Fishing for Walleyes

[rchaze60]

i am going to be fishing for eyes this year ...... never have done this so any tips on tackle and such would be helpful  :: :: ::


  Randy

[JohnWester]

where are you going to be?  depends on what type of fishing you are going to do...
You can go with the standard bottom bouncing of a jig and a minnow.  just get some 3/8 oz. jigs or maybe 1/2 for rivers... different colors... and just jig with a fathead or shiner.  you can go with a lindy rig, where you attach a floating rig or a crawler rig to a snap swivel with a weight on it, this setup is also used when trolling or drifting.
or you can't go wrong with a plain hook and a minnow or leech under a bobber about 1 foot off the bottom oversome rocks.  find some structure where it comes up a few feet and the eyes will most likely come up on top on shallow rocks(7-10 feet) at night to feed.  this is where you set up with slip bobbers and a hook, right on the edge of the structure.  check out our articles on more slip bobber fishing tips.
also, it doesn't hurt to go with a guide once to learn the techniques and get tips.  then you'll be able to do it yourself.

[Spinach]

Take a ride out to JR's Tackle in Brooklyn Park and talk to Joel, he'll set you up with everything you need. Jigs, line, snells, slip bobbers, sinkers, swivels, snaphooks, and a few other must haves.

If that is too far, stop over at my house and I'll take you up to Gander Mountain and get you set up.

[rchaze60]

ok i got some lindy rigs and a 7ft medium action rod with 12# line on it is that ok to use ?

[JohnWester]

where are you planning on going?  those are fine.

chat?

[Spinach]

Thats a perfect rod for pulling Lindys or cranks.

[buckshot]

Good rod....line might be a tad heavy though especially if you are fishing clear water.

Line color and diameter can make a huge difference when fishing clear bodies of water like Mille Lacs. 
On my walleye spinning rods I rarely use anything heavier than 6 pound test unless I am river fishing then I normally use powerpro.

Presentation really depends on where you are fishing. 
Early season I will most likely be jigging shiners/fat heads.  In a lake 1/4 ounce should be plenty heavy and if the fish are picky you might want to down size that to 1/8 ounce jig.  Round head or stand up jigs....both work well.
Lindy rigging with a minnow or leech should work well also.
JB

[rchaze60]

so what you are saying is 12# might be to heavy? and what color should i use

[Mayfly]

Let me suggest my favorite line.


Berkley Trilene Sensation

This comes in "Clear" and like above I suggest 6lb.

Growing up fishing a lot of different lake we had two techniques that were almost fool proof.

Either find midlake structure, preferably a small flat or a hump that comes up from deep water or a weed line around the lake that has a nice transition from shallow to deep. Set up in either of these areas in the evening or very early morning with a slip bobber and leech/minnow. Make sure you are fishing at most 18 inches off the bottom. You may find walleyes blindly this way. It is an easy way to catch fish on lakes you don't know well. Problem with this would be catching other fish. Ask "joe" ( a member on this site). Last year we did this and we caught walleyes but the problem we had was that the sunfish would nail it before we got down to the walleyes. It seemed as if we got down to where the eyes where we would catch a fish but these little suckers would clean us out before we had a chance. If this is the problem I would suggest switching to larger minnows or jumbo leeches and using a little more weight so you get to where you need to be faster.

Other than that I would find deep lake structure and pull lindy rigs. Try to find sand/rock/mud or else you will be dealing with weeds all day pulling lindy's.


Hope this helps.

[Mayfly]

One thing about those weed lines. I would try setting up right on the edge.

[Mayfly]

Another thing you could do is just pull lindys outside of the weed line as well if you don't want to sit and watch your bobber.....so many things to try!

Don't get stuck using just 1 or 2 techniques and most importantly don't listen to people too much. Get the basics down and then do what you think may work. If you think it may catch fish then try it. Too many people follow the rules. That isn't a bad thing but there is so much out there to try and different techniques catch different fish. Mille Lacs is the worst for this.


Most importantly have FUN and don't put pressure on yourself to catch fish!!!!!!

[rchaze60]

Thanks Tim and BFG  for the info