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Hutch's Guide Service Fishing Reports
2012 Fishing Reports
| Watch Hutch's Video Reports on AnglingBuzz.com |
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Final Report for 2012 -- Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
This report will wrap up another great fishing year for both lakes in the Pierre area. The fishing on Sharpe is very good for those warm days or for those fishermen willing to brave the weather. Around the bridges in Pierre up to the tailrace and stilling basin have been putting out limits of walleye mostly on jig/minnow rigs. The same report is true for the big lake especially in the back end of the Cheyenne river. The minniconju ramp is not in use anymore so bush's landing or little bend ramps are the access points pheasant hunting and now goose hunting are both going strong. I think next year will continue to be very good and those anglers that enjoy eating the walleye are going to like the new regulations that will allow four bonus walleye under 15 inches a day (8 limit) and 24 walleye in possession if fishing for 3 days or longer.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of my clients from both this year and years past for the fishing/hunting trips we made and hope that we can go again in the future. If you have already booked a trip with me for next year please verify the date's with me after the first of the year. To all of you that read my reports I hope they have been helpful in some way and to all of you Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Let's all look forward to a great 2013 and I will see many of you at sports shows this winter.
Hutch's Guide Service Hutch
November 10th to 17th Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I just will be doing these reports now weekly as the season
for the open water fishing here on Oahe winds down .I guided for the
outpost customers Rich Rouse and Dan Cooper from Emmetsburg Iowa for
one day of pheasant hunting with them shooting there limits and then
on a really nice Indian summer day fished the Cheyenne river arm of
the lake to there limits of walleye in around the 18 inch range,
some smallmouth bass and a small northern pike. A couple of real
nice guys and they had a great time both hunting and fishing. We
caught most of the walleye on jig/minnow's in 15 to 20 fow and had a
slow bite early but a great bite after lunch. Maybe because we got
on active fish or maybe because the water warmed up a little later
in the day. Was down on Sharpe earlier in the week as well as some
of the other guides I work with and the bite there is still spotty
and it also seems later in the day. You can get limits most days but
if the corps doesn't run the right amount of water it can be harder
to come by limits. Jig/minnows seem to be the best baits there also.
Water temps on Oahe are in the high 40's now and around that on
Sharpe. Oahe is still very good fishing especially for those anglers
that know the lake and the late season bite continues to be
excellent when the weather is excellent. One little tip about cold
water fishing that I think is a key to catching more fish. Get your
baits away from the boat. The water is cleaner and colder and the
fish are more spooky. I also try to never fish in an area with other
boats for this reason. If a boat comes into an area you are fishing
is is almost better from my viewpoint to just move on as most of the
fish well anyway. Many have been fished all year and just won't take
a lot of pressure. The boats sitting in the community spots catch a
few fish but if you want the really nice catches of bigger numbers
and bigger fish try to fish by yourself, cast a long ways away from
the boat or drag jigs way back. Most of the best anglers know this
and usually are the ones coming in with nicer stringer's of walleye
really year around but especially in colder clearer water.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
November 3rd to 9th Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I guided along with guide Ne. John a group of hunters from the Denver area that Rich Wilson referred over on Sharpe. We caught 23 walleye needing 24 for there limits ending up 1 Fish short for there total limit. I believe this is the first time this year that I didn't get limits for my boat indicating the bite is a little tougher at least on the river. Some days can be excellent but some tougher so I will categorize the bite as Spotty. We caught the fish in around 10 fow on bouncer/minnow rigs however plug pulling is a good option right now on Sharpe. Oahe is still going strong when the wind/weather will let you get out on the big lake. Smallmouth/ northern/ walleye are biting in 20 fow or less mostly on jig/ bouncer/minnow rigs with Bush's Landing/Little Bend/ Cheyenne river area's the best choice. It looks like this weekend the weather is going to favor the hunter's as wind/ snow or rain forecast. Next week looks a little better but we are late into the season so the amount of great fishing days on open water are really getting limited. I will continue to post a weekly report at least up to December and if there are any major changes I will post them. In closing I would like to pass on a little humor a friend of mine posted after the election results were in Wednesday. Pete Harsh, one of the best professional fisherman from over in Minnesota writes that it look's like there are getting to be a lot more cheese taker's than there are cheese maker's voting these day's. I laughed when I read that but unfortunately it probably has a ring of truth. Well one way or another we still all live and fish in the USA and that is very good.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
Sorenson Group
November 1st to 3rd Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
We are getting some great
late fall day's making for combination fishing/hunting trips a lot
more pleasant. Pheasant hunting is excellent around the Pierre area
and the fishing is good but spotty for walleye on Sharpe. Walleye,
smallmouth bass and northern pike on Oahe are going strong. I guided
Mark Fitspatrick and friend from Georgia for a day of walleye
fishing on Sharpe catching there limit. The bite was slower in the
morning hours but turned on after lunch allowing us to get some real
nice walleye in around 10 fow on minnow/ bouncer/ jigs but we did
catch 3 or 4 fish pulling plugs (flicker shads). The bite on Oahe
remains excellent with most fish coming from 20 fow on
bouncer/minnows or real shallow (10 fow or less) pitching jigs/gulp/
minnows. The Cheyenne river and all the way up from Bush's Landing
are probably the best choices but many fish are coming from the dam
to the spring/cow creek areas also. The weather looks very good for
the next week averaging around 50 to 60 degree's all the way up to
next weekend so there should be some real happy hunter's and
fishermen. I will do another report in around 5 days.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
October 28th to 31st Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
The fall fishing/ hunting in the Pierre area is excellent.
The Lake Oahe northern pike bite has come back on as a lot of these
species have moved back along with the walleye/smallmouth bass into
the shallow's. The how of it is minnow/Gulp presentations and the
where is around the Cow creek/ area to the Cheyenne river/ Bush's
Landing area's. Most fish are being taken in 20 fow or less with
many coming from less than 10 fow. Sharpe is also good but
experience counts as the fishermen who know the system are limiting
on just about every outing with nice walleye. Night crawlers still
work better on Sharpe some days. I fished Troy Coats and his brother
from Missouri to a nice limit of walleye to 24 inches and some big
northern to 34 inches and a lot of smallmouth bass. The weather was
great and we had a great time. I then hunted and fished the Gordy
Sorenson Roberts Pump/Franklin electric group. Once again we had
great weather and just a great bunch of guys. They shot there limit
of pheasant's for a half a day and then caught a great bunch of fish
with many over walleye and a lot of northern pike (one fish well
over 20 Lbs.) and plenty of smallmouth bass. These kind of trips
this time of year are a great way to go. I have mentioned weather
several time's because it is such a big factor late in the season.
If you come to hunt and fish and the weather is bad you can hunt
bird's and leave the fishing for another nice day but if the weather
is good so is the fishing. Both the groups above got lucky and had
those great Indian summer days and for many a trip of a life time
both catching fish and shooting limits of birds. It is great for
company's like Roberts Pump/ Franklin electric to put on trips like
this for there honored employee's and all of us Guides/resort's
appreciate the business big time. From me and all the guide's a very
big thank you. If you can still get over to Pierre and the weather
holds the fishing is excellent when the weather is and the pheasant
hunting/bird numbers are great. Some geese are in the area but very
few are being shot/hunted.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
October 22nd to 26th Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I will start with the weather for the rest of this week. It
looks like hunting is going to be the best game plan for every one
but the real die hard fishermen. Colder temps/wind/rain and even
some snow is forecast so I won't be doing a fIshing report again
until Sunday unless something changes. I guided a father three son
party Dustin McLaren and his boys from Atlantic Iowa to one great
day of fishing up in the Cheyenne river on Oahe on there first day
and then in rain and wind the next day. We got real nIce limits of
both walleye and bass wIth one boy hauling in a 25 inch whopper
walleye so the trip was good for them. Caught all these fish on
minnow/bouncer rigs fishing in 15 fow to 20 fow. A real nice bunch
of Dad and boys and they all had a great time. The second day the
weather moved in and we quit after a few hours. I think thIs time of
the year if you are going to come over fishing crossing your fingers
for good weather is not a bad idea as from now on out it is probably
the biggest factor. Fishing is good when the days are nice but much
tougher and you earn your fish when they aren't. Sharpe around
Pierre is still putting out limits of nice fish but working harder
for them is not uncommon. Jig/minnow or nightcrawlers are the baits
of choice for most and 10 fow seems to be about the right depth most
days .Pheasant hunting is in full swing with lots of birds and
limits the norm for most hunters.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
October 15th to 21st Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
The fishing on Oahe is
still excellent when the weather is good. Sharpe is okay but a
little slower some days. Weather is starting to be a big factor and
Wed and Thursday we had 40 mph winds with 70 mph gusts so any
fishing that was done had almost no results as about the only place
safe to fish was directly below the dam or not at all. Friday the
winds tapered off and I guided repeat customer Troy Swift, Dad, and
party from SD to a great day of fishing on Oahe getting limits of
walleye and smallmouth. We caught these fish on minnow/bouncer rigs
in around 20 fow on Oahe. Had a great time as I always do with this
group and the weather cooperated for a nice trip for them. I then
took out Father/son Lee and Edgar Pierre from down Omaha way and we
did very well catching limits of smallmouth and nice walleye limits
with all there over fish every day and one big northern pike that
went in around 20lbs.The same thing worked as we stayed on Oahe in
around 20 fow with minnows/bouncers. They got their possession
limits to take home along with some real nice meals cooked up here
at the Outpost. This time of the year most of the pressure on both
systems is winding down as hunting starts to get into full swing.
