Target Walleye/Ice email

Ridiculous graph setup, When Roach Raps, Jumbotrons of the week

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Today’s Top 5

How ridiculous is this graph setup?!

Love me some “bird watching”…but only when they’re 1) locked on the decoys, 2) flushed by a wily GSP, or 3) a whole swarm of Humminbirds!

Okay, that might be a little aggressive…and that’s coming from a guy who runs a pair of Humminbird HELIX 12s side-by-side in an 18′ Lund tiller lol.

But I’m not the only one who got a kick outta that pic — check out some of these hilarious comments under the original post:

  • Hope there’s room for the copilot.
  • Going to need a booster seat.
  • Can duck behind those babes and keep bugs outta your eyes.
  • May the force be with you, Obi-Wan.
  • Only thing left to do is get clearance from the control tower for a high speed flyby.
  • Just the right amount of overkill….
  • Y’all acting like you wouldn’t do the same after hitting the Powerball.

Wait until you see his graph set-up on the bow…. < Sorry, had to lol.

So what’s all the fuss ’bout Humminbird’s MEGA Imaging? Take a peak at this snap from bassin’ pro Aaron Martens of a sunken ship on the St. Lawrence River. #DetailFerDayz

Tony Roach: Which “Raps” to fish when.

Rapala’s got a killer arsenal of baits made for calling fish in. All pull fish through the ice, but knowing which one to tie on when will for sure help you to catch more.

Tony Roach’s general rule-of-thumb is Jigging Raps for early ice, Rippin’ Raps in mid-winter, and Slab Raps later in the season:

> “Early ice in particular, you get a fair amount of young-of-the-year die-off, so those fish will really be keying in on Jigging Raps…they fall with an erratic swimming motion that matches the struggle of those minnows.

> “It’s a fantastic bait for early-ice, but also when fish are really aggressive throughout the season in the daytime hours…I’ll go to more natural colors: blue chrome, silver and perch. In stained water I will use UV colors.

> “Rippin’ Raps often draw more bites at dawn and dusk, or in really stained water. They’ve got a rattle that can help those fish hone in on your bait, and this is when your UV colors are key — it’s like a beacon in the night.”

> “Later in the winter…when they’re really not willing to go outside their strike zone to hit something, that’s where I like to fish more up-and-down presentations like the Rippin’ Rap.

> “The Rippin’ Rap bite really heats up when we’re fishing a little deeper and the fish are somewhat suspended…I’ll fish it a lot higher in the water column than I would a Jigging Rap.

> “When they’re really keying on Rippin’ Raps or Jigging Raps, but just won’t fully commit, a Slab Rap’s a great alternative. It has a real slow, subtle fall, yet it still has enough action to draw fish in.

> “I really like the profile on the Slab Rap for later in the winter, for walleyes and perch in particular. It looks exactly like the young-of-the year prey they’re feeding on.”

“And you thought kidney stones sucked…imagine passing that.”

That’s ^ a comment under an Ice Fishing Minnesota FB group post of Alex Petrashov’s bonus catch of the day. #PG13

Alex found that toy Lindy Glow Spoon inside his Happy Meal Lake of the Woods sauger. Hard proof they eat it, man?!

Can’t get enough jumbos!

Yes, we’re called Target WALLEYE, but you oughta know by now we cover all species through the ice. Get a (wide) load of these peacock perch….

Colin whacked this 14″ yellar-belly fishing Devils Lake, ND with Perch Patrol Guide Service’s Tanner Thomas. Congrats bud!

Didja know some PK Lures come in smaller sizes for bigger-er panfish? Like the 1/16-oz PK Predators attached to the faces of these jumbotrons:

Someone better warn guide Dave Shmyr Jr that Grizzlys have been known to get aggressive and steal fish….

Sent Dave a message to find out what he caught those jumbo-layas on. He said:

> Those were little guys from an ‘eater’ lake…this 15-incher [left] was caught on a PK Predator spoon. And Jamie Strauss’s [right] was a legit 2-lber…caught on a jig and minnow. Never seen that in December before, just incredible.

Good grief, dude! Those are freakin’ giants!!

How the UPL was won.

Why should you care? ‘Cuz the caliber of panfish these guys grind out on heavily-pressured waters is downright impressive. Someone always figures ’em out.

This time it was ice-nuts Matt Waldron (right) and Matt Milbrandt (left) taking home the “dubya” at the first Ultimate Panfish League event of the season on Chisago Lake, MN with an 8.65-lb bag of 8 crappies and 7 ‘gills:

Might recognize Matt Waldron’s name from his night-time crappie write-up we posted earlier — here’s how he got it done on tourney day:

Structure

> We (along with most of the teams) focused our time on the south half of the lake, which is fairly shallow (under 12′) and has a pile of weedbeds.

> Our biggest difference maker was finding tall milfoil that was standing straight up — not laid down — in 9-12’…held the biggest fish.

> Most of the aggressive fish were riding high, so we kept our jigs 3-5′ off the bottom.

> Staying away from the crowds was key…we tried to find spots away from areas that were getting drilled out by 2 or 3 different teams.

> The week leading up to the tournament had a lot of sun…derby day was overcast. The fish we found pre-fishing were still in the areas, just more spread out and less schooled up.

