small walleye

  • amarble_eye
    Posts: 32
    #1298445

    is it just me or is it that the walleyes in lakes are small. so far all the walleyes that i caught this year is small. well that might be because i am a first year ice fisher. has anybody actually caught any walleye over 14 inch in lakes besides millacs.

    deerwoody
    Deerwood,MN.
    Posts: 285
    #526306

    Keep after em, they are out there!

    outdoors4life
    Stillwater, MN
    Posts: 1500
    #526325

    Yup I just was out Friday and our 1st was 24 inches.
    The One fish I did catch was 14 inches but I saw some nice ones on the Underwater camera. It was not on Mille Lacs. But we were after whitefish so the walleyes were by accident A couple pics

    david_scott
    Twin Cities
    Posts: 2946
    #526455

    Peng.. keep after them. If you are catching nothing but small fish.. move, or/and change your presentation to something more suitable for larger fish.

    I see it all the time around the metro where the walleyes are heavily stocked and there are a large number of small walleyes.. people tend to downsize their presentation to become more effective at catching the smaller fish. By *upping* your bait size, it will usually keep those little guys off and gives a chance at the larger fish when you have a large enough offering to interest them.

    I believe your in the metro? What usually works for me, if I am getting numbers of smaller fish(usually shallow) and no larger fish.. I move to slightly deeper water off the same structure to start(if I was fishing 17′, I’ll move to mid 20’s) still staying close to the initial structure. I fish weeds 95% of the time..so I am always close to a weedline, but often he best concentration of larger fish will be on the deeper *shelf* closely adjecent(sp?) to the weeds, while the smaller fish push themselves into the edge of the weeds picking out the smallest forage that wont leave the weed cover. Bigger walleyes will also cruise the weeds(often as shallow as 5′), these fish are easiest targeted with a tip-up and a shiner/sucker and remain undisturbed while your more agressively fishing the deeper water directly off the main weed line.

    Finding the *sweet spots* is the hard part. Once you find decent fish, you usually dont have to venture far. You could remain fishless while a hole 20′ away would produce numbers. The fish generally use the exact same *highways*.

    I cant emphasize enough… STAY AWAY FROM THE CROWDS.. andother people in general. A few people moving around is all it takes to shut down the bite, and agressive fishing pressure will re-route these fish highways.

    good luck

    amarble_eye
    Posts: 32
    #526774

    well its true that alot of people on the ice will scare the fish away or make them not bite. but since i dont have any way of finding the structures of the bottom i tend to follow people around. i have a flasher but that is all.

    deerwoody
    Deerwood,MN.
    Posts: 285
    #526838

    Do your self a favor and invest in a gps and lakemaster chip,they work wonders for finding fish when you are not on the water.

    david_scott
    Twin Cities
    Posts: 2946
    #526944

    You dont need a GPS, or lakemaster chip to find structure.. it sure can help. Studying map easily aquired from map books, or online on the DNR site http://www.dnr.state.mn.us you can use the lake finder to get current lake information and maps.

    You have all you need with a flasher and an auger. Pour a little water on the ice and set your transducer on it and read right through.. or if its too cloudy(ice), drill a hole and check the depths.

    I didnt use a flasher on the ice regularly until about 5 years ago.. and caught plenty of fish. All a flasher does is makes it quicker to positively locate fish, and fish harder for the fish you see below your hole. I used to simply drill a number of holes in an area and used a depth guage (heavy weight with clip) on a jigging rod to check the depths from hole to hole, and try to choose the most likely spot of the area.

    People here have given you enough sound advice.. we cant go out and drill the holes for you… many of us who get away from the crowd dont enjoy others following in our footsteps uninvited.

    Take into consideration where you are catching your *small walleyes* now.. depth, basic structure, etc. Find another spot on the lake, or another lake like it and you have a good place to start.

    If you want someone to drill the holes, pay for a guide.

    amarble_eye
    Posts: 32
    #527068

    well thanks for all of the info you guys, i look forward to somr more rewarding trips. i’m sorry if i offended anybody by following them around. but i do hope that people understand that i too am like many other fisherman who just wants to catch fish for the joy of it. i myself do not like to be very close to people. but if someone wants to be near me i have no problem with that. thank you all for the help. i’ll be out on south center most of the time just to let you guys know.

    deerwoody
    Deerwood,MN.
    Posts: 285
    #527214

    I have upped my walleye catch by at least 50% this year by using gps and chip.It was an investment but I found it well worth it,dnr maps suck.

    erick
    Grand Meadow, MN
    Posts: 3213
    #527216

    do the lakemasters cover smaller as well? never dealt with them YET looking to buy a handheld gps for ice fishing

    matt_grow
    Albertville MN
    Posts: 2019
    #527234

    Quote:


    do the lakemasters cover smaller as well? never dealt with them YET looking to buy a handheld gps for ice fishing


    They sure do, But not nearly all of them. Here is the lake list and differentiation of the contour stepsize by lake name.
    MN lake list

    Also available is the PC software, allowing you to view the same maps on the computer and many other features. Its handy for the person who has a GPS not capable of digital gps maps.

    PC mapping software

    Click on the software functionality link to see what it can do.

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