1 d&r sports_walleye_seminar_2013_spring_methods

D & R Sports Center2013 Big Water - Walleye Super Seminar

Speakers: Guests:Nick Dood -Paul Antonowitsch -Terry Adams

Spring Walleye Tactics

• Spring - Jigging– Detroit River– St Clair River– Lake Erie

• Spring – Trolling & Casting– Lake Erie– Saginaw Bay– Lake Michigan

• Muskegon Lake• Lake Michigan Pier Heads

– Benton Harbor/St Joe– South Haven– Holland– Grand Haven– Muskegon Lake– White Lake

Spring Walleye TacticsJigging – Detroit River

Time of Year• Late March – May (Water temp 38-45° F)

Where to Launch & Boat Prep(Refer to Detroit River Fishing Hot Spots Map)

Common Launch Sites• Lake Erie Metropark (can get rough!)• Elizabeth Park (good for small boats)• Mud Island area

SAFETY • Be Ready - Not a place to verify if your boat

& trolling motor batteries are ready for use!• Use GPS to plot a course trail & mark

waypoints.• Beware of shallow water & floating debris!• Follow Pro-Boats in/out of launch if unsure.• Water is COLD and Current is STRONG -

Make sure that you have PFDs for everyone, one throwable PFD & that they are readily available!


The Fishing Hot SpotsDetroit River Mapis a must have!


Where to Fish in US waters

SOUTHERN DETROIT RIVER• Trenton Channel Area (4’ to 20’+)

Snaggy – But monster walleye!!!Roughly the area betweenElizabeth Park & Lake Erie Metropark– Detroit Edison Power Plant (Candy

Cane Stacks) – Area (24)– Gibraltar (Humbug Marina) – Area

(24)– Calf Island – Area (24)– Horse Island Flats – Areas (24-25)– Celeron Island (Ford Yacht Club) –

Area (24)31-1/2” - 14.31 lbs. Walleye

31” - 12 lbs. walleye


Where to Fish (cont’d)

MIDDLE DETROIT RIVER

• Mud Island – Area (14)• Steel Mills – Area (13)• River Rouge – Area (13)

NORTHERN DETROIT RIVER• Chene Park – Area (11)• MacArther Bridge – Area (7)

Great Lakes Musky got to eat to!

Steel Mill Walleye


Where to Fish (cont’d)

• Noted Fishing Educator - Lance Valentine’s Where 2 – 4 Walleye (W2-4W) DVD series a is an essential fishing plan if you want to learn the best Detroit River spots quickly!

• Lower Detroit River• Upper Detroit River• Each of these DVD’s detail 20 of his favorite

spots along with landmark photos, lake map locations & GPS screen shots.

• A downloadable waypoint file is included.• Go the Walleye101.com for further details &

products.


Favorite Jigs Heads

• Randy’s Dandies “Z+3” (½ oz.)Big Eyes – Glow Paint – Sharp Hooks

– Glow Pearl/Green– Glow Pearl/Purple– Glow Chartreuse/Purple– Glow Chartreuse

• Other Jigs (½ – ¾ oz.)– Northland Fire Ball (Use with Live

Minnows)– Northland Whistler (Propeller)– K&E (Bullet Nose)

• Use Stinger Hooks!


Favorite Jig Bodies• Lunker City 4” Fin-S

Slim Design Cuts Current– #175 Glow Chart Tail– #38 Rainbow Trout– #91 Alewife/Glo Belly– #6 Arkansas Shiner– #131 Midnite Shiner– #184 Black Blue Flake Chartreuse

Tail • Ring Worms & Curly Tail Grubs

– Purple ring worm w/ white curly tail– Purple grub w/ green tail– White grub w/ chartreuse tail– 4” Garlic scented worm– Purple/Green– Pumpkin Seed Brown/Chartreuse

Spring Walleye TacticsJigging – River

Favorite Fishing Gear

• Spinning Rods (Buy the best rod you can afford! Sensitivity is Everything!)– 6’3”, 6’8” Medium Power, X-Fast

Action, 1-piece– 7’ Medium Light – Medium

Power, Fast – X-Fast Action, 1-piece

– St. Croix Avid – St. Croix Legend Tournament –

Walleye Series– St. Croix Legend Elite– St. Croix Legend X-treme– These rod actions give you the

best feel and hook setting power!



• Spinning Reels (Buy the best reel you can afford! Need smooth drag & strong gears/ strong anti-reverse)– Shimano Stradic 1000 or 2500– Daiwa Tierra 2000 or 2500– Shimano Sustain 1000 or 2500– Use the 1000 – 2000 series sized

reels for shorter 6’3” rods– Use the 2500 series for the

longer 6’8” – 7’ rods– The River will destroy cheap

reels!



