Where Are Walleye In The Water Column?

Unlike other species of fish, walleyes will hold tight to vegetation or wood at times, and haunt the rocks or cruise the sand or mud. They can be on the bottom of the water column, near the top or anywhere in between.

What depth do you look for walleye?

Walleye are generally caught between 10-40 Ft. A typical mid-sized lake in the Midwest would likely hold Walleye between the depths of 10-15 Ft. during the Spring, 15-25 Ft.

Are walleye always on the bottom?

Assuming that Walleyes will always be close to bottom is a mistake. If bait fish are suspended 10 feet off the bottom, that is where feeding Walleyes will be located. The best way to look for Walleyes is using sonar. Most serious ice anglers prefer flasher- type sonar, because it shows the current depth of fish.

How do you find walleyes in a lake?

Here’s what to look for:

1. Inflowing tributaries create current in lakes.
2. Rocky points and sand bars often hold fish.
3. Humps are classic walleye structure.
4. Islands and reefs appeal to walleye.
5. Sand and mud flats hold yellow perch and aquatic invertebrates, which are food for walleye.

Why are walleyes so hard to catch?

You’re cranking weed edges too slowly.
Walleyes relating to weedbeds often school tightly. To find them, quickly work a crankbait along the edges until you get a strike. You can pick that area apart slowly after you find the fish with a fast-moving lure.

What depth do walleye like in winter?

Generally speaking walleye will hold to the same structure as they would during fall months during early ice. Slight drop-offs, sandy or rocky flats, green weed beds, and hard structure anywhere from 8 to 15 feet deep are great places to start.

Are walleye in deep water?

Walleyes spend the better part of their summer season in deep water. Provided there’s enough oxygen at depth, they happily enjoy cooler water temperatures and the bevy of bugs and other bait that congregate on deep structure. Older fish in certain lakes, learn to key in on larger bait stock.

Where can I find mid winter walleye?

Ideal places to find walleye in midwinter are underwater structures that rise from deeper basins, and that themselves are about 20-30 feet below the surface. Often you won’t find fish on these structures all day long, but they’ll pass by regularly on their patrols.

What’s the best time to fish for walleye?

The best times of day to fish for large walleye is around dawn and dusk. In particular, 30 minutes before and after sunset and sunrise are peak times. That said, walleye will continue to feed all night long. On cloudy or windy mornings, walleye may feed up to an hour and a half after sunrise.

Where are walleyes in 70 degree water?

Water warms into the 65- to 70 degree range by midsummer, the walleye’s preferred temperature range. Search for the deeper rock piles that top out in shallow water less than 10 feet deep.

What is the best water temperature for walleye fishing?

So is there a “real” best temperature to catch walleye at? The best water temperature to catch walleye at is between 65-70° but any temperature above 35° will yield walleye willing to bite.

How do you catch walleye when not biting?

Slow, methodical lifts of a bucktail or twistertail will do the trick, and the addition of a minnow or worm may coax the inactive walleye to become more co-operative. If you are fishing a deep northern shield lake, then your best bet is to fish deeper, while keying in on productive structure areas.

What triggers walleye spawn?

The pace at which the sun warms the water determines the pace of the spawn. Similarly, shallow water warms faster than deep water, so spawning starts earlier and proceeds faster in streambeds than in lakes and reservoirs. Deep inland lakes can take a while to absorb sufficient sunlight to reach the trigger temperature.

Where are walleye found?

RANGE: Walleye in North America are found in the Arctic south to the Great Lakes and across to the St. Lawrence River. In Canada, walleye are found in Quebec across to the Northwest Territories. Within the United States, walleye are found southward into Alabama and Arkansas and in the Mississippi River basin.

Where do walleye spawn reservoirs?

In reservoirs, walleyes often migrate to the current of feeder rivers or smaller tributaries in creek arms, keying on gravel and rocky sections near incoming rivers and tributary streams, main-lake points, and shorelines. Some walleyes may even spawn on riprap along the faces of dams and causeways.

Where do walleyes go in February?

As winter progresses and the water gets colder, walleye move into deeper water. In mid-winter, they are often found in basins that are 30-40 feet deep, and like to hold in areas that are close to more shallow structures, such as underwater hills or mud flats rising to a depth of 10-25 feet.

What colors do walleye see best?

Walleyes also possess color vision, based on analysis of the structure of the light-sensitive cones. Scientists tell us walleyes should see red, orange, and yellow the best, followed by green. Theory also suggests walleyes see blue and violet less well, and these colors may even appear black.

How do you find big walleye?

3 Tactics for Catching Bigger Walleye in Summer

1. Slow Your Roll. As water temperatures warm and spring gives way to summer, walleye go on a tear, eating up to three per cent of their body weight daily.
2. Go For a Swim.
3. Hit the Beach.

What is a Dubuque rig?

“A Dubuque Rig is a three-way rigged with two lures on it. It’s a border water down on Red Wing, so you’re allowed to fish with two lines or with two hooks.

How do you find fish in deep water?

The first step to catching bass on deep-water ledges is to locate a ledge on which to fish. The best place to start looking for ledges is to look for sloping rock banks. These banks, as the bank descends through the lake, will have slight outcroppings at all depths throughout the water column.

Where can I find mid summer walleye?

Walleyes inhabit many different places in a lake or river during summer. They may be in weeds or woody cover on flats, patrolling the edges of bottom channels, roaming the open lake basin, lying at the base of deep structure just above the thermocline or moving around shallow rock reefs at night and on windy days.