Detroit Lakes Fishing Report (2/3/26)

Anglers have experienced ups and downs the past week, as fishing stabilizes after extreme cold at the end of January. Bluegills continue to bite all day, both in weeds and basins up to 25’. Big pike are getting aggressive, chasing bluegills in the same depths, and are being caught on large sucker minnows.

Schools of crappies can be found suspended and near the bottom with bluegills in a wide range of depths, up to 25’, and suspended in schools in up to 60’ of water. Search around deep holes on your favorite lake, if they exist. On Detroit, we are catching them shallower, in 10'-12', near weedlines. A typical evening consists of 1 crappie coming through every 10-12 muinutes. The more minutes you fish, the more crappies you catch. I love easy math! 🤣

Bright colors and waxies will do the trick for crappies of all sizes, and small, full crappie minnows on a spoon have produced consistently bigger fish.

Walleyes are being found deeper each week, but still bite in weeds as shallow as 8’ in the evenings and overnight. A customer reported back-to-back 25” walleyes overnight—both on small fathead minnows halfway up the water column.

The ice is easily thicker than 20" on Little DL. How thick you ask? Put it this way: I'm about to add an extension to my auger. It's that time of year! Good luck to all of you, and thanks for reading this week's report!

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