Minnetonka fishing

[Shorelunch]

I'm taking my 4 yr old out tomorrow morning and was hoping to find some crappies/bluegills/sunnies to catch and release. Haven't fished on 'Tonka for a few months for crappies and was wondering depth and where to possibly look in the Grays/Minnetonka area.

Thanks for any advice.

[markkstanley]

The sunnies are everywhere right now. You can fish the inside edges of the milfoil and then try the outside edges starting at about 10ft all the way to 18ft. You can still fish dock shadows and pickup some nice sized sunnies. I've not be able to locate crappies consistently but they are usually holding in a little deeper water (18ft to 24ft) anywhere from 7ft to 12ft down. Use your electronics to find a school. Don't forget to check the area around the 101 bridge. Gets deep quick and holds a bunch of fish. Just hard to get at with the boat traffic.

[Corey Bechtold]

Maybe you should check the Metro Forum for some insight on Panfish locatons on Tonka.

Good Luck,

Corey Bechtold

[CALVINIST]

Shorelunch,

Why don't you go to Sarah? Plenty of action there, and you live in Medina. the pannies are a poppin' out there right now.

[Shorelunch]

Thanks Mark. Calvinist, I'd like to get to Sarah except the misses wants to go on Tonka. I'd prefer not to fight traffic on Tonka, but . . . maybe she would like some quiet.

When I fished Sarah last year for pannies, I did well along the weedlines on the east end. Is this holding true this year or are there better areas to try (you can email me at kyle13850 at msn.com)?

Is the launch on Sarah packed on weekends like it was last year? Is it in decent shape and is the water level fairly high (I have a boat the same size as Buzzsaw's and it was so-so launching there last year)? Are you OK to get a spot if you get there around 7am?

[buzzsaw]

Shorelunch Johnny, I've gotta get on the road to meet you on Waconia in like 5 minutes... hope yoou got some bulls yesterday for Kyle.

[Shorelunch]

We saw and caught blue gills in Gray's Bay. It was a lot of fun - they were shallow and the water was clear so he could watch them hit the bait. It was fun for both of us.

[CrappieJohn]

By the sound of last night's news anyone fishing this lake might want to consider foregoing any after dark fishing. Booze related are simply unacceptable and this weather seems to draw that crowd out.

[markkstanley]

Tonka's OK after dark during the weekdays but the (Contact US Regarding This Word) come out on the weekends. Just have to stay out of the Fletcher's boat traffic pattern and avoid any channel areas. Actually the only time I almost got smashed was by a Ranger bass boat going 60mph after dark with no running lights. He saw my lights at the last second and veered away.