Lake Ann

There is very little summer pressure on Lake Ann in Carver County because of the electric-motor-only restriction. In the winter months, there are always a few portable houses sprinkled here and there, but for a metro lake, there are few anglers visiting. This means those big bluegills that hang near the edge of the milfoil near the deeper water are suckers for anything you put in front of them. The beauty of this is there are some nice-sized fish there.

Lake Minnewaska

Lake Minnewaska has a surface area of 7,000 acres, yet all the anglers chasing crappies seem to migrate to the 25-foot hole that intersects a rocky point on the northeast corner. There’s plenty of big crappies to go around, so join in with the crowds and have some fun.

APRIL

Mississippi River At Winona

The Mississippi River upstream from Red Wing just below the dam always gets very crowded in April as the walleyes move upstream. Another option to consider is Winona. There are just as many walleyes stacking up at the apron of the dam, yet there are far fewer anglers.

It doesn’t seem to matter what section of the river you’re on during the late-winter spawning run. The jig-and-minnow is the technique of choice to put walleyes on the hook.

Lake Waconia

Where the creek comes into Waconia on the northwest corner of the lake is where the big black crappies stack up right after the ice goes out. You can’t miss the spot because there will be a bunch of boats there. Don’t let the crowd scare you off; everyone is catching fish.

Prior Lake

Prior Lake is the early-season crappie angler’s dream come true because those fish migrate early up into the back bays where the water has warmed and the baitfish are stacked up. While everyone else is waiting for the shallows to turn on in other lakes, Prior Lake is cooking.

MAY

Lake Shetek

For the walleye anglers that are used to fishing deep, clear structure-rich walleye lakes, Shetek will make you feel like you’ve landed on a different planet. Barely 12 feet deep at the maximum depth, Shetek has little structure to speak of, and yet the lake is full of walleyes.

Some anglers drift with bobbers, some drag live-bait rigs with long leaders and some cast or troll crankbaits. When you do find a school of fish, mark that spot and hang in there. On Shetek, where there’s one, there’s many.

Alexandria Chain of Lakes

Pick a lake on the Alex Chain in May and you will likely find some great walleye fishing there. There are weed-topped sunken islands on Darling, bulrush beds on Carlos, and long points and inside turns on Geneva. The chain may not be notorious for big fish, but there are a lot of walleyes there, and they love a leech around opening day.

Bay Lake

Take a medium-light spinning rod, tie a 3/8-ounce spinnerbait to the line, find some freshly emerging vegetation in one of the back bays on Scott County’s Bay Lake and catch pike all day long. You won’t find a lot of huge fish in this lake, but there are tons of pike in the 2- to 4-pound range that can be fun to catch on light tackle.

JUNE

Lower Cullen Lake

Some anglers feel they have at least two weeks to wait after the walleye opener before fishing really begins. These are the bass fishermen. And they love to fish shallow water with a lot of cover.

A favorite in the Nisswa area is Lower Cullen Lake because there is some bulrush rimming the shore, some cabbage sprouting on the edge of the reeds and some big bass ready to explode on a topwater or spinnerbait slithering over the surface of the water. It’s a clear lake, so make long casts.