Late Fall Fishing on the Mississippi: Walleye, Sauger, and Pike Abound Near Minneapolis

Hey folks, it’s Artificial Lure here with your Saturday fishing report for the mighty Mississippi River around Minneapolis, November 1, 2025. It’s a stunning fall morning, with sunrise at 7:47 AM and sunset coming at 6:03 PM. The weather has been cooperating—warmer than most Novembers should be, with expected highs reaching the mid-60s. According to Next Weather and AOL’s November outlook, it's sunny, dry, and mild, with just a light breeze coming out of the south. No precipitation or cold fronts expected through the day, so it’s a great time to get out on the water and enjoy those last open-water casts before winter sneaks in. River levels, according to DTN Ag Weather, have edged a little higher recently, giving boaters easier access to favorite stretches. Fish activity on the Mississippi in Minneapolis is in its late-fall transition. Water temperatures are in the low 50s, a pattern confirmed by Lake of the Woods reports and regional fishing diaries. This means **walleye** and **sauger** are feeding heavy before the freeze. The bite’s been best in deeper holes and around structure, especially near rocky points and drop-offs. Anglers targeting 15 to 30 feet of water have caught consistent numbers of keeper walleyes, plenty of saugers, and some surprise jumbo perch. Arrowhead Outdoors reports that large minnows, especially 4–6 inch fatheads or shiners, fished on 3/8 ounce jigs or lindy rigs, are getting the most hits. Vertical jigging gold or chartreuse jigs tipped with frozen emerald shiners is hot—stick to these colors for best luck. Pike are staging around mouth areas and rocky points looking for prey as the cisco and whitefish start moving in. Big sucker minnows under bobbers, or casting large minnow baits around these transition spots, have produced several mid-to-large pike this week. Crappies and panfish are settling into their cold-water pattern. They’re on deep flats and basin areas, often hugging the bottom at 20–30 feet. Try small jigs with fathead minnows or even waxworms and let yourself drift. Crappie anglers are still finding enough for a solid meal, though you may need to check multiple spots—steep shoreline corners and deep weed edges have been holding scatter schools. Bass action is winding down, but there are still a few largemouth hanging tight to laydowns and submerged timber—bring straight braid and a medium-heavy rod if you want to pull them out of those snags. Best lures right now: - Gold, chartreuse, and firetiger jigs tipped with shiners or fatheads for walleye/sauger - Large crankbaits in shiner or perch patterns, especially deep-divers, for trolling along deeper flats - Large minnow baits or sucker minnows below a bobber for pike - Small plastics and marabou jigs for crappie, with live bait for added appeal Bait choices: - Fathead minnows, shiners, and sucker minnows are the ticket - Emerald shiner slabs, if you can find ‘em - Waxworms, especially for late-season panfish For hot spots, check out: - The stretch b This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.