Pro Fisherman Mark Courts had to adapt to nail giant clear water walleyes. by Ron Anlauf Things change, that’s the way it is. There usually isn’t much you can do about it either, except maybe adapt. When it comes to clear water walleye angling there have been plenty of changes, including water that has been getting clearer and clearer. Some of it has been good and due to more diligent efforts to clean up the environment like restricting agricultural runoff and limiting drainage from leaching septic tanks all of which can add to a lake’s fertility and produce more algae blooms and reduce visibility. The bad has been the spread of invasive species like zebra mussels which filter nutrients from water and can sterilize a system and limit the amount of forage available to plankton ... [ Pound this link... ]

by Matt Johnson  Modern day society continues to push the mentality of doing things “big” and bold. “Go big or go home” is no longer just a term used on the sports field, but also rather in the office, at the factory, or even in the classroom. We are wired to take things to the max and “push it to the limit.” But what about fishing? Or better yet, what about those first few weeks after ice-out when the panfish are still in “ice mode” trying to find their appetite? “Go big or go home” might send you off with the latter, but “go small or go home” could be the ticket to an amazing day on the water. So what does “ Go Small or Go Home ” mean exactly? For me, it means keeping you ice fishing tackle with you when you first hit the open water scene. When you sit back and think about it, ... [ Pound this link... ]

By Abe Smith Charter captains on the Great Lakes don’t waste much time testing every new lure that hits the market. They know the two or three best baits for trolling for walleyes and that’s that. Don’t even bring a new lure to the party. So, when a lure crashes in from nowhere to enter the ranks of elite Lake Erie walleye baits, the old timers get a little upset. Solid belief systems are shaken. Old confidences are questioned It happened last fall in the Central Basin. The Smithwick Perfect 10 Rogue counted coup on walleye and topped the performance of every hardbait competitor, old and new. “By season’s end a lot of captains had all but abandoned the traditional trolling lures they’ve used for years,” says angler Matt Hougan. Derby winner If Hougan gets exuberant over ... [ Pound this link... ]

by Garett Svir The ice season is coming to an end but don’t throw out the larva or put away the ice fishing jigs quite yet. You might find success using winter strategies for spring success. After ice out, crappies will start to make their way from the deep water haunts of winter to shallow black bottom bays. It’s not spawning time. These fish are searching for the buffet line. Black bottom bays soak up the heat of the sun like a sponge and hold bug hatches necessary to start the food chain. Crappies sneak in on warm days for a quick meal long before the spawn begins. While minnows are a great producer once water temperatures have warmed, ice out slabs require finesse presentations. I think the experiment stemmed from my unpreparedness for the coming season. Winter jig boxes and ... [ Pound this link... ]

It Isn't Always What You Think! Ventured onto the ice yesterday at the mouth of a bay on a large lake with the underwater camera. What an eye opener! For years we've heard how fish such as northerns chase away smaller panfish and even walleyes. And more amazing stuff yet! Well, I'm learning to keep a more open mind after this experience . . . I began viewing individual members of a loose school of walleyes at about 3pm, fish in the 3 to 5lb range. Finally, I enticed an average walleye to eat my nils master baby jiggershad and immediately more walleyes began moving in (to check out the commotion?). Within the next half hour I'd estimate that there were 15 to 20 walleyes poking around in about a 30 foot radius. Using my underwater camera I saw two northerns together also, one about ... [ Pound this link... ]

There can be surprisingly solid ice fishing, where there are no weeds, for panfish on lakes and reservoirs that lack classic weed growth. From an ice fishing perspective, good weeds in the wintertime often correlates with good water visibility. Poor water visibility, turbidity or exposure to strong winds might create panfish water that might offer at least shallow weed beds during the summer but by winter, most of the weed bed is down. There are also some reservoirs particularly in the Great Plains States built to provide irrigation and the drawdown prohibits good weed growth from ever developing. Many anglers mistakenly believe that most great panfish water has good aquatic vegetation. That is not the case and lakes that are devoid of any aquatic vegetation often require completely ... [ Pound this link... ]

An intense reaction bite for walleyes in shallow water on North Dakota's Devils Lake. The anglers aggressively work  rattelbaits and share some techniques on how to score walleyes with Clam Rattle Spoon. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tf_vSI-UR9c This episode was filmed last April. Last year was an extreme year for ice fishing with a lot of ice so most years, these patterns would be occurring in March on Devils Lake. ... [ Pound this link... ]

In recent years I have found myself going away from my tip-ups and more. It isn’t that they aren’t enjoyable, most of my favorite days on the ice have been spent running back and forth between the flags; it is simply that I find myself on the move frequently and when I am not drilling a ton of holes it usually because it is really cold and I am camped out in my fish house. However, with a little work combined with some new technology, tip-up fishing is no longer a sit and wait technique. Tip ups Tip-ups can be very effective in a run and gun setup, especially when the fish are on the move over shallow flats with little structure to hold them in one place. With this kind of setup, it is no longer a waiting game with your tip-ups, but you need to be ready to constantly move them to ... [ Pound this link... ]

Ice Fishing for Walleyes with Rattlebaits Get out ice fishing for walleyes with rattlebaits. Rattlebaits not only sink fast, they increase your coverage area exponentially by propelling waves of attraction hundreds of feet beyond the hole. by Nathan Shore They are children of the run-and-gun, born with the advent of trolling motors. They sink fast, require fast retrieves and vibrate with a tight, fast wiggle. Rattlebaits hum, rattle and roll to quickly cover water and call fish in with sound and vibration. When ice fishing for walleyes with rattlebaitst this quick sink-rate adds another productive use, as well. A few years back, walleye anglers rediscovered the effectiveness of lipless rattlebaits under the ice. Locked into one location over one hole at a time, the ability to ... [ Pound this link... ]

When you go out ice fishing perch there are tactics that can keep fish in an area longer. Especially those Jumbo Perch. Jason Mitchell shows you how it's done in his own backyard of Devils Lake ND. by Jason Mitchell When we look at catching jumbo perch through the ice, I dare say that we typically catch ninety percent of the fish in a ten percent window. Ice fishing perch on most bodies of water consists of drilling holes to get on fish and getting that one or two flurries that fills the pail. You can go from zero to hero in about twenty minutes when you finally strike pay dirt. The key to putting the smack down on fish is maximizing the opportunities. Being efficient, getting fish up the hole, getting the fish unhooked and getting that lure back down to the fish is paramount. ... [ Pound this link... ]