BEST OF BOTH WORLDS FISHING GOING ON!!!

Greetings All:
Both fishing the open water below the dam in Bellevue on the Mississippi River or exploring the backwater areas and ice fishing, you can enjoy some great action going on now. 
Backwater areas still have safe ice although the melt off that happened today will make for slushy conditions, good panfish action is available. Use small baits for the bluegill near the edges of old weed beds and small minnows for those crappie near deadfalls laying in the water. Best time for the crappie has been late afternoon into dusk.

For you folks looking for open water, good sauger action happening in tailwater area on jig/minnow rigs fished vertical. I have been having excellent luck fishing a 1/4th. ounce bucktail jig and tipping it with a short piece of plastic worm. You can fish this with or without a minnow. Keep it on or near the bottom for best results and fish it slow. 

Right now the best of both fishing worlds is happening on the Mississippi River. Hopefully you can make some time to get out and enjoy.

Regards: Lastcast   Mike Cyze   lastcast13@yahoo.com

BLIZZARD CONDITIONS HAVE PUT ANGLING ON HOLD!!!

Greetings All:
The big blizzard that rolled through the Iowa, Illinois Midwest has put a halt to folks going out fishing. 
With up to 15 inches of new snow from this storm of yesterday, most traveling to areas to fish is not advised.

For you folks chomping at the bit for some safe ice fishing, I'm afraid that with the heavy snowcover acting as a blanket, those lakes and farm pond that were iffy to start with as far as safe ice have become even more dangerous. If you do decide to venture out in the next few days as the roads clear, use extreme caution when walking out onto the ice. You cannot see what is below the snow and that is not good. 

For you folks that have been fishing the tailwater areas of the Mississippi river like I have, this storm is just a bump in the road. The open water in the tailwaters continues to have excellent fishing available for bis sauger and Walleye. The big problem is finding a place to launch your boat. Some cities with launch ramps try to keep them open, but with other snow duties going on this is not a priority. Best bet is to call ahead to the area you intend to fish and find out if the ramps are available to launch. 

Which ever form of fishing you choose, just be very careful out there. Even though it's Winter, wear that PFD when venturing out on both the ice and also in the open tailwater areas. Safety is always number one.

Regards: Lastcast   Mike Cyze   lastcast13@yahoo.com 

MIDWEST ICE FISHING IN FULL SWING!!!

Greetings all:
The ice fishing here in the Midwest is going strong. With lots of safe ice to explore, the ice anglers are having a ball. 

Top choices right now would still be those farm ponds and smaller lakes that contain panfish. Look for good crappie and bluegill action happening in the late afternoon and continuing into dark. For the bluegill, small larvae baits such as spikes and mousies doing well. Use a small 1/100th. ounce ice jigs or wet flys tipped with bait and you will catch fish. For those crappie, waxworms and small crappie minnows are doing the trick. 

For you anglers in areas with frozen river backwaters, look for some decent action going on there also for panfish. As a bonus, some great northern pike action is going on using tip ups baited with frozen smelt. 

I'll tell you folks, with a great weather forecast for this coming weekend on tap, I hope you can get out for a few hours and enjoy some of the great ice fishing that is happening in the Midwest right now.  

Be safe, wear that PFD and enjoy all mother Nature has to offer. At the end of the day, you will be glad you did.

Regards: Lastcast   Mike cyze   lastcast13@yahoo.com

FARM POND ICE FISHING IS "RED HOT"!!!!

Greetings All:
Finally with some good safe ice available, those of us that love to ice fish can get out and enjoy. 

Right now here in the Midwest the hottest bite going is in those many farm ponds that dot the countryside. Good panfish action is going on for anglers looking for both crappie and bluegill. Depending on what species are stocked in the pond you are fishing you can really have a ball catching fish. 

I have been having the best luck using small larvae  type baits like spikes or wax worms. Small jigs tipped with these morsels have been really producing well. 

For you crappie purists, bring along some small minnows for the big slabs. 

