Category Archives: Walleye and Sauger

Where and How To Catch Early Ice Walleyes

Early Ice Walleyes

  • from The Fishing Wire

By Bob Jensen

Interest in fishing for walleyes is growing and diversifying.  One thing that remains the same when it comes to walleye fishing is that lakes in some regions are going to freeze over in the winter months.    The walleye enthusiasts that live in the areas that see ice get especially excited about fishing through early ice for walleyes.  When you’re sure that the ice is safe, here’s how you can catch walleyes early in the ice fishing season.

Start looking for early season ice walleyes in the same areas where you caught them late in the open water season.  If the walleyes were there in late open water, they’ll usually still be there, at least for a while.  Points, sunken islands, and the edges of flats will all produce.  

If you’re fishing shallow water, a quiet approach will be most productive.  Shallow water walleyes, and fish in general, can get spooked by too much noise or commotion overhead.  On the other hand, if you’re fishing deeper, say fifteen feet or more, you can move around without as much risk of spooking the walleyes.  However, it works best to pop a bunch of holes along and over the structure before you start fishing.  Get the noisy activity out of the way before you drop a line.

Different anglers have different ideas about walleye fishing through the ice.  Some like to sit on a spot and hope the walleyes come to them, others like to move around and try to find the fish.  Here’s a good rule-of-thumb:  Early in the season sit still or move a little.  Wait’em out.  As the season progresses and the ice gets thicker and the snow cover increases, the angler who moves around will get more action.  

A spoon of some sort is what many anglers use for early ice walleyes.  Actually spoons are a big part of a walleye angler’s arsenal the entire ice season. But spoons have different characteristics, and those characteristics appeal to walleyes in different ways.

Rattling spoons are very popular.  In stained water, the rattling noise helps fish find your bait.  In clear water, the rattle will attract fish from farther away.  The new Rattlin’ PT Spoon has a painted hook that adds to the flash.

A spoon’s design and material that it’s made of will affect how it falls.  Spoons like a Ribbon Leech Flutter Spoon, as the name suggests, has a distinct flutter as it slowly falls.  A Pinhead Spoon is built to fall faster with less flutter. Both have a very important role in fishing through the ice for walleyes. 

There’s no doubt that sonar will enable us to catch more fish.  There are times when a walleye will come in and look at your spoon but not eat it.  The sonar reveals this.  When the fish looks at your spoon but doesn’t eat it, it will often eat a minnow on a plain hook.  When you initially set up on a spot, drill two holes.  Work the spoon under one hole, put a minnow under a bobber down the other hole.  When the walleye comes in and looks at but doesn’t eat the spoon, they’ll often eat the minnow.  Vexilar makes several units that enable an angler to see an expanded area of the water column, and that is going to help us turn the lookers into biters.

Some very accomplished ice-anglers feel the early ice period is best for ice fishing.  Find out for yourself how good this early ice action for walleyes can be.

Use Early Ice Know-How To Catch North Dakota Perch and Walleye

EARLY ICE KNOW-HOW
from The Fishing Wire

Catch early ice fish while ice fishing

BEMIDJI, Minn. – North Dakota-based Northland Fishing Tackle pro staffer Chad Malloy is a big fan of numerous lakes in North Dakota, Jamestown Reservoir being one of his favorites, especially during early- to mid-ice. “They have excellent crappies, big perch, and lots of walleyes. It’s a reservoir system and there’s current that runs down the middle, so we’re careful when we go, always checking ice conditions. We also use GPS mapping on our phones and Humminbird units to make sure we’re off the main channel,” notes Malloy.

“We have one spot close to the access that we can walk to and it’s basically a point that comes out with a back eddy and a hole. The fish gather up there; I’m assuming the bait washes up. Last season we got there and tied on Bro Bug Spoons and it was lights out. My buddy Dave has the new Mega Live from Humminbird, which is unreal for watching the pods of fish come in. We used 1/16- and 1/8-ounce Bro Bug Spoons on a light panfish rod with a fluorocarbon leader,” remarks Malloy.

Malloy continues: “I’m a big proponent of the Bro Bug Spoon—it’s tapered and has bulging insect eyes as well as a split-ring that attaches a wide-gap treble hook that dangles the bait and promotes solid hookups. I fished the Sneeze color, which is mostly chartreuse with a little bit of orange on one side and green dot with black in the center. It looks like an insect that fish are feeding on, and resembles a small minnow, too.”

“The fish were skittish because of the thin ice. With Mega Live you can see fish move off when someone is walking around. We would then hunker down and the fish would come back. So, with early ice it’s important to be quiet and not move around a lot. And I think that having a lure that’s quiet is sometimes better—and sometimes the opposite is true—but on this day, we whacked them on the Bro Bug Spoon. All we needed was a fathead minnow head on the bait and would tease them up a little bit from the bottom and they’d just rip it. We caught a healthy mixture of walleyes and jumbo perch this way,” adds Malloy.

Later in the day the fish got more aggressive, so Malloy and partner Dave tied on the smallest size Northland Rippin’ Shad. A solid presentation was ripping the bait two or three times to get the rattle engaged, followed by lifting the bait above the fish. When that bite quit, the duo downsized to the smallest Bro Bug Spoon, added a few maggots, and were able to catch more perch.

Malloy also fishes Devils Lake every chance he gets. “On Devils the rattle spoons really shine. The Buck-Shot Rattle Spoon is by far the number one bait in the area. Tip it with a minnow head when you’re searching for walleyes and use the larger ones—at least a ¼-ounce. Perch will eat them, too. Another one of my favorite lures is the Buck-Shot Coffin Spoon. It marries the Buck-Shot Rattle Spoon with the Macho Minnow Spoon by having a brass rattle on a coffin-shaped body, so you have the rattle and the kicker tailfin. You’ve got a flipping and flashing action, the rattle, and the cut and taper of the spoon makes it dart to the side on the drop. To me, it’s the trifecta of actions in one spoon. It’s worked very, very well and I can see it becoming a top producer for walleyes and perch on Devils Lake—and just about any other body of water.”

