THIS right here is why you hit up the fall river run!
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On Manitoba’s Red River, which dumps into Lake Winnipeg. Here’s a look at the top-3 longest fish that were registered at the Red River Greenback Classic earlier this month (all were over 30”). It took a 27-incher just to crack the top-20. 😳
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Hear a lot of folks talk about “bite windows” 👀 especially when it comes to sticking BIG fish. Well, you might notice a little trend with the timestamps for a bunch of the top-finishers at this derby.... Looks like 7 of the top-15 longest fish were all registered in about a 20-minute window!
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Crazy enough the fall walleye run on the Red River should get even better from here on out as more fish push into the system from Lake Winnipeg, feeding up for winter.
I don’t believe the Red River is necessarily known for extremely-high numbers of fish (of course you’ll have those bust-out-the-fish-clicker type of days) but you have a legit shot at catching the biggest walleye of your life every time you hit the water. #RoadTrip
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Base your fall cranks on water temp 🎯
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Hey fall trollers – water temps are finally dipping! 🥶 Which probably has half of you PUMPED and the other half like:
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For those of you that will be bundling up and getting after it: Instead of tying on any ol’ crankbait, did you know you can use water temp to tell you which exact styles to run?
Everyone has their own personal preferences, but here’s how one central-MN walleye guide bases his fall crankbait selection after yeeeears of catching:
> ...always starts early fall with #5 Rapala Shad Raps ‘cuz they’ve caught more fish than any other bait in his boat...especially while water temps are 60-65°F. Bump up to a #6 or #7 as temps reach the lower end of that scale.
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> Once the water hits 57-62°F – and the weather is cooperating – he’ll put on BIG ol’ bent-lip #9 Shallow Shad Raps. Everything is going shallow and putting the feedbag on, including perch this size....
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> Original Jointed Minnows are one of his favorite overlooked fall trolling baits when temps are in the 50-57°F range and fish are on the chew. They run 5-7′ outta the package, but you can pinch a small splitshot up above the bait to get ’em down to the 8-10′ range.
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> Frigid temps: Original Floaters are tough to beat. Catches ’em in water as cold as 42°F. #PolarPlungeStatus
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Casting for fall wingdam walleyes ➡🪨
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You river rats keep asking for more...so here we go! This Dan Johnson In-Fisherman write-up is loaded with great fall wingdam tricks. The full write-up is for sure worth a read if you’ll be playing in the current this fall yet, but a few excerpts below to get you started:
> Oct and Nov are magical months for diehard walleye anglers, especially on rivers. Flowing water concentrates hungry ’eyes in predictable places across the Walleye Belt. Yet these sweet spots remain largely overlooked and underfished by the masses....
> Rivers are great places to fish walleyes come October, and wing dams are one of the best spots of all.... Not all are created equal, however. ...the hottest dams are covered by about 4’ of water and brushed by at least moderate current.
> This fall, with low water and slack flows likely on many rivers, such prime lies could be tricky to find. But not impossible. If you’re fishing a series of wing dams...fish the first and second dams upstream, where current is apt to be strongest. On the flip side, in high water when the river’s really rocking, start at the other end of the string. Or look to areas off the main river, where walleyes can escape raging current.
> A variety of tactics take wing-dam walleyes, but [veteran walleye tournament competitor Randy] Carroll favors casting shad-style crankbaits to cover water in search of fish. “Even when you find a dam with all the right characteristics, it’s most likely not going to have walleyes on it all the time. A group of fish may move up to feed for 15 min and then leave, and you could sit there for hours without getting bit. When Don Olson and I approach a wing dam, we move in and fish it for 15 min and move on if we don’t catch anything.”
> In light to modest current, Carroll and Olson attack a wing dam from the tip first, positioning their boat slightly upstream over deeper water. “We cast semi-parallel to the wing dam, so the bait lands on the tip, then retrieve down the edge.” On succeeding casts, they work their way toward the bank, casting to the top of the wing dam and retrieving down the front face, picking it apart until their boat is about halfway to shore. “Then we turn the boat around and fish our way back out. Walleyes often like the bait presented at a certain angle to the structure. Fishing both directions covers a lot of angles.”
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> Along with wing dams, Olson adds that back channels can be dynamite for Oct walleyes. “As cooling water temperatures and dropping water levels flush baitfish and predators out of backwaters, the side channels and cuts connecting these areas to the main river can be goldmines. The key is forage. If there are baitfish, there will be walleyes.”
> While any side channel with a bit of current could hold fish, cover such as tangles of timber sweeten the pot. Don’t be afraid to cast or vertically jig ultra-shallow water in the wood, because hungry ’eyes slide into surprisingly skinny water in such conditions.
