Target Walleye/Ice email

Top 5 most insane walleye videos ever

 

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On the run this week, so this might be the only Target Walleye email…fingers crossed we’ll get two fired off! This one’s a bit different than the yoozsh — hope you dig it!

Believe it or not, there’s still places out there where walleyes jump in the boat like bass (lol). Here’s the 5 craziest walleye vids we’ve ever come across while scouring the interwebz — enjoy!

Today’s Top 5

How epic is this walleye feeding frenzy?!

Phil Nadjiwon captured a walleye feeding frenzy at Caribou Falls Lodge you’ve gotta see to believe. Also exactly what everyone says their spot looked like the day before the tournament:

Hand feeding walleyes is a thing…  

Feeding walleyes by hand?! Would for sure want one of those stainless-steel Rapala Fillet Gloves on. #ChompChomp

INSANE figure-8 walleyes!!!

Never seen ANYTHING like this before [shocked emoji]. Was forwarded the video from Fishing Hall of Famer Perry Good of guys catching walleyes figure-8ing big #18 Rapala Original Floaters — can’t make this stuff up:

Spoiler alert: They don’t just catch one…

Think you could catch a walleye with your bare hands???

The guy in this Brackish Water Outdoors video uses some shore-lunch leftovers to lure in — and nab [!] — a 23″ walleye at Booi’s Fly-in Lodge on Trout Lake, ON:

Get up close and personal with these spawning walleyes!

Award-winning photographer Bill Lindner used an Aqua-Vu underwater camera to capture waves of walleyes sliding up to spawn. When we going, Bill?

 

Have a crazy walleye- or ice-fishing video we’ve gotta see? Drop us an email and we’ll check it out!

My 2 Cents on THOSE ^ Crazy Vids…

First things first:

 

Man, watching those Top 5 videos sent my brain for a crazy ride! All I could think about is how freakin’ insane it would be to actually fish those spots…and secondly, how fun it’d be to throw some unusual baits to try and catch ’em…

1)  First thing I’d have to try is an Alabamie rig like the YUMbrella Flash Mob Jr. Why? ‘Cuz it might be the first time anyone has EVER caught multiple walldawgs in a single cast — can you imagine?!

Be crazy, but wouldn’t be the first time a waldo ate an A-rig. Troy “catch ’em all” Lindner popped this feisty gravel lizard on an Alabamie rig stacked with 3/4-oz VMC Swimbait Jigs and Keitech Easy Shiners a couple years back:

 

In unrelated-related rews…T-Roy’s tourney partner, Derrek Stewart, accidentally hit walleye paydirt on Cherokee Lake, TN slow-trolling A-Rigs over submerged humps on the lake’s main channel:

 

You fellas might be onto something….

2)  Would be straight-up wild [!!] to throw the massive 7.5″ (3 1/8-oz) Storm Arashi Glide Bait. Been meaning to throw one for “green carp” in MN, but I’d definitely settle for a big ol’ razorback — I mean they eat tullibees, so why not?

This snap from bassin’ pro Brandon ‘BP’ Palaniuk is incredible [!!] but imagine how SICK it’d be if that were an upper-20s walldawg?

 

No offense, dude – I’d take that spotted cow any day!

Btw BP does like a challenge from time to time [smirk emoji]:

 

3)  Can’t think of a better time/place to catch a topwater walleye than those vids above. And if I was gonna try and get it done on top, I’m not gonna take the easy way out with a popper (lol). Be insane to throw something like the Rapala Skitter V to force ’em to chase that walk-the-dog action:

Saw this dude throwing one on the Mississippi River last spring:

TargetWalleye.com Highlights

> Special Issue: Greenback into March madness!

> Behemoth 19″ crappie, Merp pumpkinseed, Tip-up pike

> World record denied, Calibrate line-counters, Fish of the week

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Tip of the Day

You dreaming of open-water yet? No doubt winter has taken its toll, and we’re jonesin’ to put fat ‘eyes boat-side! Lot of the lakes across the ice belt will be locked up for a while — say ’til July lol — but a handful of river systems are opening on up and can kick out pre-spawn giants like these:

 

We reached out to multi-species guide Doug Wegner to get his approach for early-season freaks. Full write-up on TargetWalleye.com, few excerpts below.

Doug spends most of his spring trips on WI’s Fox River, but same type of deal can work on other river systems like the Rainy River, Mississippi, Peshtigo, etc.

Location

> Doug: “Some of the best areas to find early-season fish are sand or mud flats adjacent to the main river channel…fish position themselves on top of these because they usually warm up the fastest.

> “I also look for current breaks and seams close to the main channel…areas where walleyes can get out of the current and create natural ambush points.”

 

> “Subtle bottoms transitions can be crucial on tough days (sand to gravel, sand to mud, etc). I rely a ton on Humminbird MEGA Side Imaging to find these transition areas quickly — saves a bunch of time — especially in stained water.

> “I also keep a really close eye on my temperature gauge. Sounds obvious, but there’s often pockets of water (even 1-degree warmer) and fish will load up.

> “I’m a firm believer that early-season fish move shallower with the sun — just because they’re walleyes doesn’t mean they’re scared of light. At the end of the day, they want to find the warmest water.”

Baits

> “The first few trips of the season — when the water is still super cold — it’s tough to beat live bait. My go-to is a 1/4-oz jig tipped with a minnow. Stinger hooks help with the short strikes from lethargic fish.

> “When the water warms to 36+ degrees, I transition to plastics and hard baits. I like ringworm-style baits and paddletails…our water is pretty stained so I stick with orange and chartreuse for colors.”

> “As the water continues to warm up and the bay opens up, I’ll start focusing more on the area outside the river mouth. This is where a Rapala Rippin’ Rap really shines.

> “My go-to size is the #6, but I’ll bump up or down a size depending on depth. The retrieve is everything – think of it as ‘yo-yoing’ it back to the boat.

> “Cast it out, let it hit bottom, then lift the rod tip to 11 o’clock…keeping the tip up as the bait swings back down. Drop the tip to 9 o’clock and repeat.

> “The biggest mistake I see people make is dropping the rod tip as the bait falls – you don’t want a super sharp fall, rather a subtle swing. Most of the bites will come on that swing…you’ll feel the fish as you make your next lift.”

Meme of the Day

Does your fishing buddy have your back like this?

Hopefully they were Okuma Ceymars [heart-eyes emoji]. For sure worth the risk!

Today’s ‘Eye Candy

Not sure what Yo-Zuri has up their sleeve this time, but I want in:

> “Marc Tremblay fishing the St. Lawrence River in Montreal, CAN with some mystery awesomeness coming ICAST 2020.”

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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 
To send us walleye pics, ice shots or whatever, just respond to this email or click here to email us. Or post it on the Target Walleye Facebook page.

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