Spring Walleye Bite Heats Up on the Minneapolis Mississippi

Artificial Lure here with your April 19, 2025, Mississippi River Minneapolis fishing report. Sunrise this morning came right around 6:15 AM and sunset will settle down at about 8:05 PM. No tides to worry about this far up river, but water levels have been bouncing a bit from recent spring rains. Expect the river just above action stage, carrying a bit of current and color from runoff. Water temps this week started near 40 but are warming, trending toward upper 40s by midweek. That’s classic early walleye action territory. Fish are moving in shallower, with walleye and sauger activity firing up as the sun gets high and waters warm through the day. The walleye spawn is wrapping up, so those males are hungry and cruising at rocky spots along the current breaks, typically in 4 to 12 feet of water. Recent reports show anglers catching steady numbers of male walleyes, plus an occasional big post-spawn female, particularly at shore spots below dams and around riprap edges between the Ford Dam and the confluence with the Minnesota River. Pool 2 and Pool 4 are both producing, with Pool 2 shore fishing especially solid right now. Best lures for this bite are purple or firecracker paddle-tail plastics pitched on a jig, like a B-Fish-N Moxie, or snap jigging blades in the current seams. Nightcrawlers under a float are starting to nab bonus sauger and an odd channel cat in slower pockets. If fishing from shore, try a crawler under a bobber about 5-10 feet down, especially as evening falls. Crankbaits and shad raps are heating up for both walleye and smallmouth as the water clears up. In terms of catch, anglers are mostly reporting numbers of eater-sized male walleyes between 15 and 20 inches, a few larger females, good mixed-bag sauger, and reports of active perch and pike in side channels and backwaters when targeting with small cranks or live bait. For hot spots, hit the current breaks along the Minneapolis side below the Ford Dam, and the stretch near Hidden Falls Regional Park. Upriver, try the Mississippi Gorge Regional Park edges, especially near those old rock piles that break up the flow. This weekend, bring your patience—high water can mean more debris in the river, so keep an eye out for logs. But with warming water and hungry spring fish, it’s a great time to get out. Good luck and tight lines! This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.