Late August Pool 2

Hey guys,

My brother and I are relatively new to the pool 2 walleye scene, and we’re wondering if the fish stop biting during these late August weeks. We went out last week and got totally skunked, and we’re just trying to figure out if it is worth out time to get back out there. We ran into Mike a few weeks back (very nice guy — thanks for the tips!) and I remember him saying something about the bite slowing down in August. If that’s the case, do we know why that happens? And when does it pick back up again?

Thanks,

Brett G

Hello Brett and welcome to IDO!

It takes a while to get comfortable on Pool 2. Things change on the river and it takes while to get a handle on all that so don’t get discouraged. Usually in August the flow slows down, the water gets warm, and the Walleyes are scattered all over the place. The Walleyes are there and they can be caught but you have to find them first. One of the biggest mistakes I made ( or still make…) is that I sit on a spot too long. If Walleyes are there and you get a bait in front of them, you’ll get some action. If nothing is happeneing then it’s time to move. It’s a good idea to try trolling to see of you can locate some fish. If nothing else, it puts your bait in front of those random stragglers or maybe you just might find a spot that’s holding a bunch of fish. Look for Flicker Shads or other less expensive crankbaits in the discount bins as you will lose some As a rule of thumb, with faster current you fish closer to shore. Late summer when the river slows down you should look out on the tips of the wingdams more. If nothing else, thread a piece of crawler on a jig and pitch that out on a wingdam. A lot of nice Walleyes fall for that and if nothing else you can catch all kinds of other fish.

Good luck and I hope to see you guys down there !

Rootski

I have been catching them with a 1/2 crawler and a jig on the current seems. Most of my fish have been on the smaller size 12 – 16 inches but did catch a 22 today but that was casting a crank. Numbers are up from a month ago but the size seems to be down.

Big thing this time of year is stay mobile and just because the water is warm does not mean there not shallow! I will only work a spot for a very short time, if there active they will bite. We have caught some very nice fish lately in the upper 20’s working fast current seams with shad raps bouncing on the bottom in the last week.

Good to see you on IDO Brett. Think I must of talked to you guys at the landing a few weeks back.

This is a little different year on the river. The last 5 years or so there has been very low water come August. As stated above this means fish that are free to roam and a abundant amount of food for them to choose from. Yes the bite for walleyes can be tough this time of year.

This year is a little different with the higher flow. Higher flow pushes the fish into current seams and other predictable areas to get out of the current a little. This also pushes their food around to. Even with that the bite is still a little off rite now but with some looking around there are walleyes to catch.

Water temps start to drop in September and depending on conditions the bite should pick up. I need to look back on last years history. We had a short higher flow last fall that set up a fantastic walleye bite late September and early oct.

Dont get discouraged. It takes time to figure out the river. Reading the posts and what ever else you can about river fishing will help but nothing beats time on the water.

One more thing. Make sure and stock up on those plastic and hair jigs by the end of September. With the way the flow is I have a feeling we are going to be in for another great fall on the river.

While the fishing will get better as we move in to fall, I’ve though the bite has actually been “OK” considering it’s late-August. At least this summer has seemed better than the last couple. I think Mike’s reference to flow is a good one – we definitely have some this year.

Another highly-anecdotal observation – I haven’t seen large amounts of gizzard shad as we have in recent summers. Maybe as flows (and temps) drop we’ll see more bait out near the main channel. Maybe the forage is there and I haven’t seen it. Just a thought…

Gianpetro?????

Gianpetro, indeed.

Thanks for the tips everyone. This forum is really a great resource, and I’ll do my best to contribute when I finally figure out what the I’m doing out there.

I’m the guy with the beat up 16′ Jon boat with a 20HP Johnson, so feel free to say hi if you see us out there on the river.

Kick around the idea of at least a part day trip with Mike.Splitting the cost with a buddy will be pretty dang affordable and will dramatically shorten your learning curve. The info from the forums will mean even more to ya.