"You gotta be right on the bottom to catch walleyes", some would claim. Yet, I do not always find this to be the case.
In fact, I find that they often hit better when you suspend your bait a few feet off the bottom. Would a walleye
only take bait fish if it was on the bottom?
I fish heavily in a weed infested lake here in New York where the only structure is weeds. Often I search the weed beds
for bluegills keeping my jig just above the weeds. I see many walleyes 3-4 feet off the bottom in the weed beds that
will come up to my jig. I have also caught many walleyes on my tip-downs
over weed beds. Some of them I have caught only 3-4 feet under the ice in 10-12 feet of water.
When out on the lake, you will see many fisherman who come prepared for anything. They will jig for bluegills over weeds
during the day and fish walleyes in the twilight hours. They catch a few gills over the weeds during the day, see a
handful of walleyes on their camera, and then move out to deeper water to target eyes. Why? So they can get out of the weeds
and fish near the bottom despite the fact there are walleyes right under them. They do not believe they can catch
walleyes suspended off the bottom.
This also leads to another misconception about Walleyes - they are a deep water fish. Not so. One of the most reliable
places I have to find walleyes is in 6 foot of water. They are always around there. Suspending minnows over the
weeds produces fish and often produces fish during the middle of the day.
I like keeping my minnows off the bottom at least 3-5 feet when fishing anything. I find it works better. I think it is
easier for fish to see the bait and I think it puts them in to fast thinking mode. Surely they want to get back
to the bottom. So, are you going to take it or not? You swam all the way up here for it. Make up your mind.
If a fish is going to hit then they are going to hit. But if it is a finnicky day then you may find them more apt
to take a bait that is up off the bottom a few feet.
I cannot emphasize enough the importance of using electronics when fishing. A lot of the old school guess work
is no longer guessing. When you put a vexilar or a camera down the hole then another world opens up. One of the
many things I have learned is not to always rely on the bottom as being a benchmark for successful catches.
Not only will fish come off the bottom to take bait but they also seem to be more aggressive if they do.
Many times you will see a fish come on to your vexilar and just sit there next to your jig. Raising the
bait will often make them hit. The further off the bottom a bottom dweller goes, the more likely they are
to hit in my book.
The next time you are hugging the bottom on what is turning out to a slow day, try raising a couple of your rigs
off the bottom 3-5 feet and see if that does not change the outcome. You might be surprised.
|
| |
|
Contributions to the Outdoor World
• Ice Fishing BLOG
• IceSkimmer.com
• EmpireHunting.com
• New York Hunting BLOG
My Business Links
• Consulting Business
• OutsideTheCode.com
• Business Blog
• Contact Me
|