Where we fished in three days we saw around 3 or 4 other boats all
day. There are a lot of fish being caught by pitching jigs/
gulp/minnows on both Oahe and Sharpe and although some days crawlers
work minnow/gulp presentations seem to be the baits of choice for
most anglers.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
October
11th to 14th Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
The weekend was absolutely picture perfect weather and the
bite on both Oahe and Sharpe remains good to excellent for those
fishermen that know the lakes and are good at fishing. Oahe
smallmouth fishing is at a peak as these fish have come out of the
shallow water and are all over in 10 fow to 25 fow. Minnows/gulp on
either bouncer rigs or jig's and even trolling plugs all work for
them. The walleye are there two and all the last trips I have made
on Oahe we have come in with limits of both fishing with
minnow/plain hook/bouncers staying in around 20 fow. Sharpe is still
going good for walleye and nice ones but if they aren't running the
right amount of current it can be a little harder to put the fish in
the boat. Crawlers are still working but take minnows along as some
days they are what the walleye prefer. Jig/minnow's or jig's/ gulp
are starting to be the number one presentation on both lake's. My
friend Jim Randash from Rapid City sent me the above picture of this
13lb 5 oz walleye he caught while fishing in Tobin Lake,
Saskatchewan. Guess they had half a dozen over 10 lb fish but he
felt it wasn't as good a trip as in years past catching 15 fish or
more last year over 10lbs. Any way you stack it up it looks like
Tobin is still a very good place to go if you are looking for big
trophy walleye. It does sound like you need to bring some real warm
clothes though as Jim said the weather was plenty cold and wet and
they had to earn these fish.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
October 8th to
10th Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I fished Don Fadley from Iowa and his friend Steve from KC
Kansas to possession limits of walleye and smallmouth bass. They had
one day of big wind (35 mph) and one real nice day and our catches
reflected that struggling in the wind but catching well over 50 fish
on the nice day. We fished Sharpe on the wind day and Oahe on the
next day. On Sharpe we caught the walleye on crawlers staying in 5
to 10 fow and on Oahe we fished with minnows/bouncer's in around 20
fow. There is still a very good bite both places as long as the
weather stays nice. I favor fishing Oahe right now especially when I
have customers that like catching smallmouth bass (bite is
exceptional) along with walleye. If the weather get's tough or
walleye are the main goal Sharpe is the best option. GFP had a
meeting to address the bait/fish ratio on Oahe last week and as a
result are making a proposal to the commissioners to change both
daily limits and possession limits for next year along with upping
license fee's for park permits by a couple of bucks and small game
hunting licenses up $10. I will post the mail I received from GFP on
the limit proposal and in general support these changes however it
always makes me nervous when the numbers of walleye taken out of the
lake increases like this. I felt the same way the first time this
was done and was surprised at how well this worked so proven methods
are hard to argue with. I also believe that I am seeing some
stressed fish and less bait now on Oahe along with increased numbers
of the 2 to 3 year ago spawn walleye. I think the average angler
will look at this as a real bonus and expect the lake to be busy
next year. A lot of fishermen are going to go home with a lot of
fish dinners. I also support the license fee increases. They are
minimal and GFP's spends the money on the fishery's/parks/habitat so
even a bigger increase from my viewpoint would be hard to argue
with. Following is the proposal and as more information becomes
available on all of this I will post it.
The following
proposal is meant to give anglers a bonus due to the record walleye
spawns Oahe has had over the last three years and the abundance of
these year class fish. It also has the bonus result of reducing
mouths in the lake to enhance future bait growth. It has to be
approved by the commissioners.
Hello all,
Once again, I would like to thank those who attended the meeting
last week to provide input on the recommended changes to Lake Oahe
walleye regulations for the upcoming year. For those unable to make
it to the meeting, the recommendation to the commission last week by
fisheries staff was to increase the walleye limit on Lake Oahe to 8
per day of which four could be under 15 inches. The "one fish over
20" would be removed also and the possession limit would be
increased to 24. The commission officially proposed the regulation
change on Friday of last week.
If you (or other interested parties) wish to provide comments either
supporting or opposing the Oahe walleye regulation change or any of
the other proposals, you may do so by sending your comments to Game,
Fish and Parks at
Wildinfo@state.sd.us. You must include your name and address to
have your comments entered as part of the public record.
Your comments will be
shared with the GFP Commission as part of the public testimony on
these issues. You may also provide comments during the public forum
on November 1 at the commission meeting at 2PM in Madison.
If you have questions or comments for fisheries staff we can be
reached at the following numbers.
John Lott- Chief of Aquatics- 773-4508
Geno Adams- Program Administrator- 223-7701
Mark Fincel- Senior Fisheries Biologist- 223-7704
Thanks again for your participation in this process!
Geno Adams
Fisheries Program Administrator
South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks
Ft. Pierre District Office
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
October 3rd to 7th Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
To start with I am going to mention that as the fishing
season winds down I will be posting my reports around every five
days or so. GFP's did have another meeting last Tuesday and I will
pass some of that info on this week. The fishing around Pierre is
still staying about the same on Oahe with walleye, northern
scattered and smallmouth going strong. The nights are starting to
get colder and I noticed today the surface temp on Oahe was in the
high 50's so as this comes down some nice walleye should start to
come in from shallow water jig pitching and some lead core pulling
for the deeper fish. I guided a father/son/father in law the
Rodrivyez's from Sioux Falls and Michigan to limits of walleye on
Sharpe and then limits of smallmouth bass with some walleye and a
northern on Oahe on day two. I Had a good time with this family and
they got a little colder days in the 50's but nice other than that.
We caught the walleye on Sharpe in 10 fow on both crawlers and
minnows with bouncers but I think my next trip out I am going to put
some jigs/minnows down as the water temps are coming down. We caught
the smallmouth/walleye on Oahe on minnow bouncer rigs in around 20
fow. Got some wind coming in the next few days but the week end
look's ok.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
Lake Oahe/Lake Sharpe Pierre area fishing report for Sept 30th to Oct 2nd 2012
The fishing on Sharpe around Pierre is maintaining a steady
catch rate of nice walleye in the 15 inch to 19 inch range with some
over 20 inchers in a few daily limits. Once again for the fishermen
who know the holes or area's to fish, limits are the norm with many
guide boats catching 20 to 30 fish a day and keeping the nicer ones.
For me the bite here has still been on crawlers but I am aware that
some boats are doing well on minnows or shallow running plugs
trolled. Here my favorite is a Berkeley flicker shad usually in just
pearl white. Some anglers fishing in community spot's struggle to
catch a lot of fish and more of the smaller walleye but that is due
to heavy fishing pressure reducing numbers of quality fish.
Traveling to area's with less fishing pressure usually pays off.
Oahe is still doing just great on smallmouth (around 10 to 20 fow)
but nicer walleye are scattered. Here again guides or local
fishermen that know the lake are coming in with plenty of fish.
Pitching jigs/gulp is sure worth a try in many areas but there are
still a lot of walleyes way out deep chasing smelt. I guided a real
nice couple from Redfield SD to a nice limit of walleye avg. 17
inches on Sharpe. We caught these fish way East of Pierre in 10 fow
on nightcrawler/ Bouncer rigs. Kelly and Amber Siebrect came over to
Pierre to celebrate a wedding anniversary and decided to make a part
of that a walleye trip and they had a great time getting nice
weather and nice fishing Great couple and once again I got real
lucky having the chance to guide them. The fall weather has been
excellent and the fishing is good. Not a bad time to sneak off if
you can.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
September 27th to 29th Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I guided Tom and Lizzie Lundgren a nice couple from Morrill NE to possession limits of walleye and smallmouth bass fishing on Oahe one day and Sharpe one day. We caught limits of walleye on Sharpe in around 10 fow and since Tom expressed a desire to catch smallmouth bass we went after them on day two on Oahe finishing out their possession limit of walleye and then catching probably 30 to 40 smallmouth in the 3 lb range. Smallmouth are biting real good on Oahe favoring minnows or gulp/jigs and they are all over but we caught most of them in around 10 to 20 fow I then took a father son Fuzz and Matt Henry a repeat customer from Norfolk NE and Rapid City on Sharpe. Another great trip with a couple of real great guys. We fished south of Pierre out running most of the boat traffic and caught some really nice walleye throwing back 15 inch fish keeping just fish in the 17 to 19 inch range. We caught these fish in around 10 fow on night crawlers but minnows work. Plug fishing also works but floating weeds can be troublesome. The bite on Sharpe remains excellent for those knowing the river, excellent for smallmouth on Oahe but walleye can be challenging some days on Oahe due to lowering water levels scattering the fish to a lot of different water depths. Don't be afraid to pitch jigs shallow on Oahe. I know of many over 20 inch fish being caught that way by guys willing to work a little harder. Just great fall weather all week but look for a little cooler temps next week.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
September 24th to 26th Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I guided the Sapp group
from mostly down NE way along with other guides to limits of fish
both days. We stayed on Oahe and fished north of cow creek one day
and south the 2nd day fishing in 10 fow or less day one and around
35 fow day two. We used crawler/spinners or bouncer/plain hook
crawlers both days and did fill our limits with several over fish
but worked for the fish both days. Some of the other guides fished
down on Sharpe and for the most part caught limits but worked for
them there too. I would say right now the bite is alright in the
Pierre area but tougher than it has been. The lowering water levels
on Oahe have scattered the bait and as a result the fish are harder
to find. They can be shallow were bait is present or clear out to 70
fow or more when they are chasing smelt deep. I am not sure why
Sharpe got tougher but it could be a combination of lowering water
temps, fishing pressure or not the right amount of current
discharges daily but as more fish move up the river the bite should
continue to put out limits for those who know the river and
fishermen that are working a little harder. Most boats going out
around Pierre are still catching fish in 10 fow and using minnows is
starting to be very good. Night crawlers are probably the first
choice right now but that is changing daily. The fall weather has
been really nice and it looks to be that way for the next week.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
September 19th to 23rd Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
Fishing might be getting
a little tougher around town with fewer boats limiting out. I think
people that know both Oahe and Sharpe and are moving around a bit
are still catching limits and I think as the nights cool the bite
will come back on but right now you have to work a little harder to
get your fish .I fished the Dakota Mart group along with other
guides for the Outpost Lodge and the highlight of the trip for one
of the group in my boat was catching a giant big mouth carp (26 lbs)
that bent my net. We caught fish but had to work for them. Then I
took out two fellows from down Omaha way for the Outpost and we got
them there possession limits of fish to take home and also a nice
meal of walleye to eat here .Fished on Sharpe 1 day and Oahe 1 day
with both of these groups and caught the fish on Sharpe and Oahe in
10 fow or less on crawler/bouncer rigs but I think I am going to
start taking some minnows along now as the night's cool the water
temps down. One nice thing about Oahe was the fact that we only saw
a couple of other boats both days so from that aspect right now Oahe
gets the edge. Sharpe is still putting out nicer slot fish overall.
Some real beautiful fall day's this week and fishing is still good
so if you are coming over you should do just fine.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
September 15th to 19th Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
There is a good bite
going on in the back of any creek arms on Oahe that have a lot of
bait present. Most of these fish are shallow from 10 fow to 20 fow
and are being caught mostly on crawler/gulp presentations. A lot of
these walleye are smaller 14 incher's but enough big fish are there
to make looking around shallow worth the time. There are a lot less
boats fishing Oahe right now as the bite on Sharpe is real good
making most of the fishing pressure there. I spent a day fishing
with Rocky and Kim May then fished repeat customer Troy Swift and
crew and then fished repeat customers Chuck and Sonja Harkins all on
Lake Sharpe. On all of these trips we had great fall weather and
great fishing catching limits daily and getting plenty of action. We
had at least a 17 inch avg size walleye in all the limits with many
over 20 inch fish. We caught all of these fish on spinner/bouncer
rigs using night crawlers for bait. We fished in 10 fow or less
along weed lines or sand bars south of Pierre. Most baits are
working (minnows, Gulp etc.) and pulling plugs is alright except
floating grass on Sharpe make's that tougher. If this is your first
trip on Sharpe this year or Oahe take your time as new sand bars
etc. are around on Sharpe and lower water on Oahe can make for
unwanted surprises if you get in a hurry. Fishing is very good on
both lakes and should get even better especially on Oahe as night's
cool lowering water temps and bringing more fish up shallow.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
September 11th to 14th Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
The fall bite is in full swing on Lake Sharpe with limits
of walleye in the 16 inch to 18 inch range common for most boats.
