Musky Shop Northwoods Fishing Report: Early June 2026

James Stewart June 05, 2026

We hope all of you are finding time to go fishing and are catching some nice fish, especially muskies!

Fishing in the Minocqua, Wisconsin area has been good. We are finally experiencing some warm air temperatures in the 80s, which means our water temperatures have warmed up, and most species have become quite active.

Minocqua Panfish & Crappie Fishing: Shallow Action Heating Up

Crappies and panfish have moved shallow, and the bite has been excellent. For live bait, worms, Beavertails, nightcrawlers, and crappie minnows are all working great.

If you prefer artificial presentations, there are several fantastic options for catching crappies and panfish right now. We highly recommend trying out the following:

Northwoods Smallmouth Bass: Spawn Patterns & Best Baits

Smallmouth bass are on the beds, and we have reports of anglers catching a bunch of super nice smallies. Using live bait is a solid option; XL fatheads, redtails, and nightcrawlers are all effective. However, artificial presentations are proving to be a bit more productive right now.

Some great baits to consider adding to your tackle box include:

Wisconsin Walleye Fishing Report: 70-Fish Days on Deep Structure

The walleye bite has been fantastic. One of our guides, Al "Frosty" Frost, went out with a client a couple of days ago and boated around 70 walleyes, with almost all of them measuring between 17 to 21 inches! They were fishing a deep, clear water lake in the 12-foot range using XL fatheads.

Nightcrawlers and leeches are working too, but on that particular day, the walleyes strictly wanted minnows. As you know, their preferences change from day to day, so it’s always smart to be prepared with plenty of live bait options. Redtails and walleye suckers are excellent choices as well. If you are casting or trolling structure, you can't go wrong with these classics:

Post-Spawn Musky Tactics: Where to Find Transitioning Fish

Musky fishing has also been good. The fish are currently scattered as many enter the post-spawn phase. During this transition, a great place to look for muskies is over soft mud bottoms. They tend to sit out there recouping from the spawn. Plus, we will soon see summer bug hatches; many species of panfish and baitfish head out to eat the hatch, and the muskies follow the food source.

Right now, you can find them in a few distinct patterns: some are shallow in heavy cover, some are lurking near weed and structural edges, and others are out off the edge over those soft bottom areas. Try to have the correct tools in your boat to cover the water column from the shoreline all the way out to the 20-to-25-foot range.

Here are some excellent options to help you cover all depths:

We hope you have great fishing the next time you hit the water. Please let us know if we can be of service to you—it is always our pleasure to help you hook into your next trophy.

Join Us for the 7th Annual Musky Shop Summer Bash!

Please join us on Saturday, July 18th for our Summer Bash! We will have a bunch of top-tier industry vendors here under a huge tent, along with our biggest sale of the year. Stop by for a ton of free raffle prizes, brats, coffee, and soft drinks. We would love to have you all join us for a super fun day celebrating the sport!

Good Fishing and God Bless,

Jim Stewart