• Fishing Line (Braided Line)– Spider Wire Ultra Cast,

10lb. Test – 2lb. Diameter, Hi-Vis Yellow

– Power Pro, 10lb. Test – 2lb. Diameter, Hi-Vis Yellow

– Berkley Fire Line Crystal, 10lb. Test, White or Solar Green

– The Hi-Vis Yellow lets you see if your jig is staying vertical – VERY IMPORTANT.


Basic River Fishing Tips

• Keep Line/Jig Presentation Vertical! Always follow your line.

• On windy days keep the front of the boat pointing into the wind.

• A bow mount trolling motor works best for maintaining a controlled vertical jigging presentation.

• Look for clean water & follow the clean water.

• If you cannot see your motor’s cavitation plate -> move . . .

• Walleyes will generally hold tight to the bottom. A lift – pause – drop approach no higher than 1’ will usually keep your jig in the strike zone.

Spring Walleye TacticsJigging/Troll ing – St. Clair River

Time of Year• May – Mother’s Day (Water temp 45+° F)

Where to Launch(Refer to St. Clair River Fishing Hot Spots Map)

Common Launch Sites• Algonac (Highway 29)• Marine City (further upstream of Algonac

also on Highway 29)

Where to Fish in US waters• Detroit Edison Power Plant – Area (51)• Marine City (Light House) – Area (50)• Marine City (Cherry Beach) – Area (50)• Algonac (State Park) – Area (48)

Spring Walleye TacticsJigging/Troll ing – St. Clair River

The Fishing Hot SpotsLake St. Clair & St. Clair River Map

is a must have!

Spring Walleye TacticsJigging – St. Clair River

Favorite Jigs Heads• Randy’s Dandies “Z+3” (½ oz.)

Big Eyes – Glow Paint – Sharp Hooks– Glow Pearl/Green– Glow Pearl/Purple


Favorite Jig Bodies• Lunker City 4” Fin-S

– #175 Glow Chart Tail– Green/Silver Metallic Flake

• Boot Tail Grubs– Walleye Assassin– Mister Twister– Anything that is green with white or

silver belly

Spring Walleye TacticsJigging – Lake Erie (Western Basin)

Time of Year• April - May – (Water temp 45+° F)

Where to Launch(Refer to Lake Erie Fishing Hot Spots Map)

Common Launch Sites• Bolles Harbor• Luna Pier

Where to Fish in US waters• La Plaisance Bay – Area (41)• Dumping Grounds – Area (40)• Maumee Bay – Area (38)

Spring Walleye TacticsJigging/Troll ing – Lake Erie

(Western Basin)The Fishing Hot Spots

Lake Erie - Western Basin Mapis a must have!


Favorite Jigs Heads• Randy’s Dandies “Z+3” (½ oz.)

Big Eyes – Glow Paint – Sharp Hooks– Glow Pearl/Green– Glow Pearl/Purple


Favorite Jig Bodies

• Lunker City 4” Fin-S– #175 Glow Chart Tail– Experiment w/ glow colors

• Hair Jigs w/ Stinger Hooks– Purple head / Purple Tail– Purple head / Purple & Green Tail– Black head / Black Tail


Favorite Jigging Methods• Use same rod/reel combo’s as

used for river jigging.• Drift with the wind and bounce

your jig off the bottom.• Use drift sock(s) if necessary to

slow or control the drift speed.• If wind lays down use trolling

motor to move slowly across the reefs and hop or snap jig the presentation along the bottom.

Spring Walleye TacticsJigging – Lake Erie (Western Basin) – Spring Fishing Report

• We launched Saturday (04/25) out of Bolles Harbor, put on the survival gear and headed over towards Turtle Island and caught our 2 man MI limit of 10 nice ‘eyes.

• Our best bait by far was a ½ oz green/white Z+3 jig tipped with a white glow fin-s minnow body with a green fork tail and a 3” treble stinger.

• No live bait was used or required! The walleyes ranged from 18 – 24” and all were males.

• We also caught a nice jumbo perch with the same rig along with several sheep-head. The relentless wind 20mph+ and the constant 2-3ft. Wave action required the use of two drift socks.

• We found all these fish drifting along the Michigan/Ohio border from west of Turtle Island and northward in 10-15 f-o-w. We stayed in Michigan waters and the water was muddy (could not see the boat motor prop) however the fish were aggressively attacking the jigs as we bounced them along the bottom.

• Water temp ranged from 51-52F. We would drift this area for about a ½ mile and then head back over the active schools of ‘eyes to drift over them again.

• We were one of the few boats crazy enough to be drifting this area in the MI waters and had a great time wrestling with some very aggressive ‘eyes.

Spring Walleye TacticsTroll ing – St. Clair River

Troll ing Methods• Troll downstream with the current with

2oz – 3oz bottom bouncers using a crawler harness.

• Work the contour break lines.• Trolling speeds from 2 - 3.5 mph ground

speed not uncommon to keep the spinner blade moving.

• Use Mack’s Smile Blades that look like a propeller. These blades will spin at slower speeds were other blades will stall.

