Target Walleye/Ice email

Bait cooler hack, Walleye cheek cuts, Bigguns of the week

Today’s Top 4

Walleye cheeks of the week!

Check out the size of the cheeks [!] on this Lake Muskoka 29-incher Mario Pecile (@muskokafishnhack) caught on a gold blade bait in 25′:

Props on the new PB and for releasing that giant!

Now if Mario can manage to catch some smaller “eater”-size fish — good problem to have! — he might wanna consider adding pan-fried “walleye cheeks” to the appetizer menu…sorta remind me of scallops. I know a few fish-heads that refuse to share these with guests lol.

The chunks will dang near pop out on their own if you know where to poke your knife:

 

Speaking of walleye cheeks…here’s one I’d probably take a hard pass on! Must be something in the water at Ev Geniy’s secret Manitoba lake. #Mutant #ExtraProtein

He wouldn’t say where it was a caught, but have a feeling I know the spot:

Bait-cooler hack (batteries and minnows last longer).

Every time I step foot in Brad Hawthorne’s boat, I see something that makes me say, “What the heck is that?” And, “Can we shoot a video on it??” Dude = dialed!

Here’s a simple (and cheap) upgrade you can do to your bait-cooler’s aeration system to make batteries last way longer and your minnows livelier. Brad orders a WAY bigger air stone off Amazon — believe it’s roughly 4″ long by 2″ wide — and is getting nearly 3 days of runtime on a set of batteries:

Bigguns of the week!!

Just ‘cuz it doesn’t look like a traditional walleye spot, doesn’t mean it isn’t…. @five1nine_outdoors stuck this broomtail throwing a Smithwick jerkbait in and around flooded timber. #BassFishForWalleyes

 

Andy Nemo Winder (@fishbumpirate) caught and released this spawned-out 31″ shore bruiser throwing a huuuuge 10″ Savage Gear 4D Line Thru Pike — said it smoked the bait. They make 6.75″ and 9″ perch versions that have my mind racing lol. #MuskieFishForWalleyes lol! Awesome fish, dude:

 

No doubt with a last name like Thorne, you’re expected to be able to catch ’em, and catch ’em Paul Thorne can!

Paul and his bro Gregg co-founded Elliott Rods — absolutely incredible high-end fishing rods handcrafted in MN. Crazy how many sticks in their new open-water lineup are already sold out…but makes sense after you actually get one in your hand and feel just how good they are.

Did you know a TX lake was stocked with 8 MILLION [!] walleyes in the ’70s?

Talkin’ White Rock Lake in Dallas, TX. Some locals are wondering where they all went, and why they dumped in so many in the first place:

> “For all other years from 1968 to 2017, the number of fish stocked into the lake doesn’t come close to that 2-yr total. Reportedly, not a single walleye was fished out of the lake in the years since millions of them were dumped into the reservoir….”

Info from here:

> 1st, the department wanted to increase the odds of establishing the species in the reservoir, so bumping up the number would help accomplish that.

> 2nd — and of more importance to the department — was the goal of controlling the number of yellow bass in the lake by introducing another predator fish. …the lake contained over 3,000 yellow bass per acre. The species was competing with gamefish, such as largemouth and hybrid-striped bass, for food and shelter.

One theory says that those same yellow bass they were trying to get rid of, are actually the ones to blame for eating all of the walleye fry!

> “So predation by yellow bass and largemouth bass, coupled with normal survival and the warmer temperatures, likely prevented the development of the walleye fishery in White Rock Reservoir.”

> “I’m sure a stray yellow bass or 2 still occur in the lake, but we have not recorded any in the last decade or so of sampling.”

Wait…so what wiped out the yellow bass then? Or maybe that was a typo that was supposed to say walleye?? The world may never know lol.

News

1. WI doesn’t want gobies in Lake Winnebago.

> “The Fox River Navigational System Authority (FRNSA) still is seeking regulatory approval to a build a low-voltage electric barrier in the water below the Menasha lock.The barrier is designed to stop invasive fishes like the round goby from swimming upstream to Lake Winnebago….”

The electric barrier is guesstimated to cost $4-5 mil, which FRNSA has set aside…but this Gandalf guy said he’d do it for way cheaper:

2. Lake Superior water temp still in lower 30s?

Brrrr. Post also says Lake Huron has some surface temps as cold as 40 degrees.

3. Can you believe that…

Millennium Marine did NOT name their SpyderLok Rod Tree the Tree60 (lol)? Smooth and easy adjustment without tools — swivels 360 degrees and 180 degrees vertical:

Haven’t ran one in person yet, but have heard good things from the planer-board trolling crowd. Dangit I wish we could run multiple lines in MN…maybe one day….

4. IA launches “First Fish” program.

I’m all for anything that helps get kids excited about catchin’ the fishes.

5. ND: Proof you don’t need a big boat…

…to fish Devils Lake. Came across this cool post from Zac Volkmar over on the Instagramz:

> Zac: “…I envisioned myself needing a 20′ glass boat for comfortable long big-water runs and such. This pic helps explain how wrong I was. In 1 year I’ve been able to take this little 16′ aluminum out more than I could my 620 Ranger I had for a year.

> “When the locals talked about ditch-launching rural walleye hot spots I definitely didn’t envision an actual ditch next to the highway that’s less than 2′ deep for a few hundred yards.”

6. WY’s giving out raffle prizes for AIS prevention.

> “Boaters who stop at aquatic invasive species check stations this year will be eligible to win outdoor equipment and trips through the WY AIS Boater Appreciation Raffle. …receive a raffle entry each time their boat is inspected….”

7. ME doesn’t want bluegills?

> Bluegill don’t belong in Maine waters, and despite their small size and un-intimidating features, they’re highly invasive.

State says they’re “detrimental to the resident pumpkinseed population and the rest of the native ecosystem” but I don’t see where it says what and why?

9. Ever heard of a “Montana rig” before?

This one’s made by JB Lures and says:

> “The blade will elongate in the water as it is moving forward, giving the spinner a three-dimensional effect. The Montana Blade works at speeds from 0.8-3.0mph. Because it is virtually weightless, it works well at slower speeds.”

10. ICAST update.

The fishing biz trade show — had to transition from a physical show to a virtual one happenin’ Jul 13-17.

11. OH approves Lake Erie wind farm.

First ever freshwater offshore wind project in North America.

> “…6 wind turbines, producing more than 20 megawatts of energy, enough to power about 7,000 homes. …would create 500 jobs, and more than $250 mil in local economic development.”

Post says there’s conditions that could essentially kill the project…like how the turbines would have to be shut down at night for 8 months of the year (Mar-Oct) to protect birds and bats.

TargetWalleye.com Highlights

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Meme of the Day

Had to meme-ify this pic posted on Salmo’s Facebook page. #CanRelate

Today’s ‘Eye Candy

Sun’s out, fins out! Another paunchy Green Bay waldo that @jjessiebaker cracked earlier this spring on a Rapala Rippin’ Rap. Oh, and I guess Doug Wegner is more than just a good net man…(lol) can take one heck of a snap too:

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Who is Target Walleye
Target Walleye — walleye during open water and all species during hardwater — is brought to you by Al and Ron Lindner, Jim Kalkofen, Brett McComas and other diehard fish-nuts like you! #fishheads
Brett McComas is the main man for Target Walleye He was discovered in Brainerd, MN after years of wondering how in the heck people break into the fishing biz. He’s in it now, but still can’t answer that question…. Brett is one of those guys who majored in marketing, only because there was no such thing as a “fishing degree” at the time…. Get him at brett@targetwalleye.com 
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