NEWS

Do “old school” walleye fishing techniques still work in the modern FFS era?

When it comes to fishing, there’s always a new lure or technique to try. For the past couple of years, I’ve been reading about “urchin” baits. Urchins are multi-tentacled baits that look odd, but a friend told me that he had been using an urchin bait called a Tumbleweed with outstanding success.

During my early career fishing walleyes, I was taught a couple “truths” regarding fish location. First, walleyes were bottom-orientated fish so it’s best to fish near bottom. Second, walleyes are often found along structural elements like points, turns, or weedlines, so those are the “go to” areas.

Recently, I was on a fishing outing where an angling partner did something minor that led to a big catch. We were fishing bass by casting various moving baits over the tops of emerging weeds. We had caught several fish when I “missed” a couple fish in a row. When my partner missed a fish, he quickly took out a hook sharpener and touched up the treble hooks on his crankbait and hooked his next bite.

Most anglers, this one included, dream of catching trophy-sized fish. Some believe that big fish are the result of luck. Good fortune can play a part in fishing successes at times. Anglers can, however, do several things to tilt the odds of landing big fish in our favor.