head just slightly north of where you are going to be putting in….
I was out this morning for a couple hours and noticed the flow has increased in the last 2 days a bit. THe water clarity is still very good at nearly 2 feet+. I would expect this to change in the next coming days however.
Goldpig,
Thats right, you did say PDQ didn’t you. I saw P”DQ” and my mind went on a tangent….at least now you know about my ice cream fix!
Thanks again guys for the congrats! Those little people are the best. Until you some of your own, you have no idea what you are missing!
Congrats on the newbie and get her fishing. Bring her to the Get-Together in a few more years and win my first prize combo for the kids biggest fish. Oh, but have fun with the Minnie Mouse fishing poles till then. HAVE FUN, FISHINFOOL
Steve great fish and congrats on the little one.
My stepdaughter just had a little girl in February. Those little tikes are a real joy. Hope we could hook up on the river some time.
Out of pool 2, 4, and 5 which is the best???
Congratulations to you and your wife on the new family member!!
Thanks again for the info on the Croix rods. Finally gave one a proper break-in on a nice fish yesterday. See you on P4!
Chris
Want chaos?? Try 2-month-old twins with a 3-year-old trown in for good measure!
I live in St. Paul and I am wondering where is the best access point to pool 2?
prof,
There are 4 commonly used access points to the river here on Pool 2.
Just below the Ford dam (Hidden Falls) there is a public access. This ramp is reccommended for slightly smaller boats due to the current.
Lilydale ramp;
Take HWY 13 east off of 35E and take the first right. This will take you down the hill to the river. THe ramp is about 1 mile down on the left side of the road. This access is a nice ramp, but lacks areas to pull the boat up on shore after you launch.
494 Ramp;
This is probably the most commonly used ramp here on Pool 2. It is located right directly under the 494 bridge in South St. Paul on the west side of the river. Take t he Hardman Ave exit off 494 and go north and take your very first right to the river. There is some major bridge construction going on there right now, so beware of potential road closes that can be unexpected to get in here.
St. Paul Park (Lion’s Levee PArk ramp);
This ramp is located on the east side of the river south of 494 bridge about 2 miles.
Here is directions that Jon Jordan typed up for me awhile back.
“Take 61 into Newport. Exit on the new Glenn Road Exit ramp. Take a right at the top of the ramp and circle down to 7th. Take a right and follow 7th all the way into downtown St Paul Park. Take a right on Main street. Go 2 blocks and take a left (Think it’s 1st st – There is a sign there that say Lions Levy Park.) Go one block, take a right go 2 blocks and you are there.”
Good luck!
Steve,
Thanks for the info. I just got a boat last week and I want to get it wet as soon as possible. This will be my first experience with big Mississippi ‘eyes.