Walleye and Perch Bite Heating Up on the Frosty Mississippi Near Minneapolis

For December 20, 2024, on the Mississippi River around the Minneapolis area, here’s what you can expect: First off, the Mississippi River in this region does not experience significant tidal changes, as the tidal influence is negligible this far upstream[3]. Weather-wise, it's been quite cold, with overnight temperatures in the teens, but the days have been relatively calm and clear. This kind of weather keeps the water temperatures around 38-40 degrees, which is typical for this time of year[1]. Sunrise today is at about 7:48 AM, and sunset will be around 4:30 PM, giving you a good window to get out on the water. The Walleye and Sauger bite has been excellent in Pool 4, particularly in the upper part of Lake Pepin and northwards. You can expect to catch a lot of quality fish up to 21 inches, though not many over 22 inches. Vertical jigging, dragging jigs, and Miller rigs have been very effective. I recommend using Berkley plastics like curly bones, bonefish, and ribworms in colors such as white ice, greens, and purples, depending on the cloud cover[1]. For Perch, Pool 5 near the dam area has been producing good numbers. Use small jigs and drop shot rigs tipped with a piece of crawler or minnow, focusing on current seams and small flats. Panfishing for Bluegills, Crappies, and Perch remains good, especially on rock shorelines, wing dams, wood, and weed beds. Small jigs with plastics or tipped with a chunk of crawler work well. Hot spots include the upper part of Lake Pepin, the Northern part of Pool 4, and the dam area in Pool 5. Wabasha is also known for a strong Walleye bite. Overall, it's a great time to be out on the Mississippi River, with plenty of hungry fish waiting to be caught. Just make sure to bundle up against the cold. This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.