Tournament News Powered By Lake Drive Marine
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Dr. Jason Halfen
(Provided by Traditions Media)
Preparing to pull walleyes through an eight-inch hole in the ice begins not on the water, but at your computer.
With the arrival of hardwater across the northland, the much-anticipated ice fishing season has begun. Intrepid anglers, with ice picks draped over their shoulders and lightweight gear in tow, are now creeping across the shallows of their favorite lakes in search of the season’s first frozen success stories.
Many early-season walleye hunters are immediately drawn to the weed-studded breaklines that rim deeper basins; textbook locations that will produce apex predators for much of the season. However, these anglers are also walking right over large numbers of relatively unpressured walleyes that continue to prowl shallow flats during the first few weeks of ice.
Want to learn how to find and catch those fish? Read on!
Preparing to pull walleyes through an eight-inch hole in the ice, with only a few feet of water beneath, begins not on the water, but at your computer. This is one of the times that I make extensive use of satellite imagery to visually inspect the shallow areas of clear lakes, looking specifically for flats or bays that have distinct patches of heavy weed growth. The larger these patches are, the more baitfish they will harbor, and the more walleyes they will attract.
Turning these satellite-located weedbeds into easy-to-find fishing spots is simple: on Google Maps, just drop a pin where you would like to drill a hole, and then save that location. Now, open up the Google Maps app on your phone or mobile device, and presto: the magic of 21st century technology has your future-8-inch-hole-location displayed in its correct position, making it easy to find when you hit the ice.
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(Provided by MDNR)
Volunteers Help Michigan Grow Bigger WalleyesFall is harvest time in Michigan, and while most may be thinking of picking apples or plucking pumpkins, Michigan DNR fisheries crews are thinking about walleye.
Specifically, they're collecting the last of the walleye fingerlings that are raised in rearing ponds for stocking and getting the fish to where they want them to be.
For the most part, walleye are reared for a short period of time in ponds and stocked as spring fingerlings - most at less than 2 inches in length - in high densities. But fisheries biologists know that fall fingerlings can be stocked at much lower densities and produce better results than spring fingerlings.
Recently, DNR technician supervisor Ed Pearce brought his crew (technicians Mike Wilson and Matt Smith) to the state's walleye ponds near Belmont in Kent County to get the walleye out of the ponds and into a couple of southern Michigan lakes.
A dozen or so members of the West Michigan Walleye Club, who spent the summer babysitting the ponds, assisted the crew in the operation.
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Dr. Jason Halfen
The Technological Angler
Strategies for Late Fall Walleyes
The signs of impending change are all around us. The last dry maple leaves are falling from the trees. Frost covers the windshield as the truck warms in the crisp morning air. Boat lifts and docks are high and dry, adorning the shorelines in anticipation of winter’s arrival.
This is also a time of change for walleyes in northern lakes and reservoirs, as they transition from the fall feeding buffet to typical winter habitat and activity levels. While their environment cools, walleyes must nevertheless continue to feed, both to sustain themselves through the winter and to develop their reproductive tissues that will be exercised during the spring spawning run. Savvy late fall anglers can enjoy walleye success until skim ice starts to encroach on the boat ramp, employing mobile presentations that focus on covering water and picking off active fish during late fall’s brief feeding windows.
Recognize that your favorite lake has two different types of high percentage, late fall walleye locations: steep breaks that lead toward deeper water, and mid-depth flats that still support green weed growth. These types of areas will be easy to identify using a combination of digital cartography, sonar and Aqua-Vu underwater cameras.
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By Louie Stout
Michigan River Walleyes Are Reproducing
Veteran walleye anglers have contended for years that walleyes always have reproduced naturally in the St. Joseph River.
While there might be some of that in Indiana waters, Hoosier biologists say they have yet to find very many.
They know this because they do young-of-the-year surveys every fall while assessing how previous stockings have gone. They encounter fish they have stocked but no additional youngsters.
The situation must be different in Michigan’s lower St. Joe waters.
Michigan DNR studies conducted the past couple of years reveal a growing number of naturally produced walleye in Michigan’s section of the St. Joe.