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Summertime is an excellent time to catch walleye. Yet, many believe warm weather signals that the best walleye fishing is finished until fall. This is not the case. This finicky fish has to eat and will continue feeding until the cool down. The secret is changing your tactics.
Walleye are structure-oriented fish that rely mainly on rocks. That is the old-wives tale we have been told in outdoor publications for many years. Yet modern fishermen have found that walleye can be opportunists. Yes, I will concede that walleye prefer rocks, but don’t ignore those big weed beds that are full of forage during warm weather.
My fishing buddy and fellow outdoor writer Andy Cline and I discovered this very fact at the insistence of a couple from Wisconsin who happened to be visiting Missouri. We had our doubts but decided to humor the old folks who claimed to know more than we did about walleye. Our fish sacks were loaded with big bluegill meaning that our mission was accomplished. Not only would we have a good fillet dinner, but the women in out lives would know that we were actually fishing.
We started trolling Shad Raps and Wiggle Warts behind the boat and along weed beds. We immediately moved too close and stopped to clean the weeds off our hooks. We started again and Cline quickly had a bite. The slow trolling speed and the hard striking fish almost yanked his rod and reel over board. He managed to grab the rod and set the hook. A deep bow suddenly set in his medium-action graphite rod.
The big fish dived deep and hard like a channel catfish or big bass. The fish made several deep sweeps back and forth, each time making his reel’s drag grumble. Soon a brownish-yellow fish came into view about 10 feet from the boat. I slipped the net under a six-pound walleye and bluegill fillets were quickly forgotten.
Later in the afternoon I got my chance. A strike on a jig tipped with minnow and fished slowly along the weed bed produced another savage walleye strike. I set the hook while hoping sharp teeth would not cut my line. The six-pounder made several deep runs before giving up to the net. Both fish looked identical in weight, length and color.
“Twins,” I surmised.
Since we have caught many warm-water walleye in depths from four to six feet depths along weed beds. The old couple from Wisconsin is fondly remembered on every trip.
The tops of submerged creek channels have proven to be another good warm-weather spot. A depth finder is required to find well-defined creek channel systems. This type of fishing without electronics is definitely hit or miss fishing and generally non-productive. These creek areas can be extremely productive both day and night.
Look for steep drop offs at the top of submerged creek channels. Most game fish species including walleye tend to hang out over the top of deep water close to shallow water where the most food is. This allows them a food source with their safety of deep water.
This shallow water theory may be a shock to fishermen, especially in the Midwest. But fishery biologists have found that large concentrations of walleye love staying close to the shallows for the same reason city people hate to move far from grocery stores. That is where the food is.
You will find walleye much deeper in clearwater lakes. Sensitive eyes drive the fish deeper from light. This is a good place to look for boulders or rock cracks on the bottom.
Many warm-weather walleye fishermen look for old submerged bridges. Walleye tend to suspend around the top of a bridge instead of the bottom where the old fishermen might look for rocks. This is especially true in a small lake where the thermo cline runs from 15 to 20 feet depths during hot weather. You won’t find many fish below this oxygen rich layer.
“There are various ways to fish shallow deep areas in the summertime,” said A.J. Pratt, fishery management biologist. “You can fish for walleye with a crank bait by casting along the creek channel or over a drop off. I prefer shad colors in these areas. I also use jugs with curly tails or regular marabou jig. Another productive method is tipping jigs with minnows or leaches. I prefer a 1/8 or 1/16 ounce jig.”
Pratt vertical jigs over deeper water when dropping a tipped jig. He drops the lure below where his depth finder shows walleye and lets the bait set a few minutes. Then he starts the bait back up, one reel turn at a time every 20 to 30 seconds. This extremely slow retrieve often triggers strikes from suspended fish. This is also a fine technique in the winter.
When oxygen conditions warrant, warm-weather walleye will suspend off of the bottom. Try suspending a jig directly over or around the fish. Occasionally a walleye will swim over and take the bait.
A night crawler harness rigged with night crawlers or leeches is productive when dragged around drop offs. Many drag this rigging over the top of suspended walleye. Make sure your leech or night crawler is alive. That extra motion often entices walleye to strike.
Islands are excellent walleye haunts that many fishermen ignore. Submerged or exposed islands can off a variety if structure that walleye relate to. For example, the average island will have drop offs, feeder creeks, flats, trees or stumps, rocks or boulders and vegetation. A large island can be fished in many ways and angles with crank baits and tipped jigs. The key is finding what the walleye wants and what works for you.