Remember, right now the fish are located in deeper water so start your search there. I have been using my underwater camera and find it really neat to locate the fish holding areas. It's also a rush to see that fish come up and hammer your offering. Almost like playing a video game. 

So hopefully you have that ice fishing equipment ready to go and can get out to enjoy some great farm pond action. With a warmup forecast for this week, look for some great weather to get out and drill a few holes. With that said, be safe and enjoy.

Regards:  Lastcast   Mike cyze   lastcast13@yahoo.com

AFTER CHRISTMAS RIVER BONANZA!!!

Greetings All:
Well, here we are the day after Christmas 2014 and the Mississippi River is open and providing some truly memorable fishing. Normally this time of the year the river is locked in ice and we are doing our fishing through a hole. Not this year though.

Was out today with the mild temps and the walleye and sauger bite was great. Was fishing 3' and 4" plastic shad bodies in the fast water up at the dam in Pool-12. Long casts into the fast water coming thru the gates of the dam produced the most fish. A 3/8th. ounce jig was used and the shad body was attached to that. For this fishing I was using a long 7 1/2 foot rod so long casts were easy. Toss that shad body right in that fast water, hold your rod high and let the bait move down river with the fast current. Keep a tight line and hold on. The fish are hitting this presentation very hard as it leaves the turbulent water area. 

Best colors have been the black back with silver sides bodies. Note: Dependent on current, you may be able to start with a 1/4th. ounce jig. This is something you will have to experiment with in the water you are fishing. 

Hopefully before Mother Nature decides to drop her other shoe and bring Winter you can get out and enjoy the great Mississippi River bite that is happening right now in an open Pool near you.

Regards: Lastcast   Mike Cyze   lastcast13@yahoo.com

WITH WINTER HOLDING OFF, THE GREAT RIVER BITE CONTINUES!!!

Greetings All:
Well so far the Winter of 2014 has yet to arrive. That's fine with me. The best part though is that the fishing on the Mississippi river has been going strong for both Walleye and sauger. With lot's of open water still available to fish, anglers have many spots to try. I have been working the areas from Pools-11 to 14 and have been having great success. The fish are there in good numbers and the bite has remained excellent. Many anglers have stayed in the tailwater areas just below the dam but there are many spots further down river that are less crowded and have quality fish available. Best part is that in these spots you do not have to fight the heavy boat traffic up at the dam. 

As far as presentation, jig/minnow rigs are working well. I have been using hair jigs with good success. You can tip the hair jig with either a minnow or plastic trailer and both will catch fish. As far as colors, white, orange and yellow have been doing good.

For you folks that like to troll, three-way rigging will also take its share of fish. 

With no major weather forecast through the upcoming weekend, hopefully you can get out and enjoy some of the great Mississippi river fishing that is going on right now in a pool near you.

Regards: Lastcast   Mike Cyze   lastcast13@yahoo.com

VERTICAL "SNAP JIGGING" WORKING WELL FOR WALLEYE AND SAUGER!!!

Greetings All:
Well, this last week I have been traveling up and down the Mississippi River testing the waters in the many pools it has to offer. Tailwater fishing has been good with one particular method working very well for some nice fish. I'm talking about what is called "Snap-Jigging".  Snap jigging is what it implies, quick snaps to your jig presentation to make it jump erratically. I have been using this presentation while vertical jigging and it has been working great the last few weeks. There is one thing though that I have been doing that will up your bites and let me share it with you.

While vertical jigging I have added a plastic Ringworm to my jig for both bulk and effect. I have also been tipping this setup with a nice lively fathead minnow in the 2 1/2 inch range. Simply lower the rig to the bottom and after taking up the slack in the line, give the jig a couple of quick snaps with your wrist. This sudden fast motion along with the jig and ringworm has been triggering a good bite. Look for the Walleye and also the sauger to hit the rig hard as it drops back down towards bottom. Snap jigging is nothing new but when combined with the ringworm as I have done, it adds a new dimension to the vertical jigging method. 

