Why do they suspend?

[pikerliker]

I've been hearing a lot of reports from Lake of the Woods this year about fisherman catching smaller/average walleye's sauger on or near the bottom and frequently when a suspended fish comes through and they catch it it's a larger walleye. What are your theory's on this? Why would the larger fish suspend so much further up the water column? Are they after different types/sources of food than the smaller fish and thus are cruising higher to find them? Or would there be another reason for this? I'm curious as to what you think.

Thanks

[kfk]

Great question. I've been seeing it myself this winter on LOW more than I've noticed it in the past. The larger fish will chase biats further up the water column than smaller fish also. Like everything else associated with walleye location, the answer must be food. Whatever the larger walleyes are eating (shiners, perch or tulibees) must also be suspended. What else could it be?

[Mike Stark]

Those fish are on the move. I don't think there has to be food up there. They may just be cruising from one spot to the next.

[leech~~]

I think that they are feeding on bait fish. Many times in the summer I've caught eye's suspended trolling with deep raps and you can actually see them on the graft running through the "bait balls" high in the water column.

[hhguide]

my theory is.... because they can. Those are the biggest fish in the system they can do whatever they want to do. They can be in 2 feet of water or 60 but I would say this that i bet is has alittle something to do with the bait but who knows.

[Sherpa]

I had this happen to me as well this year on LOW. I just stepped back in the shack and saw a mark a little less than halfway down in 32' fow. Dropped down to him quick and hooked a 24" walleye.

[hanson]

This has always been a common thing on LOW in the winter. If you mark a suspended fish, reel up quick cause it should be a good one.

If you are around or near structure (points, humps, reefs, etc) fish move on and off structure, oftentimes at the same depth. If the top of a hump is at 15', you'll encounter fish way off the hump at 15' as well. They just slide back and forth.

Here's another winter phenomenon that makes you scratch your head... ever had a pike eat your transducer? What are they doing right under the ice. The bottom of the ice is another edge or piece of structure. Some years on LOW when there are a lot of cigar sauger, they don't go back down the hole. Where do those fish end up, dead under the surface of the ice. The pike learn this. I'm sure big eyes learn it as well.

[TrophyEyes]

I think they don't have a fear of being eaten and they can roam without a lot of concern. Smaller fish hug the bottom so they only have watch a limited number of directions for preditors. I saw a mark 20 feet off the bottom this year on Mille Lacs and thought it was a tullabee, but it ended up being a 28" beauty.

[Stick in Mud]

This happened a lot on Mille lacs this year...and every time it did, it was a BIG fish. I think it's the same elsewhere as well. And for what it's worth, the fish that come in waaay off bottom ALWAYS seem to eat, and that right quick. They don't mess around with it. Why are they up there? I have no idea...I'm just thankful for the ol' Vex.

[TurnUpTheFishing]

Tullibee and whitefish roam the open water so do the big 'eyes, pike, 'skis looking for a big meal.

[TruthWalleyes]

Fish go where their prey are... suspended bait balls IMO.

[TyGuy02]

I would think its the fish being "lazy" and not necessarily needing or wanting to drop down. Chris Hanson has posted on here and I was watching a video he made regarding suspended panfish a while back, and he said that if they are say...18' down in 32' FOW, draw a line to the closest 18' deep structure and that's where they probably came from. I would imagine walleyes and large slabs might act the same in certain cases.

I got into an argument a couple weeks over this issue, the person thought it was a waste to fish more than 1' off the bottom. After awhile I gave up and realized it was their loss.

[TruthWalleyes]

I got into an argument a couple weeks over this issue, the person thought it was a waste to fish more than 1' off the bottom. After awhile I gave up and realized it was their loss.

Their loss for sure. I catch the majority of my larger walleyes suspended. Quite often its 18' down in 30-50' of water.

[Hoffer]

absolutely!

The big eyes will follow the big schools of baitfish.

Biggest eyes I have caught have been in 50 feet or more of water fast trolling 25 feet down right through the clouds of baitfish.

[goblueM]

I got into an argument a couple weeks over this issue, the person thought it was a waste to fish more than 1' off the bottom. After awhile I gave up and realized it was their loss.

man, the several walleyes I've caught on buzzbaits must not have gotten that memo

[Het]

The higher the fish are, the more active (feeding), they are. We've been trolling Ripsticks here on Erie the last few weeks at 25-35 feet behind the boards. That puts them about 2-3 feet down.