Four miles north of Knoxville, Red Rock covers 19,000 acres, primarily in Marion County. Several modern boat ramps provide good access to the lake. For additional information, contact the IDNR’s Boone Fish Management station at (515) 432-2835 or the Elk Rock State Park at (641) 842-6008.

BIG CREEK LAKE
At Big Creek Lake, another of Dodd’s star walleye waters, good numbers and sizes are keeping pace with each other.

The places to hit in the spring are the submerged humps and the old roadbed, Dodd reported. Reeling a small spoon over the humps can coax out some nice fish. The old submerged roadbed is another hotspot that holds nice walleyes -- and a lot of them.

Unlike other central Iowa waters, Big Creek’s shad population suffered a major die-off several years ago and never recovered. Walleyes zero in on young-of-the-year bluegills, shiners and anything else small enough to swallow. A 10-inch walleye has no problem eating a small panfish, and this affects how shallow the predators are going to have to come to put on the feedbag.

Drift-fishing over cover can be productive with a slip-bobber and a minnow or an earthworm. Tying on a small jig with a plastic trailer and dropping it over cover will also yield results.

Big Creek Lake covers 883 acres two miles north of Polk City in Polk County. For more information, contact the Boone Fish Management Unit at (515) 432-2823.