Fishing Report For Lake Oahe, SD

Current Report: Good To Very Good

Lake Oahe is widely known as an excellent walleye fishery. Spring and Fall are the best seasons for catching walleye, as they spend a great deal of time shallow.

SUMMER. Currently the water temperature is in the mid 70's, and walleye fishing is terrific. Throughout Summer, early in the morning and from dusk to long after dark are good times to catch walleye, as they move shallow to feed, 5 to 15 deep. The rest of the day they are cruising flats and creek channel edges, 25 to 45 feet deep.

FALL. Fall brings cooler temperatures to shallow water, drawing walleye and baitfish into the shallows. Jigs, swimbaits, spoons, crankbaits, jerkbaits and spinnerbaits are all catching walleye again.

WINTER. This Winter fishing for walleye was good through the ice. They primarily feed on gizzard shad, smelt and other small fish, close to the bottom. After ice out, blade baits, jigs, swimbaits, spoons, deep-diving crankbaits, and worm harness spinners all work while trolling or slow drifting.

SPRING. Come Spring, anglers will be finding walleye back in the shallows, especially rocky areas and inlet channels, where they will spawn once the water warms to the mid 40's. Afterwards, they seek out points, flats, shoals and ledges just off shore nearby their spawning location. Bright colored jigs, tipped with minnows or nightcrawlers are catching them in 15 to 20 feet of water. Spinnerbaits, jerkbaits and crankbaits are also working when walleye are up shallow.

Current Report: Good To Very Good

SUMMER. Smallmouth bass, including many trophy-size gems, are currently feeding shallow early and late in the day, where they are being caught on topwater, crankbaits, swimbaits, Ned rigs and tube baits. Smallmouth bass here feed on crawfish, gizzard shad, and small sunfish. They prefer rocky or gravel bottom areas, as this is where crayfish live. During the hotter parts of the day, they are being caught on points, humps, and ledges 10 to 45 feet deep. Often these deeper fish are part of a large school of smallmouth. Anglers fishing around the section of the lake nearby Forest City, around Whitlock Bay, the area where the Cheyenne River intersects the Missouri River, the area around Moreau and several miles above and below Mobridge, are reporting good catches.

FALL. As Fall arrives, smallmouth here follow schools of baitfish into coves and bays, where spoons, drop-shots, and slow-rolled spinnerbaits, are very successful. The average fish being caught averages about 2 1/2 pounds, but plenty of 4 to 6 pound smallies are being caught with some regularity. Fishing shallow for smallmouth is often good on cold, windy, cloudy and rainy days.

WINTER. Winter will isolate them around deeper structure, points and creek channels, often suspending in open water above these features. They can generally be found from 20 to 50 feet deep. Here they hold, feeding less frequently, awaiting warmer water to return in Spring.

SPRING. When water temperatures rise into the 50's now, smallmouth have moved from deep wintering spots to shallower water, just outside spawning areas. They feed heavily at this time, and are typically caught on jerkbaits, crankbaits, tube baits, Ned rigs, and crayfish imitating plastics. They will be preparing for the spawn. Once water warms into the high 50's, they move into shallower water, and create nests in gravel or sand areas, then lay their eggs. Females then move to deeper water and males remain to guard the eggs, and then the fry. After a couple weeks, the males also move to slightly deeper water and feed aggressively. Crankbaits, tube baits, Ned rigs, plastic worms, spoons and swimbaits are catching smallies during this period.

Current Report: Fair To Good

SUMMER. Northern pike scatter all around the lake, rather than gather in large groups. This makes them difficult to find. During the day they are holding from 20 to 45 feet deep, on ledges, reefs, weedbeds, rock piles, islands and channel edges. Some of the larger specimens are suspending in open water, just outside feeding areas. Trolling or drift fishing is producing some nice catches, using spoons, big spinners, cut baot and deep diving crankbaits. Early and late in the day, they move shallow to feed and can be caught around most weedy shorelines. Noisy topwater lures, spinnerbaits and Johnson spoons with curly-tail grubs, are catching nice pike shallow.

FALL. As the weather starts turning cold, water temperatures cool fastest in the shallows. This brings baitfish into shallower waters, and northerns follow along with this food source. They hang around weedbed edges, main-lake points, reefs, and rocky shorelines to ambush prey. This is a prime feeding time as they prepare for winter. It is also a good time to catch a trophy pike.

WINTER. Pike remain active in Winter, often congregating in or near remaining weedbeds, especially along the edges. Other structure options include long points, reefs, ledge drop-offs, and rocky humps, ideally nearby deeper water. Ice fishing was good here in winter. At times, when oxygen is depleted in deeper water, northerns suspend directly under the ice, where maximum oxygen is available. Other times they hold on structure in 20 to 30 feet of water, sometimes deeper.

SPRING. After ice out, northern pike migrate to shallow, warmer pockets, bays and coves. Once water temperatures reach the mid-40's, they move into even shallower areas with vegetation, to spawn. After spawning they linger in the shallow bays for a short period. Once water temperatures rise into the 50's, they move to deeper weedbeds and shallow structures adjacent to even deeper water. Bright colors, whites and flashy lures appeal to these predators. Noisy topwater lures can also produce some spectacular strikes. Alternate between baits until you identify which one triggers the most bites for the day.