• Willow leaf style blades also work well.• Set your crawler rig over the side of the

boat to verify proper spinning action.• General rule of thumb for bottom

bouncers depth setting is to use 1oz for every 10’ of water, i.e. 2oz = 20’, 3oz = 30’

• Try to keep line at a 45 degree angle to the bouncer rig.

• Use in-line planner boards to spread lines.

Spring Walleye TacticsTroll ing – Lake Erie

(Western Basin)

Time of Year• April - May – (Water temp 40+° F)

Troll ing Methods• The same areas that are jigged can be

trolled with crawler harnesses and crank baits behind in-line planner boards.

• Fish will be high in the water column so set the baits high behind the boards only 10-20’.

• Baits usually set less than 35’ behind board.

• Troll slow 0.8 – 1.2 mph SOG• Popular crank baits include #10 Rapala

Deep Husky Jerks, Storm Deep Thunderstick Jr’s, & Deep Lip Reef Runners.

• Crank baits with an orange belly are preferred.

• If water is dirty use deep lipped Smithwick Rattlin Rouges

• Slightly dingy or stained water can produce better than clear water.

Spring Walleye Tactics - Troll ing – Lake Erie(Western Basin)

Time of Year• April - May – (Water temp 40+° F)• Walleye’s caught trolling out by West Sister Island last April 2012• Big walleyes love cranks trolled slow in the Spring!

Spring Walleye TacticsTroll ing –

Lure Depth Charts

Troll ing Methods• Mark Romanack’s Precision Trolling is truly

“The Trollers Bible”.• Each chart identifies brand, name & model

of lure.• Life size picture allows for easy

identification.• Each dive curve shows the trolling depth

for any given “Line Out” length.

Spring Walleye TacticsTroll ing – Saginaw Bay (Inner Bay)

Time of Year• March - May – (Water temp

40+° F)

Where to Launch(Refer to Saginaw Bay Fishing Hot Spots Map)

Common Launch Site• Linwood (Linwood Beach

Marina)

Where to Fish • Pencil Buoys – Area (26)• Sailboat Buoys – Area (27)• Dumping Ground – Area (29)

Spring Walleye TacticsTroll ing – Saginaw Bay (Inner Bay)

The Fishing Hot SpotsSaginaw Bay Map is a must have!

Spring Walleye TacticsTroll ing – Saginaw Bay

(Inner Bay)Troll ing Methods

• Troll with crank baits behind in-line planner boards.

• Fish will be high in the water column so set the baits high behind the boards only 10-20’.


• Troll slow 0.8 – 1.2 mph SOG• Popular crank baits include #10 Rapala

Deep Husky Jerks, Storm Deep Thunderstick Jr’s.

• Crank baits with an orange belly are preferred.

Spring Walleye TacticsCasting / Troll ing – Lake Michigan Pier Heads

Time of Year• March - May – (Water

temp 38+° F)• Peak activity usually after

dark (night bite)

Common Sites• Muskegon Lake• Lake Michigan Pier Heads

– Benton Harbor/St Joe– South Haven– Holland– Grand Haven– Muskegon Lake– White Lake

Spring Walleye TacticsCasting – Lake

MichiganPier Heads

Casting Methods• In evening hours until dark cast Rapala

Husky Jerk Minnow Baits – Size #12 & #14.

• Also try Rapala Countdown Sinking Minnow Lures – Size #7 & #9. These crank baits sink at a rate of 1’ per second. Use a count-down method to find fish.

• Cast with the wind.• Reel slow and pause often.• Doctor up the minnow baits with glow

tape wrapped around the back end and glow eye ball stickers placed over the painted eyes.

• Perch, Black/Silver, Blue/Silver colors mimic natural forage such as perch & smelt.

• Add lure scent.

Spring Walleye TacticsTroll ing – Lake

MichiganPier Heads

Troll ing Methods• Troll with shallow lipped minnow style baits

behind in-line planner boards.• Use #7 split shot 3’ ahead of bait to

stagger depths.• Fish will be high in the water column so set

the baits high behind the boards only 10-20’.


• Troll slow 0.8 – 1.2 mph SOG• If you can feel the bait wobble you are

trolling too fast.• Consistent top producer is a #18 Rapala

Original Floating Minnow in the Perch pattern with orange belly. Doctor up bait with glow tape and glow eye balls.

• Add lure scent.

Spring Walleye TacticsTroll ing – Lake Michigan

Pier HeadsTroll ing Methods (cont’d)• Troll within a couple miles of the

pier heads/shore line. Not uncommon for walleyes to be about 10’ down in 40’ of water.

• Leave room for the guys casting off the piers.

• Troll with in-line planner boards.• Use glow sticks in the slots of

the tattle flags of the in-line planner boards for low-light visibility. Glow sticks will allow the tattle-tale mechanism to still function properly.

1 d&r sports_walleye_seminar_2013_spring_methods

Documents

Transcript of 1 d&r sports_walleye_seminar_2013_spring_methods