Baits

> We fished 3/64-oz Clam Drop-Kick Jigs…used natural colors during pre-fishing but switched to whites and pinks on tournament day ‘cuz of the cloudy conditions.

> During practice, we were catching fish on full plastics (Panfish Plastics Chigger Fry and Maki Jameis) but had to switch it up tourney day.

> Most of the fish were just barely nipping the bait, so my partner started ripping off the tails and tipping the hook with a couple euro larvae…that was the deal.

The event set an all-time UPL weight record, with 30 teams weighing in a total of 183.235-lbs of pannies. #SlugFest

Congrats fellas!

News

1. New catch-weigh-release walleye circuit.

Called the Extreme Walleye Federation and is a conservation-based circuit with 5 qualifying tourneys and a national championship in 2019. Has some pretty serious payouts too for those of you that enjoy the catching as much as the fishing lol. Quick look at the schedule:

  • Apr 21 – Lake Francis Case, Chamberlain, SD
  • May 4 – Big Stone Lake, MN/SD border
  • Jun 1 – Lake Sharpe, Pierre, SD
  • Jun 22 – Leech Lake, Walker, MN
  • July 13 – Lake Oahe, Whitlock Bay, SD
  • Sep 21 – National Championship on Lake Mille Lacs, MN

More deets here.

2. MN:15+ ice houses broken into in Otter Tail County.

So lame. How hard is it to keep your grubby paws off stuff that aint yours?!

If you want something, work your dang butt off until you get it….

3. Mission Tackle buys JB Lures.

No link yet, but got the heads up from Mission Tackle owner Dan DeJaeghere who said they plan to run it in the same location (Winthrop, MN) with the same employees:

> Dan: JB Lures has been around for 30+ years and has a loyal customer base in the Midwest for both ice and open-water tackle.

> We do have plans to upgrade the packaging and product lines, while keeping many of the favorite lures in the product lineup. We’re excited about adding this brand into our portfolio (Mission Tackle, Ice Hole Tackle, Paul Bunyan Distributing, Hook’Um Tackle, and JB Lures) and know it will keep us busy.

Busy is good — congrats!

4. OH investing nearly $10 mil to protect Lake Erie.

Says projects are “to help keep dredged material out of Lake Erie” to improve and protect water quality.

5. MB: This place grows ’em BIG.

How’d you like to stick your new PB (personal best) walleye, burbot, northern pike and lake trout all in the same day? Yup, it can happen at Wekusko Falls Lodge in northern Manitoba.

This place was on my fishing bucket list for yeeeears…and it blew my expectations out of the water. Quick highlight reel from from our trip last April:

Absolutely cannot wait to go back.

6. MI: Daniel Eichinger new DNR director.

> “Conservation is a team sport. I look forward to working with our partners to continue the thoughtful stewardship of the extraordinary natural and cultural resources that so deeply define us as Michiganders.”

“Michiganders” might just be my new fave word.

7. New shape-shifting spinner blade.

Called the Montana Blade from Ram Lures. Was hipped to ’em by owner Scott Feddes:

> Scott: I’ve been developing it over the last few years and introduced it to the market about a year ago. Since then, it’s been catching walleye all over the US and Canada…it’s like nothing they’ve seen before.

Looks slick:

Have some underwater shots of ’em in this video.

8. Frabill honors Dale Stroschein.

Much deserved, man!

Btw I’ve seen Dale’s last name spelt several different ways, so just remember: i before e, except after c in Stroschein (lol).

9. WI: Appleton Gander Outdoor store closes.

After being open for just 8 months…?

10. MI: Black Lake sturgeon season set for Feb 2.

The total season limit (for everyone) is 7 lake sturgeon. Last couple years the season was closed within 1 hour…so don’t blink!

11. WI: Winnebago Lake sturgeon meetings in Jan…

…to provide an update on the status of the population, talk results from recent surveys, and answer general Qs about the sturgeon management program.

12. Garmin announced a couple of things this week.

Budget-friendlier Panoptix LiveScope transducer that doesn’t need the “black box,” so might be easier for those of you converting it to an ice unit.

Also a new merge of Garmin and Navionics maps.

13. Pure Fishing/Berkley has a new CEO.

14. DC: President Trump signed the Modern Fish Act.

It’s about saltwater, but brings some needed common sense to fisheries management.

Tip of the Day

Don’t throw away all that old lead stuff! Tungsten rocks, but midwinter panfish sometimes like the slower fall and different movement of a lead jig. #BroKnows

Meme of the Day

Not trying to sound like your mother, but that stuff’s nastier than UV rays.

Today’s ‘Eye Candy

Purrrrrty Missouri Secrets Tackle shot of a rainbow trut chewing a 1/16-oz “bubblegum” color Water Puppet. I’ll definitely be trying a few of those bad boys when I’m up chasing trout (and other species) in Manitoba next week:

Those Someday Isle Tackle Water Puppets sorta remind me of a trout, way they dart around in different directions and never sit still…whereas some days walleye remind me of a 3-oz bell sinker lol.

Sign up another fish-head!

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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 majored in marketing, only because there was no such thing as a “fishing degree” at the time…. Get him at brett@targetwalleye.com

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