Target Walleye/Ice email

Full Jigging Rap system, Tail hook minnows, Boomerang pike

Posted on

Heads up: Heading out the door to Saginaw Bay, MI for the 2nd NWT event! Target Walleye emails will be going out as usual, but they may be comin’ at unusual times/days #BearWithMe.

Gonna try to give you a behind-the-scenes look at what’s going on — like I did at the Winnebago NWT — and get more tip vids on how (and why!) the pros do what they do. Let me know whatcha wanna see….

>> If you’re getting this Target Walleye/Ice email for the first time, a friend probably signed you up!

Today’s Top 5

The complete Jigging Rap system.

One of the best ways to put a pile of walleyes in the boat (year-round) is slingin’ a Rapala Jigging Rap — a bait I ALWAYS have tied on [fire emoji].

Video breaks down everything from rod power and action, mono vs braid, leader length, style/size of snaps and swivels, bait color and size…you name it! Check it:

That’s a #00 VMC Crankbait Snap in the thumbnail. Lot of other snaps on the market have a V shape that locks the bait in place, but this one has a “teardrop” bottom that lets the bait do its thing and roll upside down — like shiners do when you see ’em kick to the side and shimmer in the water. #Money

Speaking of Jigging Raps: What’s your favorite way to store/protect ’em? Let us know here. My favorite so far are the Clam Deluxe Spoon Box and the Plano Spoon Boxes — they’re 3″ to 3.25″ tall and hold Jigging Raps up to the #7 size:

Haven’t tried the 7080-20 Plano Spoon Box yet, but it’s 5.25″ tall, so would guess the #9 Jigging Raps would fit too.

Ones that almost got away…or not….

It’s one thing to find fish…other half the battle is getting ’em in the boat. Steve Meredith had his drag set just right to boat this wall-dawg that swiped at his Storm 360GT Searchbait:

Justin Schwartz caught this one on a Rapala Shadow Rap — makes runnin’ braid look a little scary. #Tear’EmOff

Not sure if this one was being released — or released itself — but love this Gunpowder (new-school media company) shot of a walter that wanted nothing to do with taking a ride in that blacked-out Lund:

 

Now here’s some that couldn’t have shook off if the bail was opened up!

Larry Larivière was pitchin’ a Northland Mimic Minnow Shad (perch) on his Okuma Helios Spinning Rod and got straight scarf’d up:

They still make jaw-spreaders? Asking for Isaac L. who’s gonna need one thanks to a custom-painted (?) Rapala Rippin’ Rap:

Dropshots ain’t just fer bass…especially when you’ve gotta Lunkerhunt Bento Bait on:

Jason Mitchell’s early-season rigging tips.

Jason Mitchell did a write-up packed with too much good info to all fit here, so just a few of those why-didn’t-I-think-of-that excerpts below:

> When looking for fish — or pulling the first fish off a location — nose-hook for extra speed and durability. Once the spot dies down, you can usually pull a few more fish by tail-hooking the minnow.

> Tail-hooking works well when hovering over fish and hardly moving. The downfall is they usually fatigue quickly and die.

> To get more kick out of minnows when crawling through locations, hook ’em through the top jaw and not through both jaws.

> Bigger minnows sometimes require a shorter snell to stay in the strike zone…can often anticipate the bite by the “shudder” or action of the minnow before the strike.

Yup, you can actually feel the minnow “get nervous” when a walleye is close with Jason’s Elite Series Spinning Rods:

> Many believe rigging requires finesse, but too light of a snell will A) twist when you speed up, and B) demand that you crawl along at slow speeds. I catch more fish by using heavier snells, like 10- or 12-lb at times.

> Heavier snells allow me to speed up to over 1 mph and look for fish on my electronics when there’s none below the boat. When I mark fish, I can hover and back-troll or use the Spot Lock on the trolling motor.

Said his favorite all-around rigging rod is a 7′ medium-light fast action, which you can check out right here.

“Office life sucks.”

That’s Ross Robertson talking. More:

> “When you guide and make your living fishing, you will run into nasty weather, people and fishing…. Sometimes you need a reminder why you wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Nice cube Ross! We’d take nasty weather over nasty people any day…especially when your “office” is at a walleye factory like Lake Erie.

Boomerang pike caught!

If Brandon Sakkinen released this fish, would it come right back?

Post from Outdoor News.

News

1. Next NWT stop: Saginaw Bay, MI.

Some locals are guessin’ the winner could crack 60 lbs for a 2-day bag. #SlugFest

2. CAN wants peeps to use less lead.

Not a position the CAN government is about to act upon, but FYI.

> An avg CAN angler can lose 11-15 jigs and sinkers per year while fishing…adds up to about 460 [metric tons] of lead lost every year into Canada’s lakes and waterways.

More like “per day” for me up there….

