Tournament News Powered By Lake Drive Marine
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By Abe Smith
(Provided by Smithwick Lures)
Smithwick Perfect 10 RogueCharter captains on the Great Lakes dont waste much time testing every new lure that hits the market. They know the two or three best baits for trolling for walleyes and thats that. Dont even bring a new lure to the party.
So, when a lure crashes in from nowhere to enter the ranks of elite Lake Erie walleye baits, the old timers get a little upset. Solid belief systems are shaken. Old confidences are questioned.
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(Provided by PRADCO Lures)
by Daniel Quade
First-Freeze WalleyesA shout echoes unanswered across the barren icepack of Minnesotas massive Upper Red Lake. Its hardly a call for help, much less a greeting. It was veteran walleye guide Jonny Petrowske, proving a point about getting away from the crowd to corral first-ice eyes.
If I yell at the top of my lungs and no one hears me, Im far enough away from other anglers, he grins.
Petrowske says that even aggressive walleyes get skittish when clamorous hordes of winter warriors overrun the ice. Since the only reply to his thunderous vociferations was the raspy, disapproving cackle of a raven drifting overhead, it appears were good to go.
Were targeting early winter walleyes shortly after the mighty lakes surface has solidified. Shallow and relatively featureless, Upper Red is typical of many fisheries that are first to freeze, and first to offer a chance at hardwater walleyes.
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by Daniel Quade
(Provided by PRADCO lures)
Last Chance WalleyesTiming is everything in life, and nowhere is this truer than in walleye fishing. Hover over a hot reef during a suicide bite and hungry eyes make you a hero. Try the same tactics after a crushing cold front, however, and youll plummet from the penthouse to the outhouse.
This explains why veteran guideswho get paid to put clients on fish no matter the conditionsuse timing to their favor whenever possible. Knowing where active fish gather, when, makes a huge difference in their catches. For longtime guide Jon Thelen, whose territory includes Minnesotas storied Mille Lacs Lake, the mid- to late fall time frame offers some of the seasons finest and most consistent patterns.
People put their boats away way too early, he says, lamenting the lines of shrink-wrapped hulls decorating marine dealers lots come mid-October. Theyre missing out on some of the best walleye fishing of the year.
What makes this period so special, he says, is walleyes are so dependent on Mother Natureparticularly water temperature and wind directionthat profiling their behavior becomes infinitely easier than during other times of year.
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(Provided by Indiana DNR)
Fishing at LaPortes Pine Lake received a boost this month as the DNR stocked 4,018 walleye advanced fingerlings there.
The walleyes were reared by inmates at Terre Hautes Federal Correctional Complex as part of a partnership between the DNR and the Federal Bureau of Prisons. The same facility grows catfish for the Go FishIN in the City program, a program to enhance fishing opportunities in Indianas urban areas.