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Friday, July 3rd, 2026

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Minnesota’s big border waters contain snappin’ saugers and channel cats

Happy angler “Hank,” with the author and Hank’s 6-pound channel cat caught on a sucker minnow. (Photos courtesy of Turk Gierke)

Twenty-six years ago, I learned while fishing the Mississippi River near Red Wing, Minn., that top anglers would directly compare their walleye catches to the water level present on the day of said catch.
These “sharpies” would also sync the time of year to the level. These guys believed in a cause and effect where fish locate based on water levels. When the water is “this height, then fish are there.” This concept changed my fishing tactics forever.

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