clear lake fishing?

[redneckid951]

hey everyone i have a cabin on the whitefish chain and the water is really clear up to 16 ft vis! and i seem to have trouble catching walleys up there so i hopping you guys could give me some tips on how to fish for them so i can have more walleye dinners!

[Borch]

We were up there fishing a tourny this past weekend. We only fished a few of the lakes but foound water clarity to vary greatly from one lake to the next. We were unable to find any eyes on deeper structure. Instead the couple we caught were on cranks in the weeds. Another team got into them in the weeds as well prefishing with the wind blowing into the weedline. Later in the year I'm sure they'll be on the more typical structure. However I'm convinced that there will always be active fish in the weeds. Even on very clear lakes. In those situations I've dome well with cranks either casted or trolled overr or arouond the weeds. Also fish pockets with jigs or a slip bobber rig can be productive.

Then there's always getting after them at night. This can be very productive on very clear lakes.

[redneckid951]

thanks!

[WaveWacker]

Obviously the possibility for them to be deep in clear water lakes is always there. On lakes that I fish I will usually scan some of my favorite deep water spots for fish. If none are found out there, I will run to the weedlines that have been getting the wind blown into them (hopefully for at least a couple of days). Hug the weed edge very closely and pay particular attention to any irregularities (pockets, turns, etc.).

Another method for fishing the weeds is to switch to plastics. This would almost be like a weedless jighead and a worm, minnow bait, etc. and cast or fish vertically in the middle of the "junk". Now only should you be able to pick up some eye's but the bonus bass and northerns keep things fun. Again pay attention to open pockets in the weeds beds. Good Luck!

WW

[bobO]

some clear lake like this you can only catch fish at night. slip bober might at night might be a good idea.

[schr0563]

Every summer I spend a week fishing an extremely clear lake in northern Minnesota. Since this lake is deep, we always catch a handful of fish trollings cranks over 50-70 feet of water. This action has been best in the afternoon.

At the same time however, you can also move into the weed beds and pull nightcrawlers on lindy rigs. This requires a 1/8 oz weight and about a 6 foot plain snell. Trolling speeds should be around 1.7-1.9 mph over 10-12 feet of water. We have to keep the boat moving or we become snagged instantly in the weeds. Often times these fish avoid the weed edges and sit buried in the middle of the weeds. Once that crawler comes trailing above them they can't resist it. The beauty of this method is that you prevent small fish from biting by keeping the speed up. When a fish grabs the bait, you'll know it. Give a few seconds of line, then set the hook. Hang on because the fish are typically the big boys. 23"-29" are typical.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to find other lakes with similar structure where this method is applicable. As mentioned in other posts, there are always fish in the weeds. And more times than not these fish are hungry and willing to bite.

[Ely Lake Expert]

I am not personally familiar with that chain of lakes, but I will let the secret out on how I have been catching them on Ely lake, which is also a very clear and structured lake. I have been fishing mostly evenings in 25-35 feet of water. I don't know the rigs name because I have had them for a while. It is a real lightweight bright green jig with a little spinner attached where the hook and weight mold together. I use this with a leech and I jig it off the bottom while drifting or slowly trolling

[cmoredrakes]

In really clear lakes, walleyes bury themselves in weeds during the day because the light visibility is very high and of course walleyes are night hunters and will probably be deeper and less active at midday. That's why choppy, windy days are good, the waves break up the light coming into the water.

[FOOT]

Red Neck, I use to fish Whitefish every year for a week at a time and always had good luck fishing "Hammer Point". The eyes really like the area. The fishing was better in the early morning and toward sun down but some were still active throughtout the day. Also if you troll East of Hammer along the shoreline there is a good chance you'll pick up one in the 4 - 10 pound range. There are a couple of small points (watch your grapf they are easy to miss) along here that tend to hold big eyes.