Increase hooking percentage in slow bite.

Its important to remember not to spook fish when the bite seems slow. Mille Lacs Walleyes get an attitude when baitfish populations are high. Most Mille Lacs Walleyes can be coaxed into atleast taking a look what your offering. Most of the time we don’t take into consideration how we are presenting our bait. The slightest flick of the wrist is more than enough effort needed to put action into a spoon or swimming lure when the bite get’s tough. The most important factor when fishing sluggish fish is let him eat it. Meaning when fish enter your flasher cone if your using a flasher, it’s important when to know you need to stop moving the bait. Usually when the fish(red bar on a Vexilar flasher) meets my bait, i will stop jigging completely and just hold the bait still. Don’t continue jigging or try to pull the bait away from the fish. Just getting him to look at your bait when the bite is slow can be a challange. Many times i have held the bait still for up to 10 seconds and then it gets wacked. If he wont strike after a period of ten seonds or longer, i drop the bait into the bottom and raise it back up. Thats telling me hes onto me, fish have all the time in the world to investigate your offering in the hard water months. There are ways to compete with the baitfish, these are just a few.

Good Luck
See ya on the ice.

Thanks for the post Derek…….good suggestions here to follow. How long do you think this new perch latch will effect our fishing here on the big pond? I think it might run into our summer?

I think your right bobber. This is a very large class of baby Perch. Hopefully most of them will get big enough by summer, that the smaller slot Walleyes will not have much interest. It also will depend on how many make it through the winter. It was a late bloom which could lead to some slow action this spring. Only time will tell, stock up on Perch raps!!!

Derek,
Your tip on dropping the lure to the bottom worked well on some southern Mn lakes as well. On sand/hard bottom the the eye’s would grab it off the bottom. On mud I would just barely touch bottom and rock the spoon. They would either swoop down and get it or after about 10 seconds I would raise it a foot above the sediment cloud and they would smack it that way too. TGIF

Thanks for the reply TGIF. They sure are strange creatures aren’t they?

Just imagine – THis summer the perch hatch COULD be even bigger. Now that would be tough fishing.

Yes……here on Mille Lacs we are coming off one of, or maybe the best summer fishing we have ever experienced.
And wham! all these perch…….the walleye have a 24 hr buffet right now feeding time open whenever…..

I have heard much talk about how long this slow down may last. These perch will grow from their present 4-6 inches very quickly to some nice keepers. What will happen I quess we will have to wait and see? I quess thats why fishing is so much of a challenge. And we all just love it!