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Reminder: If your email program cuts off the bottom of this email, click “View this email in your browser” up top to see the whole thing. Sorry about that – email programs keep changing stuff.
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The NWT’s not in Kansas anymore.
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The National Walleye Tour is happenin’ right now out of Sault Ste. Marie, MI on St. Marys River, and connecting Lake Superior and Lake Huron.
Lets just say the pro’s rigs aren’t the biggest on the water – this awesome Dustin Samplawski shot helps put things in perspective:
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Lot of water to cover – some pros are making 100 miles runs! – yet someone always tracks ’em down. After day 1 that somebody is Max Wilson who’s leading with a monster 5-fish bag of 33 lbs 3 oz: |
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And it looks like Max is piecing together a solid bag again today judging by this fatty that took his breath away. 🫢🙌
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Btw this tournament will determine who makes the top 40 in the AOY race to qualify for the no-entry-fee 👀 Championship in Devils Lake, ND.
It’s going to be an exciting weigh-in – good luck to all! I’ll follow up with the winning deets next week. Until then you might be able to catch the end of the live weigh-in that’s wrapping up now, or hit the live leaderboard.
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Don’t see that every day! 😳
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Jake Johnson ( @jjohnsonmn89) found this big walleye washed up on the shores of Lake Minnewaska near Glenwood, MN after choking on a big ‘ol bullhead. #deathrow #lastmeal |
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Fish-head Joel VandeKrol has caught this same ultra-unique smallmouth twice now. Off the same dock, in the same month, but two years apart: |
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Brooke Miller had this contraption go past her cabin on the Mississippi River near Buffalo, IA. Looks like it’d be great for sight fishing, or maybe a floating deer stand. 😅
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Dropshot soft-plastic crayfish for bigger summertime walleye.
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This one is coming from a Virtual Angling write-up with yours truly. If you haven’t heard of Virtual Angling yet, their site is packed with a wealth of knowledge from the pros and they’re constantly kicking-out more good nearly every day. Full write-up here, but a few quickie excerpts below:
> “Because I’m a bass fisherman at heart I dropshot a lot. I started catching a lot of incidental walleyes while I was targeting smallmouths and largemouths. So I thought to myself, there’s a lot more to this dropshotting thing than you might expect.
> “I caught a lot more eater-size fish on a dropshot with live bait, so I switched to fishing soft-plastics, which generally produces bigger walleyes. While I started with minnow, leech, and ‘crawler imitators, I started using crawfish patterns to get big walleyes to bite a drop-shot. You don’t catch many fish but when you do it’s like a 24- to 27-inch fish….
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> “My favorite soft-plastic craw is the 3.5” Craw D’oeuvere by PowerTeam Lures and it’s weird because when you see it in the water it doesn’t have a whole lot of action. It’s a smooth-moving bait. You can nose hook it and fish it on a slow glide. You can thread it on the hook, too, but I prefer to nose-hook.
> “I don’t know if I’ve caught a BIG walleye on a dropshot and a ‘crawler [tho it’s really good for catching numbers of smaller fish] but last summer I caught 8 or 10 walleyes that were 24-27” on that craw.
> “Walleyes love crawfish. Everybody’s using minnow-, leech-, and ‘crawler-profile soft plastics and live bait but those big walleyes are eating a lot more crawfish than you’d think – and there aren’t a lot of presentations that can duplicate them easily in the walleye world. But you look at the smallmouth bass world and bringing over some of those baits is a great way to get big walleye bites.”
> Might be a great rig for Mille Lacs in late-July and Aug when both smallies and walleyes hit the rocks to devour molting crawfish. The same thing probably happens on a lot of other walleye waters, too….
Keep reading here.
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How walleye fishermen cool off. 🥵
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Few throwback pics to help you chill out this weekend…. 😎
Jeremy got himself a float tube walldawg strolling down Manitoba’s Pinawa River with an ice rod in hand. Freakin’ LOVE it!
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The dog days of summer don’t stop Derek Lamash from enjoying the lake. Instead of sweating the small stuff, he turns himself into a fish finder: |
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Troy “Mr. Bluegill” Peterson said this one “ate a 3-oz Snickers just 3′ behind the boat and buried the planer board” yet he was somehow able to get that giant water-wallowing sucker in the net:
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Here’s what:
> Beginning Tues, Aug 1…the change allows anglers to keep ONE walleye between 20-23”, or 1 longer than 28”. The previous limit was one walleye 21-23” or 1 > 28”.
Here’s why:
> “With the catch rates we’ve had this spring and early summer, we can expand opportunity a bit for the rest of the open-water season without harm to the long-term sustainability of the lake’s walleye population….”
