Best spots on the Mississippi to catch em!
There are plenty spots to fish on the Mississippi, here are just the common ones. In the link, here is also the fishing reports.
Mississippi River - Pool 9
Pool 9 of the Upper Mississippi River extends 31.3 miles from Lock and Dam 9 in Lynxville, Wisconsin to Lock and Dam 8 near Genoa, Wisconsin. The Iowa border is just above New Albin, Iowa approximately six miles downstream of Lock and Dam 8. Pool 9 contains 35,169 acres of aquatic habitat. The upper and middle portions of the pool contain many islands, channels, and backwaters while the lower pool is a broad expanse of open water. Pool 9 encompasses most of the natural river floodplain and is bounded by limestone bluffs. The Upper Iowa River enters the Mississippi River in Pool 9 south of New Albin. The Iowa DNR’s Pool Slough Wildlife Management Area is located in Pool 9 east of New Albin. Pool 9 is also part of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge. Fish- Major species: bluegill, channel catfish, crappie, freshwater drum, largemouth bass, northern pike, sauger, smallmouth bass , walleye Minor species: flathead catfish, rock bass, white bass, yellow perch Mississippi River - Pool 10 Pool 10 of the Upper Mississippi River extends 32.8 miles from Lock and Dam 10 in Guttenberg to Lock and Dam 9 in Lynxville, Wisconsin. Pool 10 contains 20,896 acres of aquatic habitat. Pool 10 has islands, side channels, and backwaters throughout most of its length. Unlike many pools, the lower reach of Pool 10 is not an open expanse of water. Pool 10 encompasses most of the natural river floodplain and is bounded by limestone bluffs. Major tributaries that enter the Mississippi River in Pool 10 are the Yellow River in Iowa and the Wisconsin River in Wisconsin. The Iowa DNR’s Yellow River State Forest and Waukon Junction Wildlife Management Area border or are within Pool 10. Pool 10 is also part of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge. Fish- Major species: bluegill, channel catfish, crappie, freshwater drum, largemouth bass, northern pike, sauger, smallmouth bass , walleye Minor species: flathead catfish, rock bass, white bass, yellow perch Mississippi River - Pool 11 Pool 11 of the Upper Mississippi River extends 32.1 miles from Lock and Dam 11 in Dubuque to Lock and Dam 10 in Guttenberg. Pool 11 contains 19,875 acres of aquatic habitat. The upper and middle portions of the pool contain many islands, side channels, and backwaters while the lower pool is a broad expanse of open water. Pool 11 encompasses the majority of the natural river floodplain and is bounded by limestone bluffs. Major tributaries that enter the Mississippi River in Pool 11 are the Turkey and Little Maquoketa Rivers in Iowa and the Grant and Platte Rivers in Wisconsin. Pool 11 is also part of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge. Fish- Major species: bluegill, channel catfish, crappie, freshwater drum, largemouth bass, sauger, smallmouth bass, walleye, Minor species: flathead catfish, northern pike, white bass, yellow perch Mississippi River - Pool 12 Pool 12 of the Upper Mississippi River extends 26.3 miles from Lock and Dam 12 in Bellevue to Lock and Dam 11 in Dubuque. Pool 12 contains 12,349 acres of aquatic habitat. Pool 12 encompasses most of the natural river floodplain and is bounded by limestone bluffs for much of its length. Pool 12 has islands, side channels, and backwaters throughout most of its length. Unlike many pools, the lower reach of Pool 12 is not an open expanse of water. Pool 12 is also part of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge. Fish- Major species: bluegill, channel catfish, crappie, freshwater drum, largemouth bass, sauger, walleye, white bass Minor species: flathead catfish, northern pike, smallmouth bass, yellow perch Mississippi River - Pool 13 Pool 13 of the Upper Mississippi River extends 34.2 miles from Lock and Dam 13 near Clinton to Lock and Dam 12 in Bellevue. Pool 13 contains 28,117 acres of aquatic habitat. The upper and middle portions of the pool contain many islands, channels, and backwaters while the lower pool is a broad expanse of open water. Limestone bluffs line much of the shoreline in Pool 13. The Maquoketa River empties into the Mississippi River in Pool 13. The Iowa DNR’s Green Island Wildlife Management Area is located below the mouth of the Maquoketa River. Pool 13 is also part of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge. Fish- Major species: bluegill, channel catfish, crappie, freshwater drum, largemouth bass, sauger, walleye, white bass Minor species: flathead catfish, northern pike, paddlefish, smallmouth bass, yellow perch Mississippi River - Pool 14 Pool 