Keep reading here for more info on casting angles, retrieves and cadences.
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The ultimate reaction bite for fall, clear-water walleyes
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It’s Jigging Rap SZN! The ultimate reaction bite, and in my opinion one of the most satisfying (and efficient) ways to catch a walleye. Of course they bite it all year long...but things get extra silly when water temps dip into the 50s.
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That stature of some of those greenbacks is straight-up ridiculous!
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3. OH: Will walleye finally be the new state fish?
Why walleye? 😎 'Cuz it's the only correct answer.
But here’s another solid case:
> “Lake Erie fisheries contribute nearly $1 billion in impact to Ohio annually. With 79% of the fishing targeted at walleye, one can easily see this species’ importance to Ohio’s economy.”
I believe OH, IN, and IA are the only states without a designated state fish....
4. Z-Man is 30 yearZ strong 💪
> What began in 1995 as a small operation crafting silicone skirts has grown into one of the most influential independent forces in the fishing tackle world. Founded by visionary entrepreneur Jerry Zucker, Z-Man Fishing Products celebrates 30 years of redefining tackle innovation, environmental stewardship, performance on the water, and people-powered growth. Still proudly family-owned, Z-Man remains deeply rooted in the values that shaped its early days – collaboration, integrity, and a relentless focus on the angler.
Did you know the first batch of ElaZtech baits were molded in May of 2005? Talk about ahead of their time!
Great read here talking about the history of Z-Man. Btw they’re also running a 30% off flash sale in honor of their 30th anniversary. Big congrats peeps!!!
5. ND: Sport Fish Restoration Act celebrates 75 yrs
6. TUCR 🤝 UNRL collab
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7. MN: The North Metro Ice Show is THIS weekend!
Happening Oct 25-26 at the Adrenaline Sports Center in Ramsey. They’ll be holding the Modified Portable Ice House Show again this year 💯 which is happening from 10am to 4pm on Sat if you want to see some wild DIY creations in person!
In case you missed it, you can check out this video on Alex Timm’s YT channel from last years comp that included some wild DIY transformations. Thought you might get a kick out of some of these mods – bunch of good excuses to hide in the garage and tinker around with your own setups:
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> As we progress into fall, we often find that walleye will prefer larger profiles. If there is a general presentation pattern, that generality would be using bigger baits. Traditional reasoning is that young of the year’s baitfish have grown, so using bigger baits is simply a matter of matching the profile or size of bait that walleye key in on during the fall.
> How big is big? We often lean towards the big end of the lure spectrum with lures like size-13 floating Rapalas. Besides going long, I also like the bulkier profiles. The size-10 Rumble Shiner is a deadly after-dark trolling bait that has that bulkier profile. As a rule of thumb, I increase the size of lures by 20% to 50% of what I would use in the summer. Big minnows like suckers and creek chubs can also be deadly where we rig minnows that are up to 10" long...sometimes bigger.
> When it comes to fall walleye however, a staple presentation is a jig and minnow. In the fall, however, I like to bulk up and increase the profile and I feel like I catch more walleye oftentimes when I can do so. You can increase the profile by using suckers or chubs instead of traditional fathead, rainbow or shiner minnows but here are a few other tricks for increasing the minnow profile.
> Use minnows or frozen shiners in conjunction with soft plastics. Remember when you add bulk, like a soft plastic grub or fluke and add a minnow...you are also increasing the drag and buoyancy of the jigs so be sure to also increase your jig weight. Don’t be afraid to even double your jig weight. Increase the weight of the jig and bulk up the jig with a soft plastic and then tip with a minnow. This not only increases the length of the presentation but also bulks it up to give the profile even more water displacement.
> Another trick that can be deadly in the fall is to simply use a couple of minnows on the jig. You can also bulk up the jig by double hooking a minnow on the bottom and nose hooking a second minnow to add more bulk. Again, use a long shank, wide-gap hook like a Northland Deep-V Jig and use a heavier jig than what you would traditionally use with one minnow.
> In the fall, the results can be dramatic when you can bulk up the presentation. Error on bigger in regard to the size spectrum and focus on using jigs or lures that look larger. This universal need to increase the size of the presentation seems to apply in the fall wherever walleye swim.
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Friendly reminder (again) to charge the batteries on all of your ice electronics throughout the off season – monthly if possible – to get the most out of ’em. Same goes for your electric ice augers. Yup, I usually forget too!
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FRIENDS OF TARGET WALLEYE
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Target Walleye – walleye during open water and all species during hardwater – is brought to you by Al Lindner, Jay Kumar, Chris Philen, 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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