"Mississippi Autumn Bounty: Smallies, Walleyes & Solunar Forecast"

Fishing action on the Mississippi River around Minneapolis is picking up as the fall chill sets in, and anglers are finding good numbers of smallmouth bass and some walleyes, especially in those deeper holes and current breaks that define the fall bite. According to Minnesota Outdoor News, larger minnows are coaxing more of those bronzebacks and the occasional 'eye to strike, with the pattern holding steady through this week. Water temperatures are sliding slowly downward, hovering in the mid-to-high 50s, which usually means active fish feeding ahead of the coming cold.

This morning, the river’s flow upstream near Aitkin is on the lower side for the season, running about 3,460 cubic feet per second, but that’s still plenty of current to keep bait moving and hold fish near structural breaks. The river levels are a bit low historically—CBS News Minneapolis notes this section has recently registered some of its lowest autumn gauges ever, so check access points for low ramps and log jams.

The weather for Thursday, October 23rd, is a classic fall setup for the Twin Cities with clear skies early, a crisp low around 37°F, and a high topping out near 60°F as the sun makes a full show. The sun pokes up at 7:40 AM and ducks back down at 6:16 PM. Winds will be light, making for comfortable conditions on the water. According to FishingReminder, today is rated an excellent day for fishing, aligning to the Solunar tables which show major activity peaking from 3:27 to 5:27 PM and a minor but promising window from 8:01 to 9:01 AM.

Anglers this week have been landing numbers of smallmouth bass on the river’s sharper bends and below the key dams—down by the Ford Dam and the stretch running through downtown Minneapolis have seen some eager fish. Reports are that the big ones are coming on larger creek chubs or flashy jigs tipped with live minnows, especially where the water breaks into a deeper hole or behind mid-river islands. Walleyes are still holding tight to the bottom, but a few nice catches have come from jigging with fatheads in that 10-18 foot range.

The bait of choice lately has been a jig and minnow combo—chartreuse and orange have been the hot head colors. For lures, mid-sized crankbaits, particularly in shad or firetiger patterns, are producing walleyes in the evening. Anglers targeting smallies have seen action on 3.5” tubes in green pumpkin and natural crayfish colors, along with spinnerbaits slow-rolled along current seams.

If you’re looking for a few hot spots:
- The area just below the Plymouth Avenue Bridge has been reliable, especially before mid-morning.
- The tailrace below the Ford Dam continues to hold both bass and walleye.
- The banks between Boom Island and Nicollet Island are stacked with baitfish and are well worth a cast, particularly as evening bites start to ramp in late afternoon.

On the bait front, live minnows are out-fishing plastics for walleyes, but don’t be afraid to throw a paddle-tail or jerkbait to cover more water if things slow.

Last note—remember, Pool 2 between the Ford and Hastings dams is strictly catch-and-release for walleye, sauger, and northern pike, thanks to ongoing Minnesota DNR regulations, so snap a quick picture and let ‘em go to fight another day.

Thanks for tuning in to this Mississippi River fishing report with me, Artificial Lure. If you found this update helpful, make sure to subscribe for more local fishing intelligence. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Fishing action on the Mississippi River around Minneapolis is picking
up as the fall chill sets in, and anglers are
finding good numbers of small mouth bass and some wallwise,
especially in those deeper holes and current breaks that define
the fall bite. According to Minnesota Outdoor News, larger minnows
are coaxing more of those bronze backs and the occasional

(00:20):
eye to strike, with the pattern holding steady through this week.
Water temperatures are sliding slowly downward, hovering in the mid
to high fifties, which usually means active fish feeding ahead
of the coming cold. This morning, the river's flow upstream
mer Aitken is on the lower side for the season,
running about three thousand, four hundred and sixty cubic feet

(00:42):
per second, but that's still plenty of current to keep
bait moving and hold fish near structural breaks. The river
levels are a bit low historically. CBS News Minneapolis notes
this section has recently registered some of its lowest autumn gages, ever,
so check access points for low ramps and log jams.

(01:02):
The weather for Thursday, October twenty third is a classic
fall set up for the Twin Cities, with clear skies
early a crisp blow around thirty seven degrees fahrenheit and
a high topping out near sixty degrees fahrenheit as the
sun makes a false show. The sun pokes up at
seven forty am and ducks back down at six sixteen pm.

(01:24):
Winds will be light, making for comfortable conditions on the water.
According to Fishing Reminder, today is rated an excellent day
for fishing, aligning to the solunar tables, which show major
activity peaking from three twenty seven to five twenty seven
pm and a minor but promising window from eight zero
one to nine zero one am. Anglers this week have

(01:47):
been landing numbers of smallmouth bass on the river's sharper
bends and below the Key dams. Down by the fore
Dam and the stretch run through downtown Minneapolis have seen
some eager fish. Reports are that the big ones are
coming on larger creek chubs or flashy jigs tipped with
live minnows, especially where the water breaks into a deeper

(02:10):
hole or behind mid river islands. Walies are still holding
tight to the bottom, but a few nice catches have
come from jigging with fat heads in that ten to
eighteen foot range. The bait of choice lately has been
a jig and minno combo. Chartreuse and orange have been
the hot head colors for lures. Midsize crank baits, particularly

(02:31):
in shad or fire tiger patterns, are producing wallies in
the evening. Anglers targeting smallies have seen action on three
point five tubes in green, pumptin and natural crayfish colors,
along with spinner baits slow rolled along current seams. If
you're looking for a few hot spots, the area just

(02:52):
below the Plymouth Avenue Bridge has been reliable, especially before
mid morning. The tail rice below the dam continues to
hold both bass and walleye. The banks between Boom Island
and Nicolette Island are stacked with baitfish and are well
worth a cast, particularly as evening bites start to ramp

(03:14):
in late afternoon. On the bait front, live minnows are
out fishing plastics for wally eggs, but don't be afraid
to throw a paddle tail or jerk bait to cover
more water if things slow. Last note, remember Pool two
between the Ford and Hastings Dams is strictly catch and
release for walag, sager and northern pike thanks to ongoing

(03:38):
Minnesota DNR regulations. So snap a quick picture and let
them go to fight another day. Thanks for tuning in
to this Mississippi River fishing report with me artificial lure.
If you found this update helpful, make sure to subscribe
for more local fishing intelligence. This has been a quiet
please production. For more check out Quiet please dot am

(04:00):
I