Pool 2 November walleyes

By spence 0

November. What a great time of year to be fishing walleyes on the river. Cool days, very little boat traffic and big walleyes make this a great time of year to fish. Pool 2 is my favorite place on the river to fish now and the last few weeks it has shown me time and time again why this pool is listed as a “trophy water”.

My approach for finding these trophy fish has not changed much. Pitching BfishN tackle jigs and plastics to the wingdams has been the way to go. Purple plastics have been a very good color so far this fall. Some days its just straight purple ringworms. Other days purple/white tail ringworms and paddle tails get the nod. These colors have made up most of my bites but it is always a good idea to pitch some variety to a spot. There is always one down there that wants something different.

One thing that has changed in the last few weeks is the location of the fish on the wingdams. A few weeks back it wasnt to hard to find them high on the dams and maybe towards shore to get out of the current. Lately most of my fish have come deep on the dams and towards the outside tip. To find these fish 10 to 15′ down on the face of the dam is not uncommon. A lot of these deep fish dont seem to want a lot of action to the plastics either. I think this is why the stiff body paddle tails have been working for me lately over some other plastics.

From these photos you can see that the fish have had the feed bag on for a while. The weights of these fish are crazy. I had a few 25″ers that hit the 7# mark or bigger. Just about any 26″ fish is over 8 and a good bench mark in most peoples book. Pool 2 hasnt stopped there. In the last few weeks my boat has been lucky enough to see a few 28″ fish and 4 over 29″s. Here is a photo of the biggest one yet to see my boat. A nice gal just a hair under the 30″ mark caught by John23. What a monster of a fish. We didnt have a scale with but my guess would be between 11.5 and 12#s. Way to go John. Im just happy I got to net that fish for you.

0 Comments

  1. Wingdams have not been the only bite that is going on pool 2 in the last few weeks. We have spent some time looking for saugers also. We have found a few at the airport and the confluence on plastics. Size seems to be down a little at the confluence but maybe it was just the day we fished there. Here is a photo of a nice 21″er from the airport.

    I would also like to thank Moores Bait and Tackle for keeping a good inventory of BfishN tackle in stock. You made my day Bob as I was down to just a couple of paddle tails. Thanks.

  2. 29 7/8″!?!???? Forget that noise, that’s a 30!!! Congratulations John, what a monster.

    Mike, your killing me! I’ve been getting fish, but the biguns have avoided my plastics so far. I do have some paddle tails, I’ll give them a try. I think I might even have some purple/white tailed ones.

    Great report, and nice pics, it’s good to know that the biguns are out there and will bite.

  3. Great report Mike! I’ve been lucky enough to get out with Mike and get in on some of this action. Mike has proved with out a doubt that a 10 lber on pool 2 can happen any outing.

    dd

  6. Thanks for the report Mike. It keeps the rest of us encouraged

    Hopefully i can get down there tomorrow and see if that pattern is holding up.

    Rootski

  7. Thanks again for putting me on that fish, Mike!

    I don’t think Mike’s pictures do any of the fish justice, so I’m attaching a cell phone pic of the big one that shows the belly a lot better. The shad in the river sure make them fat!!

    P.S. Thanks, Jim, and I like your thinking!

  9. Awesome fish guys!
    Those fish sure are plump.

    I have been out about 4 times this past week just for about 4-5 hours per trip and agree those big fish are on the chew! Man I love this time of year!

    Congrats guys!

  12. As promised I got out there this afternoon. I tried several different color plastics, I tried hair, I even tried crankbaits and Blade baits. I fished out the ends of the wingdams, the middle, and in towards shore. I fished for hours until it was well after dark.

    And I never got a single bite.

    In an uncertain world, it’s good to know that I still can’t catch Walleyes on Pool 2.

    Rootski

  13. Good to hear your getting back to pool 2 John. Was wondering if I would see you down there this fall. Rob. You cant catch walleyes in the deer stand.

    Better luck next time Steve.

  17. Nice fish John! The bite has been solid on P2 this fall, but everyday seems to bring a different presentation and bite.

  18. The ever changing bite is what makes it challenging and fun. Heres a good example. The last few weeks Purple/white tail ringworms and paddle tails have been real hot for me. Started out the other day with 3 poles rigged with them. Over 20 walleyes later we had not caught one on purple/white. Just a few days before that ever walleye I caught was on purple /white tail. I would think the difference was water clarity. Seemed to be a drop in barge traffic earlier this week and I would think that might of cleared the water up a bit.

    Heading down there again in a few minutes. Good luck to those that are still getting out.

  20. Has anyone been out here lately? I am looking to get out this morning and want to know what access is working/good shape on P2?
    Thanks

  21. i know 494 is in great shape. my guess is that with the recent cold overnight temps, st. paul park is probably frozen over. lilydale, 494 and hidden falls are always good bets this time of year. good luck and the let your trailer drain at the waters edge.

  22. The Lilydale ramp is in as good a shape as it gets. The shoreline around the ramp isn’t very boat parking friendly but the ramp is open and dry.

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