Survey: Current walleye location

[Sinker]

Just wanted to touch base with other walleye fanatics and see where others are currently catching their walleyes.On the lake I fish,it has slowed down since the first of the year on the typical evening bite at the first break and up into the weeds.Alot of it is the increased snowmobile and vehicle traffic the area sees,along with general fishing pressure,I believe.Did manage one in a different area on Friday where a flat comes pretty far out into the lake and then drops to deeper water.Just trying to get some other ideas from other fishermen like location and times that work good for you.Thanks.

[mattkimk]

Walley bite has died for me. Went after crappies last night and did relly well. Felt good to finally get some action. Last three times out have not been good.

[Sinker]

Thanks for the response.It gets tough.I'm not looking for specific lakes,etc.Just looking for ideas of where people are finding walleyes at this time of the season.Deep,shallow,times,tactics,etc.Thanks again.

[JoeTC]

I have been catching walleyes in all the same areas I caught them earlier in the year but the have just gotten less aggressive and the bite window has shortened. If youre dealing with a lot of fishing pressure try looking for secondary structure that others are overlooking. Another suggestion might be to stay out a little later in the evening once traffic on the lake slows down. All the big walleyes I've run into this year have come later in the evening after the main bite. As far as depth goes I like to fish right on the weedline but I have also fished the base of the same breaks with success. The only difference is that the bite seems to begin and end earlier in the deeper water, but i usually stick to the shallower water because I've had better luck on big fish there. In general I find the fish to be less aggresive this time of year so I go towards smaller baits worked less aggressively, but that can change from day to day so I am prepared with multiple presentations. If the bite is real tough don't be afraid to try panfish gear. Last week I caught 4 walleyes on a #10 shrimpo. Walleyes always gotta eat so if you aren't having much luck don't be afraid to experiment with new tactics and locations that you never thought of before because you never know when youre gonna run into a hot pattern especially if youre dealing with pressured fish.

My $.02

Joe

[Ebiz]

Joe,

What depths are you referring to when you say shallow?

[JoeTC]

I was refering to the top of the break on the weedline which is at about 12 ft where I usually fish. I usually will cut a few holes from 10-14 ft and look down the holes putting my travel cover for my portable over my head and find exactly where the weeds end. I'll fish right on the edge of this. I wouldn't discriminate against even shallower water though, especially later in the year as more weeds die out. The shallower weeds are going to stay the longest as they recieve the most light. I've read articles and seen people fishing walleyes as shallow as 3 ft. I haven't had the time yet to experiment that shallow but I'm sure there are walleyes to be caught that shallow. If you are fishing shallow water make sure you are quiet on the ice. I was sight fishing perch in 13ft and an ATV started up 50 yards away and all the perch scattered. That is one reason I think walleyes can get harder to catch as the season progresses because as ice thickens more people are traveling on the ice with vehicles and atvs pushing fish of away from popular areas to areas most people overlook.

Joe

[Sinker]

JoeTC, thanks for responding.That's the ideas I was looking for.I find the same things as far as good early spots turning cold with the pressure and traffic.Towards the end of last ice season,I caught some nice walleyes out in 23'-24' of water as late as 9 pm.It's quite a challenge to anticipate where they'll be.Kind of fun though.Good Luck Fishing!!!