Fish slower late fall, Giant Lake Winnipeg greenbacks, Troll by feel not speed

Late-fall walleyes stacked EVERYWHERE. 😳

Still plenty of walleye to be caught if you’re willing to bundle up and sloooow down! No live bait needed….

Water temps were 40-42°F and we were targeting shallow sand + clumps of standing weeds in 9-12’.

Wish I had snagged a screenshot of my Humminbird Side Imaging or 360 when we were reeeeally in the thick of it…but here’s one little snap I took as we were sliding around the area. All of those little shadows are walleyes:

They were “bonking” 1/4-oz VMC Neon Moon Eye Jigs paired with AuthentX RibbFinns, Moxis, and Berkley PowerBait Curly Bones. Also caught some fish slowly fluttering the coming-soon Rapala Rippin’ Blade bait past ‘em if they wouldn’t eat the plastics:

Had some legit doubles and caught a pile of fish in just a short couple of hours. Didn’t include every single catch in here, but you’ll get the idea 😅 it was a WILD bite!!!

Btw thanks SO much for watching and supporting the Target Walleye YouTube channel! 🙏 It means a lot!! And the more views, clicks, comments and subscribers it gets…the more on-the-water content I’ll be able to kick out. 👊

Fall crank trolling is not about speed. 🤔

People get so focused on what exact mph they should be trolling at (I’m raising my hand) but John Hoyer will actually pay more attention to the feel of his baits rather than the GPS speed. That plus a few more quick-hitters in this vid from The Next Bite:

John is ALL about those Berkley Hit Sticks for late-fall trolling…easy to see why:

Oh wait, that’s actually Hoyer’s “stunt double” Rohan Wehlage rocking his next level Halloween costume in this AquaTraction post. 💯 Little dude crushed it!

Here’s the real Hoyer (no offense Rohan! You’ll give him a run for his money one day!!):

> Hoyer: “The [Berkley Hit Stick] has a perfect roll and apparently a seductive rattle. The addicting part is how hard the fish bite these things, and the way they have it in their mouth when you land them…T-boned or completely choked is the standard look.”

Hoyer was specifically talking about night trolling in current for that video, but those same feel nuggets can definitely hold true on lakes, daytime, etc 🥶 when talking cold water.

And if you’re hitting up Lake Erie, or one of the other Great(est) Lakes, or anywhere you need to get down to ‘em right now…Berkley’s new Deep Hit Stick is ready for a stroll. 💥

Soooo-weeee! 🐷 Greenback pigs are getting their trough on!!

I’ve been lucky enough to fish with Matt Cornell of Bruin Outfitting, and can tell you firsthand that he does NOT need to exaggerate his fish catches – guy is an absolute hammer! So when he posted this snippet last week, I about poo’d me drawers:

> Matt Cornell: “It continues…despite the snow and cold, the bite on Lake Winnipeg [Manitoba] remains stellar. We actually counted over 300 fish one day…something I didn’t think was actually possible. Mix that in with a bunch of tanks and it makes for a dream walleye trip.”

Sheesh! 🥵

Btw Matt is the same dude who caught this absolute UNIT from Manitoba’s Red River a couple of falls ago. The freakazoid was 31.5” long with a 21” girth and clocked in at 14.48 lbs!

Not guesstimated – they hit it with the Rapala Touch Screen Scale. 🎯 Amazing:

Now imagine trying to squeeze ‘er thru an 8” hole. The seasons are changing FAST….

Gotta give a shout-out a couple of die-hards! 💪

First is Scott Mackner (aka 330 Maniac Outdoors) who’s so pumped for ice that he busted-out his 42” TUCR Vulcan to get some pre-season reps in while rigging big creek chubs for late-fall walleyes. 😅

And while most folks were getting their Netflix on…muskie-junkie Nolan Sprengeler was sticking himself a true Mille Lacs (MN) behemoth coming in at 56.5” long x 27” girth. 😯 Monsters do exist:

Can’t catch ‘em from the couch!

Or can you….

We crushed Lake Winnipeg walleyes in a Yetti Fish House!

Last March, my buddy Nick Lindner and I rented a 21′ Yetti Fish House thru Kris Gaune on Lake Winnipeg (Manitoba) and caught a pile of big greenback walleyes on rattlebaits! I’ve been fortunate enough to fish on “Big Windy” numerous times, but that was the first time I’ve ever slept on the ice…let alone fished when the sun went down.

Why don’t you hear about more people staying the night on Lake Winnipeg?

Well first, Gaune Fishin is one of only a couple outfitters that were issued permits from the Manitoba government to allow them to “sell overnight accommodation” on Lake Winnipeg.

So why don’t more people pull up their own wheelhouses?

