At least Minnesota walleye anglers won't have to take their portable ice-fishing shelters along Saturday. The last lake in the Detroit Lakes area to be ice-covered, Big Cormorant, opened Wednesday.
Beyond that, the positives might be a little thin for the Gopher State's big event.
A couple of local walleye experts expect tough fishing for the opener because of the cool spring - which means chilly water temperatures and lackadaisical fish - and a shortage of the best opening-day bait, shiner minnows.
Of course, though, never say never. "I'd anticipate catches between 20 and 40 percent of what they've been for past openers," said Otter Tail Lake fishing guide Ross Hagemeister. "So if a boat of guys is used to going out and catching 10 walleyes on opening day, I'd think catching two or three or four fish might be more realistic this year,
"That said, somebody will catch fish. The odds say that if you put a million anglers on the water, somebody is going to get into them."
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Hagemeister said bait shop owners and bait wholesalers he's talked with haven't been able to net large numbers of lake shiners, far and away the most popular and often the most effective opening-day bait for walleyes.
"That's a huge hurdle, the lack of proper bait," Hagemeister said. "Without the true-blue shiners, it could be tough to find what the fish want. If somebody can get their hands on a few dozen shiners, they'll be light years ahead of everybody else."
Fargo walleye enthusiast Ron Sahr expects things to be slow - he'll be fishing in North Dakota this weekend - but suggested anglers find the warmest water on whatever lake they plan to fish. "I would go to a smaller lake and find the warmest water," Sahr said. "That's going to give you the best chance."
If the opener proves slow, Hagemeister said fishermen should look at the positive.
"The best fishing of the year is still ahead. Memorial Day weekend is looking like it's going to be the golden zone," he said. "If the weather gets squared away, that weekend is going to be red-hot, I think."
Readers can reach Forum reporter Mike McFeely at (701) 241-5580
His blog can be found at www.areavoices.com