The fish are all over but the majority of the fish coming from
around 8 fow along weed lines/sand bars. Lake Oahe is also still
very good and a good number of fish are coming back up shallow
making for catching them in 20 fow or less real possible especially
in the back of creeks that have a lot of bait present. I fished the
2nd group of guys Lonnie Wann of the Agri Grow Corp brings up
annually mostly from down NE way. A great bunch of guys and they had
a great trip taking home possession limits of walleye, some northern
pike and a good amount of smallmouth bass. We fished two days on
Sharpe and one day in the Cheyenne river arm of Oahe and we caught a
least 50 fish a day or more in both places. I was using
spinner/bouncer rigs with crawlers and had guides Dave Spaid and NE
John helping me and they used gulp on plain hooks or crawlers and
all boats caught fish all day long all three days. Many
presentations are working from minnow fishing to pulling plugs but
on Sharpe due to a lot of floating weeds I think the live bait
fishing is better but even then you have to clean plenty of grass
off of the bouncers. The weather has been picture perfect making for
a lot of real happy anglers. As good as it is I think it will get
even better as water temps cool with 30 degree nights coming. Be
prepared to fish around other boats as the week ends are real busy
on Sharpe. If that bothers you you can catch plenty of fish on Oahe
and boat traffic is minimal. A tip on Oahe. Look in the back of big
creek arms for bait fish and if they are present the walleye will be
there and in shallow water (10fow or less).
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
September 1st to 10th Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I have been out of pocket for a few days so got a little
behind on the fishing reports but not a lot has changed in the first
week of September. The bite down on Lake Sharpe is still very good
in the Pierre area with limits of walleye the norm. Most fish are
coming in 10 fow or less and relating to weed lines and sand bars. I
have been fishing with spinner/bouncer rigs using either gulp worms
or night crawler however plug fishing and minnow's for bait are both
good. Oahe fishing is much harder for numbers of quality slot fish
but plenty of over 20 inch fish are still being caught. A lot of the
fish are deep along ledges near the main channel chasing bait down
as deep as 50 foot or more but I heard of some fish starting to come
back up around 18 to 20 fow so it makes finding them tougher as they
are all over. I helped guide a large group of real nice guys and
gals for the Outpost taking the boss of the group Bob in my boat and
we did alright on the lake and also on the river catching limits
both days with the biggest a 24 1/2 incher Bob caught on Oahe in 70
fow. I then guided the Jim Beck group of guys from the Omaha area to
limits on Sharpe. These fellows are repeat customers of mine and we
just had a great time and caught some real nice quality walleye's
keeping an easy 17 inch avg size fish both days. We caught them in 7
fow along weed lines with spinner crawler rigs. We had at least 10
fish a day over 18 inches so if you get in the right area's around
Pierre you can take some nice fish home. A tip Just keep traveling
until you run out of boats and try and fish areas that have had less
fishing pressure. It will pay off in much nicer over all size fish
and for me it is much easier fishing when you don't have to look out
for other boats to avoid. Can be hard to do on week ends but if you
are willing to put out a little more gas money it sure can be done
and there are fish all the way down Sharpe clear to the bend area. I
think we are going to have a very good fall bite on both Oahe and
Sharpe. As the fall weather starts to cool water temps and bring the
fish back up shallow on Oahe it should get real good again
especially in the big spawning arms as fish stage for the spring
run. I will continue to report on more of an every 3 to 5 day period
as the season winds down but will report any big changes more often
if needed.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
August 25th to
31st
Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
Lake Oahe is still going
strong for numbers of the smaller fish with the avg. small slot fish
in most limits around 15 inch's but most stringers include plenty of
over 20 inch fish for those fishing in the right depths. That is
deep so don't be afraid to get out in 40 fow or more to catch fish.
Sharpe is in the full late summer/fall pattern with a lot of the
fish coming out of the weeds and becoming more catchable. The bite
on both lakes for me is still crawler/spinner or plain hook bouncer
rigs but a lot of ways are working both places with plug fishing,
minnow fishing, gulp fishing all filling limits. I fished the
Sederlin group Steve, Doug and Gary from Kansas to limits of fish
every day catching at least 50 fish a day on both lakes. These guys
come every year as well as the next bunch of fellows the Lonnie Wann
Agri Gro Group and in both cases I have a great time and so do all
of them. Fished both of these groups for 1 day on Sharpe and then
one day on the river and gave them there choice of spots for the
third day and both groups took the river for the last day but it is
a real close call right now as both are excellent fishing. The slot
fish are nicer on Sharpe with an easy 17 inch limits avg. but there
are more over's on Oahe coming in. Limits for both groups and eating
plenty of fish at night for appetizers made for great trips for all
of these guys. Lonnie Wann's group put on a little tournament on the
first two days and guide Dave Spaid won it on Oahe Day one with 16
lbs of fish including 4 over's and I won it on Sharpe with around 14
lbs day two Having no over's but a lot of 18 inchers. That is the
story with the fish on Qahe coming from 50 fow and the ones on
Sharpe coming from 7 fow so take your pick as you will catch plenty
of fish on either Lake right now.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
August 22 to 25 Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
Fishing is still about the same on Oahe with a lot of the
over 20 inch fish being caught down as deep as 50 fow or even more.
There are still numbers coming in with plenty of big fish but the
avg size of the under 20 inch fish has diminished some to maybe
keeping fish around 15 to 16 inch's the norm on Oahe. All ways are
still catching the fish but my way has been to stick with
spinner/crawler or plain hook/crawler/bouncer rigs. I guided the
Jeff Hupka group from NE. to their limits on Oahe then started out
guiding the Sederlin group from down Kansas way to their limits of
nice fish on Sharpe. We caught a lot of fish and kept a nice 17 inch
avg. pulling spinner/crawler rigs in 10 fow or less. The bite on
Sharpe is in full swing for those that know the river and most boats
are coming in with limits on both Sharpe and on Oahe in the Pierre
area so you can take you pick of fishery's. On both lakes if you
haven't fished for a while it is a very good idea to keep your eye's
on your depth finders as lower water levels daily on Oahe and lots
of new sand bars on Sharpe can cause problems if you get a little
careless. Fishing has been very good along with great weather the
last week.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
August 19th, 20th, 21st Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I finished helping Dave Spaid guide the Capitol motors
group from mostly Wyoming and then went on to help the Outpost Lodge
along with around 20 other guides to guide the first half of the
annual trip of Central Valley Ag from all over Nebraska. As the
picture shows these guys had a great trip getting a lot of big fish
along with limits of eating size walleye. Many of the guides fished
deeper as I myself did catching many of the bigger walleye down as
deep as 50 foot. As the water drops many of the fish are chasing
suspended or deep bait fish so going after them way down there is
sometimes necessary. We fished Spinner/crawler rigs on 3 oz. bttm/bouncer
for most of the bigger fish but caught fish in 25 to 30 fow on humps
with just plain hooks and crawlers. With 20 guides out just about
every kind of presentation from trolling plugs, jigging, and bouncer
fishing was working from depth of 15 fow to 60 fow so this report is
probably not going to narrow down a pat way but should indicate
fishing all ways can work along with minnows, crawlers, leeches and
plugs as bait. The big key for me is to find the bait fish and get
some lines in them and just about all the time there will be some
fish around. I would sure like to thank CVA for showing their
appreciation to a great bunch of guys every year and they sure make
the Outpost Lodge and a whole bunch of guides very happy. Great
company and just a great trip annually for everyone involved. I am
looking forward to the the second bunch of 75 guys Thursday and
Friday and hope we can keep them all catching and eating fish, ribs
and steak.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
August 15th to 18th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
The weather has been absolutely beautiful for the last
three days with fall like weather (record 41 degree low on the 17th)
and the fishing remains about the same as the last report. Plenty of
smaller walleye for some action but it is considerably harder to
come by numbers of big fish. I fished Doctor Doug and Anne Long and
Doctors Gary and Liz Moore from Omaha along with Larry Porter to
limits of walleye for Spring Creek Marina. Then took out repeat
customer Eddie Heeb and his boy from Midland out for a day of
fishing catching their limits of walleye along with a few northern,
smallmouth and catfish. I am now helping Dave Spaid guide the whole
crew of Capital motors of Pierre and Gillette Wy. Got three of them
there limits along with one walleye a nice over 27 incher that they
are getting mounted. We caught all of these fish in around 30 fow on
nightcrawler's using either spinner's or plain hooks on bottom
bouncers. We caught some way in the back of creeks or just going out
of the spring creek/cow creek ramps and fishing the main lake.
