We’ve experienced several different weather patterns the past week, but the fishing has been overall very good. Mason Propst and I enjoyed our first tournament of the season entering the Pre-(Spawn) Classic on Lake Sharpe. We recap the tournament and the fishing in this week’s fishing report!
Friday evening, I checked out how the fishing was along Marion Gardens in Pierre. The evening bite proved to be very good, with fish turning on right at 5 o’clock and having a limit of fish in the boat with a couple thrown back by the time we needed to be off at 6 to get to the rules meeting. All the fish were 15-17 inches and were taking blue VMC Neon Moon Eye jigs and minnows.
Saturday’s takeoff greeted Mason and I with a light rain but overall calm conditions. We took off out of Down’s Marina in Pierre and ran up river to the stilling basin. When we pulled in, we saw fish flying over the sides of many boats and it was very clearly a red hot bite. After a half hour in there and boating a few fish, we were greeted with a strong gust of wind and driving rain. Many boats raced off the water and the bite was tough. For about 30 minutes, it wasn’t looking good for us.
It wasn’t long after and the weather conditions changed. With this change, the tough bite changed as well. The rain stopped, sun began to peek out and the winds calmed and the fish took off. We enjoyed a fast bite and put several quality fish in the boat to weigh. By 10:45 a.m., we were focused on getting our final “over” (fish longer than 20 inches).
We proceeded to catch numerous fish, estimating between 30-35 walleye/sauger greater than 15 inches entering the boat. We had the most success pitching plain jigs and minnows and letting them sit on the bottom. Vertical jigs also produced fish, including a burbot for Mason!
We were unable to get our second over, but were able to bring a respectable bag of 14.55 pounds to the scale for a 6th place finish! We anticipated it would take 17-18 pounds to win and sure enough this was the case, with two teams bringing 17 pounds to the scale. Overall it was a great start to the season and a day we hope to build off of moving forward through the 2021 season!
Sunday we went out in the evening to see if the bite was still hot at Marion Gardens and headed out in 70 degree temperatures, despite it being only 17 that morning! We found different conditions, with fish very scattered among the flat. We were able to pick through a pod of better fish, but after a short bite window they moved on and we struggled to locate more fish. We covered a great deal of area following this flurry, but were only able to contact one short walleye.
Overall the weather threw a variety of curveballs, but the fishing continues to be very good in the Pierre area on Lake Sharpe.
Additionally, anglers continue to report northern pike being caught in the bays of Oahe, but we seem to still be waiting for the big push of fish to move shallow. Expect anglers fishing deeper to be the most productive, but the bite should continue to ramp up!
I hope you all have a wonderful Easter and are able to enjoy time with your family, friends and the outdoors! Spring fishing is still ramping up and we’re in for a great season out on the Missouri River in South Dakota! Good fishing!
