With walleye being a predator, fishing for them is best done with live baits such as minnows, night crawlers and leeches. One of the most important things to remember when using any sort of live bait is that it must look attractive. If your live bait is sick looking or unattractive, the walleye won’t bite.
How big do minnows need to be for walleye?
Bigger Minnows The 5 to 6 inch minnows will work well for walleye in the 18 to 30 inch range and even bigger.
What is best bait for walleye?
Live Bait. Live bait can be highly successful for walleye, which usually involves still fishing, drifting, or trolling the bait. A bottom-bouncing rig or slip sinker is effective for drawing the walleye’s attention in clear water. The best choices of live bait include leeches, minnows, and nightcrawlers.
What is the best month to catch walleye?
Walleye fishing season is the best in spring during and after the spawning season However, summer nights and fall months are just as good for fishing for walleyes.
How far should walleye be from the bottom?
On clear lakes, bait placement can be 6 inches to 20 inches off the bottom, as the fish can better see the bait above them and come up to get it. Monofilament or fluorocarbon leaders are both good (though I’ve found that you have to re-tie more often with fluorocarbon as the knots fatigue more quickly than mono).
Where is the best place to hook a minnow?
If you intend to cast multiple times, the best way to hook the minnow is through its lips Start by hooking the lower lip and then the upper; the hook will be upright, and should allow the minnow to move normally. Another effective method is to hook through the minnow’s spine.
What color attracts walleye?
The most basic and most productive colors for targeting walleye are purple and green These colors come in a variety of shades and can be used in a large range of depths. For sunny days, select bright or flashy purple or green, and for cloudy days try a solid, darker green or purple.
How deep do you 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.
What is the best hook size for walleye?
The best all around hook size for walleye fishing is a size 2 to 6 single hook, or a size 8 to 10 treble hook In some cases it’s better to use smaller hook sizes, since walleye can be shy biters in lakes with a lot of fishing pressure, and often respond better to smaller finesse presentations.
Why are walleyes so hard to catch?
It’s not impossible, but walleye seek out deep water and shade to avoid the harsh sunlight, and they tend not to feed actively during these conditions , so you’ll have to adapt your fishing locations and tactics accordingly.
Is live bait better for walleye?
Lures also tend to be better for catch-and-release fishing, as walleye are more likely to swallow live bait than a lure Walleye411 has also put together some helpful information on various lure presentations.
Do walleye like cut bait?
Walleye will certainly eat dead bait especially if it is both fresh and is presented in a way that makes it appear alive In fact, salted minnows and dead leeches are a very effective way to catch walleye. Let’s take a further look at how you can use dead bait to catch walleye.
What kind of hook do you use for walleye?
The best hook sizes for walleye are #2, #4 or #6 depending on the size of your bait and how the fish are biting. When using small or medium sized fathead minnows, go for a #4 or #6 hook. Once you step up to larger golden shiners for big eyes, a size #2 hook works best.
What pound test should I use for walleye?
For regular sized walleye lures and live bait, 4-6 lb is ideal. For large swimbaits, rattle baits and extra large live bait, you can go up to 8-10 lb. Choosing the right pound test line for walleye can be extremely important, especially if you’re fishing in clear waters that get a lot of fishing pressure.
What is walleyes favorite food?
They prefer small fish and will eat crustaceans, worms and insects Try fishing from sundown to midnight, particularly during the heat of summer. Use bait, spinnerbaits, spoons, crankbaits, jerkbaits, ice jigs as well as plastic worms and grubs. Trolling is often a very effective way to fish for these tasty fish.
What size lures for walleye?
Size. Walleyes can grow up to 30 inches long and weigh more than 10 pounds, so select a lure that can handle the big guys. For jig heads, the optimal size range from 0.06 ounces to 1 ounce For jib body lures, go with ones between 3 and 5 inches long.
What time of day are walleye most active?
Big walleye especially, are usually most active from sunset to sunrise with the dawn and dusk hours being the hottest. At night, walleye move into shallower water where they are actively feeding on sheltering prey. During the way, walleye move much further offshore into deeper water.
Are walleye more active at night?
Walleyes are adept nocturnal hunters best caught by night fishing While most anglers are sleeping, walleyes are pursuing and feeding on unsuspecting prey that cannot see as well in low-light conditions. This nocturnal activity offers a prime opportunity for walleye anglers.
Will walleye bite during the day?
Remember walleyes can be targeted anytime during any weather conditions during the day , you just need to change your tactics and locations to put the toothy critters top side.
Where do you put walleye tip ups?
At the terminal end, it’s tough to beat a very lively minnow for tip up fishing, but at times a dead smelt will work just as well. When small minnows are used such as for trout or walleye a single treble hook placed near the middle of the minnow’s back is ideal.
What depth do walleye like in summer?
In many situations, you’ll be trolling with 60-70 yards of leadcore out, which positions your lure at about 25-35 feet deep.
Do walleye go shallow at night in the winter?
At midwinter they are often found in 30-40 ft. deep water around noon, while towards evening they move into more shallow water of about 10-25 feet to feed on schooling bait fish during the night.
Do walleye like worms?
As I mentioned, worms work wonders on walleyes that are focused in on eating other forage After all, rarely do fish feed on worms, anyway, because they don’t live in water. They are a natural forage for fish, however, as a heavy rain will wash worms into the drink.
Can you fish with frozen minnows?
We use frozen minnows year round I actually use those insulated bait pucks just to keep my minnows thawed out when I’m ice fishing, they will freeze on the ice otherwise. Cam do you notice any difference between salted and non salted minnows?.
What hooks to use for minnows?
Choose the right hook. For minnows under 3 inches (7.5 cm), a size 4 or size 6 hook works best For minnows 4 to 5 inches (10 to 12.5 cm) or larger, you can go as large as a size 2, 1/0, or even 2/0.
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.
What’s the best color jig to use for walleye?
With only a few exceptions, chartreuse and orange caught the most walleyes and saugers. This is consistent with the science that walleyes see in the red-orange-green portions of the color spectrum, being most sensitive to orange-red.
Citations
https://greenbaytrophyfishing.com/blog/2020/12/04/best-baits-to-use-for-catching-walleye/
https://fishingbooker.com/blog/best-bait-for-walleye/
https://www.northernontario.travel/algoma-country/minnows-leeches-or-nightcrawlers-which-bait-works-best-on-walleye-in-june-july-and-august
https://sportfishingbuddy.com/best-live-bait-for-walleye/