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St. Croix River crappie bite is going well. After a slower last two weeks anglers are again catching crappies at a good rate in the Bayport area of the river. Previous fish catching methods and locations remain the same, where a crappie minnow on a jig or spoon over the deep water basin is working well. Depths have been from 34 to 40 feet deep, with crappies being caught just off the bottom to ten feet off of the bottom.
White bass are the next fish most readily caught, with some sauger, walleye, catfish and sturgeon being hooked too. Crappie sizes remain excellent and that is the main reason angler pursue them on the river. If you get a nice white bass they are an easy 16 inches.
12” to 15” in places I have been. Little snow on the ice and about half the ice is uncovered by snow.
Keep Catchin’
Charlie "Turk" Gierke
13 years Pro guiding experience on St. Croix and Mississippi Rivers.
4x Beanie River Rat walleye tournament winner
3x St.Croix Classic Paul Koval walleye tournament winner(former Beach Bar)
2001 World Walleye Association Championship winner
2009 Full Throttle Big Water Series Team of the year
USCG licensed OUPV Captain
Trust Jesus.
previous reports below
January 18, 2012 The ice on the St. Croix River is forming well. I continue to be a walk on angler as the ice is 8 to 9 inches and unsafe for vehicle driving. Fishing for crappies has been steady. I have not had a lot of non stop action but enough where all trips so far this season have resulted in a good meal of fish in 3 to 4 hours of fishing. Reading the sonar keeps the pace moving as the fish actively chase your bait. In addition to active fish, there are light hitting ones with a “whiff” hookset by yours truly on a bait steal. Then mix in a slab coming to the hole and the overall action keeps the time moving quickly.
The size of the crappies is impressive 75 percent of all fish I have caught this year have been keeper sized crappies above 9” in length. Two trips ago I landed a jumbo 14” crappie that upon hookset I thought was a white bass or walleye.
The white bass are also running large. Actually the white bass always run large on the Croix and are a dime a dozen at 15 to 16”. White bass move in packs and the sonar turns a bright red mass 6 to 10 feet high, here doubles are common. Ice cold winter white bass when cleaned properly are fantastic. I recently filleted crappies and white bass, fried them up in a beer batter, served them hot to two 14 year old boys and they, unsolicited preferred the white bass over the crappies when asked which they prefer. I agreed with them. White bass have and enormous lateral line and reddish meat between their skin and meat. For great eating fish cut out the white basses lateral line and shave off the red meat, fry whities fresh and there will be nothing left but crums!. By the way the shore lunch brand beer batter is a winning fry mix on sale at Fleet Farm for under two bills.
I am doing most of my catching with jigging spoons and minnows, I am employing some bobbers, and dead sticking. I like to work fish on the sonar as it is my favorite style of presentation. Depths are 38 fow and over the soft basin of the Bayport area. The fish do roam. I however do find crappies relate more to structure and flow than the white bass do.
Jan. 5, 2012
Did well today in the morning for St. Croix River crappie. I found if I could move the fish on the Vexilar, that most of them would bite. That interaction of enticing one fish and seeing it move and narrow in on your bait and then bite is a thrill for me. I kept 10 from 9.5 to 13” and they filleted up into a nice sized bowl of fish. Same depth and technique as previous report.
Jan.4 Caught a dozen nice crappies today on the St. Croix from 8 till 10:30am. Fathead minnows on a jigging spoon 38 to 40 feet deep.
Jan. 3, 2012 There is walkable ice on the St. Croix River though not much action to report. Crappies, saugers, and white bass are the main targets for ice anglers. Slip bobbers w/ split shot and plain hook, jigging raps (for saugers) and jigs with fathead minnows or minnow heads are the main tactic. The Bayport area is where 85% of all anglers fishing the lower St. Croix River go. This area is best fished in the deep basin from 36 to 40 fow. Crappies also suspend here and can be on the bottom so an ice sonar is a must. Good Luck!
December 14, 2011
Thanks to all my great customers making 2011 a great angling year! The St.Croix River open water season ended a couple weeks ago. Ice anglers are hoping for cold weather to snap the ice into shape to enable angling.
November 18 had a guide trip today and caught 3 limits. 4 were legal walleye and 14 were saugers. all caught trolling Rapalas in 28+ feet deep. Started the morning with a triple. Then nothing for 40 minutes, the bite was up and down that way all day. The fish bit then nothing for 20 minutes. Kind of strange. Talked to a fellow angler who is a regular down there, and he did not get a bite. I felt lucky to get all those keepers.
10-27-11 Yesterday on the river was a sweet fall day, light wind, bright fall color on the bluffs as the oaks popped vividly after the recent rains. Fishing was good as well with nice 16 to 18 inch walleyes being caught on bucktail jigs and fatheads (20 to 30 fow). It appears that a stable weather system has found us and we are in store for some easy going fall days.
Oct. 21 We caught 22 keeper walleye and sauger the last two days. I am using minnows and jigs right now. Minnows with 3 way rigs also working very well. Turning solid walleye on plastics right now as well. Water temp falling fast 55 degrees.
Got out today and fished an AM trip with a great group thanks Stefen..got eight keeper walleye and sauger combo and a 25" walleye...looks like the bite is starting up again!
October 12, 2011
Last weekend on the Saint Croix River walleye bite was flat out incredible we had many keeper sized fish and some picture fish as well. Most of the keeper were walleye in the 16 to 19 inch range and with as mentioned larger fish with the biggest being 27inches.
Trolling Rapala’s was the best presentation for landing walleye. I have also been jigging blade baits and jigging and fathead minnows. I am targeting 19 to 29 feet of water. I mention was the best presentation, because for weeks the fishing has been hot and pretty darn good for my boat, but the last three days was moderate and then today in the morning slow.
The last three days I had to look and search to find shad pods, and then when I found them the bite was still tough. I am seeing bait pods on some structure, but the largest biggest schools of shad are off structure hanging in 50 feet of water. This is one of the reasons the sturgeon bite is slow by the way, that being shad moving daily and not structure oriented.
I am confident once the cold weather finally arrives…as long as it does not hit to fast and to hard…that the bite will resume. The forecast looks like we will get cool but not aortic cold weather so that is a positive in my book
There are still good walleye being caught, so it is definitely worth an outing, but again it slowed down, and I hope tomorrow it picks up quick. It did rain today, and who knows that might get something started, fish are funny that way.
The Saint Croix River is 675.4 feet above sea level in Stillwater, MN. The water temperature is 62.5, and has been this temperature for ten days. Water is clear little grass floating in the water.
09 29 11 Got two limits from 7am to noon today. Also a 28" and 25" eye Tuesday so seeing some bigger ones with more regularity.
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