Many times walleye will lay up to 100 yards off an island. They move in to feed in the shallows and move back out. The key is fishing to discover what works and what the walleye want. It also helps for you to have confidence in your chosen lure.
Pratt suggests that fishermen use lures they have the most confidence in because walleye fishing requires a lot of confidence. His favorite is a jig tipped with minnow. Lighter jigs in shallow water are important. Heavier versions are used for deep suspended fish.
When jigs are not producing, move to faster moving deep water bait like crank baits with rattles. Rat-L-Traps are good for this type of fishing. When deeper lures are not producing, change to shallow diving lures like the jointed Rebel or Rapala minnow imitators. Most northern fishermen use the Rapala Shad Rap. This lure has a remarkable wobble that most game fish will strike.
Some of you may not have the luxury of depth finders or knowledge of a lake’s submerged creek system. This is a good reason to try trolling. Try mid-depth crank baits alongside weed beds where big walleye wait to ambush a passing bait fish. Shad Raps and Walley Divers are good bets to try. Remember to use the deeper diving lures over deeper water.
“Warm-weather walleye become extremely active at night around the mentioned areas, but some will move into shallow sand or gravel flats to feed,” Pratt said. “ Swimming beaches are also good if no swimmers are present. This is an excellent place to try crawfish imitations. You will likely catch some big bass while fishing these areas.”
Again, almost anyplace at night is a good bet for jigs tipped with minnows. Walleye have incredible eyesight in the dark. Their extremely big eyes pick up light where other species can not.
Wind during warm weather can be a plus to catching a limit of walleye. Turbid conditions stir up the water creating stained conditions. Walleye will become active throughout the day because of the lack of clear water that allows the sunlight to filter deep.
You can become an expert walleye fisherman by charting when and where you catch a fish. This chart will give you a game plan for future trips. For example, a page might read: Smithville Lake: Three walleye caught in the morning, two pounds each. All were in six-foot depths close to a pea gravel flat. The water temperature was 68 degrees and the air temperature is 75 degrees. Water conditions clear and calm. Their stomachs were full of crawfish. One bit on a reddish-brown Wiggle Wart and the other two hit a orange 1/16 marabou jig tipped with minnow. I sprayed crawfish scent on the Wart.
Warm-weather walleye fishing can be productive. The key is trying these techniques and make sure you listen to old couples from Wisconsin.
Summertime is an excellent time to catch walleye. Yet, many believe warm weather signals that the best walleye fishing is finished until fall. This is not the case. This finicky fish has to eat and will continue feeding until the cool down. The secret is changing your tactics.
Walleye are structure-oriented fish that rely mainly on rocks. That is the old-wives tale we have been told in outdoor publications for many years. Yet modern fishermen have found that walleye can be opportunists. Yes, I will concede that walleye prefer rocks, but don’t ignore those big weed beds that are full of forage during warm weather.
My fishing buddy and fellow outdoor writer Andy Cline and I discovered this very fact at the insistence of a couple from Wisconsin who happened to be visiting Missouri. We had our doubts but decided to humor the old folks who claimed to know more than we did about walleye. Our fish sacks were loaded with big bluegill meaning that our mission was accomplished. Not only would we have a good fillet dinner, but the women in out lives would know that we were actually fishing.
We started trolling Shad Raps and Wiggle Warts behind the boat and along weed beds. We immediately moved too close and stopped to clean the weeds off our hooks. We started again and Cline quickly had a bite. The slow trolling speed and the hard striking fish almost yanked his rod and reel over board. He managed to grab the rod and set the hook. A deep bow suddenly set in his medium-action graphite rod.
The big fish dived deep and hard like a channel catfish or big bass. The fish made several deep sweeps back and forth, each time making his reel’s drag grumble. Soon a brownish-yellow fish came into view about 10 feet from the boat. I slipped the net under a six-pound walleye and bluegill fillets were quickly forgotten.
Later in the afternoon I got my chance. A strike on a jig tipped with minnow and fished slowly along the weed bed produced another savage walleye strike. I set the hook while hoping sharp teeth would not cut my line. The six-pounder made several deep runs before giving up to the net. Both fish looked identical in weight, length and color.
“Twins,” I surmised.
Since we have caught many warm-water walleye in depths from four to six feet depths along weed beds. The old couple from Wisconsin is fondly remembered on every trip.
The tops of submerged creek channels have proven to be another good warm-weather spot. A depth finder is required to find well-defined creek channel systems. This type of fishing without electronics is definitely hit or miss fishing and generally non-productive. These creek areas can be extremely productive both day and night.
