Elusive Walleyes: Tips???

[AsianSensation89]

Hey Anglers,

Have always dreams of landing a few nice walleyes through the ice - enough to make a meal or something, but have never had any luck. Before I go out I study contours of the lake/river, trying to key down on certain areas that look like it may have potential (breaks, points, humps, flats, etc) but it seems like I always come out empty. Usually end up covering a lot of water with at least 30-40 holes only to always come out short. The seasons almost done and I was hoping some of you anglers could help provide me with some tips on how to catch them. Also, as positive as I am at the start of each outing, it's hard not to let your spirits go down after so many uneventful outings. What am I missing or doing wrong?

1. I fish mainly in the metro. I've tried Bayport a few times, no luck. Have also tried White Bear luck with only 3 walleyes total so far this season, that of which only 1 came out to be a good 18" (and only of what my friends caught while with me). Could it be that I am fishing the wrong lakes/areas where the population is too low to target 'eyes successfully? And if so, any recommendations on some places 40 mins or less outside of the Metro that may increase my walleye chances?

2. What depth of water can I usually find eyes in (morning, day, and evening/night)?

3. What is the best jigging style for walleyes? (e.g., lift up a 6" - 1 ft, drop, repeat... etc) And what's the best jigging technique to use while searching for them? How about when they are super finicky?

4. Recommended lures?

-As for the most part, I feel I've got all the right lures. Jigging raps, buckshot spoons, lindy flyer spoons, swed pimple, jigheads, glow jigs.....

5. What kind of technique do you usually start with while trying to locate these fish?

6. Prime Times

What are usually the time frames for this (sunrise/sunset)? And what about during the day? What's the best technique to catch them during the day when they are usually less aggressive?

Thanks for your time! Any kind of tip or help would be greatly appreciated.

[fiskyknut]

Hey man if you can get up to the LOTW some weekend get ahold of me and I'll either fish with you or point you to where you can drill 2 holes kick back and catch plenty of Walters.

Can't help you with that metro area as I have'nt been south of Red lake in 15 years!

[Will]

Ive fished white bear, bald eagle my whole life. I've caught my share of walleyes out of both. But if you want to increase your odds, head up to Mille lacs. The walleye population is very healthy now. Low light times are usually the best. I generally jig aggressively until I "mark" a fish, then kinda slow down and pull away a bit. Lindy rattling flyers tipped with minnow heads work well. Tuesday I was in 23 ft of water next to a drop off of sand/gravel and clams. Lowlight I like glow (especially red) during light I tend to switch to gold.

Will

[AsianSensation89]

Hey man if you can get up to the LOTW some weekend get ahold of me and I'll either fish with you or point you to where you can drill 2 holes kick back and catch plenty of Walters.

Can't help you with that metro area as I have'nt been south of Red lake in 15 years!

Sounds good! I'll definitely keep you in mind if I'm around that area. That lake is filled with walleyes so it would be hard to even try keeping them off the hook it seems. lol

[AsianSensation89]

Hum. Interesting. I guess since you've had your fair share of walleyes on Bald Eagle and WBL what would you recommend me to change or try doing to increase my odds? And what depths can I find the eyes during the morning, day, and evening/night? I don't expect any GPS coordinates but giving me and idea on what foot of water to work during those periods would help a lot.

And can you confidently say that those two lakes hold a good share of walleyes to be caught and I just have to find them? If that's the case I don't mind the extra effort looking for them. Just feeling a bit lost on what to do now with the little success I've had and looking for some reassurance to re-motivate me while getting back on the waters.

I'd love to try going up further north to fish but the time never really permits for me to go out for that long of an outing. If you feel I can manage taking eyes in these metro waters that would be wonderful info!

And what time of day do you find these two lakes most productive for eyes?

[Will]

Wbl and b.e. have a much shorter window of opportunity but still lowlight is best. I've had to work much harder to find them on these lakes. I used lake maps and gps to find what look like good walleye spots, humps, holes, inside turns, drop offs etc... Both lakes hold walleyes, I only suggested Mille lacs because it's fairly easy to find 'em and your odds are greatly increased. IMO

Will

[AsianSensation89]

Thanks! Much is appreciated. Maybe I'll see you on the water.

Guy with a dark blue killzone pop-up.

[Will]

Good luck, I'll be in the black flip over the "Winnie"

[BigDogRob]

Just don't drive onto BE since the news just said the lake was now closed to vehicles... Someone dumped an SUV and another went down just yards away from that one.

Yikes...

[Will]

I went to the access this morn and it's definatley blocked off. Also 3 auto recovery trucks were there and guys were drilling holes at the launch. They must be trying to strengthen it by flooding.

