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Yo! Sorry for the late send – had something come up. Sick kiddos are no fun at all. All good tho. Anywho, here we go!
> If you’re getting Target Walleye for the first time, a friend probably signed you up! <
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Photographic evidence that “egg cannons” exist.
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If you’ve been hanging around here long enough, you’ve probably heard us call those big, pre-spawn females “egg cannons” before. This pic from the IA DNR is all you need to know for the why. 💣 #BOOM
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That’s an 11- to 12-lb bruiser they netted at Rathbun:
> IA DNR: “After removing eggs from ripe walleye, the fish are released back to the lake, and the eggs are fertilized and raised at the hatchery, with the goal of hatching 140.9 *million* walleyes to be stocked in lakes across the state.”
Thx for all those future walleyes, grandma! 🐳
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Not sure I’ve EVER seen as many big walleyes caught…
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…as I have the last week-ish while scrolling thru the social mediaz:
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Right there with ya, granny! Here’s a few monstros caught recently:
1) Cap’n Josh Wetzstein of Muddy Waters Guide Service slayed himself a Mississippi River donkey to the tune of 15.7 lbs and 32.25″ long! Said she smacked a 3” Mister Twister Curly Tail Grub on a Jack’s Jigs weedless jig “up inside some tree roots.” No doubt the fish of a lifetime! 👊 Even for a river-rat like Josh. Brace yourselves:
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AMAZING.
2) Check this note from my buddy Travis DeWitt:
> “When the musky bump makes an appearance while walleye fishing, something BIG has happened.”
Ummmm…BIG is right…like 32.5″ big!
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Travis said that egg-cannon was caught on a 1/2-oz B-Fish-N-Tackle H20 Precision Jig (orange and yellow) slow-trolled up current at 0.3 mph in 14′ along a sand ledge adjacent to deeper water.
Congrats on the ‘dubyah’ fellas! 🏆
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3) I’m getting pretty dang used to my wife Amanda McComas catching the biggest fish anytime we hit the water 😂 and our trip to the Rainy River last weekend was no exception! She cracked this 10-lber [!!!] while holding our 2-yr-old daughter Maisie in one arm, and a 3/8-oz “blue fire UV” VMC Sleek Jig + “great white” color AuthentX Pulse-R in the other! Absolutely unbelievable in a reeeeally good way. Way to go, mama!
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Way more BIGS comin’ in Friday’s Target Walleye…
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Live-stream walleye derbies are here!
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We’ve said it before, but if you haven’t heard of Head2Head Fishing yet = you’re gonna want to remember the name:
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Their new for 2021 Pro Walleye Series kicked off Apr 12 on the Detroit River. They have 32 anglers ( roster’s already set) chasing a chunk of some serious coin + bragging rights. Catch, weigh, and immediate release. Only fish over 2 lbs count. And NO live bait allowed. Yes, LIVE STREAMED! Love it.
The full field fished the first 2 days, and the top 8 moved on to a 1v1 bracket-format today. Let’s just say it’s already been a wild ride! 🤯
Talkin’ everything from folks falling out of the boat, to last-minute catches to sneak into the cut line…heck, yesterday I was watching live and the 🔨 Nick Schertz had an absolutely insane double-fish net job! He hooked up with a walleye and had another chase it all the way into the net trying to steal the bait outta the other’s mouth!! Haven’t seen a stand-alone clip of that posted yet, but you can watch it go down here at the 4:54:48 mark of their YouTube stream:
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H2H Fishing’s Facebook live streams have been getting 80K to 100K views EACH over the last few days. Legit walleye history in the making and has me straight-up floored for the future of the sport. TONS of moving parts so a huge props to everyone involved.
Hit up their Facebook page or YouTube channel tomorrow at 7am CST for the next round of live.
Btw – here’s the updated PWS schedule for 2021:
- Apr 12-16: Detroit River, MI
- May 17-21: Wisconsin River/Lake, WI
- Jun 7-11: Mille Lacs, MN
- Jul 12-16: Mississippi River Pool 2, MN
- Aug 23-27: Lake McConaughy, NE
- Oct 11-15: PWS Championship – Chautauqua Lake, NY
The top 8 in the standings at the end of the year get to fish in the Shield World Championship. Think of it like the Bassmaster Classic of the walleye world – reminds me of B.A.S.S. Nation where you can fish Club-level events and move your way up to Regionals, then Nationals, and even fish your way into “the big show.”
Waaaay too much info to fit it all in a single Target Walleye email, but I’ll keep you posted on all this schtuff going forward. Super exciting stuff and pumped to see walleye fishing getting a bigger chunk of the limelight.
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“Dip” your boat to stop invasives?
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UT DWR has a new decontamination method where folks would back their boat into a “dip tank” to rid it of invasive quagga mussels – instead of having DWR folks spraying it down. They say it will be installed at the Stateline Launch Ramp at Wahweap Marina and will be operational beginning May 1.
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Interesting, yes. 🧐 But after watching folks struggle to back their rigs into a 50’ double-wide boat ramp, I’m trying to imagine ‘em hitting that hole lol.
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What’s crazy is Catch Co could actually do this – they can “make” someone an influencer.
> Over the course of 5 weeks this summer, 10 contestants will complete a broad range of challenges and compete for the title of “On the Line Champion.” That winner will reel in over $20,000 in cash and prizes, including a new fishing boat and a 12-month influencer contract with Catch Co.
> Starting now, creators with at least 500 subscribers on YouTube can submit an application for one of the 10 competition spots. When the contest kicks off this summer, contestants will film and publish one video each week based on a unique and rotating challenge. Who progresses and who is eliminated will be decided by an online audience vote and ratings from a panel of judges, including…Brian Latimer…Googan Squad member Lojo, and Catch Co founder and CEO Ross Gordon.
11. Reminder: If you’re still running a gas auger…
…don’t forget to put in a couple ozs of Sea Foam before she goes night-night. Then dump the rest of the can in your boat before topping it off with fresh fuel for the season – your rig will thank you.
12. Don’t forget Buck Knives has kitchen cutlery, too.
Because it isn’t just your hunting/fishing knives that should be “famous for holding an edge.”
13. Heads up: If you’re shopping around for boat insurance…
… quotes from Bob Luellen at Worldwide Marine Insurance are free, and he SPECIALIZES in boat insurance = no doubt he’ll get you back on the water if something bad-ish goes down. Here’s a couple big reasons why he’ll know exactly what you’re talking about:
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How to make fryer oil last ALL summer.
Little different style of “tip” today, but a pretty interesting one considering you don’t have to throw out all that oil after a single fish fry….
Was sent this vid from Paul Tomlinson talkin’ how he can reuse his fish-fry oil over and over again all season long by simply running it thru a permanent coffee filter (not the old-school paper ones). Takes him just 25 seconds to refill the jig with a funnel. Plus then you don’t have to figure out how to dispose of it without ruining your sink lol. Pretty slick:
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This one’ll hit a few of you right in the feels:
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Whole bunch of “Steves” out there lol.
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Almost looks like someone cheeked-and-released this big gal years back…. 👀 Which btw don’t get any funny ideas, ‘cuz that’d be disgusting. Sick shot tho! From @elliottfishingrods Insta:
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Sign up another fish-head!
If you’re forwarding Target Walleye to a friend who loves to walleye-fish or want your fishing buddies to get these emails, just send us their email addresses and we’ll take care of it! (We won’t sell the addresses, use them for spam, etc.)
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Friends of Target Walleye
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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 Lindner, Jim Kalkofen, Jay Kumar, Brett McComas and other diehard fish-heads like you!
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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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