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Mosquito spawn.

14K views 75 replies 27 participants last post by  ezbite 
#1 · (Edited)
What's your favorite setup to throw when the eyes get going for their spawn. I always seem to have the best luck using my river set, casting a floating jig with about a 24"-36" leader with a nice slow retrieve.


Mods, if you see fit, can you move to another forum since this is not a report, thanks.
 
#6 ·
That's a good rig. I've caught a lot of fish at Skeeter with it. Plus, if you're using minnows there's always the chance for a big crappie. When in the stump fields I like to use a slip float, but now that I think about it that action usually heats up post-spawn. The thing about Mosquito is that you can catch fish anywhere depending on the time of year.

I've caught walleye in 3-4 FOW in weed beds with the wind blowing in. Whatever you could drag through there without hanging up was the way to go.
 
#9 ·
I love Road Runners! My BIL turned me on to them. They are what I like to hang under those slip bobbers. Sometimes that little spinner blade underneath makes all the difference. Northland also makes a version of it called the Pow-R-Head jig. I like Road Runners better.
 
#8 ·
Same thing happened to me probably 15yrs ago with a friend from work. We were fishing Alum Creek down by the dam and this dude stood right next to me casting to the same spots pulling alot more fish. I always have them in the arsenal since then.
 
#16 ·
I don't really "work" them, I just want them to hang above whatever snags are down there, like the stump fields at Mosquito. One time my BIL and I found a little stump field that was loaded with eyes. If we could keep from snagging up long enough we could catch fish, but we were losing our brains in there! After yet another lost jig I flipped open my tackle box, my eyes lit on a slip float, and the light bulb came on!

We were fishing about 12FOW with the tops of the stumps reaching to about 10FOW. So I set my bobber stop to keep the jig, Road Runner, whatever, about 9 to 9 1/2 feet down. I wanted it swimming just above the stumps. It's well known that walleye and crappie like to feed "up". If they see a bait swimming above them, and if they're in the mood to feed, they'll go get it.

What weight roadrunner do you run?
I try to match the weight of the bait to the size of the slip float. Generally you want that float running kind of low in the water, so if a fish sips in your bait on a light bite the float will sink without the fish feeling too much resistance.

However, I ran into a situation on Pymy, again with my BIL, when we were fishing the stump field East of the big island (Clark or Whaley) on the North end for crappie. I went to the slip float and it would give a little "bounce" and then lay over on it's side! This told me the fish were coming up from below and taking the bait on their way up! They'd put slack in the line below the float which was what caused the float to lay over.

I flat out murdered big crappie that day! I was throwing back 10 & 11 inchers! I only have so much patience for fish cleaning! If it wasn't a foot long or better, I couldn't be bothered!

Believe me, slip float techniques are very worthwhile to learn.
 
#22 ·
There's all kinds of things you can hang under a slip float. Just keep trying things until you find what the fish like. I've had days where the fish, eyes I assume, would bite the twister tails off the jigs, so I'd rip them off before I put the jig down. Other times I'd leave the body off entirely and put a minnow or hunk of crawler on it. Same with Road Runners. Or anything. Usually we'll drift, but if we hit a few fish in quick succession we might try to anchor and castr to the work the area intensively. It's a guessing game, and I haven't figured it out more times than I have. But it sure make you feel good when you do.
 
#23 · (Edited)
If you are fishing March and April, the best advice I can give is to fish an hour before dark to an hour, hour and a half after dark. Fish a 1/4 to 3/8 oz natural lead color jig head, pinch the tail off a green twister and just use the body, tipped with a minnow. Stinger hooks can be used also. Fish rocky/sandy bottoms with the wind in your face. It has worked for me for over 40 years. John
 
#24 ·
If you are fishing March and April, the best advice I can give is to fish an hour before dark to an hour, hour and a half after dark. Fish a 1/4 to 3/8 oz natural lead color jig head, tipped with a minnow. Stinger hooks can be used also. Fish rocky/sandy bottoms with the wind in your face. It has worked for me for over 40 years. John
Points and current breaks are dynamite.
 
#26 ·
I knew a guy who used to night fish for spawning eyes at Mosquito. Full moon, always around tax time (4/15). He would fish off of a hump in 2-3' of water, well out in the lake. Sorry I don't know more specifics on location but small jigs, retrieved super slow was the ticket. He would catch all males and he showed me the messy floor of his boat as evidence. Yuk
 
#33 ·
Good point about not ignoring the shallows. Had one of our best days on Skeeters north end with the wind howling out of the Southwest! It was slow, definitely fishing and not cartching. We got lazy on one drift with the poles out, but we were eating sandwiches and having coffee. WE drifted pretty close to shore when I got a bite that meant business! A 24" eye in 4 FOW right up against a weed bed! My buddy wanted to motor back out to the middle of the lake! I said, NO!! I caught the fish here! Let's fish here! Think about it, it's a classic patterm A strong wind blows baitfish up against structure, and the game fish follow! It just had to be shoved right. in my face before I recognized it. We've also caught eyes in 4 to 5 FOW at Milton. Several times in the middle of the day! Sometimes I feel we overthink this stuff!
 
#27 ·
I've been fishing the Mosquito spawning run since the late 60's and have always done best fishing rocky points just about dusk and into the night. When the fish come in you usually see them rolling on the surface. Only fished with jig and minnows when I first started but now use floating Rapala's most of the time. One trip I always remember happened many years ago, took the boat out during the run and limited out. I was putting the boat back on the trailer 30 minutes after launching. That year the limit was ten eye's, all on jig and minnow. That was the best year I ever had during the run. Pre-spawn and post-spawn I tend to fish early evening and just before dawn but when the run is peaking you can catch them all day long. ODNR usually puts a couple test nets out as early as possible to check the stages of the run. When they start getting the females they rush out and set the rest of the nets to harvest the eggs. Watch the causeway early, they normally set a test net there. When they get it set get your butt into the water, the run isn't too far away. Good luck and remember to stay safe.
 
#28 ·
Same thing happened to me probably 15yrs ago with a friend from work. We were fishing Alum Creek down by the dam and this dude stood right next to me casting to the same spots pulling alot more fish. I always have them in the arsenal since then.

lol,,, I have a good friend who LOVES to use & LOOSE roadrunners in the Mosquito stumps!! (right Chris?) ;>)
SO,,,, i went ahead & bought the molds. Here's an ugly paint pic of the larger 5/8-3/4 ones I made up for Erie drifting. Some I made up into weight forward 2 hook harnesses.

BTW Pooch,,,, if you & Gary ever want to pour up a bunch of jigs, in-lines, or slip sinkers,,,
on a rainy day, just let me know,,,
I got the time, molds & lead,,,, you guys bring the blades & PIZZA!
 
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