Photo by Ron Sinfelt

Brand-new line on your reels: check. Tackle box cleaned out and all the lures in their proper places: check. Two of every hot crankbait: check. A lot of jigs of every size and color: check. Spinner- and live-bait rig snells pre-tied and perfectly wound on the snell holder: check. Boat vacuumed out and life preservers in place: check. Food and beverages in the cooler and properly iced: check.

You're ready for opener!

It's that glorious day when Minnesotans from all over our state head to the lakes with high expectations of catching walleyes. Opener is a tradition that could be described as Christmas morning for grown-ups. Anglers slip into bed the night before they are to venture out on the water, with giddy excitement of what awaits them when they wake up.

So where do you go on opener? There are thousands of options in Minnesota where Wanda The Walleye may show you the courtesy of joining you in the boat. Is it a lake with the cabin that has been in the family for years and has been an opening-day delight for multiple generations? Is it a lake close to home that has produced well in the past? Or do you head way north, or down south, putting some miles on that trusty fishing wagon to make a vacation out of the opener?

Whatever your formula for finding the perfect fishing lake on opener, it is to your benefit to realize that finding the hot bite is really just a matter of being on the right lake at the right time. There are always variables that can help put you in the right spot, such as weather, fish numbers, water temperature, where the fish are in the spawning cycle and fishing pressure, but the most important factor is luck. Gary Roach always says when it comes to fishing, you make your own luck, and he's been known to switch lakes in the middle of the day when his first choice on opening day wasn't producing walleyes.

So keep your fingers crossed, have fun and take a look at these great options where it's easy to get lucky when chasing walleyes on opener.

ALBERT LEA LAKE
According to Hugh Valiant, the Department of Natural Resources' fisheries supervisor for the southern region that includes this lake, there have been some water-quality issues that have been addressed, and now Albert Lea Lake is drastically improving in that regard. While anglers do like to fish lakes where there is some decent visibility and deeper weed growth, their top priority is whether there are fish to be caught.

"We have been stocking walleyes in Albert Lea, and the numbers couldn't be better," Valiant said. "In our last survey, there were 85 walleyes per gill net. And the fish are in great shape."

Valiant explained that growth rates in the southern Minnesota lakes result in quality fishing.