Best Walleye Lakes in Central Minnesota

The Minnesota walleye fishing opener is Saturday May 11.  Glen Schmitt from Outdoor News joined me on WJON.  He says the anticipation is high and he expects a busy opener.  Schmitt believes people are itching to get out with the shortened ice fishing season we just had and the recent wet and windy spring for crappie fishing.  He says license sales through Monday are up 7% compared to last year at this time in the state.  The warmer than normal weather forecasted for this weekend is another incentive to get people out.

The supply of all types of minnows is high this year according to Schmitt and the shortage we saw last year isn't a concern this year.  He likes to use a minnow and a jig or a leech and a jig and looks for walleye in shallow water no deeper than 8 feet.  Schmitt says the spawn is done and the fish are up along shorelines.  He suggests looking for wind driven points and sand flats.  Schmitt believes fishing early in the morning or late in the day are the best times to have success this weekend.

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The best locations in the state to fish walleye include Mille Lacs, Leech, Lake of the Woods, and Winnibigoshish.  Schmitt says locally the best spots to find walleye are the horseshoe chain of lakes in Richmond and Cold Spring, Clearwater Lake near Annandale, and both Rice Lake and Lake Koronis near Paynesville.

Turkey hunting continues to be popular in the state.  Schmitt says there have been 13,120 birds shot as of Monday.  He says turkey hunters have never shot more than 14,000 in a season in Minnesota but that record is likely to be broken if it hasn't been already.

If you'd like to listen to my conversation with Glen Schmitt, it is available below.