14 extends 29.2 miles from Lock and Dam 14 in Le Claire to Lock and Dam 13 near Clinton. Industrial and urban development dominates the upper third of the pool. The middle portion of the pool contains many islands, side channels, and backwaters. The river downstream of Princeton is constricted by the Fulton-Rock Island gorge and lacks side channel or backwater habitats. The Wapsipinicon River empties into Pool 14. The Iowa DNR’s Princeton Wildlife Management Area is located downstream of the mouth of the Wapsipinicon River. The Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refugeextends downstream into Pool 14 to just upstream of Princeton, Iowa Fish- Major species: bluegill, channel catfish, crappie, freshwater drum, largemouth bass, sauger, walleye, white bass Minor species: flathead catfish, paddlefish, northern pike |
Mississippi River - Pool 15
Pool 15 of the Upper Mississippi River extends 10.4 miles from Lock and Dam 15 in Rock Island, IL to Lock and Dam 14 in Le Claire, Iowa. Pool 15 contains 3,627 acres of aquatic habitat. Located in the heart of the Quad Cities, industrial and urban development dominates the landscape of Pool 15. Pool 15 sits atop the former Rock Island rapids that were blasted and flooded to facilitate navigation and as such contains mostly main and side channel habitats with rocky substrates. Fish- Major species: channel catfish, freshwater drum, sauger, walleye, white bass Minor species: bluegill, crappie, flathead catfish, largemouth bass Mississippi River - Pool 16 Pool 16 of the Upper Mississippi River extends 25.7 miles from Lock and Dam 16 in Muscatine to Lock and Dam 15 in Rock Island, IL. Pool 16 contains 11,630 acres of aquatic habitat. Pool 16 has islands, side channels, and backwaters throughout its length. Unlike many pools, the lower reach of Pool 16 is not an open expanse of water. The Rock River enters the Mississippi River in upper Pool 16 at Rock Island, Illinois. Fish- Major species: bluegill, channel catfish, crappie, freshwater drum, largemouth bass, sauger, walleye Minor species: flathead catfish, smallmouth bass, white bass Mississippi River - Pool 17 Pool 17 of the Upper Mississippi River extends 20.1 miles from Lock and Dam 17 at New Boston, IL to Lock and Dam 16 in Muscatine. Pool 17 contains 8,137 acres of aquatic habitat. Pool 17 has islands, side channels, and backwaters throughout most of its length. Beginning in Pool 17 and extending downriver, extensive agricultural levies border the river cutting off much of its floodplain. This training of the river has caused loss and degradation of much of the rivers side channel and backwater habitats. The Iowa DNR’s Lake Odessa Wildlife Management Area is located in lower Pool 17. The Big Timber and Louisa Divisions of the Port Louisa National Wildlife Refuge are also located in Pool 17. Fish SpeciesMajor species: bluegill, channel catfish, crappie, freshwater drum, largemouth bass, sauger, walleye Minor species: flathead catfish, paddlefish, white bass Mississippi River - Pool 18 Pool 18 of the Upper Mississippi River extends 26.6 miles from Lock and Dam 18 in Gladstone, IL to Lock and Dam 17 in New Boston, IL. Pool 18 contains 11,746 acres of aquatic habitat. Pool 18 has islands, side channels, and backwaters. Most of the rivers floodplain in Pool 18 lies behind agricultural levies. This training of the river has caused loss and degradation of much of the rivers side channel and backwater habitats. The Iowa River enters the Mississippi River in upper Pool 18. The Iowa DNR’s Lake Odessa Wildlife Management Area is located in upper Pool 18 above the mouth of the Iowa River. The Keithsburg Division of the Port Louisa National Wildlife Refuge is also located in Pool 18 Fish- Major species: bluegill, channel catfish, crappie, freshwater drum, largemouth bass, sauger, walleye Minor species: flathead catfish, paddlefish, white bass Mississippi River - Pool 19 Pool 19 of the Upper Mississippi River extends 46.3 miles from Lock and Dam 19 in Keokuk to Lock and Dam 18 in Gladstone, IL. Pool 19 contains 30,466 acres of aquatic habitat. The upper roughly half of Pool 19 contains islands, side channels, and backwaters while the lower half is a broad expanse of open water. The upper half of Pool 19 is levied. This training of the river has caused loss and degradation of much of the rivers side channel and backwater habitats. The Skunk River enters the Mississippi River in Pool 19. The Iowa DNR’s Blackhawk Bottoms Wildlife Management Area is located in the floodplain of Pool 19. Fish- Major species: bluegill, channel catfish, freshwater drum, largemouth bass, sauger, walleye Minor species: flathead catfish, paddlefish, smallmouth bass, white bass |