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Posts: 205
Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota | Hey everyone, i live in Rochester in south east Minnesota. There are not many options around here for musky, only two viable fisheries are the zumbro river downstream of the lake, and French lake near faribault. I live about 25 mins from the river so I have spent a lot of time fishing it. There is a reservoir that has been being stocked with leech lake fish since I want to say 94. Almost every single fish they have stocked into the lake has gone over the dam into the river during high water period. I have been fishing the river a handful of times for musky in the last 2 years and I finally got one in November while walleye fishing. Although it is not a huge river, it have seen some very large fish pulled out of it. In nov 2018 I took a picture for a guy of a 54” he got on a suick, and I have heard of many other fish between 50-56”. It seems like a perfect recipe for big fish as it has absolutely insane populations of suckers/redhorse/drum/ other easy bait, low fishing pressure in most of the river, and leech lake fish that are not stocked in super high numbers. It’s even got a 35 foot hole under the dam for an easy wintering spot. Anyone have any experience with this river? It’s always been a dream of mine to get a 50” on the river I grew up fishing as a kid. The river is pretty wide but fast and shallow in most of it, only way to get on it is a Jet boat or to float. If anyone has any suggestions for tactics/ lures for a river like this or has experience with the fishery I’d appreciate it, thanks |
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Posts: 2276
Location: Chisholm, MN | I don't live anywhere near here but it sounds fun. I would think it would be easy to catch them if you just float down the river in a small boat during lower water periods and cast a cowgirl. River muskies are particularly easy to catch when the conditions are right. Bucktails are almost always the best choice. You can cover water easy and have the best hookup percentage. Typically they sit near deeper holes or near wood. But I've seen big fish come from shallow sand as well. I would keep a tight lip if you find a pattern and start catching fish. The masses will come and your fishery will not be what it once was. |
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Posts: 205
Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota | Thanks for the reply. I wasn’t able to float the river once this year because of the crazy high water, last year all the fish I had follow were on smaller size 6 or single 8 blades or smaller twitch baits. Fish I got this fall was in the deepest hole in the river on a small sucker on a Lindy rig. The river locally is pretty well known as a musky fishery but not many people take it seriously for big fish potential. Hope I can dial it in better next year |
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Posts: 188
| I have floated the Zumbro from Kellogg to the Mississippi River and had my wife pick me up at the Upper Sand Prairie Boat Launch. Also looked at the section by Kruger Park. I was just exploring a couple years back and did not see much potential for this stretch. Lots of current with no current breaks, shallow water and sand. Given the levee below Kellogg on both sides it appears this section was channelized in the past. The upper reaches may be better but the river is small. You may want to get your hands on a drift boat. A couple guys use them over on the Chippewa. You may want to consider the Chippewa River north of Durand. I see Keyes did a video there a couple years back. I believe there is launch between Caryville and Rock Falls. Depending on water level you can probably run it with a jon boat. Should be about 1.5 hour drive from Rochester. Locating fish in this section could be tricky as I suspect they may travel long distances during spawning before falling back to pools. Look for a drift boat and Good Luck |
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Posts: 205
Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota | I have never fished it that far down, the farthest I have heard the muskies go is to millvill. The upper reaches by zumbro falls and Hammond have a lot more current breaks and deep holes that make it easier to determine where to fish, as well as feeder trout streams that bring in cold water. It is an incredibly scenic area to fish in the upper parts, one of my favorite places in the world |
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Posts: 591
Location: Duluth | My best muskie buddy is from Roch, there are big fish in there. Just don't let anyone know when you catch one. You do have the fact that its hard to access on your side but still. |
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