Target Walleye/Ice email

Early April Fools, Devils bonanza coming, Must have for hitch

By (mostly Brett)

Posted on March 27, 2015

Today’s Top 4

Early April Fool’s?

That’s a good way to set up a buddy: Here — catch!

Bonanza coming at Devils?

A mild-ish winter with almost no snow rare in ND, but that’s what happened around Devils lake this winter, and…

> Estimating ice-out will occur the first 10 days of April, guide Jason Feldner said the last time this occurred 3 years ago, he experienced a fantastic pre-spawn bite. “We pitched jigs and minnows or jigs with plastic wherever there were rocks. We loaded the boat day after day.”

> Some of those areas were roadbeds, gravel shorelines or the tops of humps. “Most of the Highway 19 and 281 shorelines are gravel. Use a hi-vis line to detect when the jig touches bottom or a fish snatches it.”

> Guide Mark Bry: “With little run-off, many walleyes will spawn on the main lake. The minimal current coming in will not draw them in masses upstream.”

> He always checks the back bays that extend long distances from the main lake. With mud bottoms, they heat rapidly and water temps will play into fish locations because warmer water attracts the food walleyes love to eat.

> “Wind produces current areas under bridges and are always good bets at ice-out,” he said. He fishes jigs with Gulp! Alive and Berkley Ripple Shads, or small Shad Raps, Countdowns and Flicker Shads. “Make long casts and pause, jerk and twitch jigs or cranks to produce the most bites.”

Go to devilslakend.com for up-to-date news about lake conditions, fishing reports, lodging, family activities and to contact fishing guides, or call 701-662-4903.

Very tempting, especially with fish like this being caught there:

New willocat imitator.

Might be the first ever catfish (bullhead) imitator blade bait:

> …walleyes’ pure hatred of a little bullhead called the willocat. Willocats are hands-down the best walleye bait on the Mississippi where I work full-time as a guide. Two factors keep them from being the perfect bait.

> At about $2 per willocat these little bullheads are extremely expensive bait…the second sting comes from those little horns on the top and both sides of the willocat. Toxins from these horns are amazing.

> Perpetual whining convinced the Blanchars to come out with a willocat pattern Echotail.

> Most of my blade baiting on the Mississippi is a vertical presentation, often in deeper water and/or heavier current. The half-ounce Echotail was the ideal bait profile, but more weight was needed to stay vertical in front of fish. It took considerable tweaking, but the Blanchars finally perfected a mold to create 3/4-oz baits on a half-ounce bait profile.

Get ’em here