On Devils Lake, sometimes the walleyes are aggressive, sometimes less aggressive, but for the most part, it’s an active bite. When they’re active, Malloy recommends Rippin’ Shad in all three sizes depending on the size of the fish that have come in.

“I’ve been using lipless crankbaits for walleyes for the past ten years or so. It all started on a trip to Lake Winnipeg. The technique, which was pretty much pioneered on Lake Winnipeg, has carried all over the country, too. Depending on how excited and aggressive the fish are helps you decide what size bait to use. You can catch a trophy-sized walleye on the smallest Rippin’ Shad as well as small ones on the big sizes. Fish are eating various bait and the size of the bait is bigger than you might imagine. I don’t think you can use too big of the lure when the walleyes are aggressive. But fishing a smaller size when they’re neutral will elicit more bites. There are times when smaller lures do produce more fish. It’s all trying to feel what the attitude of the walleyes are,” notes Malloy.

He continues: “Same thing for perch. On an outing to Devils Lake last winter, I was fishing a larger spoon. I could get them to chase it off the bottom, but I couldn’t get them to swallow it. So, I switched things up to a small tungsten Mud Bug. They are perfect for loading with waxies or maggots. The Mud Bug is a smaller, more dense target and those perch are able to suck in the bait easier. When they’re a bit more neutral, it’s easier to get them to hit a tungsten jig than a spoon.”

A tip Malloy is happy to share involves matching-the-hatch. “Our best catches come when we can find a small piece of structure by itself. We have one area where there is a sunken road and a culvert surrounded by old brush. Those brushy trees hold the freshwater shrimp (scuds), a main food source in the lake. Last year we had some excellent luck using the Northland Glo-Shot Fire Belly Spoons. The spoons have a hollow center that you can place a mini glow stick into, and one of my favorite colors for any Dakota lake is UV Pink Tiger. My theory is that pink color gives the illusion of the shrimp.”

ABOUT Northland® Fishing Tackle
In 1975, a young Northwoods fishing guide named John Peterson started pouring jigs and tying tackle for his clients in a small remote cabin in northern Minnesota. The lures were innovative, made with high quality components, and most importantly, were catching fish when no other baits were working! Word spread like wildfire, the phone started ringing… and the Northland Fishing Tackle® brand was in hot demand! For 40 years now, John and the Northland® team have been designing, testing and perfecting an exclusive line of products that catch fish like no other brand on the market today. Manufactured in the heart of Minnesota’s finest fishing waters, Northland® is one of the country’s leading producers of premium quality jigs, live bait rigs, spinnerbaits and spoons for crappies, bluegills, perch, walleyes, bass, trout, northern pike and muskies.

How To Catch FALL’S MOONLIT WALLEYES

nice fall nighttime walleye

Fall’s Moonlit Walleyes
from The Fishing Wire
The cooling waters of October draw large numbers of walleye into the shallows to feast on bountiful baitfish in advance of winter’s arrival. One of the most enjoyable and productive ways to target these toothy predators is by trolling shallow-running crankbaits under the light of the moon. These tips will help you put more moonlit walleye in the boat this season.

Pick your spots. Day in and day out, my favorite fall walleye trolling runs have some sort of weedy cover nearby. Lush summer weedbeds die back in the fall, making it easy for marauding walleye to slide into the weeds and pick off perch, shiners, and other baitfish trying to hide there. Focus on weed edges; frequently, the outside, deep weed edge is the most productive, but often, the inside edge can be even better as fishing pressure tends to be focused elsewhere. As long as there are some green weeds present, walleyes will be there too. As the water cools dramatically later in the fall, decaying weedbeds become less important than rocky shorelines and points.

Pick your baits. I choose trolling lures based on water temperature. Early in the fall – when water temps are in the 60s – high-action lures with a relatively compact profile are the most important tools in my toolbox. With perch serving as the primary shallow forage for walleyes wherever they swim, the LIVETARGET Yellow Perch Jerkbait is a great option for the start of trolling season. Choose the Metallic/Gloss finish for bright, moonlight nights and the Natural/Matte pattern for nights when clouds obscure the moon. If your lake has a significant panfish forage base – a common situation on many stocked walleye lakes – the shallow-diving LIVETARGET Sunfish Crankbait also deserves some time in the water. Later in the fall, include longer, suspending lures in your trolling spread. The shallow-diving LIVETARGET Rainbow Smelt Jerkbait has a provocative wobbling action that is perfect for cold water conditions and includes a deep-knocking rattle for extra attraction on moonless nights.

Create a complete tackle system. Night trolling for fall walleyes is a high-precision enterprise that demands dedicated trolling tackle and rigging. Begin with a 7’6” to 8’6” casting rod with Medium power and Moderate or Moderate Fast action. Graphite construction will ensure that you can read the lure’s action – and quickly detect weeds, mussel shells, or pine needles that foul hooks – with a quick glance at the rod tip. Add a medium-capacity line counter trolling reel filled with 20-pound-test TUF-LINE DOMIN8 braid. This ultra-thin diameter, eight-carrier braided line minimizes water resistance and allows lures to dive deeper on less line. Sensitive DOMIN8 braid also transmits lure action perfectly to the rod tip to make lure monitoring quick and easy. Add a Mustad Duo-Lock Snap, and your trolling tackle configuration is complete.

