Author Topic: Methodology for finding the walleye  (Read 3489 times)

Offline BarneyB

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Methodology for finding the walleye
« on: Jan 14, 2016, 12:33 PM »
Hi everyone, long time lurker here.

My ice fishing experience growing up was limited to having a couple of tip ups rigged with smelts while playing cards inside a warm shack. Would land the odd pike here and there.

The last few years I've spent a lot of time learning new methods and tricks and testing them out. I've improved my game significantly with pike but can't for the life of me find a good strategy for chasing walleye. When I catch one it's usually by accident. I fish lakes with healthy populations of both.

As the title says, is there a decent guide out there for finding where the walleye are under the ice?  I've searched this forum a fair bit and there are some good tips buried in various threads. I'm looking for more of a general strategy; not so much with angling technique but location wise.

I have/use a camera frequently to make sure i'm not missing anything down there. I don't have a flasher (yet) but I know that would help a lot. I understand being mobile is key, and that to find them one must move around A LOT. I'm a science person so I'd like to think basing their location off of their natural behaviors/instincts would be a wise start. Right now I typically start with a bathymetric map and try to find areas of rapidly changing depth and fish the drop off. I don't know anything about how temperatures or time of year might affect their feeding habits etc. I was told they generally hang out in deeper waters (~30') and will move to shallower waters to feed quickly before heading back down?

Any tips or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Offline appleye

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Re: Methodology for finding the walleye
« Reply #1 on: Jan 14, 2016, 02:20 PM »
Figure out what the forage base for the lake your hunting on then figure out where to look for them. Find the bait find the walleyes. That the most basic method I can give. Obviously there are different forages in most lake which can cause some confusion. Then look at the prime times, Day break and sunset. Hope that helps.
In the memory of "Team Lighting" Fish ON!
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Offline Adkrs

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Re: Methodology for finding the walleye
« Reply #2 on: Jan 20, 2016, 09:05 PM »
In fisherman has a series of books you might like. I read ice fishing secrets and learned a lot. They have walleye specific books
Beer will get you through times of no ice better than ice will get you through times of no beer...

Offline BarneyB

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Re: Methodology for finding the walleye
« Reply #3 on: Jan 22, 2016, 12:57 PM »
Thanks for pointing me towards those books! I will definitely be checking them out, that's exactly the kind of thing I need.

As for forage, I have a good idea of what they are eating but finding the bait fish isn't always that easy in winter as they seem to come and go all day long.

 



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