Although I haven't been down on Sharpe for a while many of the other
guides I work with have and for the most part are reporting that the
bigger fish are harder to get but action should get better as
falling fall temps bring the fish and bait up river and out of the
weeds. I heard about another lower unit that found a rock going out
of the boat ramp at Little Bend (low water ramp) so with the fall
water drop on the lake be careful as it is very easy to assume safe
passage from a couple of weeks ago and end up with a not too happy
trip.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
August 12th to 15th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
Fishing for the big ones on Oahe continues to be tougher
than it has been. There are still plenty of walleye being caught but
the avg size limits being brought in are over all smaller with
numerous 14 inch fish being mixed in with the nicer fish. The same
seems to hold true for the West Bend area of Sharpe. I fished a real
nice bunch of guys the Jay Woofer group from Kansas for the last
three days catching all of there possession limits of walleye some
bass and northern pike and catfish. They had plenty of action but
the overall size of the fish we kept were a smaller size with around
a 15 to 16 inch avg. We also caught a lot of fish down as deep as 45
fow on Oahe using mostly night crawlers/bouncer rigs with a plain
hook. Lots of ways still working (plug fishing, jig fishing and even
jigging spoons) so if you have a preference it should work. The
water is still dropping so Sharpe should continue to improve around
Pierre but right now I would call Sharpe spotty around Pierre with
those landing on areas shad are using doing well. Both
spinner/crawler rigs and minnow rigs are good choice's in around 10
fow. Pulling plugs such as flicker shads can be very good but many
areas have floating weeds making this difficult at times.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
August 9th & 10th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I guided Jeff Dewey and friend from down around Firth NE to
there limits of walleye with a real nice over 20 inch fish along
with 3 northern pike to maybe 12 to 14 lbs. I stayed
spinner/bouncer/nightcrawler fishing in around 30 fow. It was a real
nice day and we caught and released many smaller walleye but
recently I have had a lot harder time getting 18 to 19 inch fish in
the boat and the over 20 inch fish aren't as numerous as they have
been. I think part of the reason is the fact that the corps has been
dropping the lake considerably so many of the fish and bait are
moving deeper and in many cases suspending. This makes them a lot
harder to find and probably might be a reason to start thinking
about lead core line/inline weights and trolling plugs deeper
especially for the big fish. The plus side of the lake dropping is
the fact that the corps is releasing a lot of water below the dam
making the fall movement of walleye in Sharpe better. I talked with
some of the other guides that fished on Sharpe the last three days
and they did very well limiting with nice 17 inch average fish and
some over's so if the bite on Oahe stays harder for the bigger fish
I will probably start fishing Sharpe in the Pierre area more. If the
bite there gets even half as good as it was last year it well be way
above average fishing. Oahe is still very good fishing and you can
expect to catch limits but probably most anglers are going to have
to work harder to come in with the real quality bags. It is not all
bad to go out and catch eating size limits and just about everyone
that knows the lake is doing that. Remember that dropping water
grows big boulders in spots they weren't last week. Three lower
units over the last 30 years makes me well qualified to offer that
advice.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
August 5th to 8th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
The walleye fishing around the Pierre area is still good
with some nice northern pike and smallmouth bass serving as bonus
fish in most angler's catch's. Limit's are still the norm especially
for those anglers that know the Lake. I guided Bob Patrick from the
Atlanta GA. area and his daughter Rachel along with her friend from
the Rapid City area to some nice fishing, catching limits of
walleye, some northern and a few bass. I then took out the Chris
Weigal group from Omaha and we caught their possession limit of 24
walleye a few northern and bass to take back to Omaha. I stayed
fishing with bottom bouncer spinner rigs or bouncer plain
hook/crawlers and fished mostly in around 30 fow but we did catch
some of the bigger fish as deep as 45 fow. The best blade's for me
when guiding this summer have been Chartreuse and yellow daredevil
blades with a silver back in both size 3 and 4 Colorado's (perch
colors) or hammered Gold. In most case's if I am fishing in 20 fow
or less I favor around a 1 1/2 oz. bouncer but go to a 3 oz one when
in 25 fow or more as I like to troll at least 1 mph and it take's
the bigger weight to allow that and stay close to the bottom in the
deeper water especially in wind. A 2 oz bouncer would be a good all
around choice for most spinner fishing. Normally I spend more time
fishing with plain hook/bait rigs but this summer because of the
amount of fish we have been catching and releasing spinner fishing
seems to have fewer small fish swallowing the hook. The same
advantage would apply to both jig fishing and trolling plugs. The
boat traffic has thinned down some and a lot fewer boat trailers at
the ramps along with fewer anglers out during the week days. I did
hear that GF&P's opened the low water ramp at Little Bend so access
there should be better. I haven't been down on Sharpe recently but
reports from some of the other guides indicate that on many days it
can be harder to put numbers in the boat right now. That should
change as fall approach's and more fish come up river or out of the
weed's. Not much on the Salmon fishing and for the most part that
has just been a hard fish all summer.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
August 3rd to 5th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
Normally I think of August as stable but hot weather but we
just got a couple of real windy days blowing in with gusts of 50 mph
and sustained winds of 20 to 30 mph. Friday and Sat making the
family I guided really work for their fish. I guided the Bob and
Susan Snyder family along with two of their boys on Oahe to
possession limits of walleye, some Northern pike and some smallmouth
bass. A really nice family from the Omaha area. In spite of the
wind ( A family of real troopers) we caught all there fish with 2
fish over 23 inches and another 20 incher along with 32 eaters and
throwing back many smaller fish. They enjoyed fish for supper with a
nice batch to take home. We caught all of these fish from the
Spring/Cow Creek area of Oahe fishing in around 28 to 30 fow with
both spinner/crawler/gulp rigs to spinner/plain hook/crawler rigs
with bottom bouncers (3 oz's in the wind) The bite on Lake Oahe
remains excellent with most boats limiting out but maybe not being
as selective as summer winds down. There are still plenty of big
fish over 20 inches being caught but it is harder to put the 18 to
19 inch fish in the boat. Lake Sharpe is good but can be spotty with
days when the corps run's the current either too fast or too slow. There is also a lot of bait right around the Pierre area so they
have plenty to eat. I was surprised the last time I fished on Sharpe
catching some real quality walleye with several over 20 inch fish.
We did not get numbers however. The Salmon bite is still poor but I
do hear of an occasional 2 to 3 fish catch coming in. For the most
part Salmon fishing is still very hard fishing. The bite is numbers
for walleye all the way up the system with all ways working to catch
the fish but you have to go threw lot's of smaller fish to get
quality stringers.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
July 29 to August 2 Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I guided Bob and Bev Arkseld from Defiance Iowa for the
Outpost Lodge and then I took the Tom Craig family from the
Vermillion area fishing. I spent the day on Oahe with Bob and Bev
catching their limit of walleye's with one to 22 inches that Bev
caught and had a real nice time with them .I then took the Craig's
down on Sharpe for a day and then on Oahe for a day. The fish we
caught on Oahe were mostly in around 30 fow and we caught them with
night crawlers on spinners or a plain hook/bottom bouncer rigs. The
fish we caught on Sharpe were in around 10 fow and we caught them on
spinner/crawler rigs. I was surprised at the size of the fish on
Sharpe as the first two fish the Craig boys caught were over 20
inch's and we kept and easy 18 inch avg. limit for the parents. We
caught 25 walleye or so by noon on there last day keeping 19 and
with 100 degree heat they elected to call it an early day so we in
bounded for the ramp and the cleaning station. The bite has got a
little harder for nicer slot fish but depending on the area's you
fish it can still be excellent even for the big fish and keeping
limits of smaller fish is still easy to do most days. With the
weather getting toasty some day's you might have it in your plan's
to get on the Lake early and come in before the hottest part of the
day. Some northern pike and some small mouth bass are still a part
of daily catch's of most anglers on Oahe as well as limits of the
walleye A lot of night fishing has been going on around the dam area
and on the big flats (primarily plug/trollers) but be careful as
everything is harder to do at night and it is a lot easer to get a
hook stuck in you or get into trouble with other boats that have
poor lights Be prepared to be in the middle of a lot of boat traffic
at time's .Gary Roach told me on a trip I made with him in NE. in
the 70's if I didn't know there were better things to do at night it
might be better if we didn't hang out together and I believed him
and feel like I can catch plenty of fish in the day time including
big ones. I acknowledge the fact that it is the only time some
anglers can get on the lake because of work so night fishing has
it's place and any one can catch the bigger fish as they are less
leery and darkness hides the boat If just targeting bigger fish and
maybe cooler temps are your bag go for it. It is easy catching fish
but be watchful as all the dangers that are present when you are
fishing in the day time are compounded at night. The lake has been
dropping so keep your eyes on your depth finders as new hazards are
popping up daily. Maybe being a little to preachy but I know of to
lower units that got knocked off this last week.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
July 28 to 29 Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I finished guiding Gary Loseke and Jared Sprunk from down
around Platte Center and Monroe NE and then guided retired
schoolteacher Jerry from Iowa and grandson Mike from Pierre. to
possession limits and limits of walleye with a few northern and a
few bass. Fished both these party's primarily way in the back of
creeks or on the flats. There are hatches of some kind of bait going
on in many of the feeder creeks right now and were ever you find
these there will be walleye. We pulled spinner night crawler or
spinner gulp on bottom bouncers mostly in around 12 to 17 fow in the
creeks but fished deeper (28 to 35 fow) when on the main lake flats.
It is harder to come up with the 18 inch and up fish than it has
been. I think the reason might be many are chasing suspended bait on
the main lake and maybe down deep.(45 to 50 fow) Also as I mentioned
many are finding the hatches in back of the creeks making running
them down a little harder. Although I haven't been down on Sharpe
those fishing there are doing well and 17 inch limits of fish or
better are not uncommon. All ways are working this summer so if you
are a plug fisherman a lindy or Jig angler or whatever you can
probably come home with limits of walleye but the avg. size limit
seems to be getting smaller on the under 20 inch fish with more
people keeping the 14 inch fish know. If you are going to use the
little bend boat ramp be careful. GF&P has closed the right side and
the left side has 2 fow. Foster bay in the back of the Cheyenne is
closed due to dropping water so if you are planning on using some of
the out of the way ramps better check the boat ramp reports on GF&P
site.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
July 23 to 27 Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
The bigger fish on Oahe are getting harder to come by but
getting a walleye to mount is still a realistic possibility as
several of my recent customers have found out. I fished the Dan
Pletcher group from KS. to one fish they are getting mounted 28
incher along with another 26 incher and a couple of other over's.
The rest of the catch (possession limits) were a smaller avg. size
then I have been getting with fewer 18 to 19 inch fish bringing
there over all avg down. Then helped Dave Spaid guide a group of MN
seed company fellows to there limits and I am now guiding repeat
customer Gary Loske and his friend. Fishing on Oahe remains very
good and with Loske we only kept 17 inch or better walleye getting a
nice big one in there stringer to go along with limits of 18 inch
avg. size fish. I have been fishing mostly with spinner/crawler rigs
or spinner gulp worm rigs on bttm bouncers. Caught most of the fish
around 28 feet of water on the flats for the first 3 days but went
shallow to 20 fow or less today and did better on 17 to 18 inchers.
All ways are working however to catch the fish from pulling plugs/
casting jigs /jigging spoons etc. There have been a lot of
tournaments on the week ends creating big time boat traffic and very
busy boat ramps so be prepared to see other boats. Maybe as August
starts this traffic will diminish but the bite is good so you will
fish with other anglers if you are going to fish the big flats or
the more popular spots. Sharpe has less traffic and a 17 inch avg.
stringer for those who know the river is common in the Pierre area
.Salmon bite has been poor all year and remains so with very few
nice catches turning up. I have been seeing huge hatch's of bait
recently in the back of creeks and although I am not sure what most
of it is it sure looks encouraging. The weather has been hot but
breezes on the lake make fishing bearable but getting out early in
the morning and coming in a little earlier in the afternoon is not a
bad plan on some day's.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
July 19th to 22nd Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
It is getting tougher to come up with consistent limits of
over 20 inch fish on Oahe but the numbers for limits of 15 to 17
inch fish are still there. I guided the Eric Wilson group from KC
area, then the Dave Lazenby group and then Leonard and Jane Tenrus
family from Omaha to possession limits of walleye, some northern and
some smallmouth. We caught plenty of fish on all these trips but it
was harder to come by the bigger fish however we did have some
over's. We caught most of these fish in around 25 to 30 fow pulling
spinner crawler rigs and either Berkeley gulp worms or night
crawlers. The weather has been nice but very hot with temps over 100
degrees daily encouraging early come in times to beat the heat. Lake
Sharpe is putting out limits due to the fact there is no minimum
size limit until September and Salmon fishing continues to be poor.
Congratulations to both John Campbell and his former partner Ted for
winning back to back tournaments on Oahe. These two go way back on
the tournament trail and earned the wins. I think they found a tree
full of big ones and they sure know how to catch them.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
July 17th & 18th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I guided repeat customers
Allen and Ellen Buckley from Omaha Ne. to their possession limits of
walleye with Ellen catching one around 27 inches and getting another
big fish around the same lost at the net along with Allen catching
and releasing a big northern (flopped out of the net) around 18 lbs.
They also got a few more over 20 inch walleye keeping a nice 18 inch
avg. size fish for them to take home In spite of very warm weather
(100 degrees plus) they had a great time. Once again we caught and
released numerous walleye to get this avg. We caught all these fish
pulling spinner/crawler/gulp worms rigs running along the drop off's
on points or flats on the lower end of Oahe. Twenty fow to thirty
fow seemed best. All ways are working though and you can catch the
walleye just about any way you like to fish for them.
Minnows, leech's and plugs all working. We beat the heat by getting
off the water before the hottest part of the day and both days had
the fish cleaned by 3 o'clock. A smart thing to do when the bite is
so good. Everyone tells you to drink a lot of water to stay hydrated
and that is true but I was getting cramps at night and mentioned
that to a Doctor client of mine last month and he told me to start
drinking a lot of gator aid/sports drink product's so I bought some.