Watch your speed. Quiet propulsion in shallow water, either from a smooth EFI kicker motor or a powerful bow-mount electric trolling motor, is the key to moonlit walleye success. Since the water is cool – and getting colder by the day – it’s important to pull baits at a speed that correlates with the water’s temperature. Early in the fall, you can get away with trolling those Shad Raps at speeds close to 2 mph. However, trolling speeds should fall into the 1.6 to 1.8 mph range as soon as the water cools into the low 60s. Late in the season, when most anglers have winterized their boats and headed for their deer stands, productive trolling speeds are typically 1.4 mph or even less.

Fall is prime time for walleyes. Plug in those navigation lights, strap on your lifejacket and grab a thermos of hot coffee, because it’s time to chase walleyes under the light of the October moon!

About
Mustad has led the global hook market since 1877. Mustad’s mission is to create a comprehensive multi-brand company that leads the fishing tackle industry while focusing on innovation, employee and customer satisfaction, and sustainability. With the addition of TUF-Line and LIVETARGET, Mustad continues to solidify its position as a complete sports fishing brand family.

SLIP BOBBERS ARE SIMPLY EFFECTIVE FOR CATCHING FISH

Catch more fish using a simple slip bobber rig

Slip Bobbers Are Simply Effective

Mike Frisch

from The Fishing Wire

The slip-bobber method for presenting bait to fish has been around for several decades. Over time, however, this simple yet often effective method got pushed to the side by much of the diehard angling crowd (me included) in favor of what are viewed as more complex, higher order fishing presentations that often garner terms like “cutting edge” and “game changer” as descriptors.

All the while, the simple slip-bobber toiled on in relative obscurity, always amongst the best rigging set-ups for use with kids and beginners but too simple for use amongst at least some of fishing’s diehards. Well, that has changed in recent times as many high-dollar walleye derbies have been won by anglers employing slip-bobbers in at least part of their winning ways. Tournament wins and the fishing methods used to win them do turn heads and recent results seem to have the simple slip-bobber experiencing somewhat of a renaissance amongst today’s hardcore walleye anglers!

Tournament successes aside, this blog is a look at the basics of the slip-bobber rig for use by kids and others just getting started. In fact, the basics to be presented below form the backbone of the rod rigging curriculum presented at ZEBCO School of Fish classes taught to thousands of kids across the upper Midwest by myself and other angling educators the past ten-plus years. However, these basics may also serve as useful reminders to others with much more fishing experience who may need a refresher in slip-bobbers 101 to rejuvenate their fishing successes!

A slip bobber rig begins with the bobber stop (often made of string or rubber), which threads on the line to start the rigging. The stop is designed to be able to be slid up and down the line with this adjustability at the heart of the entire rig. More on that later.

Following the bobber stop, a small sliding bead is added, followed by a slip-bobber. The bead acts as a cushion between the stop and bobber to prevent the bobber from sliding over the stop. The bobber itself may be made of various design, with some allowing the line to slide the entire length of the bobber while others have “slotted” ends that allow the bobber to slide.

The line below the bobber eventually has a hook or jig tied on, usually baited with a leech, minnow, or portion of a nightcrawler. Often a split-shot weight or two are pinched on the line a foot or so above the hook or jig. The split-shots add weight to aid in casting and keep the bobber riding low in the water column to prevent it from being easily blown around by wind. A low riding bobber also increases fish hook-ups as a barely buoyant bobber easily slides under the water without spooking even the wariest of light-biting fish!

Now that we’re rigged, let’s look at some slip-bobber advantages.

First and foremost, the fishing depth the hook/jig fishes at can be adjusted by sliding the bobber stop. Moving the stop up the line/away from the jig or hook makes the rig fish deeper, while moving the stop closer to the hook/jig makes for shallower fishing. These adjustments can be made by the angler using his or her fingers to move the stop, so no line-cutting or retying is necessary.

Second, because the small bobber stop can be reeled right up the rod into the reel and the bobber itself slides down to either the split-shot weights or the jig, a short amount of line can be out from the rod tip when casting. A short line when casting makes for safer casting when kids are involved and is also very advantageous when deep waters are being fished.

Lastly, the slip-bobber rig excels at fish landing. Again, because the bobber stop can easily be retrieved right up through the rod’s guides onto the reel, the fish can be reeled close to the rod tip to allow for easier, more successful fish landing. More than one trophy fish has gotten away at the landing net when a traditional “pinch on” bobber kept the trophy of a lifetime just out of reach during the landing process. With a slip-bobber the fish can be reeled close to the rod tip and landed.

If landing more fish is your goal, regardless your fishing experience, a slip-bobber rig may need to be introduced or reintroduced into your angling arsenal. Following the tips just presented might, in fact, lead to you landing the fish of a lifetime this season, and on a slip-bobber!

As always, remember to include a youngster in your next outdoors adventure.

Mike Frisch hosts the popular Fishing the Midwest TV series. Visit www.fishingthemidwest.com to see all things Fishing the Midwest.

What Is Power Rigging for Walleyes and Why Should I Try It?


Tips from Tony Roach
from The Fishing Wire

Nearly fifty years after the inception of the modern live-bait rig—what’s today known simply as the ‘Roach Rig’—its sheer effectiveness still raises eyebrows and turns heads. Take a vigorously squirming minnow, nightcrawler or leech, and couple it with a hook, leader and sliding sinker and you’re fishing the deadliest walleye presentation of all time. Get a natural, lively bait to the bottom, and just start creeping your way along fruitful structure. Sooner or later, a walleye is going to eat. It’s just that simple.

Well, sort of. During the same fifty years, a number of nice little developments have transformed a serviceable bait delivery vehicle into a precision live-bait system. The walking sinker evolved into the Quick-Change Roach Sinker. The bottom bouncer transmogrified into the Northland Slip Bouncer. Live bait care tools, like those by Frabill, now ensure a healthy supply of critters. All the while, hooks, lines, and electronics have advanced almost beyond comprehension.

