Flashy vs muted jerkbaits, Double hooking shiners, Bass still easy to catch

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Can’t even make this up! A fisherman in TX found a submerged truck that was stolen in 2014. Dude was fishing on the west side of the Lake Jacksonville dam when he spotted the ’99 Ford F-150 on his Garmin LiveScope in nearly 20′.

Get this: When the dive team pulled it up on shore, there was a largemouth bass swimming in the truck bed LOL:

Takes “bed fishing” for bass to a whole new level. 🤣

Fish was mid-scarf on another walleye yet still took down @ssenske’s “hot steel” color Rapala Original Floater on the Knife River, ND:

What a savage! Only 3 things in this world scare that walleye, and they’re all in the next photo: 1) Massive belly-dragging pike, 2) @ssenske’s incredible mustache, and 3) the mini-hammer, Bridger:

Love it!!! 🙌

Funny enough this throwback write-up is talking about bass fishing, but it’s spot on for wallies too:

> When it comes to jerkbaits, flash can be good – it can pull fish from cover, it can pull them from long distances – but it’s not always the best choice. Sometimes fish want something more subtle.

> In ultra-clear water, under sunny, cloudless skies and on highly-pressured fisheries, [walleye] will often reject a jerkbait with too much bling. That’s when Rapala Shadow Raps in frosted patterns shine.

> Rather than flash or reflect a lot of light, a frosted finish has a soft glow around it and catches light in ways that a metallic or chrome pattern really couldn’t.

Here’s what they mean by “frosted” colors:

I used to swear by the opposite of that rule – I’d always run chromes on sunshiny days, and more muted colors when it was overcast – but seems like things have flip-flopped since our local lakes have cleared up soooo much….

If you follow the bass tourney scene, you know that Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Flat Worms have been all the rage in smallmouth derbies. Winning tons of $$$ and constantly sold-out everywhere.

For the last couple of seasons, I’d say the Acme Hyper-Rattle has sorta been like the Flat Worm of the walleye world. They catch the snot out of fish but are soooo hard to find in stock (specifically the biggest 2.5″, 1-oz size) ‘cuz everyone snipes ’em up.

BUT 👀 I just saw that FishUSA got a bunch of them in stock – including all of the brand new colors that we first mentioned in our ICAST special over the summer. Apparently it IS possible for ACME Hyper-Rattles to get even fish-sexxier:

This is the only reminder I’m gonna give you to stock up now while you’re able to, ‘cuz no doubt they’ll be gonzo by the time summer rolls around. Could probably move them on the fishing black market for a pretty penny later this summer lol.

While there’s a ton of similarities between walleye and their European cousin, zander…there’s also a bunch of interesting differences. One of those we mentioned a couple weeks back was how zander will actually build nests and guard the eggs, whereas walleye are “broadcast spawners” and simply spread their eggs and milt over gravel/rock/sand and then abandon them.

TW reader Jason Matity was so touched by this information that he decided to make a short poem about it hahaha. It’s worth a quick watch if you’re in need a chuckle today, or if you just like seeing incredible underwater footage of toothy critter:

Yo Jason – you ever consider ghostwriting for rappers, or maybe taking a crack at a children’s book? You might’ve just found a good side hustle! 🤣👊

1. OH: Gibson/Beck win 2 walleye tourneys by a single ounce.

The Lake Erie Walleye Trail AND Masters Walleye Circuit held a combined weigh-in on Lake Erie. Joseph Gibson and Bryan Beck’s 2-day bag (10 walleyes) of 67-14 brought in more than $50K in cash + prizes. They’re gonna need a bigger trophy room:

Amazing. Congrats fellas!

Btw Gary and Alex Kisel took home ‘big fish’ honors with an 11-lb 9-oz freakazoid:

2. MN: Crews gearing up for Walker Lake walleye egg take.

It’s a pretty incredible process. Few deets:

> …when water temperatures in the Dead River approach 45-50 degrees, walleyes make a spawning migration from Otter Tail Lake into the river. DNR fisheries crews place a large funnel-shaped net into the river to capture walleyes as they move upstream. Approximately 5K male walleyes and 1K female walleyes will be captured….

> …eggs are stripped…fertilized…then transferred to the hatchery where…the incubation process begins. About 400 quarts of eggs are collected and hatched each spring. Each quart consists of approximately 135K eggs.

> Eggs are held in the jars at a water temp of 54 degrees. After about 2 weeks, eggs will begin to hatch…newly hatched fry are about the size of a mosquito. About 70% of the eggs will successfully hatch into fry. Walleye fry are stocked within 1 day of hatching. It’s important to stock them soon…as they need to feed on tiny organisms that live in the water called zooplankton to ensure survival.

> The Walker Lake Hatchery produces about 30 mil walleye fry on an annual basis. Approximately 23 mil fry are stocked into lakes with public accesses. Another 7 mil are stocked into shallow rearing ponds where they will grow into fingerlings.

3. MN: Mississippi River walleye spawn running behind.

Lot of interesting info in this write-up on the different factors that affect when walleyes will actually spawn.

4. SD: Missouri River (Chamberlain) NWT kicks off tomorrow.

Chase Parsons won it last year with a 2-day bag (10 fish) of 31.70 lbs.

Apparently they’ve been dealing with some wild weather during pre-fishing:

> “From cold 40-degree days with winds gusting as high 50 mph to sudden 90-degree heat waves, anglers have seen a wide gamut of weather that’s making it difficult to figure out the fish patterns before the 2-day event begins….”

5. MI: Saginaw Bay ‘eyes getting surgically implanted transmitters.

An acoustic telemetry study this month will look at walleye in the Saginaw Bay and their spawning habits.