Nothing beats water but to beat cramps sports drinks seem to work. I
mentioned in my last report that GFP says we have a lot of lake
herring as bait in Oahe and since then I have found out from GFP's
commissioner John Cooper that they are fall spawner's so that might
create some interesting places to look around for the fish when they
are spawning this fall. Salmon fishing is poor. Sharpe also good for
numbers and limits.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
July 14th, 15th & 16th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I will start with some news from GFP's recent press
release. Walleye catch rates on both Oahe and on Sharpe are at
record highs this year and they are saying that for at least the
next year or two there should be a lot of walleye. Their summer
accousting sounding surveys indicate significant numbers of bait
fish and believe that Lake Herring had a big hatch in Oahe
offsetting a poor smelt run this spring along with smelt going
through the tubes last year. Positive news and maybe a clue to look
into the habits of lake herring as a key to catching bigger walleye.
I think they are usually deeper and suspend so it could be the
reason I am hearing about walleye being caught all the way down to
70 to 80 fow around the tubes at the face of the dam. (Some by
Salmon fishermen on downriggers) I guided in big wind for the
outpost lodge on Saturday and Sunday and did 20 fish limits but kept
a lot of smaller fish due to the big winds (gust to 35 mph) and 109
degree heat. Then went out with Tim and Susan Miller repeat
customers from down Omaha way. I had a great time with these two and
was glad to see them get a real quality stringer with low wind but
high temps we quit at around 1 o'clock with a 12 fish limit of both
their over's (A 21 INCHER AND A 23 INCHER) along with some 18 and 19
inch fish. Probably caught around 30 to 40 fish to do that but when
the last limit fish a 19 incher hit the boat and the thermometer hit
around 104 with very little breeze we in bounded to air conditioned
rooms. We caught these fish pulling spinner/crawler rigs staying
from 20 fow to 30 fow mostly along tree lines on the flats. You can
catch the walleye just about any way you want right now and minnows,
leeches, plug fishing and Gulp worms on bouncers or jigs are all
working. The fish we caught were all very healthy and I am seeing
far less stressed fish were I am guiding but once again the walleye
seem to be on the bite most of the time. This could be due to the
huge numbers of 2 to 3 year class fish in the lake along with less
bait or both. I am not sure about the reason for the mega bite but I
think just about every one that is fishing Oahe this year is liking
the way things are. Great fishing for everyone.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
July 11th to 13th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I guided the Robby Simard/Palfinger group from around the Omaha area to possession limits of walleye, some northern and a few bass. These guys had some really nice fish with two over 26 inches and a pair of 24 inchers along with at least a 17 inch avg on the rest. They counted the number of walleye they caught and released (I didn't put them up to that) and they had in the neighborhood of 200 released to get this avg. We caught all these fish on either spinner/bouncer rigs or bouncer/plain hook rigs in around 20 fow with crawlers or leeches the main bait. There is a great bite in the trees on all the flats but it can be crowded there so we never fished any trees for these fish and just avoided areas that had a lot of boat traffic fishing mostly from around the dam to the Deep Creek area of Oahe. Lake Sharpe is still on the no size limit other than one over 20 inches each so those fishing are getting plenty of fish to take home but for size and numbers Oahe remains the best choice to fish in the Pierre area. Probably know a little more about the salmon bite this week as I have friends fishing for them but it is spotty with both walleye and salmon being caught down around 70 fow in the dam area.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
July 7th to 11th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
Fishing on both Oahe and Sharpe still going strong for walleye along with northern pike and smallmouth bass on Oahe. The fish are being caught on Oahe just about every way you can catch walleye from bttm/bouncer crawler/spinner fishing, plug fishing with fire line and lead core line, jig fishing and casting jigs. Leech's, crawlers, minnow's are all the live bait choices. You can catch fish pulling plugs or spinner's shallow in 10 fow or go out to 30 fow and get them there. I am not sure what depth is the best for the over 20 inch fish as we have caught them both shallow and deep but might give the edge to leeches or minnows in 30 to 35 fow. I fished repeat customer's Max and Tom Nordeen and grandson/son Jace to possession limits of walleye with all there over's and plenty to eat every night along with some northern and smallmouth bass. Caught around 50 to 75 fish a day being selective and keeping a 17 inch avg. size to take home. Just as good a family outing as I have and we had a great time. I then fished the Swartz guys from down Kansas way to possession limits of walleye with their over's and some for lunch. Weather was great for both of these trips with nice breeze's and 80 degree days so until you hit land you feel it isn't real hot. Most of the fish I have been catching in the Pierre area seem healthy and I actually have been seeing more ball's of bait around but the fact that the fish just seem to bite all the time indicates hungry fish so I still am apprehensive about our bait situation. Plenty of boats around and I think the harvest this year must be on a record setting pace.
Hutch' Guide Service
Hutch
July 2nd to 6th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
Fished John Thomson and son to possession limits of walleye some northern and a few smallmouth and then fished Bill Stegman and son Nick to there possession limits catching maybe 50 fish a day or more with both groups and getting some real nice over 20 inch walleye and some real big northern. Caught most of these fish on bttm/bouncer crawlers or leeches but all ways work from trolling plugs to jig fishing or spinner fishing. Fish are every where from 10 fow to 45 fow. All the big flats are going with plenty of fish in the tree's if you want to work them out. We caught most of these fish in around 30 fow. I am fishing mostly from the Spring/Cow creek areas to the Cheyenne river and fishing is just great all the way up and down the river. The Sharpe 15 inch limit is off right now so those fishing there are getting plenty of fish to take home also. Salmon fishing is slow with most of the fish that are being caught down around 70 fow. Had a good time with both the party's above and it is always good to see guys taking there kids or grand kids on these kinds of outings. Fishing is a great family sport. Watch your depth finder's for shallow spots if you haven't been on either Lake this year as there are plenty of hazardous spots.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
June 29th to July 1st Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I along with Dave Spaid, Scott Van Lyre and Larry Porter
guided the Paul Jacobsen group of 12 to three great day's of fishing
sending them home to the Omaha area with possession limits of 96
walleye to eight lbs. and lots of northern pike and smallmouth bass.
Jeff Gamm and father in law Bill Mcvey along with there sons and
grandsons Chris and John, Paul Jacobsen and sons Alex, Nick, and
Cory,and Joe Moylan and Sons Matt and Clint all from the Elkhorn
Valley, Omaha area just plain caught at least 50 to 60 walleye a day
releasing all the smaller fish and keeping at least a 17 inch avg
size walleye with two 28 inchers (mounting one) along with
possession limits of all there over 20 inch fish. They are all
repeat customers of mine and have had many great fishing trips to
Oahe over the years but they all thought that this one was if not
the best one it was in the top 3. Just as great a family group as I
have and all of us guides really enjoyed fishing with them. Great
weather and just super fishing. We guided this group from the Cow
Creek area of Oahe to the Cheyenne river area catching fish on
spinner/crawler rigs in 12 fow to leeches/minnows on bottom bouncer
rigs out to 35 fow It seemed like we caught more of the over fish in
deeper water but caught most of the northern pike in shallower
water. The fish are just all over and the harvest of walleye on Oahe
is going at what may end up being almost a record harvest. This is
probably very good as big spawns coupled with loss of bait with the
record releases last year favor a reduction of the number of mouths
in the lake. The Lake is very busy so expect to see boat ramps with
plenty of trailer's Sharpe is still going strong and you are able to
keep walleye under 15 inches there so those fishing Sharpe are
having little trouble getting their fish. Salmon fishing is still
spotty. Have a great 4th of July.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
Game Fish and
Parks Meeting
I attended a GFP informal meeting at the request of John
Lott the current head and along with John Cooper former head, state
wildlife biologist's, Guides from Mobrodge area the 212 bridge area
and the Pierre area and some local area fisherman. It was a round
table discussion of Lake's Oahe/ Sharpe and the current condition of
the fishery's. The following were some high point's that I took away
from the meeting. Number one is the fact that due to the previous
high water we have had record spawns and the lake is just full of 2
to 3 year class fish. This coupled with record releases last year
depleting the smelt/ bait numbers has caused concerns among all
present at this meeting. Most of us guides and fishermen have never
seen the amount of fish in the lake and also the amount of people
catching limits every day. Due to this fact and GFP records that
indicate there have been more fish harvested this year than there
were when GFP increased to a 14 fish limit in 2001. This lead to the
conclusion by many at the meeting that it is not yet time to
increase limits. Also GFP have not conducted all of there annual
bait surveys and are going to do most of this in the next two
month's Number two I along with every guide agree that there are
many walleye and other fish showing signs of. stress however there
are just as many that appear to be healthy so I think more of a wait
and see altitude developed and depending on the next bait surveys
recommendations as to limits increases if any will be decided on
later this summer or fall .Personally I thought that higher limits
to reduce number's would be good but then I hadn't taken into
account the record harvest by fishermen this year so for now remain
hopeful that things will work out. Everyone is hoping for a big
smelt run next spring along with a mild winter to enhance shad
survival. I will comment more on the situation in the next reports
as there were many other things mentioned. One thing I took away
from this meeting was the fact that GF&P's personal are well aware
of what is going on and I think they are as concerned as any of us
and are working hard to stop any problems with the fishery. The
scary part for me is how much Mother Nature plays in all of this but
it is good to know we have GFP personnel committed to keeping the
balance of fish/bait as healthy as possible.
June 27th to 29th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I along with a lot of other guides helped the Outpost Lodge
fish the BPI group to a great time with all boats catching limits of
fish for this company. The bite is really great for numbers of fish
but you have to throw back many to get up to a nice avg. size limit.
Most of the fish were caught in around 20 fow but going out to 30
fow or even going shallow sometimes works as there seem to be fish
all over. Every thing from pulling plugs to live bait fishing is
working with crawlers, minnows, leeches, and artificial baits such
as Gulp the main choices. My boat had walleye limits every day with
some over's one around 28 inches caught by Kenny from Iowa .I am
starting to think Gulp worms, minnows or leeches or spinner or jig
fishing might be the best presentation's right now just to avoid
cutting so many hooks due to swallowed baits. There are record
harvest's of walleye going on all up and down Oahe and just about
everyone with any experience catching limits. The fish are starting
to show up on all of the big flats but you can still get some nice
ones half way back in creeks to. I would like to thank the BPI
company for coming every year as they make me, The Outpost Lodge and
a whole bunch of other guides along with all there employee's very
happy.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
June 21st to 26th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I guided Carl Herreman and his friend Craig Farrell from
the Omaha area to possession limits of walleye and smallmouth bass
keeping around a 17 inch average size fish along with some bigger
walleye to 24 inches. We probably caught around 50 fish a day or
more to end up with that average. I then worked for the Outpost
Lodge guiding a group of 5 for two days and catching their
possession limits of walleye some bass and some northern pike. The
bite is still very good on Oahe and we caught all of these fish
using bttm bouncer/ minnows, crawlers or leeches and gulp worms in
any where from 10 fow out to 35 fow. Some times some of the better
fish have been deeper so you have to look around if you are just
catching a lot of smaller fish. We put spinners/crawlers down in
around 10 fow and worked the bays catching big northern and some
bigger walleye. There is a lot of boat traffic around as the lake is
very busy so I try to look for areas that haven't been fished and I
think that is one of the keys to producing a little better average
size catch. It pays to keep moving further out from the main boat
ramps until you run out of other boats weather permiting. Lake
Sharpe is still good from Pierre down to West Bend but you have to
work through numbers of fish there also to get good keepers. I
haven't heard much about the Salmon fishing but think it is still
slow with not many numbers around.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
June 18th, 19th & 20th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
The fishing on Lake Sharpe has slowed for the nicer big
fish but continues to put out numbers of smaller fish along with
smallmouth from the Pierre area to the dam at Fort Thomson. Lake
Oahe fishing is still going strong around the Dam all the way up
river.You still have to catch and release numbers of smaller walleye
to come up with a nice average size limit. Catching a lot of numbers
is great fun for most anglers so I think we are having a lot of
satisfied anglers as most boats coming in with limits of walleye,
some northern and some smallmouth bass. I fished Gordy Sorensen and
his Roberts Pump and Supply party of 12 to three days of great
fishing with one day of big wind but still catching a lot of fish.