> The recent lower catch rate of Mille Lacs walleye is less a reflection of the number of walleyes in the lake than the abundance of natural forage. Minnesota DNR population models that incorporate test netting done each fall indicate that the number of walleyes in the lake longer than 14” has been similar from 2020-2023, but test netting shows an increase in the abundance of yellow perch from strong recent year classes. With more forage fish to eat, walleye have not been as willing to bite on anglers’ lines.
> “Although the relaxed slot limit may not seem like a big change, the current size structure of walleye [there’s zillions of 20” walleyes in there] in the lake means this will increase anglers’ chances of catching a harvestable fish….”
> Walleye regs for the winter season (begins Dec 1) will be announced in Nov.
2. ND: Father/son duo wins Gov Cup on Lake Sakakawea.
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> …Steven and Weston Weisenburger have been trying for 20 years to win the North Dakota Governor’s Walleye Cup tournament. They finally found success over the weekend by concentrating on an area of Lake Sakakawea with which neither angler was familiar.
Caught their 2-day total (42.22 lbs) using a 1-2 🥊 of Rapala Jigging Raps and Lindy rigs.
Big congrats, fellas!
3. Are walleye overrated? 🧐😂
Came across this funny write-up from MeatEater contributor Kubie Brown called, “The 4 Most Overrated Freshwater Fish in North America.” Here’s a little snippet of him talking about walleye:
> “First and foremost, walleye can’t fight. I don’t care what you say about some 30”+ behemoth doubling your rod over and pulling out drag like some sort of leviathan. It probably felt that way because you were using light gear or hooked the fish by its tail. In reality, most walleye fight like a bad-tempered Chihuahua. They shake and try to act tough, but once you’ve got a hold of one, you can pretty much do whatever you want with it. The fight with a walleye is like going from reeling thru water to reeling thru syrup.”
LOL.
4. MN: Live-bait trappers battling severe shortage.
5. MN: Starry stonewort found in North Twin Lake (Beltrami).
Friendly reminder that despite how it sounds, “starry stonewort” is an invasive algae…not a Harry Potter character:
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It was first confirmed in 2015 and has now spread to at least 25 MN waterbodies.
> Starry stonewort can form dense mats, which can interfere with recreational uses of a lake and compete with native plants. It is most likely spread when fragments have not been properly cleaned from trailered boats, personal watercraft, docks, boat lifts, anchors or other water-related equipment.
> Starry stonewort is an algae that looks like some native aquatic plants. In late summer and early fall, starry stonewort’s small white star-shaped bulbils become more visible, making it easier to distinguish from other aquatic plants.
And ‘cuz I’m a visual learner too:
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6. Great read on NWT pro John Hoyer.
How he got started and what let to being where he’s at now.
7. Berkley/Pure Fishing’s Jon Schlosser promoted…
…from senior VP of marketing to chief product and brand officer.
> This significant move underscores the company’s commitment to leading and innovating in the market by aligning the brand, product, and R&D functions under Schlosser’s experienced leadership.
Congrats!
8. Quantum seeks brand marketing manager.
9. PA going calendar-year boat registration cycles in 2024.
> Currently, PA’s boat registrations are valid from Apr 1 to Mar 31, which can be confusing to boaters and result in unintentional violations. The PFBC will begin issuing calendar-year boat registrations in Oct 2023 which will be valid from Jan 1, 2024, through Dec 31, 2025.
10. What Shimano says about the first half of the year.
> In the Japanese market, willingness to buy new products was said to be strong among long-time fishing enthusiasts, and demand for high-priced products remained firm.
> Overseas, while sales in the North American market softened as demand cooled down, European market sales remained strong backed by stable demand.
11. Brunswick Q2 tidbits.
> Propulsion segment [Merc] reported a 4% decrease in sales…offset by favorable product mix related to increased high-horsepower outboard engine demand, and higher sales to repower customers. Operating earnings in the quarter were also impacted negatively by timing related to capitalized inventory variances which was an equal benefit in the 1st quarter.
> Navico Group segment [Lowrance] reported a sales decrease of 20%, driven by lower retailer orders…partially offset by strong new product performance.
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Unless you’re Steven Rutz, who sniped the handlebars off a kid’s Razor Kick Scooter and made a mount that rotates, extends and folds down for transport LOL. Yes, this is real life: |
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Amazingly dark one caught by Brayden Leffel that went 29” long with a 16.25″ girth: |
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Thanks SO much for reading! 👊 Good luck this weekend if you’re getting out!
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Friends of Target Walleye
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Who is Target Walleye
Target Walleye – walleye during open water and all species during hardwater – is brought to you by Al Lindner, Jim Kalkofen, Jay Kumar, Brett McComas and other diehard fish-heads like you!
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Brett McComas is the main man for Target Walleye 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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