Letter from Evan: April Fishing SUCKS!
-Evan Griggs, Owner, Fishing For All
Spring fishing usually gets overshadowed by trout and the various mayfly hatches in April and May. But little do many anglers know that fishing in April SUCKS- literally! Spring is one of the best times of the year to target suckers, buffalo, carp, sturgeon, and many other bottom-feeding “trash fish” species (aka: native rough fish.) Sure most people might find these rough fish unflattering when compared to trout. But the astute angler will come to appreciate their unique adaptations, seek out new fishing challenges, and understand how ecologically important these species are.
Increasing water temperatures and flows signal to many rough fish (native and introduced alike) that it’s time to spawn in April and May. This also happens to be one of the best times to try and catch them. So as you’re out throwing dry flies on your favorite trout streams this spring, you may be amazed to see dozens of white suckers spawning in the riffles and tail outs in gravelly shallows. Their spawn peaks in April when water temps reach around 50 degrees. You can catch them on the fly too, and they are usually bigger and harder fighting than the trout you’re after. Use small yellow egg flies or nymphs under an indicator, or on spin gear with live worms.
Closer to home, we’ll see common carp move into flooded marshes and catchment ponds to warm up, feed, and spawn. This is the best time for new carp anglers to target these fish as they will readily feed right off the shoreline and be less spooky as later in the season. Most people recognize carp when they are leaping and thrashing around in the water as they are actively spawning. But that is not the time to fish for them, as they are one track minded at the task at hand. Instead we spot and stalk these fish, looking for basking, slow cruising, or feeding individuals to target. Small streamers or large rubber legged nymphs will get the job done on a fly rod, or live worms and sweet corn on spin gear.
Though many dams inhibit large fish migrations on the Mississippi, its smaller tributaries burst with life in the spring. Especially Minnehaha Creek below the falls, and Rice Creek below Locke Dam. Every spring, thousands of red horse suckers, buffalo, quillbacks, and more swim upstream to spawn in the fast, gravelly shallows. Not only are these fish ecological superstars, they get very large, and present a good challenge for fly and spin anglers alike. Small egg flies, nymphs, worm flies, or live worms and sweet corn are your best bet to target these big river denizens. Redhorse and buffalo get a lot of flack for looking similar to common carp, and often get treated with scorn and wanton waste by uneducated anglers. In fact, the redhorse are a vital food source for many gamefish and birds of prey, and are an indicator species of good water quality. Buffalo live for over 100 years and eat harmful invasives like zebra mussels.
These are just a few of the amazing rough fish species we see in the spring, and there are many more to explore! I encourage you to appreciate your local bottom feeder this spring, put some trash fish in the spotlight for a change. They may even become some of your favorite fish to catch!
Want to learn how to catch carp this spring? Check out our Carp fly fishing class on 5/3, and sign up for Carpicide – The Urban Fly Fishing Tournament on 5/31!
Carpicide is Minnesota’s original urban carp fly fishing tournament—a one-day celebration of fly angling, conservation, and the wild fish swimming beneath our city streets. Each year, anglers gather to target one of North America’s most controversial species: the common carp.
This is part fishing tournament, part community cleanup, part food-fueled party—and 100% good-natured chaos in the best way.
Read on below for our 2026 camps, classes, and memberships!
Bragging Board: Pre-Spawn Smallmouth Bass are ON FIRE!
Now is the time to book a float trip or sign up for bass camp to experience the magic of smallmouth angling!
Frequent Fishers Monthly Membership Program
Our club is growing! Join the adventure!
Frequent Fisher Memberships with Fishing For All are for intermediate to advanced skill anglers looking for advanced-level learning, deeper experiences, and diverse fishing opportunities!
As a Frequent Fisher Member, you get access to 8 exclusive benefits plus additional perks.
Details for this membership can be found below!
2026 Trips, Camps, Classes, and More!
- Guide Trips
- Learn How to Fish
- Weekly Meetups
- Youth Camps
Ongoing Events and Classes
Come “Break Thread” with us at 56brewing.
These are FREE social fly tying gatherings, bring your own fly tying stuff (you don’t need to be a pro!)
Come hang, drink, and be nerdy!
- 4/28
Fishing Report
Metro Lakes — Twin Cities
- Best bet right now: panfish first, bass second.
- Look for crappies and bluegills in warming, protected water — shallow bays, reeds, docks, wood, and emerging weeds.
- Common depth range: 2–6 feet in the warmest pockets, or 4–10 feet on shallow weed edges.
- Best presentations: 1/32- to 1/16-ounce hair jigs, small plastics, tubes, baby shads, paddletails, and a slip float.
- For bass, target dark-bottom bays and fresh weeds with spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, and jerkbaits.