3. Johnnie Candle inducted to ND Fishing Hall of Fame.

Well-deserved, congrats man!

4. ND: Devils Lake bite es en fuego.

Ton of fish still cruising the shallow 2-5′ stuff. #BassFishingForWalleyes

Perfect timing: The Chamber walleye tournament is Jun 22-23.

5. Great Lakes: Cormorant hunting season comin’.

> The agency will issue permits to kill up to 18,270 cormorants this year in 8 Midwestern states. Those applying must submit photos of cormorant damage, how many they wish to kill and how they plan to do it.

> There were only 125 nesting pairs of Great Lakes cormorants in 1972…today there’s 40K[!]…causing a big problem on many of the region’s islands.

Won’t need decoys…just go where the fish are lol. Only thing almost as annoying as someone practicing their goose call in the truck would be a cormorant call. If you’ve never heard one, they sound exactly like this.

6. Bagley’s havin’ a massive bonfire!

Kiddin’. That’s a mountain of the extra-special balsa wood they’ve been using for 60+ years of making lures.

7. ND: Heads up — gotta buy live bait in-state.

It’s nothing new, but something you might not know: Can’t bring bait across state lines if you’re roadtrippin’ to NoDak. No matter if it’s minnows, suckers, leeches, waterdogs, frogs, kittens or squirrels…gotta buy it local.

8. Smooth Moves seat in action on big water.

A pair-uh Smooth Moves Ultras keep your back and hiney smiling:

9. IN DNR gives grants to fight invasive veggies.

10. Hooked Magazine givin’ away a DREAM trip.

Fly-In trip for 4 to Amphibian Lake Lodge. Contest closes Jun 30 — deets here.

11. Roach’s trick to keeping shiners on the hook.

Hangs their (the shiner’s) lip on the “keeper” of a Northland Current Cutter Jig:

12. MN “Take a Kid Fishing” weekend Jun 8-10.

Shout-out if that’s every weekend for you!

13. You tried the Phantom Tilly yet?

Probably should. #2For1s

Or the secret new Phantom Lures Boogey we aren’t supposed to talk about yet [zipped-mouth emoji]. More later….

14. CAN dishin’ out retaliatory tariffs…

…to include U.S. built boats. Way it reads my next boat might be fiberglass.

15. T-H Marine buys Blue Water LED.

How sick would these be for you night-trollers:

16. Didja enter the Someday Isle Tackle giveaway yet?

Have a shot at winning a $250 mountain of Water Puppets! Baits have a KILLER action that’ll dart off horizontally or swim in a figure-8 motion.

Click here to enter. Share the link you get for more chances to win. Good luck!!

Tip of the Day

Off Shore Tackle Tadpole Diving Weights are a weighted device to get your lures deeper, and an easier alternative to downriggers and divers. This In-Fisherman write-up has a ton of great info on ’em — few excerpts below:

> The Tadpole gets its name from its shape, resembling a larval frog. This in-line diving device is weighted and dives like a crankbait…allows anglers to fish deeper [as deep as 50-60′] at a range of speeds while using shorter leads.

> A 1-oz Tadpole fished 150′ back at 1.5 mph runs at 25′. This makes it a great option for most trolling applications because a greater range of depths can be achieved with moderate lead lengths.

> Rig the Tadpole by attaching the line to a snap that clips onto the tow arm. Then tie a 4-6′ leader to a snap-swivel on the tail of the Tadpole with 12- to 15-lb fluoro for spinners, spoons and stickbaits.

> …can be fished on a flat line or with an in-line planer board. Using a line-counter reel lets you duplicate effective lead lengths.

Quote of the Day

One last cast always turns into about 15 more when a walleye is caught.

– What Tanner Cherney said ’bout this magical moment on Devils Lake, ND:

I would NEVER leave man! But if I did, 15 more casts would actually be 47 lol….

Today’s ‘Eye Candy

Not sure if AnglingBuzzard Nick Lindner caught this wall-dawg on purpose — or while bass fishin’ — but ‘least he looked good doin’ it! #BlackfishGear

Believe he caught it draggin’ around VMC Marabou Jigs — aka “the fuzz.” Killer on smallies — overlooked for walleyes.

Random

Rattlesnake safety tips for summer.

No thanks. One more reason I LOVE the Midwest. Biggest worry ’round here is whether or not the mother-in-law put nuts in the cookies. Kiddin’ Paula! Lol

Sign up another fish-head!

If you’re forwarding Target Walleye/Ice to a friend who loves to walleye-fish or want your fishing buddies to get these emails, just send us their email addresses and we’ll take care of it! (We won’t sell the addresses, use them for spam, etc.)

Check this stuff out!

Who is Target Walleye/Ice
Target Walleye/Ice — 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/Ice. 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.

Related Items:, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Recommended for you

To Top