Which is where “power rigging” enters the equation. It’s old school rigging (light and easy) meets heavy metal bottom bouncing (head-banging fast), plus a dash of new wave tackle and tactics. Developed by ace guide Tony Roach, this hybrid live bait system is indeed, as he calls it, “Roach rigging on steroids.”

“Power rigging lets me maintain a natural live bait presentation, while triggering fish with a bit more speed,” states Roach. “Sort of like rip jigging, the presentation induces a reactionary response, while the live bait closes the deal. Early in the season, you’re moving slow with rigs and jigs, presenting bait to fish on a definite ‘feeding bite’; show ‘em a tempting morsel, keep it in front of their snouts, and they’re going to eat. Later on, as water warms, and the food supply expands, walleyes can turn a little tricky—a slight boost in speed is often all it takes to get fish to go.

“What I really like about the power program is that I can work quickly along a lengthy edge or over a vast flat, moving .9- to 1.2-mph,” he continues. “I can still put natural bait in front of them, but I can show my wares to a lot more active fish. What I also like is that the more boats there are working a spot slowly with rigs, the better. I can cruise right along and mow down the active biters.”From a lake-wide perspective, Roach’s power spots aren’t secrets. “This approach works on nearly any classic late summer and fall walleye location. Rock points, weed edges, transition areas, mudflats—anywhere you can drag a standard walking sinker and live bait, you can power rig,” he asserts.

“It’s really sort of a hybrid between slow-down rigging and dragging spinners on three-ways. I’ll start doing this pretty early in the summer—right after those initial insect hatches— and stick with it on and off through late summer into early fall. Once surface temps hit 60-degrees or so, it’s time to break out the power rigs. Then again in August and September, it really shines as water begins to cool a bit.“Those days when everyone is either creeping along with a standard rig or bottom bouncing at a good clip–especially on flat calm days–that’s when I’ll break out the power rigs.

”Roach’s power program employs a straight wire bottom bouncer, such as the Northland Slip Bouncer, coupled with a super long leader—up to 15-feet for coverless flats— tied with 8-pound test Berkley XT. At slower speeds he typically rigs a live ribbon leech, small shiner or chub on a single #6 or #4 hook. If Roach is pulling crawlers, it usually means he’s moving a bit faster, employing a dual hook harness. For added attraction, he occasionally adds a single fluorescent bead, or a single 00 flicker spinner. Often, too, especially with longer snells or near vegetation, he likes to add a Rainbow Float, 1 to 8-inches above the hook. “You can pin the float in place using a rubber Snubber Stop,” he asserts. Keeping the float well above the hook holds the entire leader off bottom, rather than just the bait itself.

While the hook, float and live bait power the presentation, the Slip-Bouncer drives. Unlike the standard R-bend bottom bouncers, Slip-Bouncers are composed of a single straight wire shaft with an open eyelet on top, which lets you feed line freely to biting fish—no resistance. The 5-inch wire “feeler” transmits bottom types like a stethoscope, while a slide-on weight system yields rapid adjustments to varying depths, speeds and currents. Another advantage: tickled over soft silt, mud or sand, these needle-like weights disturb very little bottom substrate, an occurrence that often spooks walleyes.

“Slip Bouncers are a gem—something every angler should add to their bag of rigging tricks,” Roach says.“Power rigging is ideal for inexperienced anglers and old pros alike. If I’ve got beginners in my boat, I can just set soft-tipped 8-1/2- foot trolling rods, like my Mr. Walleye SuperPros, in rod holders, and let them load up and set themselves. If we start missing fish, we simply hold rods and delay our hooksets. Drop the rod tip back toward a biting fish, feel for solid weight, and give a nice long sweep. Once you get things dialed in, you’ll hook every biter. It’s a pretty forgiving system.

“Really, power rigging can be the answer on any given summer day. Right in the middle of a classic ‘slow-down’ rigging bite, you can really put on a clinic. But the power program shines later on, too, when everyone else is moving faster, pulling standard spinner rigs. In both cases, the system can really make you a hero on those tougher flat calm day bites. Tell you what, any method that saves my hide on tough guide days is okay in my book.”

Livebait Spinner Rigs for Summer Walleyes


By Northland Pro Eric Brandriet
from The Fishing Wire

There are countless presentations that anglers use to catch walleyes throughout the open-water walleye season.  Angler strengths and confidence often steer their preference, and in South Dakota a livebait rig pulled behind a traditional bottom bouncer probably tops them all.  Very simple, yet effective livebait spinner rigs can entice the weariest of eyes!

After spawn concludes and water temps increase, walleyes transition off shorelines and shallow areas to weedlines and mid-lake structures.  While other presentations can be effective, spinner rigs become the summer norm allowing anglers to cover large areas of water with varying baits, at various speeds, often producing some of the best walleye angling of the year.

Even though spinner rigs are often seen as simple, they have not avoided evolution through the years.  As a young angler, I saw 2-3 hook harnesses with solid colored #3 Colorado Blades topping the options.  Today’s multi-colored blades on snells, with a variety of hook types, was the farthest from my dreams.

It has been no secret that many walleyes have succumbed to the Northland Tackle Butterfly Blades after their introduction last year.  Butterfly Blades brought spinner blades to an all new level due to their weight or lack of, color variations and sonic-like vibrations.   Endless versatility with the ability to troll at speeds as low as 0.25 mph, use hook variations of choice and catch everything from panfish to pike have made them my favorite. Northland Tackle has now introduced the NEW Butterfly Blade Float’n Harness and the Butterfly Wing-Nut Blade Rig.  I quickly realized after a couple of trolling passes that these just uncovered even more trolling options.

