The fall Lake Wisconsin walleye/sauger fishing season was in full swing this past weekend. We saw a couple walleyes over 28″ caught in boats near us and many more saugers over 20″ long. It’s becoming quite common to land anywhere from one to four or more saugers over 20 inches, plus having an excellent shot of landing a big walleye to boot.
Jigs, blade baits & crankbaits all caught fish for us this weekend. Overall, the bite was very, very good. Saturday morning I was out with Les Herman and Jeff Zappia. We probably should have been trolling crankbaits but since they are still pretty new to fishing Lake Wisconsin, we stuck to more traditional fall walleye fishing methods. We still manage five fish on jigs and blade baits. One sauger measured up at 21-3/4″, another at 19-1/2″ long.
Sunday Dewey Schultz and I started out with jigs then switched over to trolling crankbaits. That turned out to be a good decision. The rest of the morning we were kept very busy reeling in fish. We ended the morning with 14 walleyes & saugers. The biggest was Dewey’s new personal best, a nice 27-1/2″ walleye.
Congratulations on that one Dewey. Next time we go for a 30 incher!
We also landed four other saugers that went over the 20″ mark.
Surface water temperatures in the main lake are now running right around the 50 degree mark.
Joel
Are you pulling 3-ways and stickbaits or are you long lining deep divers?
Another fine report Joel! I’ve been looking forward to seeing your fall reports. Always a good read, with some awesome fish and pics!
Man those are some huge sauger biggest in the state! Too bad they would not allow some to be weighed so we can break the state record hey? I bet you’ve come close a few times???
Great Fish!
Lead core. It’s not much of a secret anymore. Still, not that many people are doing it here.
#5’s and #7 jointed shad raps are hot right now.
If you like to vertical jig, heavier hair jigs in the 1/2 to 3/4oz size have been hot as well. Troll them at about .5 to .7mph with an occasional rod pump.
Biggest in my boat has been 5-1/2lbs. It really doesn’t bother me that we can’t keep them. Although we catch quite a few in the 20-23″ range, saugers bigger than 23″ are pretty rare.
Our shad population is a bit down from the previos years. That seems to be having a big effect on the feeding attitude of the walleyes & saugers so far this fall.
If you ever wanted to fish Lake Wisconsin saugers & walleyes but just could never pull the trigger, this is the year to do it for sure.
That week of the full moon in November sure is looking like a good one right now!
Thanks John!
With all the impressive walleye fishing reports from Mille Lacs and the Mississippi river, it sometimes feels as though we’re always fishing in someone else’s shadow.
Well done Joel!
Dandy looking saugers and eyes…….fall is great being able to try different methods while having a shot at a trophy or two. Good luck during the November moon
Great report as always, Joel.
I’m hoping to keep my priorities straight this fall and make it over there for at least one day, chasing those mongo sauger.
Awesome job Joel, them saugers are tanks
Great Report Joel
Nice Fish
The hair jigs presented vertically today with minnows produced 5 saugers 20-22.5, 2 legals, 6 shorts and one bonus, 29″ walleye so not much for supper. Water temp down to 47.2. Fished from 1130-430. Back in the AM.
Grey Beard
Grey Beard,
Welcome to IDOfishing.com!
Glad to hear you did well out on the lake today.
Did you get any pictures of that 29″ walleye?
If so, feel free to share it here on this thread.
Or if you would rather post your own report, there is a Lake Wisconsin thread where you can do that also.
http://www.idofishing.com/forum/postlist.php/Board/lakewi/lake-wisconsin
Come on Z-man, your really going to regret it if you don’t get your butt over here this fall!
Great update Joel,good to hear multiple presentations are producing for ya in a big way!
We didn’t have as many saugers over 20″ today but by far a personal best at 24.5″ and 6.2# hair jig and minnow. A walleye at 22″ and sauger at 21″ and 7 between 16-19.75″ plus a number of shorts on both hair and plain jig and minnow. Can’t get plastic to work. Temp dropped a degree over night to 46.2. My partner outfished me but only fair because he ties the jigs.
Grey Beard
Wow, nice sauger Grey Beard!
Probably the biggest one I’ve seen out of Lake Wisconsin yet.
The bubble burst on my 24.5” fish because I sent the picture to a friend who is a DNR biologist and he sent it on to another biologist. In their opinion my fish’s parents were promiscuous and one was a sauger and the other a walleye. That results in a hybrid, the saugeye.
When I boated the fish I noted the sauger pattern on the side of the fish. However the markings between the dorsal rays were blotchy, not the distinctive polka dot pattern. There was a faint, narrow vein of white on the tip of the tail. We’ve all seen variability in the markings on sauger so I didn’t quite know what to make of this fish.
To quote one of the DNR biologists: “We do see quite a few hybrids on L Wi. If your questioning which species it is, it’s probably a hybrid as they display characteristics of both. Only way to tell for sure is to examine the plyoric caeca, which a like tube like attachments between the stomach and intestine, like our appendix, useless. Walleye usually have 3-4 same length as stomach, sauger 4-6 shorter than stomach. Of course you’d have to sacrifice the fish to look at this.” That would not be legal on Lake WI.
I kind of doubt they will get the slot changed because it is doing what they want, a great fishery with a bunch of big fish that we get to catch and release. Once the DNR gets a rule in place it’s like it came down on clay tablets from the mountaintop and suggesting a change makes you a heretic.
I’m posting a crop of one of my pictures. Still a dandy fish.
Grey Beard