If we’ve learned anything over the past few weeks, it is that there are a lot of walleyes in Big Winnie right now.
Catching them depends on a combination of good timing, ingenuity and persistence. But any angler who sticks with it, can not only make their own “luck”, but can do it their own way.
Take the entrants in last weekend’s walleye tournament for example. Pre-fishing was a grind, sunny, calm conditions favored the walleye, but the anglers, not too much. But on tournament day, the air was cool and a steady breeze blew up a good chop on the lake; the fish decided it was time to take advantage of the feeding opportunity.
Our friend Jeff Sundin compared notes with some of his friends who finished in the top 10 and found out presentations, water depths and locations varied. There were fish caught in shallow water weeds, on the flats and in deep water too. There were fish caught on jigging baits, slip-bobbers, crankbaits and spinners; all mainstay presentations for Winnie and all readily available to our guests.
Area fishing guide, Sean Colter, who along with Dave Hernesman, finished 7th with a 5 fish weight of 23.17 pounds. That’s an impressive average of 4-1/2 pounds per fish and what helped the team cash a check, but they didn’t only catch large fish. Colter; “It was great to see all of the small fish out there.”
For Colter/Hernesman, the presentation that worked best was trolling spinners in water depths of 20 to 30 feet. “We caught a ton of fish using jigging raps too, but the spinners allowed catching fish of all sizes.”
Chris Messerschmidt, (pictured) pulled off a 2nd place win and along with Brian Messerschmidt cashed a check for $2500.00. Chris shared some info with Sundin too, Messerschmidt; “Pre-fishing was tough, but on tournament day the bite was awesome! We threw back so many 20+ inch fish it was unreal.”
Chris Messerschmidt With Lake Winnie Walleye
Trolling crankbaits on a mid-lake flat in about 14 feet of water was the key to their success.
Telling was the information Chris revealed when discussing the team’s pre-tournament strategy. “After a tough bite during the week, we planned to fill our card with small fish and then hope for a better one or two that would help move us up in the standings. But after doubling up on our first trolling pass, it was obvious that the game was on for fish on Sunday.”
Al & Bev Standly, 1st place winners of the event trolled Lindy Spinners behind traditional bullet sinkers in shallow water, 11 to 14 feet deep. “Gold and orange blades were the most productive. We started with night crawlers as the live bait, but switched over to leeches after the perch terrorized the worms.” Standly said.
Another presentation that worked for anglers over the weekend was using small jigs suspended below slip bobbers and tipped with ½ night crawlers. The secret is cruise slowly to locate fish on your electronics and then simultaneously drop your offer as you kick the engine into neutral. Allow the bait to float through the fish once, then maybe back up for a second pass. If they don’t strike in a few minutes, begin cruising again until more fish are located.
Reports from contestants indicated that many of the walleyes from the 2018 year class are getting close “keeper size.” Today, 13 inch fish are becoming common and if past growth rates are repeated, it’s not unlikely that we could see 14 inch from the strong class of 2018 later this fall. Without doubt, the fish will be desirable to most anglers during the 2021 fishing season.
We know that the fishing can’t be great every day, but it’s fun to see that when conditions turn favorable, the fish do cooperate. We know that there will still be some ups and downs, but from here on out, conditions will be more favorable, more often. As we approach fall and the walleyes natural instinct to fatten up before winter kicks in, the odds of being at the right place at the right time will only improve.
Panfish anglers have enjoyed some success recently too.
Warm weather has pushed surface water temperatures up to nearly 80 degrees and sunfish are moving into pockets and gaps between heavy vegetation. Small patches of mixed gravel and marl contain insect hatches that attract and hold panfish. You can locate them by trolling with spinners tipped with small leeches, but once you find them, it is often best to stop moving, mark the spot and fish vertically.
Crappies are showing up on the weed edges too and they are becoming easier to find during the daytime. Trolling spinners tipped with minnows along the weed edges offers a starting point. Once located, casting small jigs may be more efficient. Use jigs tipped with plastic action tails or those rigged with spinners like beetle spins or road runners. The flash of the spinners, or the swimming action of plastic tails are super-attractive during late summer.
Perch numbers appear to be lower this season, but the average size has been good. Most of the perch are being caught by anglers in search of other species. If you encounter a school of good size fish, it is a good idea to stop the boat and fish vertically. Jig and minnow combinations will work well, so will Lindy Rigs that are trimmed short, 12 to 18 inches long and tipped with small minnows.