Look for steep drop offs at the top of submerged creek channels. Most game fish species including walleye tend to hang out over the top of deep water close to shallow water where the most food is. This allows them a food source with their safety of deep water.
This shallow water theory may be a shock to fishermen, especially in the Midwest. But fishery biologists have found that large concentrations of walleye love staying close to the shallows for the same reason city people hate to move far from grocery stores. That is where the food is.
You will find walleye much deeper in clearwater lakes. Sensitive eyes drive the fish deeper from light. This is a good place to look for boulders or rock cracks on the bottom.
Many warm-weather walleye fishermen look for old submerged bridges. Walleye tend to suspend around the top of a bridge instead of the bottom where the old fishermen might look for rocks. This is especially true in a small lake where the thermo cline runs from 15 to 20 feet depths during hot weather. You won’t find many fish below this oxygen rich layer.
“There are various ways to fish shallow deep areas in the summertime,” said A.J. Pratt, fishery management biologist. “You can fish for walleye with a crank bait by casting along the creek channel or over a drop off. I prefer shad colors in these areas. I also use jugs with curly tails or regular marabou jig. Another productive method is tipping jigs with minnows or leaches. I prefer a 1/8 or 1/16 ounce jig.”
Pratt vertical jigs over deeper water when dropping a tipped jig. He drops the lure below where his depth finder shows walleye and lets the bait set a few minutes. Then he starts the bait back up, one reel turn at a time every 20 to 30 seconds. This extremely slow retrieve often triggers strikes from suspended fish. This is also a fine technique in the winter.
When oxygen conditions warrant, warm-weather walleye will suspend off of the bottom. Try suspending a jig directly over or around the fish. Occasionally a walleye will swim over and take the bait.
A night crawler harness rigged with night crawlers or leeches is productive when dragged around drop offs. Many drag this rigging over the top of suspended walleye. Make sure your leech or night crawler is alive. That extra motion often entices walleye to strike.
Islands are excellent walleye haunts that many fishermen ignore. Submerged or exposed islands can off a variety if structure that walleye relate to. For example, the average island will have drop offs, feeder creeks, flats, trees or stumps, rocks or boulders and vegetation. A large island can be fished in many ways and angles with crank baits and tipped jigs. The key is finding what the walleye wants and what works for you.
Many times walleye will lay up to 100 yards off an island. They move in to feed in the shallows and move back out. The key is fishing to discover what works and what the walleye want. It also helps for you to have confidence in your chosen lure.
Pratt suggests that fishermen use lures they have the most confidence in because walleye fishing requires a lot of confidence. His favorite is a jig tipped with minnow. Lighter jigs in shallow water are important. Heavier versions are used for deep suspended fish.
When jigs are not producing, move to faster moving deep water bait like crank baits with rattles. Rat-L-Traps are good for this type of fishing. When deeper lures are not producing, change to shallow diving lures like the jointed Rebel or Rapala minnow imitators. Most northern fishermen use the Rapala Shad Rap. This lure has a remarkable wobble that most game fish will strike.
Some of you may not have the luxury of depth finders or knowledge of a lake’s submerged creek system. This is a good reason to try trolling. Try mid-depth crank baits alongside weed beds where big walleye wait to ambush a passing bait fish. Shad Raps and Walley Divers are good bets to try. Remember to use the deeper diving lures over deeper water.
“Warm-weather walleye become extremely active at night around the mentioned areas, but some will move into shallow sand or gravel flats to feed,” Pratt said. “ Swimming beaches are also good if no swimmers are present. This is an excellent place to try crawfish imitations. You will likely catch some big bass while fishing these areas.”
Again, almost anyplace at night is a good bet for jigs tipped with minnows. Walleye have incredible eyesight in the dark. Their extremely big eyes pick up light where other species can not.
Wind during warm weather can be a plus to catching a limit of walleye. Turbid conditions stir up the water creating stained conditions. Walleye will become active throughout the day because of the lack of clear water that allows the sunlight to filter deep.
You can become an expert walleye fisherman by charting when and where you catch a fish. This chart will give you a game plan for future trips. For example, a page might read: Smithville Lake: Three walleye caught in the morning, two pounds each. All were in six-foot depths close to a pea gravel flat. The water temperature was 68 degrees and the air temperature is 75 degrees. Water conditions clear and calm. Their stomachs were full of crawfish. One bit on a reddish-brown Wiggle Wart and the other two hit a orange 1/16 marabou jig tipped with minnow. I sprayed crawfish scent on the Wart.
Warm-weather walleye fishing can be productive. The key is trying these techniques and make sure you listen to old couples from Wisconsin.
