The Peluso Report: Finding Fall Fish on Devils Lake

This will probably be my last Devils Lake fishing report until the upcoming ice fishing season. I will say this, if the open water season on Devils Lake is any indication on what this winter will be like, it's going to be epic!

We have finally hit the fall transition. The leaves are changing along with the air temperatures, and with that the water is cooling down and the fish are a tad sluggish because of it. The funny part about these changes, it always seems the walleyes snap out of it in a big way. The fish are going to go bonkers again!

The bridge areas, current areas, and old shoreline structure seem to be where the bulk of the fish are right now. Jigs and minnows along with leadcore line and crankbaits are still catching a bulk of walleyes on Devils Lake. I'd say if you are looking for numbers, use jigs and minnows. If you're looking for a big fish, the leadcore setup is going to be hard to beat.

I'm happy that some of you are thinking ahead and booking your ice fishing trips. I'm also booking a few fall trips on the Missouri River. I'm going to be starting on the river this Monday, and hopefully will be reporting with good news! I also have some stuff scheduled on Sakakawea coming up as well, so stay tuned.

Mike Peluso is a Dakota Edge Outdoors contributing writer and a North Dakota licensed fishing guide specializing in walleyes on the state's premier waters.