Here in the Midwest we tend to associate trolling with game fish like walleye and muskies; seldom do we ever consider panfish. Sure, every once in a while you may hook a White Bass or Crappie with eyes seemingly bigger than its stomach, but that's about the extent of your contact with panfish. Well, what if you downsized your tackle to specifically target those panfish? Would it work? Madison Angling Experience Guide Dustin Murphy with a spring Crappie Trolling for Crappies i

Early spring, in my opinion is one of the most dreary, awful times of the year. The weather sucks, you can't ever seem to get more than 2 consecutive nice days, game fish aren't open on the lakes yet, and a person can only do so much trout fishing before they go crazy. Here is a few things I do this time of year to keep my sanity and prep for open water fishing. TACKLE ORGANIZATION You can’t honestly stay that your tackle is all neat and organized, or that you can go in one o

Spring can be a challenging time of year to catch muskies, especially here in Madison. Generally speaking, game fish are chasing smaller forage and are much more likely to eat a smaller profile lure with subtle action. The Rapala Husky Jerk in size 13 and 14 is an all-time favorite of mine and seems to produce about half of the muskies caught in my boat in the month of May. Right out of the box they are perfectly fishable, however there are a few little tweaks that make them

It seems like spring has always been synonymous with walleye fishing. Yes, now is the time to chase monster pre-spawn walleye on the rivers...but what's going on out on Lake Michigan? Jigging with light tackle for big brown trout has to be one of the most fun things to do this time of year. With drag peeling runs and potential to catch fish over 20lbs, you'd be crazy NOT to try it! These fish hang out near shore through about April (depending on water temperature) making them