- Keep it quiet: long casts, light presentations, and subtle boat control matter on clear, pressured lakes.
St. Croix River and Mississippi
- St. Croix: Right now, the best play is panfish and various native non-game fish like redhorse.
- Crappies are often holding along shorelines, marinas, and slower water, especially in the Stillwater-to-Hudson stretch. A simple bobber and crappie minnow is still one of the best St. Croix setups.
- White bass are beginning to school up along sandy shoals, humps, and creek mouths where they empty into the Croix. Fish for them with paddletails, spinners, minnows, and small soft plastics when the bite is tough.
- Redhorse suckers: This time of year, these fish will eagerly eat worms fished on the bottom with a slip sinker rig. While fishing for them, you have a shot at many other fish species, including yellow perch, catfish, and sturgeon. You never know what you might catch fishing a slip sinker worm rig on the bottom!
- After the May 2 lower-St. Croix opener, expect early walleye to hold deeper or in current, with crawlers, minnows, and Shad Raps producing.
- Pool 2 is the better immediate metro river option for legal action right now.
- Pool 2 pattern: fish current seams, riprap, and travel edges with jerkbaits, lipless cranks, swimbaits, and vertical jigs.
- Pool 4 / Red Wing: Low, clear spring conditions mean fish can be scattered. Bring multiple looks: hair jigs, plastics, minnows, and Dubuque rigs.
Driftless Trout Streams (SE Minnesota + Western WI)
- This is a strong late-April window, with both Minnesota and Wisconsin trout water in play.
- Conditions are generally great, but when it’s very clear expect trout to be spooky.
- Start subsurface first: nymphs, scuds, zebra midges, Pink Squirrels, pheasant tails, small leeches, and buggers.
- Fish riffles, deeper runs, and seams before switching to dries.
- Key hatch window: late morning through afternoon. What to watch for: grannom caddis, Hendricksons, and BWOs, especially on cloudy afternoons.
- Use long leaders and light tippet — usually 5X to 6X. If rain muddies popular streams, move farther southeast or into spring-fed headwaters.
Bois Brule
- Right now, think lower-river steelhead, not upper-river resident trout.
- Focus on the lower Brule below Highway 2, where the spring run is active.
- Best water: deep runs, pools, and morning holding slots.
- Best offerings: spawn beads, yarn flies, caddis-style patterns, spoons, and inline spinners.
- Fish it like a cover-water steelhead trip: start slow and deep, then switch to moving baits to find fresh fish.
- Conditions look fishable, not blown out, which should keep the lower river in play.
Guide Tips: Spring Dry Fly Tips
Guide Tips From the FFA Team
April and May host the best dry fly fishing for trout of the whole year! We can see multiple species of bugs hatching at any one time. The laundry list of bugs we see this time of year is incredible: Blue Wing Olive Mayflies, Dark Hendrickson Mayflies, March Brown Mayflies, Tiny Black Stoneflies, Early Brown Stoneflies, Giant Black Stoneflies, and various species of Caddisflies.
Here’s some of my top dry fly tips:
Know Your Bugs – If you aren’t a mega-nerd like me, you may not know what bug the trout are feeding on. Linked here is a great list of bug hatches in SE MN made by the MNDNR- I use this ALL the time! This will give you a general idea of what bugs you might see and when, as well as what fly and hook size to use.
Size and Profile – Try your best to match the size and profile of your fly to the real bugs you see. To do this, it is helpful to know the anatomy of various bugs:
- Mayflies have wings that stand straight up and look like little sailboats.
- Stoneflies have wings that lay flat over their backs.
- Caddis have wings that form a tent shape over their backs.
- Midges are super duper small.
Size is the more important of the two variables. If your fly is bigger than the naturals, the fish will refuse it. Going slightly smaller usually is ok.
Short, Deliberate Drifts – Dry flies work best when you target a particular zone, or even a particular fish. Long drift usually results in a lot of unnatural drag which ultimately pulls your fly underwater. Short drifts ensure the best accuracy and control as your fly is drifting.
Skate It – As natural bugs hatch from the water they may struggle, wiggle, and flutter around erratically on the surface. If the trout are refusing a nicely drifted fly, sometimes it’s better to swing it downstream like a wet fly or soft hackle. This will make it appear to skate across the surface. Bonus points if you quickly-yet-gently wiggle your rod tip from side to side as it swings, giving your fly lots of natural looking movement as it goes across the surface.
Get out there and catch some trout on dry flies! It is one of the most fun ways to catch them. Not to mention the sense of accomplishment when you put all the pieces of the ecological puzzle together is so gratifying. Need help with your dry fly and bug id game?
Check out Dry Fly Class on 4/25!
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