Aprio 8, 2009 Stockton Lake Fishing Report

[Thompson Fishing Guide Service]

April 8, 2009 Stockton Lake Fishing Report

Lake level: 868.75

Normal pool: 867

Water temperature: 49 degrees

Walleye fishing has been hit or miss for obvious reasons, which have to with the continuation of drastic cold fronts that cause a down surge in the barometer and for whatever other excuses I can come up with.

Walleye, like other fish, do not all spawn at the same time in such a large environment. In some parts of the lake, the spawn has slowed, such as Sac River, Son’s Creek. In other parts of the lake, such as north of the 215 bridge, you still have a lot of large females which have not yet spawned. Two points I would like to make:

1) These large females that everybody targets produce 90% of the offspring that are reared naturally on Stockton Lake. Around 20% of these fish reproduce on their own here, I am told.

2) Walleye are quite different during the spawn than crappie, catfish, or largemouth bass. They do not build a nest, or spend any significant amount of time in an area during the actual spawning process. Therefore they have no nest to guard. Walleye also have a post-spawn period which lasts from a week to two weeks during which they become very inactive. Therefore the bite is slow.

You ask, “How should I respond?” You need to cover a lot of water, in varying depths, with a variety of baits. To find the fish that will bite, you need to spend a lot of time on the electronics. Slow drift jig and minnows and jig spoons. Use medium running crank baits off of main lake points. There is no set formula, and you can see that when a walleye angler catches a big walleye in 40 feet of water off a main lake point and another guy catches an 8 pounder in 15 feet of water crappie fishing. I hope you get the point.

Reference the wind on Stockton Lake: I was amazed at how many small boats loaded with fishermen were on Stockton Lake Saturday with no life vests. I admit that I stayed a little longer than I should have, in 45 mph wind gusts; I try to learn from these experiences. Not only do I have my own life in my hands, but others’ lives as well. If danger is even a threat, fun should take a backseat and go home. If you go out in dangerous conditions, at the very least you run the risk of tearing something up on your boat. I guess the term “high winds” is relative; when you see a white cap here or a white cap there, you better beware…especially this time of the year. A word to the weekend warriors: just because you see your favorite pro from your favorite outdoor channel, going 70 mph over whitecaps, does not mean you should.

I have only been fishing for walleye. Next week I have several bass fishing clients; I’ll give you first hand information on bass in the next report.

Marty Thompson

Thompson Fishing Guide Service

www.fishstockton.com

417-424-BASS

Often imitated, never duplicated. Fish the Finest!

[Whodat]

You can believe this,I was on the lake saturday and I had my life jacket on.I never seen white caps like that!!!!