> “The recovery of the Saginaw Bay walleye population is one of the great fishery management success stories of our time. However, we don’t fully know where all that natural reproduction takes place.”

> The DNR’s plans call for 150 walleye to be outfitted with transmitters this year, with 200 more planned for 2023.

6. MN/MB: Upcoming study to see if walleyes and saugers…

…in the Red River are different from Lake Winnipeg fish. I would have to guess yes.

7. MN: A history of Mille Lacs summer slot limits and total allocations.

Pretty interesting to see how regs on “The Big Pond” have changed throughout the years.

8. VT walleye season opens May 7.

9. Another “bassy” bait that I think will catch walleyes.

Called the Berkley PowerBait Agent E. Obviously it’s gotta catch ’em in lakes with gobies:

But since we’re talking secrets…. Did you know there’s a species of walleye candy called the “sculpin” that’s native in more waters than you’d think? 🤫 Google ’em. Learn ’em. Walleyes devour ’em.

10. Marine industry-funded study finds no harm from wake boats.

When wake surfing at least 200′ from shore and in water that’s at least 10′ deep,

> Boat wakes dissipate quickly and have little impact on shorelines compared to wind-driven waves.

> The amount of sediment caused by shoreline erosion from boat traffic or wind driven waves is insignificant compared to the amount of sediment that flows in naturally through a lake’s watershed.

> Boat wakes can increase oxygenation, which is beneficial for aquatic species.

11. MN: Proposed bill would require boaters to pass safety course…

…before hitting the water. If the bill passes, it would go into effect summer of 2024. Sounds like people under roughly the age of 35 would need to pass the boater safety/education course.

There’s currently no requirements for adults. Kids who are ages 12-17 must pass a boating safety exam to drive one.

Random factoid from the write-up:

> MN has the 2nd-most registered boats in the U.S., with nearly 1 boat for every 6 people. Among the hundreds of thousands of boats, at least 10,000 are newly registered in the last year.

12. NY is doing a creel survey on Lake Champlain again.

> Participation in the survey, which is not mandatory but strongly encouraged, gives anglers the opportunity to contribute to future Lake Champlain management decisions.

> …provides DEC fisheries biologists with a better understanding of angler use, catch, harvest and expectations to help inform management actions on Lake Champlain.

And a copy of the Lake Champlain ice fishing creel survey plan can be found on DEC’s website.

13. Lunkerhunt has a new ambassador program.

Called Lunker Hunters and is a “mission-based rewards system” where folks can earn rewards (cash, Lunkerhunt products, or gift cards) for completing missions.

14. For all you folks that lose fish close to the boat….

Did you know Clam Fortis Nets now come with the option of a 110″ (over 9′) handle? 😏Still packs down nice:

And I can only poke fun at the topic because last year during our first Walleye Wackers league night on Gull Lake, we lost 3 fish that popped off within 5′ of the net. So I literally swung into a local bait shop and picked up one of those Clam Fortis Nets the next day. Guess I’m gonna have to come up with a new excuse at weigh-in this year lol.

15. Nexus Outdoors launched a new fishing apparel brand.

Same company who makes ScentLok and Blocker Outdoors apparel lines. The new fishing gear is called Whitewater.

16. DC: EPA wants E15 gas sold all summer.

They want to use the ethanol blend to try to fight high gas prices at the pump this summer:

> The 15% mix, known as E15 gasoline, is usually banned for sale from Jun 1 to Sept 15, peak travel months, because it is more volatile in the heat and there is some concern that it contributes to smog….

I definitely would NOT run that in my outboard.

Yup, this is real life! 🔥 Here’s your shot to win 3 new spinning sticks from 2B Fishing! Another gem brand under Paul and Gregg Thorne’s Two Brothers Innovations = same fellas who make Elliott Rods, which I KNOW you’ve heard of. Little different feel, little wallet-friendlier price tag, equally awesome sticks in their own way.

Whether you’re pitching jigs, snapping plastics and reaction baits, or pulling live-bait rigs…these 3 rods will have you covered!! Quick rundown of each rod from tourney-nut Will Pappenfus:

> 2B 63ML-F: Bigger isn’t always better…. This short, yet incredibly versatile rod is an early-season jig pitching machine! Its length of 6’3″ is ideal for putting the correct action into a jigging presentation while either fishing vertical or pitching towards a pod of fish.

 

> 2B 71M-F: Enjoy fishing reaction baits or throwing plastics for big walleyes? Pick up a 2B Genesis S71M-F and you will instantly feel the power of this rod. Stout enough to drive hooks home at a distance, yet features a great ‘fish fighting’ fast action.

 

> 2B 73ML-F: The Swiss Army knife of the Genesis walleye rods! This particular rod is soft enough to detect the lightest of bites while rigging, yet has enough power for sweeping hooksets when pitching light jigs (or Ned rigs 🤫). The medium-light power shines when you’re looking to detect the bite and keep that fish pinned all the way to the net!

Takes just 10 seconds to enter by clicking the pic below – can share the link you get for bonus entries. 👊 Good luck!

Every try double-hooking shiners…

…with super long-shank hooks like the Mission Tackle Shiner Jig? It’s sort of like a TX Rig for walleyes (lol). Great way to keep those dollar bills straight and on the end of your hook until a fish hits ’em. Bonus points for less short-biters:

Btw there’s just something special about their “glow blue” color in spring. 🤫

Take a deep breath…most walleye seasons will open back up in the next couple weeks!

It’s gonna take more than a ND blizzard to keep Brandon Van Dusen off the water! He Simms‘d up and went pitching an 1/8-oz gumball jig tipped with a 4″ plastic into the current seam, hopping the jig down what he calls “the dinner line,” and whammy!

National Professional Anglers Assoc. 

MN-FISH