We had almost all of there possession limits of walleye with around
an 17 inch average and most of there over fish to 25 inches the
first two days along with some real nice northern so we spent day
three getting limits of smallmouth and northern along with a lot of
throw back walleyes. They took there limits of 96 walleye, around a
100 smallmouth bass and around 15 northern home along with eating a
bunch of walleye appetizer's every night. They will enjoy some great
eating back in Cario NE. We caught most of the walleye in around 10
to 17 fow on bottom bounce/crawler rigs and caught the smallmouth
pitching gulp pumpkinseed minnows into the tips of rock
points/shoreline's. The bite on Oahe is good with just about any way
you want to fish working. Leech's, minnows, crawlers, and pulling
plugs are all catching fish. All of the fish were caught in the Cow
Creek to Cheyenne river area on Lake Oahe. This was just a great
bunch of guys and all three of us guides really enjoyed taking them
fishing. The Salmon fishing continues to be spotty but I did hear of
a few good catches by the dam. For the most part very few boats are
coming in with numbers of salmon. If you are making a trip here for
the first time this year I will say once again watch your depth
finders as there are plenty of hazards just under the water because
of the lower water levels from last year. We watched one boat go out
of the Little Bend boat ramp and run full blast into a big rock
island bending his shaft. Just one example of the many spots that
are around and it is real easy to get in a hurry and get in trouble.
I had a question about the health of the fish. Most of all the fish
we are catching in my area of Oahe seem healthy enough but every
once in a while we will catch one that looks stressed and skinny and
I have heard of other guides catching bigger fish that are skinny so
there is certainly some concern about a lack of bait along with the
huge numbers of fish in the lake. I am going to a informal meeting
next week with some GFP's personnel along with other guides and some
fishermen and will try to pass along any info that I can after the
meeting.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
June 14th - 17th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
The fishing on Oahe continues to be as good as it gets.
Just about every boat out in the Pierre area (dam to bush's landing)
coming in with limits of walleye plenty of northern pike and
smallmouth bass. The size sometimes is smaller for those boats not
wanting to release the nice eating size walleye (14 to 15 inch fish)
and you have to throw a lot of fish that size back to build a bigger
overall avg stringer if that is what you want to keep. I guided
repeat customers, Dave, Rex, Tim, Jim and Mike Reezac to two great days of
limits of walleye's averaging well over 18 inch's catching and
releasing at least 75 fish daily to do this. Mike had the largest a
28 incher but all the brothers caught big fish and we had a great
time also catching a few big northern and some smallmouth. I then
took out repeat customers Randy and Randy Downing from Sioux Falls
and Rapid City, SD to great limits of all there over's and around a
nice 18 inch avg on the rest of the limits doing the same just
keeping 17 inch fish or better. Dad Randy caught the biggest of the
bunch a nice 24 incher. All these fish were caught in 10 fow to 20
fow on bttm/bouncer crawler bttm bouncer gulp worms and some on
leeches fishing out of the cow creek /spring creek area on Oahe.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
June 9th - 13th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I finished guiding the Dana and Lori VanDyke group from
Kearney NE To possession limits of walleye some northern and
smallmouth bass to take home. Just a great bunch and we had a great
time. I then went on to fish KC customers of Spring Creek Marina Lon
and Guy to three days of limits of walleye, smallmouth bass and
around 10 northern pike. Lon caught and released a nice 28 inch
walleye and the rest of there limit was around 17 to 18 inch fish
with some more over 20 inch fish. Then guided Kevin and Sandy Orberg
to nice limits of walleye keeping 17 inch fish or better with them
catching both of there over fish and releasing a nice 28 incher I
encourage taking cameras along and picturing these bigger fish as
they take probably 10 years to get to get to this size and you are
giving another angler a chance to get lucky. Both Lon and Kevin got
nice pictures and both of them felt just great watching those big
fish swim back into the deep. All of the above fish were caught
fishing out of the spring/cow creek area using bttmbouncer/crawlers
or Berkeley gulp worms with one 28 inch fish coming on leeches. We
fished in around 10 fow most of the time but spent time in some
areas going deeper.(20 to 30) when necessary .Every year around this
time the fly's start showing up and over the years I have tried
different remedies but the best one and the one I use is Horse
Stable Spray. I buy Bronco equine Spray made by the Farnum company
and spray it around in the boat periodically. Do not spray it on
yourself but all around the boat. It works and you can fish without
the company of these little pests. Fishing is maybe a little slower
on Sharpe with a lot of smaller fish being caught but Oahe continues
to put out numbers of walleye, smallmouth and northern pike with all
presentations working. Salmon fishing is slow. Boat traffic is June
busy with anglers everywhere and most catching limits.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
June 5th - 8th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
Lots of boats around and they are all catching a lot of
fish. The bite for all species is excellent. The fish are biting
just about anything you want to fish with. I finished guiding Larry
Porters Wessal group from NE catching limits of walleye with many
over's numerous small mouth and Northern and then went on to guide
The Dale Vandyke family from NE. to limits of walleye, some nice
northern and some small mouth bass. We caught these fish using
bttmbouncer/minnows or crawlers with most of the bigger fish coming
in 5 fow to 7 fow. We caught fish all the way out to 20 fow but it
seemed that the deeper we got the smaller the fish From the dam all
the way up the river to the 212 bridge you can have all the action
you want but there are big numbers of 14 inch fish around so
releasing them very carefully comes into play. Most boats are
working out a 17 to 18 inch avg size limits with a few over 20 inch
fish every day. Sharpe is excellent also with the West Bend area
producing lots of fish. I have been thinking about using more
minnows along with Gulp as it also seems that you get less swallowed
hooks on minnows. Once again I will mention that for the most part
the fish in the areas I am fishing seem healthy enough but they are
just biting all the time so even though I am seeing bait around a
worry is there about bait hatches this spring. From my viewpoint it
is just to good but part of this could be huge numbers of the 3 year
ago walleye hatch making fishing easy. One nice thing is this year
you don't seem to see big groups of boats all in one spot indicating
every one catching fish just about everywhere.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
June 1st to 4th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
It is hard to believe the bite could get any better for
numbers of walleye and the small mouth bass are going again. Lake
Oahe is just full of a 3 year class fish that are all around 14 to
15 inch fish so catching big numbers of these fish and releasing
them is common. Keeping limits of 17 to 18 inch fish with limits of
over twenty inch fish not uncommon. The fish are biting just about
all baits from artificial to minnows/crawlers in any where from 5
fow to 20 fow. I fished repeat customers Gary and Dale Loske of NE.
to possession limits of walleye some northern pike and small mouth
bass with constant action both days releasing at least 50 plus
walleye a day to get a nice 17 to 18 inch average size. I then
fished a the Duane Wissel group from Lincoln NE with Larry Porter to
limits of walleye all over 17 inches with many over 20 inches. We
caught at least 75 walleye to do this. I cut a lot of hooks
releasing the little 14 inch fish and I think they live but I we
switched over to using only Berkeley gulp crawlers and gulp minnows
at mid day as the fish seem to not swallow the hook as much and bite
these just as good as crawlers. The best ones to use are the Gulp 3
inch pumpkin seed fry's on a plain hook or the new gulp spinner
crawlers on spinner rigs We caught all the over's on these and the
plus is less swallowed hooks. I think this presentation or pulling
spinners with crawlers/ gulp crawlers might be the best way to catch
the walleye right now as spinner fishing also gets more fish hooked
in the lip making for better releases. Pulling plugs also has this
advantage and the way these fish are biting right now I think being
very careful with releasing fish is a must or we are going to have a
lot of floating fish and no one wants that. Any fish that floats
when I am guiding we pick up and keep and count in our limits even
if it is small. This leads to being extra careful and trying to find
ways to catch them without a mortality rate. The fish that we are
catching seem healthy but very hungry leading to concern on many of
us guides part about less bait in the lake and a lot of fish but I
am still waiting to see what GFP surveys indicate about bait hatches
before coming to any conclusions about problems. I have been seeing
more clouds of some bait in many areas I am fishing There is going
to be a huge harvest this year for those fishing Oahe/Sharpe so if
you are looking for a lot of action this is a good year to head up.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
May 28th to June 1st Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
Fishing on both Lake Sharpe and Lake Oahe in the Pierre area has remained excellent with just about every one who knows the lakes catching limits daily .I fished a nice retired couple from NE Richard and Luree Wiese to possession limits of walleye keeping around a nice 18 inch avg size fish and throwing alot of smaller fish back. Caught these fish on crawlers in 15 to 20 fow. I then guided the Bob Starososka group from around the Omaha area to their possession limits of walleye keeping around a nice 17 to 18 inch avg. size fish. We caught these walleye on bouncer/crawler rigs in 10 to 20 fow. The bite is good on both minnows and Plugs also so if you like trolling you should do well .Starting to see more boats around as we get into June and this year should produce a great harvest especially of eating size walleye for everyone with knowledge of walleye fishing. Another quick warning. Take your time the first time out on both lakes as lower water on Oahe has all kinds of new rock piles a foot or so under water and last years record releases creating sandbars all over Sharpe. June is busy so if you haven't booked rooms/ cabins or camping spots better check into that.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
May 24th to 28th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
The fishing for all species except salmon is excellent but
spring weather (windy days) causing uncomfortable conditions. I
guided Mark Morton and family from NE. to possession limits of
walleye and some smallmouth and northern on Oahe catching over 70
fish and keeping limits of 18 inch avg. size fish with son Tyler
catching the big fish of the trip a 27 incher. We caught these fish
on Oahe around the Cheyenne river area in 7 to 10 fow on
bouncer/crawler rigs and the new Berkeley gulp crawlers. We caught
just as many and the biggest fish using gulp. I then guided Don and
Nat Klatt from Mn. on Oahe using the same methods but they got
unlucky with one day producing 35 mph winds. We caught limits of
walleye but that day kept smaller fish (15 to 17 inchers) The next
day was windy but not as bad and we did much better keeping limits
of around a 18 inch avg. walleye with a couple of nice over's to
23inches. We also caught at least 50 walleye releasing the smaller
fish. A couple of great guys and we had a great time. I then took
Terry Williamson and his wife from down Georgia way out in another
35 mph wind. We decided to fish the big bend area of Sharpe to stay
out of the wind as much as possible and that worked as we ended of
catching limits of 17 inch avg. size walleye with 2 over 20 inches.