[tunrevir]

AS89, walleyes in the metro are a scarce resource and to get 1-3 fish on most nights your doing really well. Like others have mentioned you need to go to a lake that has a large walleye population in order to consistently ice eyes. Now that being said, there are spots all around the metro that hold decent populations of eyes but like others have said the bite window seems to be a fairly short timeframe. The St. Croix is a good bet for both saug dogs and eyes but you have to spend the time out there to find the fish. I do regular "prospecting trips" on my local lakes to find eyes and there is a fairly systematic system that I use. First, I look for the obvious spots like neck down areas, shallow flats near deeper water, humps and points. Next I look for the forage base of a particular lake(bait shops can often help you there) Do the eyes, like fatheads, shiners, small suckers, red tails or rainbows? Most of the metro lakes are stocked and that tends to make the fish more weed oriented and perch and small sunfish become the major base of forage. A small shiner or larger fathead will suffice on most lakes. Look to the weedlines, especially the deep edges where there is a nearby shallow sand or gravel flat. Once you know where the weedlines are in a lake poke around a bit but do it early enough and be setup and quieted down an hour before dark. I like to prospect areas using a tipup in shallower water near the weedline and work the deeper edges with a small jigging spoon tipped with a minnowhead to entice finicky fish. The bonus to this search method is you will pick up pike, large bluegills and crappies and may even stumble onto some decent perch. Don't overlook shallow sandy/gravel flats with a defined weedline and sometimes fishing right in the weeds can produce the best. I haven't ventured deeper then 19' at this point and have caught walleyes nearly every trip out this year. Hard to soft bottom transitions can and do hold fish as well and are usually found on the first hard break as the weedline or flat dumps into deeper water. Hope this helps!

Good luck on the water!

Tunrevir~

[AsianSensation89]

Thank you! That was very informative and I will definitely keep that in mind the next time I go out.

Btw, is there a certain depth where the weedline is usually more prevalent in lakes? And how do you determine the weedline where the weedline is without a camera? I have a vexilar and can sometimes try to determine where a weedline is depending on how solid of a bottom line I get, but is there a better procedure?

[pikerliker]

Fisky I sent you a PM.

Thanks

[mallardnwalleye]

Tunrevir covered it pretty well. ADJUST YOUR EXPECTATIONS Don't think your going to slay the eyes on metro lakes, it is everyones dream but these are naturally Pike, Bass and Panfish lakes. White Bear gets hit hard and the best guys out there definatly don't average 3 keepers a night. On a good night they may catch 1-3. They do and will often get skunked. Waconia and Tonka are better lakes. The best place for eyes if you have a boat is the Mississipi River. In the winter you will almost always catch one and can have 20-100 in a day/night. You always have a shot at a 30 inch fish especially after dark.

As for your questions you sound like you're heading in the right direction. Hard bottom areas with weeds and/or rocks nearby. 13-40 ft. find the Perch during the day. Eyes will be there from sunset into the night. Don't bother DAY fishing eyes in the winter on most lakes. Use a buck shot spoon or jigging rap drop it down agressivly jig at 5 ft. above bottom drop to 1-2 ft off bottom jiggle and hold still for 1 min. Look at the vex for fish comming in as it gets closer stay still or raise the bait. Good Luck and adjust your expectations, head north to Mille Lacs, LOW, Red or fish the river as it is a place you can really have a great deal of success on with the walleyes.

[AsianSensation89]

Thanks. Glad to know I'm headed the right direction.

One quick question though, what happens if I am finding perch pretty much everywhere on the lake? How will I know where to set up for the prime windows then?

[mallardnwalleye]

green weeds, hard bottom, rocks and deep water nearby this time of year. Any large shallow areas that connects to deep water with the above is the spot on the spot. It's all a waiting and numbers game, you put out your best show from sunset to an hour or so after sunset. If you have time after that it will be much slower but you have a chance at larger fish. Again don't expect to slay them though. If you catch one your doing better than most that are out there. If you want an uncrowded sleeper spot give Lake Nokomis a try Como Lake used to be okay as well or fish the river down by Minnehaha Falls at night-especially in a couple weeks. Good Luck!!

[Acemac]

fish the spot you are finding perch longer usally at some point the perch go away and the eyes come in. that is how it alwasy seem to go on tonka no perch = no eyes

[herefish101]

I fish white bear alot for walleyes, if you get one you had a good day/night, if you get two or three you've had an awesome day.

If you want to get better at catching eyes, you just need to put in alot of time, and keep track of your successes, it really helps to be able to look back and know what gave you seccess before.