Target Walleye/Ice email

Golden walleyes caught, Power fishing tip, Fish the flats

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Hey everyone, we’ll be at ICAST (fishing biz trade show in Orlando) next week and will have our eyes peeled for the latest and greatest. Not sure whether we’ll get a Target Walleye out, but check our Facebook and Instagram pages for updates from the show floor.

Today’s Top 4

More golden walleyes caught.

We’ve only ever seen a few of ’em, but Jerry and John Nicholson doubled that in a single day…. They were pre-fishing for the Canadian Tire Angler’s Cup on Lesser Slave Lake, AB when they caught 3 [!] super-rare golden walleye:

Fish up there must be on a strict diet of “gold flame” Yo-Zuri Pins Minnows:

Only other person to ever catch more than one golden walleye was some chocolate-loving kid named Charlie something:

How Sprengel and Parsons power fish with bottom-bouncers.

A lot of guys are sloooowly pulling live-bait rigs this time of year, but tourney champs Gary Parsons and Korey Sprengel like bottom-bouncing up to 1.2 mph to cover water fast and put more fish in the boat.

They use Mustad Slow Death (left) and Super Death Hooks (right) that have a special bend in the shank to get nightcrawlers spinning — which walleyes can’t resist this time of year with all the bug hatches happenin’:

Super Death Hooks (right) have a more-aggressive bend that works better with plastics like Gulp! Nightcrawlers. Gary threads the crawler all the way up the hook so the head actually slides up over the knot and the tail kicks out at a 45-degree angle.

Here’s the duo putting the technique to work on MN’s Leech Lake, where they’re keying in on rock-to-sand transitions…AKA walleye highways:

Do walleye whiten their teeth?

Ever seen a walleye with yellow teeth? Us either. Yet all those pearly-whites and no one wants to kiss ’em before the release…like our bass-head friends do *cough* Jimmy Houston *cough*. Here’s a few sharp reasons why:

Can’t figure out if Cole Amsden’s catch is what dreams…or nightmares…are made of:

Mr. Walligator looks like it’s daring David Shmyr Jr. to reach for that Bagley Minnow B. Judging by the fish pics David has been posting lately it’s for sure #worthit

Same walleye that was stealing your lunch money back in the day:

Rob Reid caught this mean-muggin’ marble eye somewheres in Ontario:

Good thing Jimmy didn’t try to smooch-n-release this one:

Family slugfest on Fort Peck.

Colton Powers cracked this 32-incher [!] outta Fort Peck while rigging Smiley Blades:

Must run in the family…. Colton’s cousin Meagan Powers got herself a goodin’ too:

Only one person in the Powers’ family wasn’t impressed, but he’s always fussin’:

News

1. MB: New Lake Winnipeg regs.

> Effective this year, there is a maximum mesh size [for commercial netters] of 5.25″ for the south basin and a limit of 5.5″ for the north basin.

They say the main target is lake whitefish, but the larger holes lead to a pile of trophy walleyes being killed…. Fish would need a girth > 16.5″ to get stuck in a 5.25″ net, so all would have to be close to a 28″ master angler or better?

Also proposing a limit change for recreational fisherpeople:

> Walleye will also receive protection with proposed new limits for anglers allowing only one walleye 70 centimetres [27.56″] or longer to be kept per year.

2. ON: Paoni/McCammon win Kenora Walleye Open…

…on Lake of the Woods. Anthony Paoni and Dean McCammon won with a 2-day bag of 27.13 lbs to take home the cash + Lund boat package worth $32K!

3. OH: Emerald shiners disappearing?

One guy thinks:

> I firmly believe invasive zebra mussels and quagga mussels the past few decades played a big part in the demise of lake shiners. Mussels and shiner minnows both feed on plankton, a competition the mussels are winning.

4. OR/WA: Walleye bite strongest in years…

…on Columbia River Gorge, so they removed the possession limit…. How well did you pay attention to analogies back in the day? walleye : western states :: carp : midwest

5. MN: Camp Fish is coming back…

…25 years later and being taught by the original staff (and special guests). Were any of you at the original Camp Fish? Happenin’ Aug 6-9 and last we heard there were only a few spots left.

6. Have you seen the Storm 360GT yet?

Newish swimbait that has a resin-based head (not lead) with built in rattles and an over-sized paddle that makes the bait roll:

Our fav in most situations is the 1/4-oz (4.5″) size — great for snap jigging in shallow cabbage beds. FishUSA has ’em in stock here.

Headline of the Day

How it took 5 days and 3 guys to land a 29″ walleye.

Awesome story! To sum it up: A guy lost his rod when a fish pulled it into the lake. Five days later a different group — fishing the same spot — accidentally snagged the rod, which still had a 29″ walleye on it. Can’t make this stuff up:

Tip of the Day

> If there’s one spot/pattern that’s capable of producing a lot of walleyes early in the summer, my vote would go to large shallow flats that protrude to deep water. We’re looking for flats that are at least one acre or sometimes several hundred acres, and anywhere from 5-15′.
> The bigger the flat, the more obvious the spot and these flats are often no secret on the map. Small, obscure flats might not get as much attention, the larger spots often hold far more fish.
> There’s often some emerging weed growth on flats in less than 15′. Depending on bottom composition and water clarity, this weed growth might include chara, sand grass or carpet weed.
> Shallower flats typically consist of sand, gravel or scattered rock. Deeper flats (or basin areas) are typically softer consisting of silt, clay or muck.
> Crankbaits are a pretty good bet for efficiently covering water on flats. They have strong flash and water displacement so fish can feel/see these lures from considerable distance…[and] can be trolled at an exact depth…this keeps the lure working above the emerging weed growth on the bottom.

> Come early summer…many young of the year fish show up on these locations. These flats warm up fast and the combination of sand and emerging new weed growth just comes alive with life.

> These flats typically hold a staggering number of young of the year fish, so there’s no guessing that walleyes will be relating to this forage. An over-abundance in forage can also affect the bite.

> Crankbaits can be a good counter punch when walleyes have plenty to eat because these lures will often trigger reaction strikes.

Keep reading here.

Quote of the Day

Walleye was even removed from the list of game fish. That meant there is no regulation requiring they be eaten and a fisherman could kill it and throw it in the garbage can.

– A rather disturbing quote from a write-up talking about Buffalo Bill Reservoir (WY), where walleyes are considered an invasive species and G&F is doing everything they can to wipe ’em out. Why? In order to “sustain the health of the cutthroat trout fishery.”

Today’s ‘Eye Candy

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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 quit sports in high school because they were interfering with his fishing 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.

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