Again we probably caught and released well over 50 fish to do this
so Sharpe is going great also. We caught these fish on crawlers but
in around 15 to 20 fow. This brings me to mention that I went
through around 25 light wire hooks on these trips because many of
the little fish swallow the hook and the only way I know to give
them a good chance to survive is buy cutting the hook, leaving it in
the fish with maybe 6 inches of leader. I am going to give Berkeley
gulp another plug. I have noticed that almost all the fish we were
catching on gulp were lip hooked so were released without cutting a
lot of hooks. A real plus making this stuff a great way to catch
them. I cut there new long worm in half and fish it on a plain hook
and have no trouble with hook sets and they bite these artificial
baits just about as good as crawlers. Because of the release factor
I am going to use this presentation more this summer. I favor there
pumpkin seed worm but cutting the longer ones in half gets the size
right for our Lakes. All presentations like spinner fishing and plug
fishing are working. A windy but great fishing memorial day week
end.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
May 21st to 23rd Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
The bigger female fish are for the most part over the
spawning recuperation period and starting to bite producing some
real nice stringers of fish on Oahe. I guided Luke, Jake, Will and
Dave Gideon from Burwell Ne. to an example of this with them
catching possession limits of walleye with all of these boys
catching there over fish (23 inchers) and throwing back at least 40
fish or more to end up with the rest of there slot fish running 18
to 19 inches. We caught all of these fish in around 5 fow to 10 fow
drifting night crawlers. I then guided Bill Sterrup and his son to
nice limits of both walleye and smallmouth bass but this trip was in
big time wind (40 mph gusts) so we quit fairly early to get off the
lake. All of these fish seemed to be healthy but hungry and easy to
catch. The walleye, northern & catfish bite is excellent on Oahe
with the better area's being from the Cheyenne river up to the 212
bridge. Most fish being caught on bttm/bouncer crawler or minnow
rigs but both jig fishing and trolling plugs are working. Staying
shallow seems to produce bigger avg. size fish but there are fish in
17 to 20 fow. Lake Sharpe is still very good from Pierre down to the
Big Bend area with crawlers working there also. I have no
information on the salmon bite but I believe it is not good.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
May 18th, 19th &
20th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I
finished guiding the Wilke group for the Outpost Lodge and the
guided Doug Hays and Doug Kelling from the Kansas City Mo. area. Two
great guys that hit one bad day of weather (rain and wind) and one
perfect spring day. Had limits both days but the last day they had
really nice fish with all there over's to 23 inches and a solid 18
inch avg. We caught these fish in 5 fow to 10 fow on crawler/bouncer
rigs or pitching Berkeley Gulp onto the bank on Oahe. The fishing is
getting even better as the bigger female fish are coming on bite
making for a lot more over twenty inch walleye in limits that most
boats are getting. The big bend area on Sharpe all the way to Pierre
is good but I think the smallmouth are starting to spawn in some
areas making fishing for them a little tougher. From the Dam up to
the 212 bridge those that know Oahe are catching plenty of fish with
less limits coming in from the Cheyenne to the Dam The Cheyenne
river up to the 212 bridge has a better bite for walleye right now
due to shallower warmer water temps .Minnows are working but
crawlers starting to be a very good choice. Pulling plugs is also
producing for those that prefer that method. Northern Pike fishing
on Oahe is excellent also with occasional 15 to 20 lb. fish being
caught along with lots of smaller northern. Catfishing is good but
Salmon fishing way off. Once again if this is your first time out
take your time as new sand bars on Sharpe from last years record
release's and lower water level's on Oahe have created plenty of
danger area's and losing a lower unit can spoil a trip in a big
hurry.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
May 14th to 18th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
Guided Patrick Purcelik and his friend Kirby from Whiting
Iowa to three great days of both walleye northern pike and
smallmouth fishing and my friend Jerry Fennell from Wisconsin on
there last Day. We had really nice fish with all there over's every
day. Fished in 10 fow in the Cheyenne river for 2 days with both
crawler and minnows on bottom/bouncers then went down to the big
bend on Sharpe on day three as they were heading home. Same results
there with easy limits of walleye and some smallmouth with the same
presentation. A really great bunch of guys. Then helped guide the
Wilke group out of the Outpost Lodge on Cow Creek. All of the guides
went to Bush's Landing for limits for everyone for two days. Most
fish caught in 10 fow or less on jig/minnow or bouncer minnow with
plenty of over fish along with a lot of northern pike and
smallmouth. Fishing is excellent on both Sharpe and Oahe in the
Pierre area. Weather has been good but some spring storms and some
wind coming up. Salmon bite poor. Catfish good.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
May 10th to May 13th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I guided repeat customer Bill Doc Leonard, son Doug and
grandson Cooper from Atlantic Iowa to two great days of fishing on
both Lake Sharpe and then on Lake Oahe. The weather was great and
the fishing excellent with them catching possession limits of
smallmouth bass, walleye and some northern to take home. We caught
the fish on Sharpe drifting bttm/bouncer minnows and did the same on
Oahe. The walleye on both Lakes are for the most part shallow (15
fow or less) and moving away from spawning grounds making finding
them a little more difficult but they are biting so most boats out
are doing limits. We are starting to catch a few more of the spawned
out female walleye (larger fish) on a more regular basis and I think
that bite should be in full swing in the next 10 days. Crawlers are
working on lindy or bttm bouncer rigs along with pulling shallow
plugs on both Lakes. There have been a few of the boat ramps like
Bush's Landing that have had some problems with silt but GF&P have
them cleared out now and as far as I know all ramps in the Pierre
area are open. Be careful when first going out though as places like
the Little Bend ramp have real danger spots when you motor out of
the bays. If you are fishing for the first time this spring both
Lakes have plenty of new hazards over last year. Guided Bill Corn
and his new bride Lucie on Sunday to limits of walleye with them
getting both of their over fish and keeping the rest of there limit
in the 17 inch range with one nice northern and many throw back fish
along with some smallmouth. Caught them bttm/bouncer minnow fishing
in the Cheyenne arm of Oahe in around 10 fow. A beautiful spring day
in the 70's with no wind so they got lucky as did the Leonards. The
bite on Sharpe and Oahe remains excellent and should continue to get
even better for the walleye as the bigger female fish recuperate and
move into the shallows to feed.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
May 6th to May 9th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
Gettysburg group Steve, Sonya, Frank and Leo
I guided Chuck Harkins and his wife from Miller for two days, catching limits of walleye on Sharpe then some catfish and Northern on day two. The May weather didn't favor their trip with high winds dictating the fishing. A real nice couple and we all had a good time. Caught the walleye in around 10 fow and the catfish and northern in less than 5 fow on Oahe in 35 mph wind on dead smelt. I then fished Steve Graycroft and his wife from Gettysburg and his brother and uncle from Kentucky to limits of smallmouth bass and walleye in a little less wind (around 25 mph). Another great bunch and they had three master angler bass (over 18 inches) with wife Sonja catching one over 20 inches. The walleye averaged around 17 inches. Caught these at the big bend area in 10 fow. All of these fish were caught on bttmbouncer/minnows as that was working better in the wind. Early spring fishing is weather related and sometimes you have to work to get limits and these two trips were that way. I then guided repeat customer Tom Main from Rapid City and his 98 year old Dad, (that's right 98) a real trooper, to limits of walleye, some northern and a few crappie on the Cheyenne river on a 75 degree day with very little wind. Caught these fish on bouncer/minnows in around 12 fow. The bite on Oahe is still good with a lot of the fish moving away from the spawning area's so looking for them is a little tougher but most fisherman getting limits.
I was asked a couple of questions one being about the current water level on Oahe. I think the pool is around 1605 with 1620 being full pool. We still have plenty of water but are down around 15 to 20 fow from record pools of last year.
I had a question about
baitfish and the health of the fish. Although I feel it is too early
to tell I haven't really noticed any unhealthy walleye where I have
been fishing. I have noticed some of the smallmouth looked a little
stressed at the Bend area on Sharpe. The fish seem easy to catch. I
think everyone is concerned and probably it will be further into the
months of July and August before there well be any real solid
information about the effect of the high releases of last year. You
might get more reliable information about this from GF&P as they had
a series of meetings and have that filmed on one of there sites.
They have a lot more reliable information than I can provide but I
well try and update any info I hear. I am marking plenty of bait in
the areas I have been fishing but am not sure about what kind. I do
not know of any smelt run around my area.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
May 2nd to May 6th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
Fishing on both Lake Oahe and Sharpe still going strong
around the Pierre area but the spawning walleye males are starting
to thin out around the spawning beds and migrate to were the bait
fish are on their way to summer areas they use. May weather turned
to some wind/rain days so the roads to boat ramps on gravel have
been muddy. This has been the main reason I fished Sharpe around
Pierre this week guiding repeat customer Troy Swift, his Dad and
friend to limits of walleye catching all of these fish on the river
bluffs around Pierre A great bunch of guys and we had a real nice
trip..Caught the walleye in 10 fow pitching jigs/gulp or dragging
bouncer/minnow rigs I then fished a small tournament with Jon Sailer.
Both of these trips we caught maybe 30 to 40 walleye a day mostly in
the 15 to 17 inch range with an occasional 18/19 inch fish. Plenty
of fish still being caught on Oahe with males in the most part
starting to move off spawning beds also and you can start looking
for them along with the females a little deeper (20 fow) and around
warm water flats close to the spawning areas. Minnows still the main
bite but I am starting to take crawlers along as that bite should be
starting and is going down at the big bend area. Northern fishing
still very good on Oahe mostly in shallow water, Cat fishing good
but Salmon bite is poor. Trolling plugs is working along with live
bait presentations for all species so if that is your style go for
it. Remember to keep an eye on depth finders on both lakes as sand
bars and lower water have made for some real danger spots from last
year.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
April 30th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe, Pierre SD Fishing Report
I finished out the month of April guiding Mike Holen from
Loomis Ne. and Joe Cipov from Rocklin CA. to real nice limits of 17
to 18 inch avg. size walleye and a few white bass on Lake Sharpe. We
fished the Pierre area looking for males that are staying around the
spawning area's. We caught around 40 fish releasing the one's below
16 inches. For the most part we caught these fish in shale/pebble
rock areas in around 10 fow either dragging or pitching jig/minnows
or Jig/Gulp. The weather was 70 degrees and very little wind so
these guys got lucky and had a great trip .Sharpe is going strong
for both walleye and small mouth from the Pierre area down to the
big bend area with most of the action shallow. Lake Oahe continues
to put out great action for walleye and northern pike for those who
know the lake. All the major creeks from the dam up have action
mostly in the warmer stained water usually found further into the
creeks and back of bays. Northern/cat fishing on dead smelt and cut
bait very good along with spawning walleye males .My reports usually
cover Lake Sharpe from the Big Bend area up to the 212 bridge on
Oahe. Weather report looks pretty good for most of the week so I
expect to see a good number of fishermen out and will have next
report out in 3 days or so.
