The ice is gone on the Front Range, and the boat ramps have begun to open. It’s time for spring fishing! This is my favorite time of year to wet a line as the opportunities to catch numbers of fish (and quality ones too) abound. Here are a few simple tips to be successful on your next outing whether you’re after walleye, trout, or bass!
If walleye fishing is your thing then you’ve got to be thinking about pre-spawn and spawning fish. During the daytime I like to focus on structure (humps, drop offs, etc) throwing reaction baits like a
blade bait,
jigging rap, or
spoon. If trolling is your thing, then getting something like a
flicker shad down deep with leadcore line is another good option. As the sun goes down and you get into the dark hours, turn your focus onto shallow gravel and rocky areas where walleye are likely to spawn. If you can hit these spots while the wind is blowing on them you really can get into a lot of fish! I primarily target these areas throwing suspending jerkbaits (a clown pattern
Smithwick Rogue is a go to) and
curly tail grubs on a jighead. Nighttime is the right time to land some solid monsters this time of year so hold onto those rods!
Similar to walleye, the trout are also going to be in a pre-spawn/spawning phase. The browns spawned back in the fall so now we’re talking about the bows. These fish can be caught on just about anything you throw at them especially the stocker sized fish. I’m not a fly guy so I can’t speak on that end so much, but I like to focus on the shallows throwing suspending jerkbaits,
tube jigs,
kastmasters, and
gulp minnows. The thing about this time of year is that you can get into multi-species action by targeting shallow areas with these lures that cater to all the different species that are moving up. Another favorite technique of mine is to get over top of trout in my kayak and vertically fish a dropshot right down to them. A
Maxscent Flat Worm in the smelt pattern is dynamite on those fish!
Finally, let’s talk bass. I always jump the gun with the largemouth every year and throw a
chatterbait as soon as the ice comes off. Typically, these bass aren’t willing to chase down a bait like that as soon as the ice comes off. Fishing slowly seems to be the key while these fish start getting warmed up for the season. Once again a suspending jerkbait that you can pause in the water column for a long period of time can do the trick. If they won’t go on the jerkbait try dragging something slooooowly along the bottom. Tube jigs,
texas rigged craws,
football jigs, and so on can get you into those fish. Check out little drop off areas that lead up to the shallows first, but don’t be afraid to get super shallow and throw some lures up there. You can catch some really big bass up shallow even with the water this cold. Then as soon as we get another solid week of warm weather, break out the chatterbaits and start chucking and winding in the 3-6 foot range!
Hopefully these tips help you get into some fish this spring. Tight lines y’all!
