Weed Walleye Tactics

Ask any walleye fishermen when they think about traditional walleye fishing what comes to mind? For many they would reply rocky shorelines lakes with big walleyes holding on deep midlake rock humps during the summer months. But for other walleye fishermen they may describe walleyes that hold close to and live in weeds just like bass do. This is today's two worlds of the walleye, so what has caused this change to our rock oriented walleye populations in lakes? The answer is simple natural reproduction walleyes compared to stocked walleye populations.

As more and more states are turning towards stocking to keep viable walleye population at a constant level you are seeing walleyes act more like bass than traditional walleyes. One of the easiest ways to tell if your favorite lake is being stocked is to look on your DNR's web site. Many of these sites will tell you important lake facts as to water make up, fish populations and the key answer we are looking for is your lake being stocked to keep walleye numbers up.

So what has caused this change in how walleyes act and live? With natural production walleyes nothing has changed they are born on rocky shorelines and act like traditional walleyes as they grow up; living most of their lives in rocky areas. But for walleyes that are raised in shallow rearing ponds and stocked in lakes; where they grow up before being stocked is far from a natural walleyes life. To start with walleye raised in rearing ponds live and eat in the weeds. They learn fast that weeds provide cover and protection from getting eaten and when they are hungry this is where the food lives. So in a nut shell you can say rearing pond raised walleyes that act more like bass than natural reproducing walleyes. With this being known if you are fishing in a primarily stocked walleye lake you will have to change your walleye tactics as well to catch fish.

Before you can catch weed walleyes you have to find them and to do that head to the flats and grab a few different lure options. One of the best lures for finding eyes fast in these conditions is to fish rattle type baits. The key here is to cover water fast and look for signs of walleyes once you have found an area that is holding fish it's time to slow down and switch up tactics.

For one I will put down the baitcaster and grab a spinning rod setup, on the end of the line is tied a Lindy's X-Change Jig teamed with a soft plastic. When it comes to plastics you have a ton of options; grubs, fluke tails and worms make up the majority of plastics that I use. The key is to keep switching plastics to find what option is preferred by the walleyes for that time or day. I have had times when this plastics option switched day to day or may have even changed from hour to hour. So to keep your options open keep a couple of rods on your boat deck with a few different jigs rigged with different plastics.

Another note about Lindy's X-Change Jig system is it is so easy to make quick adjustments to the weight of your presentation to fine tune the areas that you are fishing. With the X-Change Jigs you do not have to retie on a different jig to make a size adjustment to match the fishing conditions all you do is replace the head of the jig. This fine tune adjustment's allows you to fish an 1/8oz jig one minute and 1/16oz the next. With this fine tune ability you can make your plastics presentation fall fast to trigger a bite when the weeds are sparse or slow down the fall of your jig as the weeds get thicker.

If you want to lean more towards live bait you can use a piece of a night crawler or a leech, to tip your X-Change or Veggie Jig, the option is left up to you. I many times lean towards artificials in this case as to keep some of those pesky bluegills at bay off of my baits so I can get it down to the intended target fish the walleyes.

A lot of the time you are not casting far from the boat you may be just pitching into open areas that you can see when you are up in the weeds. Try to put your cast into open area where the walleyes will be sitting waiting to ambush its next meal. Early in the morning I many times find the walleyes located out on the outer edges of the weeds. When they are active they will be sitting up in the weeds towards the tops taking swipes at food as it moves by. As the sun gets higher in the sky the eyes will reposition moving deeper into the weeds.

Another option early in the day when a cold front has moved through or you are faced with windy conditions and it's hard to fish a jig in the weeds I will many times take a step back and anchor outside of the weeds within casting distance of the weedline and rig up a simple slip bobber presentation. This is when you sit back and let the wind work for you. The critical part is to get your bait set at the right depth as a rule of thumb I will generally set my bait depth a few feet off of the bottom. For this rig I will put a Lindy X-Change or Quiver Jig on the end of the line and tip it with a fathead minnow or a piece of crawler.

Make your cast short of the weedline and allow the jig to get your bait into the walleye zone, then feed line and let the wind carry your presentation into the weed edge. Many times when you are faced with windy conditions walleyes will move to the outer edge of the weeds and wait for food to come to them. This is also a top tactic to try when you are faced with fishing during cold front conditions. Walleyes that were active and feeding the day before high in the weeds will move to the base of the weeds the next day to ride out the passing cold front. When faced with cold front conditions make sure you look at inside turns and corners along weedline or off of points. These inside turns and corners provide good cover and quick access to deepwater which is key in these conditions for walleyes. This Lindy slip bobber tactic is a great presentation to make the best out of a tough bite situation.

So do a little research and see if your favorite walleye lake is on your DNR's stocking list. It will change the way you look at and how you fish walleyes in the future. Do not fret with a few adjustments you will be right back in the ball game, and catching walleyes once again on your favorite lake.

Create some memories please practice CPR (Catch, Photo and Release). The future of fishing is in your hands.