Peltier Lake - Family's First Boat Need Help

[Dawkins]

Hello everyone, first time poster.

I have shore fished for my entire life and just last week my family has purchased a 16ft fishing boat. We went out onto Peltier twice on sunday (morning and evening) and fishing the weedline that seems to encircle the entire lake. Over 6+ hours we caught 3 bass, 2 larger sunnies, 1 baby and a very nice 12" crappie.

Problem is the rest of the family is brand new to fishing, I need some more action, any tips on how to fish this lake for panfish. We do have a depth/fish finder but seem oblivious as to how to use it to our advantage.

*Edit* BTW, we caught all of our fish on Crappie Minnows rigged onto a hook with a slip bobber.

<--- Complete Newbie

Thanks for the help guys, the family is counting on me to find the fish. I've always fished from shore but was more content to enjoy the sun of the day then pulling home a full dinner of panfish.

[polarsusd81]

Well Dawkins, you have come to the right place. There are a lot of different ways to catch fish and a lot of very useful information on this HSOforum. For panfish a method that works very well is very similar to what you are doing already. My go to panfish rig when I want to put kids on fish or newbies even is a float with a flu-flu jig tipped with a wax worm or a Berkley Gulp panfish bait that you can find in the little jars. A flu-flu is a feather type jig, another name is Lil' Nippers. Be sure to add a drop or two of super glue to the threading on the jigs though as they for some reason have stopped this in the manufacturing process. The super glue will keep the threading and the feathers on the jig, if you don't add the glue, after a few fish, you will easily be pulling the feathers right off the jig. Trying to find the fish can sometimes be difficult but right now the bluegills are on the beds spawning hardcore. Over the weekend on three different lakes, I saw them on the beds by the 1'000's There was one area that within a 50 cirlce of the boat, we could easily see 1'000+ gills for a couple hours and many other areas with fish staged so thick you couldn't make a cast for fear of scaring the entire school. If you can find an area that has a little bit of a break in the weeds over a sandy bottom, investigate it well, as your efforts will be rewarded. A little later in the summer, the bigger fish will move out to the outside weedlines and hang out in the cover to avoid predator fish. This is where slip bobbers in the same configuration for shallow water fishin will work well. Once you get a little more experienced with it, fishing them without a bobber is a little faster and I have been pretty good at picking off better sized fish that way.

Now as far as Peltier goes, I grew up down the road from the lake. The east shoreline of the lake has some alright pockets in the weeds with sandy bottoms. The lake does hold some nice fish and the only way to make sure it stays that way is to be selective on size for the bucket. I try to promote catch and release, but I also like a few for the pan as well and understand that others do as well. Just have fun, cause that's what it is all about.

[Ice em]

Go to minnetonka and you will catch alot of fish with soem realy nice ones mixed in. It is importnant to get the kids on some fast fishing even if they are smaller just to keep them into this great sport