Tom Neustrom

The 2024 fishing opener has come and gone with overall good success and spectacular weather. As predicted, it took the warmth of the day to wake up walleyes in some places, and the late morning and afternoon were the best.

Thinking outside the box can be difficult moving into a new open-water fishing season. Our 2023-24 winter was a nonevent that we hadn’t previously experienced. With warm weather and little snow, lakes and rivers likely will be extremely low if there’s not increased moisture this spring.

Water temperatures are decreasing ever so slightly, and walleyes know it’s time to feed. There seems to be an overabundance of baitfish, making it a tough bite. But the jig-and-minnow bite soon will kick into gear.

Here we are in June, and water temperatures already are in the low to mid-70s. Normally, we’re looking at these conditions come mid-July. With the early heat, you may find walleyes in places they don’t typically occupy until sometime in July, but we need to take notice of what’s happening.