515 Crew

so im daydreaming.
spots around/in dsm?

Big time fisherman here.

Big Creek is hands down the best "public" fishery in the Des Moines area if you ask me.

-"Lost Lakes" at Big Creek in the Spring (pre-Spawn) for big and plentiful crappies. Harder to reach without a boat, but it is worth spending the money to rent a boat from the marina for the day and go here while the Spring bite is hot.

-Shore fish the finger jettys near the entrance of Big Creek in the Spring or Fall for nice Walleyes. If you have a boat, drift the old road bed that runs down the middle channel of the lake for big Walleyes in the Summer. Sometimes you'll even catch a Muskie.

-Huge channel cats can be caught from shore up north at Big Creek (just north of the Marina area) where it starts to shallow and flatten out in the Summer months.

Saylorville

-So massive it's really hard to fish without a boat, but if you park at the boat ramp near the Mile Long Bridge and walk southwest along the shore for a ways, you'll find some nice inlets that hold huge crappies in the Spring that can be easily caught from shore.

-Best spot to from shore is below the spillway from Big Creek into Saylorville. You'll usually have to fight the crowds here, but if you get a good spot, it is worth it. Walleye, Crappie and Wipers are all plentiful down there most times of the year.

River

-If you know where to fish, the river(s) in and around Des Moines might be the best places to fish, but I wouldn't eat anything out of them.

-For massive flathead catfish (I've seen 80lbers caught with my own eyes), I like the North Raccoon River. Specifically, below the train tressle/bridge in Booneville, which is just south of Waukee. Mid to Late summer with heavy gear and a hook and line tipped with a creek chub.

-It is a bit of a drive, but the dam on the river over in Linden (far western Dallas Co) holds huge walleyes (8lbs+) and tons and tons of crappies in the Spring. Also good for Northern Pike in the summer.

-Downtown where the Raccoon and Des Moines rivers converge is a good spot to fish for walleye and also catfish. 5th St Dam if you want to fight the crowds...but you can pull big fish out of there.

Summerset State Park (near Norwalk/Carlisle)

-This was an old coal mining area, so this lake is SUPER deep and clear. Pretty much every fish you can imagine here. I've caught massive bass out of this place years ago (before it was a State park). They stock this with Rainbow Trout too, but you need a "stamp" to keep them if you catch any.

Dale Moffitt

-Haven't fished this for years, but it used to be really good for Largemouth Bass, which I'm not a huge fan of catching anyway.

Farm/Private Ponds

-Probably your best bet for massive Bass. These are small and usually hold a lot of bluegill, which are a great source of food to bulk up the size of the Bass.

-Walk into the lake/pond at Country Club in West Des Moines and act like you live there. It is worth trying it until someone questions you and kicks you out, as there are big bass in there. Same with Southfork near Waukee.

-Otherwise, go drive in some of the rural areas and just stop and ask a farmer if you can fish their pond. A lot of times they'll say yes as long as you promise to clean up after yourself. There are great farm ponds south of Des Moines near Carlisle. I grew up fishing farm ponds around Waukee. As me if you want to know some good ones out that way.

that reminds me. im looking for a row boat as well.

and thanks

I guess I should mention the Lake at Raccoon River Park in West Des Moines (off of Grand) too. These are old gravel pits from the 60's that were recently turned into a city park. Nice lake and pretty easy to fish from shore all around. I've caught some huge Wipers out of here and also nice catfish. Supposedly there are big Walleye in there too, but I haven't caught any. Nice largemouth.

I grew up fishing those pits (raccoon river park) and so did my dad, there are very few, if any walleyes in there. The only way they would've gotten in is out of the river, and that stretch of the coon holds very few. Also, those were white bass, no wipers in Blue Heron (RR park). The crappie fishing there was dynamite before the city came in and buried all of the structure. There are still a lot of decent ones in there. If you wanna get walleyes, hit the rivers between now and about April, just below lowheads and spillways. I've been doing some guiding here and there, and am huge into ice fishing. If anyone wants to get on some hardwater panfish or walleyes, I'd be happy to go with you (for free, of course). The stretch of the Iowa River that I live on is killer walleye fishing all year round. Here's a pic of one I caught last march below a rock dam right by the house. She was full of eggs, 26.5 inches long and 17 inches around, just under ten lbs. She went back to make babies, and a replica is in the works. We get a lot of big females in the spring, and limits of eaters any day you try in the fall.



If anyone wants any tips on any of the above mentioned lakes, PM me and I'll tell ya what I know (a lot). I may drag my boat down that way come spring, and will take anyone out that wants to go.

Sorry for the extremely bad pic, I didn't want to kill her, so only had time for a cell phone pic, I'll post pics of the mount when it's done

i think i'll take you up on a fishing trip sometime this spring joey. i've never gone after really large fish. i've always been into trout fishing with artificial bait.

Damn, Joey....that's a helluva Walleye.

Probably my heaviest to date. I've caught some an inch and a half or so longer through the ice at Mille Lacs, but none that heavy.