Because Lake Winnipeg (aka “Big Windy”) is known for eating up gear thx to its brutal ice-travel conditions. And even when the going is smooth, a north wind can change that in a second when it blows across the 40- to 50-mile south basin.

Buuuuut Gaune Fishin has a ski system for the wheels of his fish houses to let ’em glide on top of the snowpack, and multiple track vehicles to do the dirty work. He usually ends up rescuing several folks a day who get their own rigs buried – easy to see why. 🦸🏻‍♂️

Okay, now for you visual learners…here goes nothing everything. 👊 Hope you dig it!

It was such an incredible experience and I seriously cannot wait to do it again! And a big thx to Kris Gaune for working his tail off. I WILL be back.

Btw all of the gear I used (specific sizes, weights, you name it) is always linked in the video’s description on YouTube.

1. SD: Dakota Angler Ice Institute is THIS WEEKEND!

At the Sioux Falls Arena & Convention Center Nov 10-12. One of the biggest and baddest ice shows in the nation with over 100 vendors and they always have a killer lineup of free ice-fishing seminars.

Todd Heitkamp, the owner of Dakota Angler, stopped by Dakota News Now to chat more about the event in this vid:

2. The Lindner clan is going live at 7pm cst TONIGHT.

Al, James and Troy Lindner will be on Stay Casts’ FB live show tonight. Can’t wait!

3. Tony Roach just announced he…

…has a new weekly TV show called “Dialed In Angling.” Pumped!

4. Check the new Eurotackle Spade Blade spoon!

Flutter + rattle + flash = I can’t wait to see all of that movement underwater:

The Spade Blade was born from a collaboration between Travis Krousie from J&S Custom Jigs and Eurotackle. More info here, but a few details below:

> “The Spade Blade was developed in correlation with Travis Krousie,” says Ben Vnh, owner of Eurotackle. “When it comes to creative lure options, Travis is truly a genius.” Krousie is the original designer of the Demon Tongue spoon, which is now known as the Dinner Bell spoon.

> The ‘Spade’ combines aspects of a variety of spoons to make the ultimate package. The spoon starts off with a metal base which is formed in a distinctive spade design. The distinctive design causes the spoon to flutter with every drop. “It’s a really unique flutter too…this isn’t your standard flutter spoon.”

> …also combines aspects of attracting spoons with the addition of internal rattles and micro blades. The internal rattle chamber is placed centrally so it doesn’t impact the fluttering action, but still helps to call fish in…. The micro blades also have their own fish-drawing power. “Obviously, the external blades add some additional sound attraction, but they also aid in visual attraction. The blades are designed to complement the overall color patterns of the individual spoons, while maintaining some contrast from the spoon itself.”

> The Spade Blade features premium quality Mustad treble hooks [and] is offered in two sizes (1/16 oz and 1/4 oz). The 7 color schemes include some familiar options, as well as some new options that have never before been seen in the Eurotackle lineup.

Looks like FishUSA just got ‘em in stock. 👀

5. IA: Kabele’s “Shop with the Pros” event THIS SATURDAY.

In Spirit Lake.

6. “Sobi” teams up with StrikeMaster. 🤝

7. B.A.S.S. digital chief Jim Sexton is retiring.

8. Guide Relief Program is seeking a social media intern.

9. Did you know that Premier pontoons…

…are made right here in MN? 👊🇺🇸 Incredible facility (and people!) just down the road from us in Big Lake:

> “Unlike most pontoon brands, Premier is family owned and built in a small town in the heart of Minnesota’s 10,000 lakes. Our passion and knowledge for water is what makes Premier pontoons better. Pontoons that are stronger, with award-winning innovations, and the best ride in the industry.”

10. Clam has awesome step-by-step videos…

…on their YouTube showing exactly how to put together Fish Traps. I wish all companies did this – with everything! 👏👏👏

I saved the link for How to Build Your Clam X200 XT Thermal Shelter (Step By Step) as it’s on my to-do list the next time I’m not trying to keep my 5-year-old away from everything sharp lol.

The easiest way to catch a PILE of late-fall crappies.

There’s literally no easier time to catch crappies than right now, once water temps dipped into the 40s, they pile into (and around the edges of) deep holes.

Hit ’em in the face with smaller #3 Rapala Jigging Raps…drop a waypoint…and don’t forget to come back once there’s a few inches of ice. 👊 It’s waaaay easier to find those first-ice spots now versus drilling 200 holes thru the hard stuff. 🥶🧊🕳

And like I said, pre-ice scouting pays off…you’ll find ‘em RIGHT where you left ’em:

Meme of the Day

Stay strong, ice-heads! 🥶

Love when they get all “starchy” for the pic! Great snap from this Brian “Bro” Brosdahl post wrapping up his 2023 guide season: