May 20, 2013

The weather report for this upcoming week is looking great. Much needed moisture should be coming early in the week, with 70s or 80s later in the week. Looking out on Oahe this morning from the Great Lakes Tourism offices above it’s nothing but beautiful! A few boats and shore-fishermen are out, and the fishing is starting to heat up!

We suggest you call one of our members listed at the end of the report, to see what is happening the day you are venturing up here. That way you’ll be assured of a great trip!

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Lake Oahe

In the Pollock area, at Mobridge, and at Akaska  fishing is going really well! Anglers are using jigs and minnows in 2-16 feet. The walleye are at the tail-end of the spawn so things are really starting to happen. At Akaska anglers are pitching jigs, some using bouncers and all using minnows. Some northern are still being caught in these areas.

At Gettysburg the fish are biting, mostly in 13-25 feet. Many limits are being brought in. Anglers are using jigs and minnows or lindy rigs and crawlers, and heading out in just about every direction.

Around Spring Creek / Cow Creek  from the Oahe Dam to the Cheyenne River fishing was very good this past weekend with limits of nice fishing coming in. Anglers are using jigs and minnows or crawlers, and lindy rigs with crawlers or spinners, and catching fish anywhere from the shallow water out to 25 feet. White bass are starting to bite on Oahe.

Lake Sharpe

Fishing on Lake Sharpe is absolutely fabulous from the Oahe Dam to Pierre and Fort Pierre  and down to West Bend.  Anglers are using jigs and minnows and some spinners and crawlers in 5-15 feet. For anglers interested in shore fishing, good places to go are Fort George, the stilling basin and the causeway by LaFramboise Island. Also, white bass really going in the Hipple Lake, Fort George and stilling basin areas. It’s a great time to fish here, with lots of healthy fish stacked up.Suggestion might be to come out during the week when it’s less crowded!

Francis Case

 Around Chamberlain , on Francis Case the bite was very good this past weekend and everyone is geared up for this to last most of the summer! Anglers are jigging off the rocks, using jigs and minnows in around 12-25 foot water depth. Shore fishing has been good also. A few catfish are starting to show up too. The spawn has started in this area.

In the Platte area the fishing is going well from north of Elm Creek, all the way down to Platte Creek. Anglers are fishing in 8-12 feet of water using jigs & minnows. They’re also having good luck pulling plugs or using bottom bouncers. Many anglers are heading to the Red Rock area and doing well there. The spawn is pretty well completed here and the fish look very healthy and in excellent shape. The smallmouth bite is beginning and it should be a super year of fishing in the Platte area!

At the Pickstown - Wagner – Lake Andes area fishing below Fort Randall Dam has slowed because of little water release. The bite is on above the Fort Randall Dam, up to Pease Creek, North Wheeler and Whetstone Bay areas. Anglers are using jigs and minnows in 8 feet of water. Some northern are being caught and bass are starting to be caught also. Shore fishing is very good above and below the dam.

On the Missouri River shore fisherman are at the wall, the bubble area, or near the handicapped dock on the Nebraska side. They are catching a few catfish, crappie, drum, northern, sauger and walleye. Boaters are doing a little better and jigs and minnows seem to be the best bait. Drifting with spinners tipped with minnows or worms, or pulling plugs are other tactics to try. Be careful around the rock reconstruction that is still going on.

Lewis & Clark Lake – The lake area is beginning to be fished. Most fish are in the shallow waters using your favorite color jig and minor or scented baits. In the Springfield area anglers are catching sauger, walleye and crappies.

Lake Yankton – Anglers are starting to catch a few bluegills, crappies and bass using minnows or worms.

*Please remember that the fishing conditions on the Missouri River change constantly and this report is simply a guideline – a snapshot in time.*

For more information and up-to-the-minute reports on fishing Lake Oahe, please call West Pollock Resort, 605-889-2448; Kemnitz MoRest Motel in Mobridge at 605-845-3668. At Akaska call Akaska Bait Shop at 605-649-7847. Call Bob’s Resort at 605-765-2500 or South Whitlock Resort at 605-765-9762 in Gettysburg. On the lower end of Lake Oahe, Outpost Lodge at 605-264-5450 and Lake Oahe/Lake Sharpe call Carl’s Bait Shop at 605-223-9453. On Lake Francis Case, contact Cedar Shore Resort at 605-734-6376 or Platte Chamber of Commerce at 888-297-8175 and Circle H Motel in Lake Andes at 605-487-7652.

  * Great Lakes provides a weekly fishing report from April through October.

GFP Explains Lake Oahe Fishing Limits

PIERRE, S.D. – Fishing on Lake Oahe is heating up, particularly in the upper reaches of the big lake. Questions regarding walleye limits have accompanied the increased fishing activity, especially because they differ from walleye regulations in other waters.

“Lake Oahe has a walleye harvest limit that is unique from the rest of the state, with a daily limit of eight,” said Mark Fincel, senior fisheries biologist for the Game, Fish and Parks Department. “Of those eight fish, no more than four walleyes may be 15 inches or longer – and of those four, only one may be over 20 inches.”

The Lake Oahe regulation adds the potential to harvest four more walleyes in addition to the standard statewide daily limit of four walleyes, which is in place on all other waters of the state, combined.

That leads to the question of how an angler might combine a day of fishing on Lake Oahe with another body of water.

The walleye regulation on Lake Oahe is considered additive. That means anglers can harvest a four-fish limit of walleye on any other water body, and then  may harvest up to four additional walleyes on Lake Oahe, as long as they adhere to walleye length and daily limits for Lake Oahe.  On any one day of fishing, anglers can only keep four walleyes 15 inches or longer, of which only one can be 20 inches or longer, no matter how many waters they fish.

“That does not work in reverse,” Fincel stressed. “Once four or more walleyes have been harvested on Lake Oahe, anglers cannot harvest additional walleyes on any other water bodies that day.”

Walleye possession limits have also been increased on Lake Oahe and are again considered additive.  Anglers are allowed to have 24 walleyes in possession from Lake Oahe. In addition, anglers are allowed their statewide possession limit of eight walleyes from other water bodies of the state combined. Therefore, the maximum number of walleyes an angler could have in possession after fishing at least three days on Lake Oahe and two days on other waters of the state is 32.

GFP personnel are available if specific questions or concerns come up, and anglers are encouraged to seek advice from local law enforcement.     

“It is the job of GFP officers to enforce our state’s regulations, and serve as contacts for anglers who would like more information regarding angling limits,” said Dale Gates, regional conservation officer supervisor in Fort Pierre. “We strongly encourage questions from anglers if they are uncertain about anything in the new regulations. We want our angling public to be well-informed of current regulations on all water bodies, so feel free to contact us with any questions you may have.”

“We’ve been hard at work collecting walleye eggs for South Dakota walleye stocking programs and the Lake Oahe walleye tagging study, and what we have seen is right in line with what anglers have been experiencing – walleye catches on Lake Oahe appear to be high for fish 13- to 16-inches in length,” Fincel said. “Those fish are a result of a couple of very large year classes starting in 2009.

The new Lake Oahe walleye regulation is aimed at providing anglers an extra opportunity to harvest those abundant year classes.”

A fact sheet outlining how Lake Oahe walleye limits are related to limits from other waters is available at many bait shops and convenience stores in the vicinity of Lake Oahe, by clicking here, and on the GFP website under the fishing regulations tab at: http://www.gfp.sd.gov/fishing-boating/rules-regs.aspx