Walleye Fishing

What’s your favorite time to go fishing? That is a question as a professional angler that I hear often. My answer: October. I love October for lots of reasons.

Many years ago, I started fishing a bottom bouncer weight with a plain snell and a nightcrawler for summer walleyes. The rig quickly became a stalwart in my guiding and walleye tournament arsenal. Over time, however, I discovered the rig also catches fish during the cooler water periods of spring and fall.

A common question is “what’s the best lure to throw to catch lots of fish of various species?” For me, the answer is easy. A bladed swim jig paired with a plastic trailer catches bass, northern pike, and walleyes. Plus, the combo is easy to fish.

Fall is a great time to be on the water for many reasons. Maybe the best reason is because the bite can be downright hot when the weather cools. Where to go to find the most fish in the fall? Finding green, living weeds is often a great starting point!

Where to go for the Midwest’s top multi-species fishing action? Many people who vacation across the Midwest want to go to locations that offer top fishing for a variety of fish species. With that in mind, here are some of the top multi-species fishing spots we have been to at Fishing the Midwest TV.

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.