Smallies on Koronis

[Daze Off]

Going to chase smallies on Koronis near Paynesville in the morning and wonder if anyoone's got some advice - thought of the more typical - cranks, jigworms, spinnerbaits, etc. but wondering if anyone has some spots/baits to suggest.

Thanks for any help.

Daze Off

[Deitz Dittrich]

Try around the islands on the rock bars.. That is where I have done best.

[andy j]

I would fish the weedlines until the weeds die off then the fish will start to move to offshore structure to their wintering areas. There are some nice fish to be had out there.

[SluggoMaster]

Find any weed edge that is left and fish from 8' to 14' of water with a crank/jig. There are some really big smallies in there as well are largies as well. Stick with more natural colors, since they seem to work better for me.

[Daze Off]

Thanks guys - I'm certain all those things would have worked if the water was "normal". I actually expected it to be gin-clear but was shocked to find the worst algae bloom I have ever seen. There were actually large globs of the stuff floating around - so thick in places that I'm not sure a senko would have sunk below the surface. Visibility in some spots was less than 6" and best near the dam at a fuzzy 3 ft. Went with slow-moving, large, noisy baits for the most part. Did try jig worms, carolina rigs, some topwaters because there was some early action on the surface. Only managed one smallie on a carolina rig near first island in 1 ft. of water.

Any suggestions on what I could have done differently given the water conditions?

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[Ray Esboldt]

Clumps of goop floating around! That can signal a turnover of a lake; however, I don't really know the dynamics of Koronis and how it stratifies and such. It doesn't seem recent weather would have promoted a turnover. But, some lakes turnover more than once in the fall.

The only thing I've found on "gooped up" lakes to be effective is to fish ultra shallow. I'm talking the shore end of docks and any stick or branch in the water along shore. 10" of water is not too shallow.

The other thing to do on a "gooped up" lake is to drive your boat onto the trailer and head on to another lake. Those conditions, if promoted by a lake turnover, can make fishing a bit tough.