The Butterfly Blade Float’n Harness quickly proved very effective trolled over emerging weeds and rocky areas.  Its ability to avoid snags (weeds/rocks) but remain in the strike zone made this a favorite.   The 12 NEW colors in two different blade sizes will give us options complimenting forage and water/weather conditions.The Butterfly Wing-Nut Blade Rig without a doubt became my favorite enticing almost every species of fish.  The small blade produces a slightly more erratic action unmatched by any other blade.  This unmatched action coupled with three hook configurations (2-Hook, 1-Hook and Super Death) only add to versatility allowing this harness to be tipped with your choice of minnows, crawlers or leeches.

There are characteristics that allow these blades to stand alone and simply will put more fish in your boat.  Their composition (polycarbonate) allows less line sagging when trolled at slow speeds, on turns or while drifting.   The action and vibration is atypical of standard metal blades and this action and vibration attracts fish of all species.  The unique color blade options and two sizes of Float’n Harnesses allow matching the size profile preferred by fish on any given day.

I was born and raised in Northeastern South Dakota. Currently living on Big Stone Lake, also with a property on Lake Oahe, I’ve quickly realized I’m surrounded by “walleye” country! Spinner harnesses are a fishing backbone on many bodies of water as they can be fished easily by anglers of all ages with success, great for a guide like me.  The NEW Northland Tackle Butterfly Blade Float’n Harnesses and Butterfly Wing-Nut Blades have definitely earned space in my stowaways.

Fool Summer Walleyes with These Tips from Northland Fishing Tackle


Nearly 50 years after the inception of the modern live-bait rig—what’s today known simply as the ‘Roach Rig’—its sheer effectiveness still raises eyebrows and turns heads. Take a vigorously squirming minnow, nightcrawler or leech and couple it with a hook, leader and sliding sinker and you’re fishing the deadliest walleye presentation of all time. Get a natural, lively bait to the bottom, and just start creeping your way along fruitful structure. Sooner or later, a walleye is going to eat. It’s just that simple.

Well, sort of. During the same 50 years, a number of nice little developments have transformed a serviceable bait delivery vehicle into a precision live-bait system. The walking sinker evolved into the Quick-Change Roach Sinker. The bottom bouncer transmogrified into the Northland Slip Bouncer. Live bait care tools, like those by Frabill, now ensure a healthy supply of critters. All the while, hooks, lines, and electronics have advanced almost beyond comprehension.

Which is where “power rigging” enters the equation. It’s old school rigging (light and easy) meets heavy metal bottom bouncing (head-banging fast), plus a dash of new wave tackle and tactics. Developed by ace guide Tony Roach, this hybrid live bait system is indeed, as he calls it, “Roach rigging on steroids.”

“Power rigging lets me maintain a natural live bait presentation, while triggering fish with a bit more speed,” states Roach. “Sort of like rip jigging, the presentation induces a reactionary response, while the live bait closes the deal. Early in the season, you’re moving slow with rigs and jigs, presenting bait to fish on a definite ‘feeding bite’; show ‘em a tempting morsel, keep it in front of their snouts, and they’re going to eat. Later on, as water warms, and the food supply expands, walleyes can turn a little tricky—a slight boost in speed is often all it takes to get fish to go.

“What I really like about the power program is that I can work quickly along a lengthy edge or over a vast flat, moving .9- to 1.2-mph,” he continues. “I can still put natural bait in front of them, but I can show my wares to a lot more active fish. What I also like is that the more boats there are working a spot slowly with rigs, the better. I can cruise right along and mow down the active biters.”From a lake-wide perspective, Roach’s power spots aren’t secrets. “This approach works on nearly any classic late summer and fall walleye location. Rock points, weed edges, transition areas, mudflats—anywhere you can drag a standard walking sinker and live bait, you can power rig,” he asserts.“It’s really sort of a hybrid between slow-down rigging and dragging spinners on three-ways. I’ll start doing this pretty early in the summer—right after those initial insect hatches— and stick with it on and off through late summer into early fall. Once surface temps hit 60-degrees or so, it’s time to break out the power rigs. Then again in August and September, it really shines as water begins to cool a bit.“

Those days when everyone is either creeping along with a standard rig or bottom bouncing at a good clip–especially on flat calm days–that’s when I’ll break out the power rigs.”Roach’s power program employs a straight wire bottom bouncer, such as the Northland Slip Bouncer, coupled with a super long leader—up to 15-feet for coverless flats— tied with 8-pound test Berkley XT. At slower speeds he typically rigs a live ribbon leech, small shiner or chub on a single #6 or #4 hook. If Roach is pulling crawlers, it usually means he’s moving a bit faster, employing a dual hook harness. For added attraction, he occasionally adds a single fluorescent bead, or a single 00 flicker spinner. Often, too, especially with longer snells or near vegetation, he likes to add a Rainbow Float, 1 to 8-inches above the hook. “You can pin the float in place using a rubber Snubber Stop,” he asserts. Keeping the float well above the hook holds the entire leader off bottom, rather than just the bait itself.

While the hook, float and live bait power the presentation, the Slip-Bouncer drives. Unlike the standard R-bend bottom bouncers, Slip-Bouncers are composed of a single straight wire shaft with an open eyelet on top, which lets you feed line freely to biting fish—no resistance. The 5-inch wire “feeler” transmits bottom types like a stethoscope, while a slide-on weight system yields rapid adjustments to varying depths, speeds and currents. Another advantage: tickled over soft silt, mud or sand, these needle-like weights disturb very little bottom substrate, an occurrence that often spooks walleyes.

“Slip Bouncers are a gem—something every angler should add to their bag of rigging tricks,” Roach says.“Power rigging is ideal for inexperienced anglers and old pros alike. If I’ve got beginners in my boat, I can just set soft-tipped 8-1/2- foot trolling rods, like my Mr. Walleye SuperPros, in rod holders, and let them load up and set themselves. If we start missing fish, we simply hold rods and delay our hooksets. Drop the rod tip back toward a biting fish, feel for solid weight, and give a nice long sweep. Once you get things dialed in, you’ll hook every biter. It’s a pretty forgiving system.“Really, power rigging can be the answer on any given summer day. Right in the middle of a classic ‘slow-down’ rigging bite, you can really put on a clinic. But the power program shines later on, too, when everyone else is moving faster, pulling standard spinner rigs. In both cases, the system can really make you a hero on those tougher flat calm day bites. Tell you what, any method that saves my hide on tough guide days is okay in my book.”

