Friday I had the luxury of fishing with AmWatson for panfish on the upper end of Lake Onalaska. We had a good day using a handfull of techniques. For most of the day I used a small white plastic bait called a minimite. These plastics are deadly on panfish and proved their usefullness on Friday.
To say the weather was unstable, was an understatement. One minute the sun was shining, the next the wind was whipping, then followed by rain. This was the case for most of our time out. Most times, the fish would bite just after the wind and rain stopped while the water was calm.
We caught lots of fish Friday afternoon, mostly it was about 5 to 1. Five small fish to 1 keeper. For the day, Mike and I tallied 27 keepers for 5 hours of fishing. We didn’t have any sunfish under 7 inches.
Along with the constant Sunfish bite, we did catch a number of smaller Crappies. Some hit the 9 inch mark, but those went back into the water. I typically like my Crappies closer to the 10 range. Along with the Crappies, I caught some nice Perch fishing the deeper holes. None were as big as the one pictured here. All fought nicely and were released back to finish their spawn. I have a soft spot for these fish and would like to see them come back strong someday soon.
All in all it was a good day to be on the water. It sure beat working. 
Thanks again to AmWatson for joining me in the boat for the afternoon. I always enjoy it and look forward to doing it again soon. 
Thanks for the report. A day on the water with a friend catching panfish is a great way to enjoy the day. Those fish provide alot of action and when using light tackle it like catching big ones all day.
Were you fishing the minimites under a bobber? If so how far under the bobber was the bait set at?
Thanks, Bill
Wow..that’s a hawg Perch
Looks like you guys had fun…. 
We set our baits anywhere from 3-6 feet under the bobber. Mike was doing well using redworms also at the same depths.
Good report. What kind of depth were you in? Hope to get out this week and from the looks of the main channel I think it would be more fun in backwaters.
Thanks again for inviting me out Blue
I think Blue forgot one exciting part of the day 
Thanks again Blue, look forward to the next time 
It was fun and and a nice change of pace fishing for panfish. Blue once again schooled me using the minimites
Blue, your boss called.
He said yer f———-
friendly face was missed at work friday.
What kind of water temps were you guys finding? Were you completely out of the current to?
Nice looking bunch of fish!
Herb, yes my friendly face was missed at work for sure!
Dave, the water was cold…….at least that’s what my fingers told me when I put them in the water. In fact it was 5 degrees colder than a couple days ago according to the guys behind us with a water temp gauge.
The current was minimal.