May Was An Up-and-Down Month

Hello anglers. May was an up-and-down month. The fishing started strong. Multiple species were feeding heavily and fishing was good—walleye, northern, sunfish, and crappie were all very catchable. Then cold weather, off and on, over the course of a couple weeks sent the water temperatures plummeting and fishing, especially for walleye, followed suite. Fishing is like that; just when fishing is relatively easy and it seems you have it mastered the fish swim the other direction and don’t leave you a clue. Skipping forward, the water temps (today) were sitting at about 58 degrees on the lakes in Otter Tail Country. I’ve seen them as warm as 64. If we get another warm shot, I imagine they will stay above 60 and that will set consistent walleye fishing into play. I’m not one to follow water temps, but this season they sure have played a part in the disorganized fish patterns. Shiner minnows no longer live on the drive between the bait shop and the lake. That usually implies the shiner spawn is over with and it’s time to bring leeches and crawlers along or crank baits on walleye outings. Panfish are still in their spawn and will continue to do so for another couple of weeks—ending with sunfish. All in all, it’s been a trying late May on the lakes around the county.  Now things are creeping forward and I’m excited about the upcoming fishing in the next week—when the walleye go from “maybe” biting to “need to feed”  fishing and catching.  Keep your hooks sharp and enjoy Otter Tail County’s lakes and rivers this week.  Good luck.
Ross Hagemeister,  Meister Guide Service