How To Catch Walleye In the Weeds

WALLEYES IN THE WEEDS

from The Fishing Wire

Walleyes in the Weeds

Fishing aquatic vegetation is second nature to bass anglers, but the green stuff is just as crucial for walleye fishing. They use weedlines as travel routes and know that grass holds plenty of forage, making them the perfect place to search for their next meal.

A trio of Wisconsin guides, Josh Teigen, Troy Peterson, and Jeff Evans, search out weeds in the late spring and early summer months. They have different approaches to fishing them, but they all work and help them and their clients catch some of their biggest walleyes of the year.

Slip Bobbers on Weedlines

Iron River, Wisconsin’s, Jeff Evans guides clients on various lakes for walleye from the May opener through the entire fishing season. Many tactics work when targeting grass on inland lakes for Evans, but he says a slip bobber rig with a minnow or leech is hard to beat.

“After the walleye spawn, they recover in deep water and then head to the weeds,” says Evans. “As the new weed beds emerge, the walleye will follow the green, new growth and you can find these areas on your side imaging. They’ll follow the edge as new grass grows and later in the year it might be in 15 to 20-feet of water on clear lakes, but only 8 to 12-feet of water on more stained lakes.”

According to Evans, the bite typically lasts until the 4th of July, when many walleye switch gears to mud basins, reefs and points. “Some years, the bite can go all summer long and into the fall months,” he says. “My theory is that it has to do with water temperatures. If it gets into the 70s too early, they’ll get out deeper quicker, but they stick around if it’s a gradual rise.”

Evans likes to rig up his clients with a 7-foot medium-light spinning rod and a quality reel spooled with 30 lb Seaguar Smackdown Flash Green braid with a leader of 10 lb Gold Label fluorocarbon. On the business end, it’s generally a slip bobber set to the desired depth with a slip knot and a ¼-ounce egg sinker. He then rigs a barrel swivel with an 18-inch leader of Gold Label with either a #1 Octopus hook or 1/16-ounce jighead used to rig the leech or minnow.

“The medium-light rod is helpful because people tend to overset the hook with a slip bobber when they see it go down and you want a little flex,” he said. “I like the bobber set so that it barely floats in the water to detect light bites. Smackdown has been the perfect braided line because it holds the slip knot very well, where with some braids, it will slip. Gold Label has been excellent because it’s limp, strong, and invisible to walleye that are notoriously line shy.”

Teigen’s Ripping Approach

Josh Tiegen fishes many of the same waters as Evans, from inland lakes on the Eau Claire and Pike Lake chains to Chequamegon Bay on Lake Superior to the Hayward area lakes. He uses the same approach everywhere he goes for walleye in the weeds: rip the bait free from grass.

“I always tell my clients that if you are not getting grass on your bait once in a while, you are fishing it too fast or not around enough grass,” he says. “If you are getting grass on your bait every time, it’s moving too slowly. Ideally, it should be one out of every five casts that you come back with grass, the key is just to be ticking it and if you rip it free when you feel the grass, that’s where many of the bites occur.”

Teigen chooses hard jerkbaits, soft jerkbaits, and a spoon as his top weapons for walleye around vegetation.

“A 5-inch Kalin’s Jerk Minnow on a ¼-ounce darter head jig is great for fishing the weeds and the darter head does a good job coming through it,” says Teigen. “I also like a 3/8-ounce gold Acme Kastmaster spoon for fishing the edges and a Livingston Jerkmaster jerkbait for fishing along the edge or over top of the grass.”

For the Jerk Minnow and Kastmaster, he opts for a 7-foot medium-light spinning reel with a fast speed spinning reel, and for the jerkbait, he goes up to a medium-action rod. For all three, he fishes them with 20 lb Seaguar Smackdown Flash Green braid with a leader of 12 lb Gold Label.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=MnrgG6boLpk%3Ffeature%3Doembed%26wmode%3Dopaque

“The high visibility green color is the way to go because we are ripping these baits free from the grass and you’ll see your line jump even when you don’t feel the bite with your rod,” he says. “Using braid is important because you need to make hard pops with the rod to free the bait from grass and you need the zero stretch. I’ll use a 3 to 4-foot leader of Gold Label and as spooky as these walleye can be, the invisibility of the line makes a big difference in getting more bites.”

Fishing for walleye this way is one of Teigen’s favorites, starting at the end of May and into the summer months; plus, it’s a way to fool some of the biggest walleye in the lake.

“Many walleye guys troll and it’s too hard for them to fish around grass effectively because you are always hanging up, so not as many people are fishing for them this way,” he says. “Plus, it seems like my biggest walleyes of the year always come from the weeds. I’ve seen that the bigger ones gravitate there instead of the rock and mud.”

Dippin’ for Walleye

Early in the year, guide and tournament angler, Troy Peterson, breaks out specialized gear for a unique way to target walleye, dipping emerging grass with leeches and nightcrawlers on a 1/16 or 3/32-ounce jighead. He likes the leeches for the movement they create on the jighead and nightcrawlers for the added scent, but they are both solid choices.

“It’s all about finding the greenest weeds you can find, whether they are cane beds or rice paddies that have been brown all winter and are just starting to turn green as they grow again,” says Peterson. “The new sprouts have fresh oxygen and gather minnows and the walleye are there for them in really shallow water, mostly 3 to 5-feet of water. It starts in mid-May and usually goes until the first week of June. Then when the carp start spawning and causing a commotion and stirring bottom in June, it’s the same bite in the same places as the walleye are there to feed on stirred up crustaceans.”