There is still lots of tailwater fishing available so get out if you can and enjoy. Get yourself some ring worms in different colors, a good assortment of jigs and have a ball on the Mississippi river.

Regards: Lastcast   Mike cyze   lastcast13@yahoo.com 

RIVER ICE MAKING FISHING AN ADVENTURE!!!

Greetings All;
The cold weather up north is finally effecting the Mississippi River here in the central Midwest. From Pools 9 to 14 you can expect to find floating chunk ice in the river which is limiting the anglers ability to get to more spots in search of those Fall walleye and sauger. Right now most anglers that are venturing out are concentrating on the tailwater areas for their fishing. Even there though you should use caution when boating to avoid damage to both your boat and motor from the ice chunks.

For you hearty anglers that may be planning a trip to the river this Thanksgiving weekend, look for great water clarity. Backtrolling jig/minnow rigs with big minnows will take some nice fish. You can also vertical jig tight to the bottom and catch some nice fish also. Hot colors this past week have been the bright orange, followed by white. I have had great success using the Northland Fire Ball jig in the 1/4th. and 3/8th. ounce sizes. The short shank hook on the Fireball jig gives a great hookset in the cold water conditions.  Remember to fish slow.

So remember my friends, the fish are there and with a little patience on your part you can catch them with good regularity, even with the floating ice. Be safe on the river, wear that PFD and enjoy the great fishing that is going on right now in a pool near you.

Regards: Lastcast   Mike Cyze   lastcast13@yahoo.com

MISSISSIPPI RIVER GIVING UP HER BOUNTY!!!

Greetings All:
The Mississippi River continues to give up her bounty of nice fish to the angler willing to put up with the "chill" in the air. 
While the tailwater bite remains spotty in many areas, wingdams, steep tapering rocky shorelines and outside riverbends continue to produce some nice Walleye and sauger. Backtroll the upper sides of the wingdams with 3-way rigs and big minnows and you will catch some nice fish. Some anglers tossing crank baits on top of the wingdams and taking a few fish that way also.

The one fly in the ointment for this weekends fishing is that a fast moving weather system is expected to drop about an inch and a half of snow over the Midwest. This won't effect the angling but might make using those launch ramps an adventure in itself. With the cold temps, look for ice to form on these areas. So with that thought in mind, use caution when launching and again when leaving the ramp. 

I'll tell you my friends, the fish are there and they are hungry. Dress warm, wear that PFD and you can enjoy some great Fall fishing that is happening right now on the beautiful Mississippi River here in the Midwest.

Regards: Lastcast   Mike Cyze   lastcast13@yahoo.com 

MISSISSIPPI RIVER FISHING ONLY GETTING BETTER!!!!

Greetings All:
Wow!!! What a great weekend to be out on the Mississippi river doing some Fall fishing. Both Saturday and Sunday were windy but that only helped the fishing. I was out in Pool-13 both days and the bite was really consistent with many nice fish being caught. Best locations were the windblown points and steep tapering rocky shoreline areas way down river from the dam. It seems that Mother Natures wind served to blow baitfish into these areas and the walleye, sauger and some huge white bass were there to feed on them. 

Presentation was quite simple. Casting jig/minnow rigs was productive but I switched to jig/plastic shad bodies in the 3 inch size range and that was the ticket for both days.  The hot color both days was the silver sided bodies with the black stripe across the top back. The fish were just attacking this color. Also as a close second, all white, 1/4th. ounce hair jigs caught many fish also. Simply cast your presentation up close to the shore and work it back to deeper water. The fish are out there just waiting for it to swim by. Try and make long casts to avoid spooking the fish in these areas. Stay in deeper water and cast shallow. 

Biggest fish of the weekend was a 10.6 pound Walleye that was released to fight again. Biggest white bass was close to 4 pounds, with limits of eater size fish available. 

Remember, the water is cold so vary your retrieve until you find what speed of the lure the fish want. 

Hope you can get out and enjoy this great fishing that is going on right now on the Mississippi River. 

Regards: Lastcast   Mike Cyze   lastcast13@yahoo.com