Good Fishing,
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
April 23rd to April 28th Lakes Oahe/Sharpe Pierre SD
Walleye/Northern fishing is excellent on Lake Oahe and also
excellent on Lake Sharpe for spawning male walleye. The Northern
Pike fishing and cat fishing is also very good on Oahe. Most of the
action on Oahe is in the back of creeks with running water and the
Cheyenne river. On Sharpe both the downtown area and Big bend area
are going strong. I fished friends Gary Howey of Outdoorsmen
Adventures TV and Larry Myhre retired Sioux City Iowa Journal
sportswriter/Editor the 24th 25th and 26th filming for Gary's Show
and some articles for Larry. We had constant action both at West
Bend on Sharpe catching walleye and smallmouth all day on Tuesday
and also on the Cheyenne River on Oahe on Wednesday. We caught both
walleye and northern pike. Probably caught and released a total of
well over 50 fish a day on both places with almost all of the
walleye 16 to 18 inch males. The northern were from small fish to
several in the 15 lb range. Also had some smallmouth bass action. We
caught all of these fish shallow in 10 fow up to the bank pitching
jigs/gulp and jigs/minnow. We also tried pulling spinner/minnows on
Sharpe and that worked too so you can catch the fish a lot of
different ways including trolling plugs. We caught very few female
walleye and released those. The weather was really nice with 70
degree days and not much wind. Then I fished repeat customer Dave
Petroco from Denver for 3 days. We caught limits of walleye daily
but did the weather ever change with rain/ wind for 2 days. Spent
Friday cat fishing to try and stay out of 40 mph wind/rain and
caught some along with two northern but called it a day after
sticking it out for 6 hours or so. Spring weather and that pretty
well is the way it is in April. Great fishing but cross your fingers
on the weather because it can go either way for you I had a great
time with all of these guys. We caught a lot of fish and had three
great weather days and two nasty ones. Looking for warmer stained
water and shale/pebble banks is the key in the spring for the
walleye or any area that you know the fish are spawning. Water temps
over are 50 degree surface in back of creeks/ river but 40's on main
lake. Take your time at first on both Sharpe(new sandbars
everywhere) and Oahe (lower water than last year) present plenty of
danger spots. No Salmon report other than and a few caught by
accident below the dam.
Good Fishing,
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
Lake Oahe/Sharpe fishing report April 19th thru April 22nd
Fishing continues to be
good to excellent on both Lake Sharpe and lower Lake Oahe for
walleye, northern pike ,small mouth bass, and catfish with Salmon
fishing poor. I guided Ron Pyle and his wife from Neligh NE. Friday
Saturday and Sunday to their possession limits of walleye and small
mouth along with a few northern and all the catfish they wanted so
they had a nice cooler full of fish to take home along with some
nice walleye for supper. We fished the big bend area of Sharpe
Friday staying in around 7 fow using Jig/minnow or rig/minnows and
caught around 75 walleye and probably that many small mouth on a 65
degree no wind day with continuous action all day. The wind came
Friday night limiting us to go cat fishing on Saturday to stay out
of 30 mph wind with gusts to 49 mph. Spring weather. Could have
caught a lot of catfish but kept 15 and a northern and went in
early. Caught these in 3 fow on smelt in back of creeks fishing with
slip bobbers. The wind blew thru and Sunday we went up on the
Cheyenne river. Another great spring day with temps in 70's and no
wind. We caught limits of walleye and a northern pitching
jig/minnows and also rig/minnows all in 12 fow or less. The bite is
also good right around the Pierre area and when the weather holds
there are lots of boats out and lots of limits coming in. Water
temps at the bend are in 50's as they are in back of creeks and
Cheyenne. Main Lake temps in the mid 40's.This next week looks like
great weather and the fishing should hold as long as the weather
does.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
Lake Oahe/Sharpe fishing report April 14th thru April 18th 2012
The spring weather came into play over the weekend with
Rain almost all day Sunday so not many boats out. Heard reports of
some nice fish being caught on Oahe from the dam up to Snake creek
on Saturday with over 20 inch fish common but not a lot of numbers.
Sharpe continues to put out fish limits. I guided Troy Vanecek, Bob
and Tim a fireman, deputy sheriff and Dad from Council Bluffs Iowa
on Monday Tues and Wed. The weather was rainy/cool Monday morning so
we started on Sharpe around Pierre catching 16 fish limits of
walleye to 23 inch's both pitching jigs shallow and dragging lindy
rigs in 15 ft. The main bite around Pierre on Sharpe is mostly
drifting in around 10 fow with minnow/ Jigs/rigs. The second day was
really nice weather so we went up on Oahe and fished in the Cheyenne
river. The bite was good and we kept 16 walleye around a 17 inch
avg.6 northern around 10 to 15 lbs and some nice small mouth. We
probably caught at least twice that releasing the smaller
northern/walleye. Caught the most fish pitching jigs/minnows into
the banks but later in the day the fish mostly moved out deeper and
we caught them in around 25 fow. The fellows were going to drive
back to Omaha after fishing Wednesday so I took them down to Big
Bend on Sharpe to go small mouth fishing as they only needed a few
walleye ( after shore lunches) for there possession limits of
walleye A beautiful no wind 70 degree day and we had constant action
catching and releasing at least 75 walleye in the 15 to 18 inch
range and that many small mouth keeping 20 small mouth. We caught
all these fish in 5 to 10 fow. on jig/minnow/rigs. They went home
with there possession limits of walleye/smallmoth bass some northern
and a few white bass .A great trip for a great bunch of guys. Water
temps at the bend were in low 50's. Much colder around Pierre and
you can find 50 degree water in back of creeks/ Cheyenne river. The
spawn at the bend is in full swing and we never caught a female
there Above the dam in the colder water I think it is just starting
and I think it is maybe it is midway up river on Oahe. The smelt run
should be starting soon on Oahe Salmon fishing is slow..Remember to
take your time both on Sharpe and Oahe as water conditions have
changed since last fall and there are danger spots around on both
lake's. Looks like a real nice warm up next week so expect to see
more boats around making for a real early season.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
April 5th Fishing Report
The weather all winter has been record setting with above average temperatures the norm .27 days above normal in March There have been more boats on both Lake Sharpe and Lake Oahe then I can remember and most fishermen are catching limits. I fished up on the Cheyenne (Oahe) two days last week and both days produced limits plus. The nice part of these trips were the amount of big fish that we caught and released. On Wed. four fish over 24 inches with one over 29" We kept limits of avg size walleye around 17 inches for supper. Caught all of these fish pitching Berkeley Porgy's shallow but saw fish being caught all the way out to 35 feet deep on bottom. bouncer/minnow presentations. We also caught around 10 northern a day but none over 15 lbs I heard about someone weighing in a 28 lb northern Thursday so plenty of these bigger ones around. Catfish excellent in very shallow water in back of bays/creeks on cut bait/smelt. .From the dam up is putting out fish on Oahe but since they are in all depth's it is tougher to find them. Those who know the lake are doing well. For this reason I will call Oahe as good to very good. Sharpe continues to put out excellent fishing with a lot of nice sauger in the 19 inch range along with walleye. Most fish in 15 feet or more but many walleye are being caught pitching into shallow water. Trolling plugs shallow, dragging or pitching jigs with minnows or gulp all good and most common. From Pierre all the way down to the Big Bend good to excellent Take your time on both lakes as new sand bar's all over on Sharpe and lower water on Oahe makes for many danger spots. I will do one report or so a week now until May and then do at least one every 3 days I will start putting pictures in report next week. Have a nice Easter.
Hutch's Guide Service
Hutch
April 3rd Fishing Report
It is earlier this year but I am going to start my fishing report for both Lake Oahe and Lake Sharpe as the weather is early spring and the fishing is excellent. Last Saturday I went down on Lake Sharpe with Jon Sailer and fishing in 75 degree no wind weather we boated around 50 walleye /sauger in the 18 inch range from around 10 in the morning to 3 o'clock. We caught most of these fish in around 15 to 20 ft holes right around Pierre on jig/minnow combination but we also pulled some flicker shads shallow and caught them that way to. There are a surprising amount of boats on the water but the weather is so good everyone is out early getting some fish for supper. Excellent fishing all up and down Lake Sharpe so if the weather holds you can have a great trip .Be care full and take your time on Sharpe as new sandbars everywhere since last years flood. I got up on one myself going where I have been going for 30 years. Lake Oahe is also putting out numbers of both walleye northern pike and catfish. The dam all the way up to and including the Cheyenne river are good to very good. Most walleye are around 30 ft and dragging a jig works best but pitching into real shallow water is also producing limits and is the best way for northerns along with walleye. Because some fish are still deep and some shallow finding them is a little tougher. Looking for warm stained water for pitching jigs tipped with minnows or Berkeley gulp (porgy's) is my favorite presentation. Looks like another great year on both Lakes. Still a little to early to say much about effect of the flood on fishery but the fish we caught were healthy and full of bait so I am hoping for minimal effect from the high releases of water last year Time will tell and I will comment more on this as the summer progresses. Oahe has dropped from last years flood pool so once again take your time at first on the big lake as there are some real danger spots and lower units are expensive.
Hutch
Month by Month Guiding Breakdown
April/ May
Both of these month's produce excellent walleye fishing along with great smallmouth/ Northern/ Catfish. Weather is a factor so many times we have to stay off big water because of high winds etc. but this is a great time to go after the big northern and catfish in the back of creeks/bays to beat the weather. Also fishing on Sharpe below Dam keeps you out of wind and produce's nice limits of walleye. Jig fishing when water temps cold along with btm. bouncer presentations as water warms most common .Boat traffic can be much more around the Pierre area.
June
By far the busiest month on both lakes.( School out and just traditionally start of summer season] so book early if possible to get best guides/lodging. The fishing is excellent for all species. Weather can still be a factor. We are usually fishing with Lindy or btm. bouncer's.
July
Best all around month for both fishing and weather especially family trips Walleye fishing at seasonal peak especially in high water periods on Oahe. and Sharpe good two. Btm. Bouncer presentations most common.
August
Same as July but there can be hotter weather. If there is a breeze it is not to bad as big lake water temps keep heat down. Fish can be a little deeper but still great fishing.
September
Very good on the walleye fishing with fall weather great toward end of month. As water cools jig fishing starts to come into play again.
October / November
Fishing is still good but weather coming into play again Jigs work best especially in colder water. Combination Hunting /fishing trips most common. Just a note: You can catch fish in all the months above tolling or casting plugs and we do that often. But I have found that guiding people over the years most prefer live bait hover fishing better so I spend more time with btm/bouncer/crawler/minnow/leeches than the plugs but pulling plugs is always a good alternative and sometimes can be the best.
Kent Hutcheson
E-mail:
fishinghutch@aol.com
Cell Phone: 605-220-2844
Hutch say's...