Stealth is key with this approach and Peterson uses his bow-mount trolling motor to slowly move along the grass line, dipping his bait into the holes and edges of the new grass. The rod of choice used by “dippers” is generally over 10-feet long, with custom 12 and 14-foot medium-light spinning rods a common choice.

“Some even use cane poles because there is no casting; you simply drop the bait in and let it fall to the bottom before moving to the next one,” he says. “It’s a highly visual technique and you wait until your line starts to move when one gets it. We use 10 lb Seaguar Smackdown Flash Green braid with a leader of 6 or 8 lb Gold Label fluorocarbon because they both have tiny diameters and the bright green braid helps you detect bites.”

Peterson uses this approach throughout the Winnebago Chain of Lakes and says it’s usually the way to win all of the early season walleye derbies there. “It’s a big fish technique, but the trick is to stay stealthy,” he says. “That’s why we use the long rods to stay away from the fish. It’s better than using a slip bobber because that can spook fish this shallow.”

You can fish for walleyes in vegetation with many approaches, but it’s apparent that it’s the place to be early in the year as new growth is just starting after a long cold winter. These three methods for targeting them have all proven to be excellent for early season walleye in the weeds.

Seaguar Smackdown braid is available in high visibility Flash Green and low visibility Stealth Gray. It is available in 150-yards spools in sizes ranging from 10 to 65 lb test.

Coming Soon — 300 yard spools of Smackdown braid

Seaguar Gold Label fluorocarbon leader is available in twenty five-yard spools in 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 & 12 lb test for fresh water use, complementing the 15, 20, 25, 30, 40 , 50 , 60 and 80 lb. test leaders available for saltwater. Coming Soon — 50 yard spools of Gold Label

How and Where to Catch Midwest Walleyes

The walleye may be the Midwest’s  most popular, albeit often hard-to-catch, game fish. It is known for not only having great-tasting fillets, but also for growing big and providing anglers a fishing challenge.

Despite its reputation for being hard to catch, at certain times of the year walleyes can be taken by both boat and bank anglers with average skills.

Joe Rydell, a fisheries biologist for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s northwest district, said we are in the midst of one time to target walleyes. In April, Nebraska’s walleyes are spawning, or getting ready to, so the population becomes concentrated in shallow water.If you do not have success now, however, try it a little later.

“The best month to catch them in is probably going to be toward the end of May and into June, when these fish are coming off of spawning. They’ve had ample time to rest and, at that time of year, they’re really concentrating on feeding,” Rydell said.Especially for anglers seeking big walleyes, fall also can be good fishing for the species.As with most fish and game, knowing what those toothy walleyes want lends clues to when and where you will find them.

“They’re a predator fish. So, first of all, before you figure out what kind of habitat you’re going to search, you’ve got to figure out what they’re going to be eating in that water body,” Rydell said. “They’ll be hanging around that food source. In some lakes, that may entail a good rock bottom, or rock structures. In other lakes that are more vegetated, they may be along the weedline. In lakes that have a combination of both, it could be some woody debris or rock structures that are intermixed among those weed beds. At certain times of the year, even though they’re big fish, they may be concentrating on a bug hatch.

”Daryl Bauer, Game and Parks fisheries outreach manager, said a variety of artificial and live baits are effective.“Casting jigs and crankbaits, still-fishing or drifting live bait rigs, and trolling crankbaits or live-bait rigs can all be successful techniques for catching walleyes from Nebraska waters,” Bauer said. “However, I would tell you that more walleyes have been caught from Nebraska waters drifting or trolling a bottom-bouncer and live-bait rig of some type, usually a spinner and nightcrawler, than any other presentation.

”Anglers should consider the species’ name when choosing a time of day to fish. The walleye is so named for its pearlescent eye that features a reflective layer of pigment to seek prey in low light or murky water conditions.“Fishing more of the crepuscular period, your sunrise and sunset, are better times to catch them,” Rydell said. “Maybe even fishing in the dark a little bit.”Bauer said the time of day should dictate your approach.

“Walleye anglers spend so much time trying to finesse walleyes, often small walleyes, into nibbling on some live-bait presentation because they are fishing for relatively inactive fish during bright midday conditions,” he said. “If you fish during low-light periods, early and late in the day, after dark, cloudy, gloomy days, or when the wind blows, you will find an entirely different fish — a fish that is the apex, top-of-the-food-chain predator that they really are. They have a mouth full of sharp teeth for a reason, and during prime times they are mobile, agile and hostile.”In Nebraska, serious walleye anglers often look to the west and central parts of the state.

“The best habitats for walleyes are large bodies of water, large rivers, large natural lakes and large reservoirs,” Bauer said. “In Nebraska, that means our large reservoirs, primarily irrigation reservoirs in the central and western parts of the state, are our best walleye habitats. Walleyes are a cool-water fish, a predator, primarily an open-water predator. They thrive in those larger water bodies that have an abundance of open-water baitfish.”

Rydell said surveys show Winters Creek Lake on the North Platte National Wildlife Refuge near Scottsbluff to have the highest density of walleyes in Game and Parks’ northwestern district with a substantial population of fish between 17-19 inches. Nearby Lake Minatare is down a little from previous years, but still has a sizable population of 17- to 20-inch fish.Those seeking big walleyes in the west, Rydell said, should look to Whitney Reservoir in Dawes County and Merritt Reservoir near Valentine.Box Butte Reservoir, another Dawes County destination, is also on Rydell’s list of solid opportunities.“Box Butte is kind of coming on with a nice walleye population,” he said. “We have a year-class that, last year, was about 13½ inches that should be about 15 this year. With pike numbers down in that lake, and that year class coming on, it will be one that should produce some nice walleye fishing in the future.

