Crappie

Sauk Rapids offers some surprisingly good crappie fishing, especially in the quieter backwaters and connected lakes along the Mississippi River. Focus your efforts on areas with submerged structure like brush piles, fallen trees, and docks. Spring and early summer are the peak seasons when crappies move shallow to spawn. Look for them in bays with warmer water and plenty of cover. A simple slip bobber rig with a small jig or minnow is often all you need. As the water warms in the summer, crappies tend to move deeper, so try fishing around deeper structure with small jigs or live bait. A local secret: many anglers have success targeting crappies around the old bridge pilings in the Mississippi. Be mindful of the current, and use enough weight to keep your bait in the strike zone. The crappies in this area tend to run a bit smaller than in some other Minnesota lakes, but they are plentiful and provide great action.