LA CROSSE, Wis. — Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series pro Jay Przekurat believes current levels will bear a determining impact on the Turtlebox Bassmaster Open at Upper Mississippi River presented by Battery Tender. It’s a tough time of year, but this habitat-rich fishery has a knack for cranking out good bags, so the Wisconsin native holds an optimistic outlook.
Competition days will be June 18-20 with daily takeoffs from Veterans Freedom Park at 6:30 a.m. CT and weigh-ins each day at the park at 2:30 p.m.
Wisconsin received record-breaking rainfall in April, but despite that spring soaker, precipitation in the La Crosse area has slowed considerably. Summer officially begins June 21, but daytime highs have already started punching into the upper 80s.
“We had one flood earlier in April, but ever since then, it’s gotten really warm up in the North Country and we have not had much rain,” Przekurat said. “The river’s low and we could definitely use some rain to get these fish out of the postspawn mood.
“When it’s low, they don’t really change what they do; it’s just really spread out. It’s harder to find bigger concentrations of fish when the water gets low because they don’t have those current places to group up in and they’re not as easy to target.”
The week prior to the event will bring strong rain chances and a slight cool down, but the long-range picture dries out and warms up for tournament week. Nevertheless, anglers have plenty of opportunities to track down fish transitioning from their postspawn to summer patterns.
Bryan Schmitt, who won the 2022 Bassmaster Elite at La Crosse, five years after topping an FLW Tour event at this fishery, said site selection will be critical in these tough conditions. His strategy would start by considering areas from which late spring fish would be coming.
“For June on the Mississippi River, I’m looking for areas where numbers of fish could have spawned, so areas blocked from the river current,” Schmitt said. “Then I’m looking for the vegetation that’s the farthest out from those spawning areas.
“I’m looking for clean water and the best habitat I can find. That means the best grass, the most grass.”
Przekurat adds this: “The key is finding the concentrations of fish. That’s the whole key to La Crosse every time: just figuring out what area of the river they’re using. Obviously, they’re gonna be going into their summertime stuff in the backwaters, but if you can intercept them on their way there, that’s the key to unlocking the potential of catching those 3- to 4-pounders.”
Tournament boundaries include Mississippi River pools 7, 8, and 9. The tournament runs out of Pool 8, which includes the massive backwaters of Lake Onalaska, but competition days will likely see anglers locking up and downriver. Throughout tournament waters, Schmitt expects what he calls “very traditional Mississippi River techniques.”
“You’re definitely going to see topwaters, frogs, poppers, buzzbaits, swim jigs and ChatterBaits,” he said. “You’ll also see light flipping with Texas-rigged baits and 1/4- to 3/8-ounce weights. If I were fishing, I would have a swim jig and frog tied on, and I’d cover as much water as I could.”
While smallmouth and largemouth swim these waters, Przekurat’s looking for the latter to dominate. Largemouth tend to bulk up quicker after the spring cycle, but tournament weigh-ins will likely see a few smallmouth.
“Guys are gonna catch some decent smallmouth, but they seem to run a little thin just because they’re pretty postspawn this time of year and it takes a while for them to fill back out,” Przekurat said. “Wing dams will be a good way to catch a good smallmouth this time of year if we get enough current. They’ll also start to feed on sand bars and sand drops in the backwaters, so topwaters are a good way to target them.
“The guy that figures out the largemouth is probably gonna be the guy that will run away with the tournament, or have a shot to win. This time of year, the largemouth weigh more than the smallmouth and they may be grouped up by the time the tournament starts.
From his experience, Przekurat believes anglers will need 15-16 pounds a day to make the Top 10 cut. He’s estimating that the winner will have 17 a day.
“On this fishery, 3-pounders are good and a Top 10 is never out of the question if you’re catching 3-pounders,” Przekurat said. “I think you’ll see maybe a 5-pounder or two, but it’s just that time of year when they’re not at their full potential.
“I think you’ll see a fair amount of 4-pound fish but to hit a 5-pounder, it’s gonna take a pretty special fish. He’s gonna have to be pretty fed up already for summer.”
Explore La Crosse is hosting this event.