”Nebraska’s walleye population gets considerable help from the Game and Parks’ fisheries staff, who collect eggs and milt from walleyes early in the year at Merritt Reservoir, Sherman Reservoir and sometimes Lake McConaughy. Fertilized eggs are taken to Nebraska State Fish Hatcheries, usually Calamus and North Platte, for hatching and rearing. It’s a much more effective approach to growing walleye populations than what happens naturally.

How long the fish stay in the hatchery depends on the habitat and other factors of their destination. They can be released as 4-day-old fry, fingerlings, or sometimes 8-inch advanced fingerlings.“Depending on the water body, all of those walleye stocking strategies have proven successful in Nebraska waters,” Bauer said. “In some waters fry stocking is successful and very inexpensive. In other waters fingerling stockings are most successful. The advanced fingerling stockings are most intensive and most expensive but have been relatively successful in smaller water bodies that are too small to be ideal walleye habitats. In those smaller water bodies the advanced fingerling stockings offer anglers an opportunity to catch a walleye or two from those waters once in a while.

The minimum requirement for walleyes in Nebraska’s lakes is 15 inches and only one over 22 may be kept. Special regulations exist at Merritt, Sherman, Calamus, Elwood, Harlan County and Branched Oak.A walleye of 28 inches or 8 pounds qualifies for a Nebraska Master Angler award. The state’s walleye record is a 16-pound, 2-ounce specimen caught at Lake McConaughy by Herbert Cutshall of Ogallala in 1971. Records indicate he caught it on a Storm ThinFin crankbait.Whatever the approach, as long as anglers are mindful of regulations and recommendations regarding the coronavirus issue, it may be time to target Nebraska’s big tasty, toothy predator fish of the dark.

From the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission

Secrets of the Ice Hunters – Hooking, Fighting and Landing Trophy Walleye

Secrets of the Ice Hunters

Frabill pro Dale Stroschein’s system of hooking, fighting and landing trophy walleyes and deep whitefish starts with the proper ice rods

from The Fishing Wire

Plano, IL – Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Famer, Dale Stroschein, is an analytical guy; he has to be. Through his Wacky Walleye Guide Service, Stroschein leads hundreds of ice anglers each year to thousands of walleyes and whitefish, perfecting basic principles through unending trial and error.

He calls it completing the process: the act of getting fish to strike, fighting them and ultimately leading them safely through the hole. This last step is where Stroschein often sees inexperienced anglers struggle, especially where large fish are involved.

“In open water fishing, we have the greatest device ever created to complete the process – the Frabill landing net,” says Stroschein, who has the big fish gene in his DNA.

While competing on the nation’s largest walleye circuits throughout the 1980’s, Stroschein earned a title no angler has ever duplicated; Big Fish Awards for the largest walleyes caught during competition on both the PWT and MWC tours. Indeed, Frabill landing nets helped Stroschein complete the process on both monster fish. “But, on ice, we don’t have that luxury,” he points out.

Following such open-water accolades, Stroschein took hold of yet another title – one of the walleye world’s greatest – when he landed the all-tackle ice fishing world record, a behemoth weighing thirteen and three-quarter pounds. The fish was brought to hand using the big fish techniques perfected over years of guiding clients on and around his home water of Green Bay, Wisconsin. Thankfully, this system is easily duplicated, and starts with the proper ice rod.

As a lead pro and designer on the Frabill ice team, Stroschein has developed a duo of rods perfectly suited to hooking, fighting and landing the giant walleyes and whitefish he and his clients pursue.

The core walleye stick in Stroschein’s arsenal is a 27″ medium action that fishes comfortably within an ice shelter. “You have to put forth an effort to become a good ice angler,” says Stroschein, who points to mobility as one of the most important elements to consistent success in tracking down and catching roaming schools of walleyes. “Today, you really have to go to the fish with a mobile shelter to be successful every day, and a shorter rod is more practical for fishing in a shelter.” Through countless hours of testing within the confines of one-man shanties, Stroschein settled on the 27″ length of his namesake Frabill Ice Hunter walleye rod to allow anglers to fully set the hook without contacting the shelter’s roof.

Even with the advent of superlines in ice fishing, Stroschein continues to rely on monofilament for the bulk of his walleye fishing, as the line simply generates more bites and better hook-ups. “The biggest thing is that you make a very aggressive hook set with a firm rod,” he adds. “Mono holds up to that initial stress very well, and plays well with the shorter, medium-power rod to get big fish up through the hole.”

The rules change when Stroschein turns to chasing whitefish, often in depths approaching 90 feet. Here, the experienced pro moves to Berkley Fireline with a fluorocarbon leader to presents tiny jigs with live bait trailers. Of course, the analytical Stroschein has worked with Frabill to design the ideal rod for this scenario, too.

“The 30″ Ice Hunter whitefish rod has a positive locking reel seat, which is important, but the biggest attribute to completing the system is the rod’s tip,” he says.

In order to detect light bites in deep water, Stroschein demanded a rod with a bright, blaze-orange coloration at its highly sensitive tip. “It’s like a spring bobber without the headaches,” he says. “A live bait angler can detect subtle bites on a pause in the jigging stroke.”

The medium-light power allows for smooth hook sets on delicate fish, but delivers enough backbone to drive the hook home in deep water when using superlines. And the rod’s sensitivity is unparalleled; it has to be. “Whitefish are one of the most difficult fish, ever, to catch,” Stroschein confirms. “The bite is nothing more than a slight change in pressure.”

On average, Stroschein’s Wacky Walleye guide service outfits a minimum of 25 anglers per day, every day of the ice fishing season around Door County, Wisconsin. All clients are outfitted with Frabill rods, enabling each to complete the system Dale Stroschein has worked over 30 years to develop: present, hook, fight, land, repeat.