North Shore Line Early??

[StrosLit31]

I dont remember if i heard a reason before about fishing the north shore line of a lake early in the year before or not. But why would the north shore of a lake be better than the south shore? Is it something to do with water temp or is it based on fish movements between ice out and open water?

Seems like i hear that the north end of lakes are always better in winter? Is this really true or Myth???

Another note is i have a cabin on Osakis, and the North end is called the Narrows (smaller) and the South end or main part of the lake is a lot larger. So would a guy target the north end of the lake for Walleyes on opener or the main part of the lake, larger structure and larger weed lines?

[fishn4kids]

The north side of a lake recieves more sun light in the spring time than the south does.

duane

[Team Otter]

Like Duane said, the north end of most lakes receive more sunlight through the spring of the year, which rises that part of the lakes water temperature faster. As far as what parts of the lake to fish in the winter, there is generally no directional pattern to where the fish are more or less active unless one part of the lake has more food or cover available, etc.

[RiverBassGuy]

You also have to take into consideration the bottom composition. If it's all rocks, it may not hold the heat as much as if it was all sand or mud. I like to look for sand/gravel/mud in the early of the year, especially if the ice out is past normal.

[Team Otter]

Great addition to this discussion. Thank you.

[RiverBassGuy]

TO, what side of Mille Lacs do you normally fish? Just curious...or do you hop around everywhere

[Team Otter]

I am a North and West sides kind of guy.

[StrosLit31]

Thanks for the info. I will have to check out the water temps from spot to spot this opener. When you say the water will warm faster, is this just a 1 or 2 degree difference or are we talking real small changes? Would a guy be a able to pick this up on the graphs surface water temps?

[eyepatrol]

Sometimes it will be a 1 or 2 degree difference or it can get up to 5 degrees difference. All depends on bottom content, amount of sunlight being received, water clarity, etc. You should be able to see the difference on your locator.

One thing to keep in mind is even though north and west sides of lakes typically heat up first/more early in the year, don't neglect the south side either. I've fished a lake for a number of years where the south side has a nice mud flat with weeds and if you want to get bit more than any other spot on the lake, that's the place to be.

[weeds]

Say there are a few very large bays at the south end with good structure in them and narrow mouths. Can these bays be treated as small lakes?

[Team Otter]

Absolutely.

[Team Otter]

Typically, you're going to see a change that will register on your electronics but often times the smallest change makes the biggest difference.

[PerchJerker]

I agree with most of what's been posted. North shore areas will warm up the fastest, which is good, but there may be other areas that are better for fishing even if they are a few degrees cooler. This is true for crappies and walleyes.

For the walleye opener next week, I will be fishing on a south shore.