Minnows. Minnows are the most popular bait option for walleye anglers, I have found consistent success with shiner and flathead minnows. When targeting bigger fish, shiners in the 4-6″ range are the mainstay, these will weed through some of the smaller fish and get you on 25″+ Walleye.
What depth are walleye at in winter?
Throughout a winter’s day, the fish will range in depth from 20 to 50 feet. Walleyes in the tailraces tend to hug the bottom, so you should select lures that reach the river’s floor in a hurry.
What bait do you use for ice fishing walleye? – Related Questions
What color walleye sees best?
Walleyes do have color vision that peaks in the orange-red-green portions of the spectrum. They see colors on both sides of each peak, but sensitivity declines. So they see wavelengths shorter than green and longer than orange-red, but not well. Overall, they see orange and red well, followed green and yellow.
As winter progresses and the water gets colder, walleye move into deeper water. In mid-winter, they are often found in basins that are 30-40 feet deep, and like to hold in areas that are close to more shallow structures, such as underwater hills or mud flats rising to a depth of 10-25 feet.
What is the best depth to catch walleye?
On clear lakes, the best depths are usually in the 10-foot to 20-foot range. However, fish movement does vary and depths as shallow as 2 feet and deeper than 20 feet can often be very productive as well. Live bait is most often used on tip-ups.
What depth should I fish for walleye?
Walleye are generally caught between 10-40 Ft. A typical mid-sized lake in the Midwest would likely hold Walleye between the depths of 10-15 Ft. during the Spring, 15-25 Ft. transitioning to Summer, 25-40 Ft.
Where can I find a mid-winter walleye?
What is the best month to catch walleye?
Fishing success tends to be highest in May and June. That’s when walleye are most frequently in shallow or semi-shallow locations near shore, thereby making them easier to catch. Walleye move to deeper locations as water temperatures rise throughout summer.
How do you catch walleye in February?
I’ll fish a 1/4- to 1/2-ounce jig at this time of year because walleyes like to hold in the deepest holes they can locate where the current is the slowest. You may have to fish 25-50 foot deep water to get a bite these months. Live fathead minnows are a productive bait to fish now too.
As for shallow, structure-free, bowl-shaped lakes where walleye seek out deeper pockets and holes, they’re at their best in mid-winter. At first ice, not all of the fish have moved into the depressions—it’s more of a gradual filtering-in process.
What scent attracts walleye?
Pro-Cure Bait Scents. Sauces and butters. Nightcrawler, leech, baitfish, and garlic.
What colors can walleye not see?
A walleye lacks the blue and yellow cells, so it’s color vision is similar to that of the rare human beings with blue and yellow color blindness. What this means is a walleye most likely can see all colors as some shade of red or green.
Where do walleyes go cold front?
Walleye living in shallow water respond to cold fronts by burrowing into thick vegetation or other heavy cover. And by thick vegetation, I mean dense enough you’re tempted to step out of the boat and take a stroll. Safe in their hiding spots, walleye will be reluctant to move very far for a meal.
What time of day is best for walleye?
Now, as a general rule for walleyes, the best times to fish this twilight-loving species is about an hour before sunset to two hours after sunset. That’s, quite simply, when these fish like to feed. Flip those times for sunrise: two hours before sunrise to an hour after sunrise.
Do walleye like drop offs?
Fall walleyes follow another instinctual calling, and often are drawn to areas of a lake or reservoir where feeding structures plummet chasmlike into the main basin. Contrast this with summer, where walleyes hunt along the drop-offs bordering extensive flats of relatively shallow and consistent depth.
Forget the old myths – walleye don’t stop feeding just because a cold front has arrived. But they do change locations with the falling barometer, usually by moving into deeper water or burrowing into heavy cover.
What color do walleye like ice fishing?
We recommend using bright colors such as chartreuse to lure walleye into biting in stained water. Bright colors work best in stained water because they help walleye locate your lure, whereas more natural colors are harder to find.