HEARTLAND AREA FISHING GUIDE 2013 - Page 2
Fishing opener weather history
The cold and cloudy weather (and sometimes snowy) has
delayed the progress of spring
in Minnesota. Spring phenology is lagging about a week
and a half in the Twin Cities
and about five weeks behind
2012. Lake ice-out has also
been delayed. In 2012 the
entire state was ice free by
April 10. As of mid-April
this year, lakes in southern
Minnesota are losing their ice
from about one to two weeks
later than the median ice out
dates calculated since 1950.
There’s been ice on lakes in
northern Minnesota in some
past years for the fishing
opener. The most dramatic
was 1950 with lakes still iced
as far south as Osakis and
Mille Lacs. 1950 was the
latest ice out season for the
20th century and many of the
late ice out records for lakes
with long period of records
stem from 1950. In more
recent years there have been
some lakes father north with
ice on them for the fishing
opener. These years include:
1966, 1979, 1996, 2008, and
2009. With 2009, there were
just a couple lakes in the far
northeastern tip of Minnesota
still had ice on them.
Minnesota’s Fishing Opener
weather is typified by partly
cloudy to cloudy skies, morning temperatures in the low
40’s, and afternoon temperatures climbing to near 70.
Three out of four years are
free of measurable precipitation. A trace of snow has
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been reported in northern
Minnesota on at least five of
the last 64 fishing openers. On
at least four occasions, some
lakes were still frozen for
the opener. Generally there is
enough wind to be felt on the
face, maybe enough to ‘fly’ a
flag. Weather on Minnesota
fishing opener dates is highly
variable. Sixty-four years of
fishing opener weather data
are summarized here to offer
a glimpse of what is ‘typical’
and what is ‘extreme’.
Opening day temperatures
have started as low as 24
degrees at International Falls
(1996, 2004), with freezing
temperatures possible even
in Minneapolis (31 degrees
in 1979). On the warm side,
St. Cloud saw 92 degrees in
1987, Minneapolis reported
91 in 1987, and International
Falls reached 88 in 1977.
The average early morning
temperature varies from the
high 30s in the northeast
to the high 40s along the
southern border. The average
afternoon temperature generally ranges from the mid 60s
along the northern border, to
the low 70s in the extreme
south. Along the shore of
Lake Superior, highs are held
in the mid 50s.
Three-quarters of past
opening days have been free
of measurable precipitation.
Two-thirds of the fishing
openers have been free of
any precipitation, measurable
or not. On those days with
measurable rain, the amounts
averaged close to a half-inch
in the south and a quarter
inch in the north. No amounts
over one inch were recorded
at International Falls, while
Minneapolis experienced
1.15 in 1962 and 1.64 in 1965.
St. Cloud saw 1.03 inches in
2008. Snowfall has generally
has been limited to traces.
Traces of snow were officially recorded in 1963, 1993, and
2009 at International Falls,
and in 1968 at St. Cloud. A
tenth (.1) of an inch fell at
International Falls in 2000.
Statewide, less than one
year in five offers totally clear
skies. The average amount
of cloudiness lies near that
fuzzy boundary between
‘partly cloudy’ and ‘cloudy’,
but over half of the dates were
classified as cloudy.
Average daily wind speeds
generally range between 8
and 15 miles per hour. This
range can is described as
‘wind felt on face” to “wind
extends light flag” The predominant wind direction is
split fairly evenly between
blowing from the northwest,
south, and east.
Fog has been reported on
the fishing opener, occurring
about one year in ten in the
south, about one year in six
in the north. By early to mid
May, Minnesota is entering
its thunderstorm season. The
possibility of thunderstorms
is greatest in the south (about
one in seven), less in the north
(about one in eleven). The
weather should be monitored
carefully if the skies appear
threatening.
For May 11, 2012 at St.
Cloud, the sun will rise at
5:50 a.m.; sunset will come
at 8:36 p.m. For International
Falls, sunrise/sunset is 5:38
a.m. and 8:43 p.m. respectively. For Minneapolis, sunrise
will be 5:49 a.m. and sunset
at 8:31 p.m. Add one minute
for each 10 miles west of a
given location (at the same
latitude) to get a rough estimate of sunrise and sunset
times. Sunrise/sunset information can be obtained for
any community using a Web
site offered by the US Naval
Observatory.
Fishing opener 2012 was
sunny and mild with no
precipitation.
Did you
know:
trolling motor
A trolling motor is a propulsion system that is used
in place of a vessel’s primary
source of propulsion in slowmoving situations. If you need
to move a boat into a different
position easily and without
the noise and effort required
to fire up the main engines
of the vessel, a trolling motor
is your tool. It is customarily
used in fishing when an angler
needs to precisely maneuver
the boat to an exact location
without scaring off fish upon
arrival. There are different
types of trolling motors, including ones that are either
electric or gas-powered. Electric trolling motors are useful
in situations where gasolinepowered engines are prohibited, such as on lakes or in close
proximity to vacation and
swimming areas. The trolling
motor may be controlled by
a hand control, foot pedal or
even wireless remote on highend models. The motor will
either be affixed to the boat’s
stern or bow. When the primary engine is in operation,
the trolling motor is customarily lifted out of the water to
reduce drag.
Enjoy our beautiful
neck of the woods and
Good luck fishing!
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