all the walleye i have ever caught never really put up much of a fight. i have heard depending on the water temp they can be quite fun to catch. i was wondering if there is truth to this. and if so when would be the best time to fish for them for the best fight. also a good fight from a walleye, does that equal a couple of head shakes? or some excellent runs?
next is for utah lake i have been hearing they are in prespawn down there. is it possible to fish for them from shore yet? are they staging by the bubble up. i would like to catch a utah lake walleye since i never have. thanks for any info guys.
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[cool]Hey, X, me again. Walleyes will never win a "toughfish contest", against almost any other fish. Their main attraction is first, their difficulty to catch with regularity, and second, their fine eating quality.
That doesn't mean they can't hit hard and put up a good tussel. But, typically the fish from cold water are often no more exciting than bringing in a bucket of water...especially the big egg-laden females...if you can get one to hit.
After they have spawned, and the water warms a bit, it's a different story. They often strike savagely and put up a pretty good battle. They are definitely in a feeding mode for a couple of months after the spawn, and if you can find them you can usually count on getting a few...if you know what you are doing.
I have never heard of a walleye jumping. The bigger ones can pull good, and the battle is more just a matter of them trying to stay down deeper, while you are cranking them to the surface. One trick you want to watch out for with walleyes is their tendency to open their mouth and shake their heads. This often shakes loose your hook and gains their freedom. That is known as the Xman conservation release. (I have that one perfected)
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Interestingly you mentioned Bubble-up spot... I'm not too sure if that place works anymore because Geneva is out of business, thus no more warm water coming out of the pipes there anymore. I'm not too sure if walleyes are in that area, but it's possible because walleyes tend to return to the place where they were born, and spawn there.
Walleyes do not jump... they stay close to the bottom, and once caught, they fight to stay close to the bottom, unlike smallies who jumps out of the water multiple of times in a fighting rage.
Yummy meat yah!! No fishy taste, and white meat too!
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]Xman,[/size][/font]
[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 2]I'm no walleye expert (in fact, I hope to someday talk someone into teaching me) but the few I have caught fight good for a very short time then give up. They come in on the surface with their mouths wide open like a big glob of sea weed. Not too impressing until they reach my dinner plate next to my favorite tarter sause! And that's when they get my respect ...[/size][/font]
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The best fight I ever got out of a walleye was post spawn at willard bay. It was only a four and a half pound fish but it fought about a fiesty as a trout all the way to the boat. Dont tell me your state record eye didnt put up a fight. That big old chicken must have tugged a little. Too many trollers dont get to feel anything on a walleye due to the fact that they keep the boat trolling while they bring in the fish. If you stop the boat you will feel thier head shakes now and then. Bottom bouncers and planer boards also decrease the fight. But no its not much in my expirience. But you know what I say? Who cares? You want to catch fighting fish, go lake trout, wiper, or smallmouth fishing.
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Last year when I caught my 6lb walleye, I thought I had a carp. I should have know it was a walleye because of the light pick up, a lot of walleye that I have caught are just there and you feel the weight of the fish. It did not pull out line at first but it made a couple of weak runs, in it's defense I thought it was a carp and I was just pulling it in fairly fast. Once I saw it was a walleye I loosened the drag and then it pulled a little line out but then again I was fishing for wipers and not too many fish fight like a wiper.
WH2
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[url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?post=25023"]http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?post=25023[/url]
THIS IS FROM A POST DAVE DID A WHILE BACK IN THE TOURNAMENTS SECTION , IT MIGHT HOLD SOME ANSWERS .
HOPE IT HELPS , I'VE HAD SOME COME UP EASY AS CAN BE , WHILE OTHERS FEEL LIKE YOUR PULLING A TIRE UP A WATERFALL !
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thanks for the info guys. the one excellent thing here is if your limited in a area all you have to do is ask a question and there are people here who really know there stuff. hey pred as far as that walleye is concerned it didnt even wiggle its head hardly. i was dissapointed in the fight of it and expected more. more or less a boot full of water. i have caught two out of the same res. that same size both were released but both didnt fight much at all. again thanks for the info.
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The attraction to walleye fishing isn't usually the fight, but in finding the dang things and getting them to bite. One day you clobber them, the next day nada. Even my kids get bored trout fishing.[/size][/blue]
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I caught the state record (
in cheek) when I was in college. I was trolling Thin Fins at Utah Lake and thought I snagged bottom. I felt no fight, but was just lugging up a tree branch. I felt a few head shakes and finally realized it was a fish. When I got the fish to the surface my buddy went to net it, but the fish just draped over the net and didn't fall in. The fish then rolled off the net, but the lure remained in the net. That's the biggest walleye I've ever seen--bigger than that 13 pounder you saw in my pic.[/size][/blue]
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They're usually lite biters, especially when jigging. But then I've had 'eyes just about rip the rod out of my hands. They get aggressive especially at night, and will smash lures thrown up shallow. And I've had 5 pounders sink an Offshore planer board.[/size][/blue]
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Walleyes also require an arsenal of fishing techniques and tactics. They're deep, shallow, relate to structure, are in open water, like a fast presentation, a slow presentation, etc... As soon as you figure something out, everything changes and you have to figure them out all over again.[/size][/blue]
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I like to go after big fish, but I get giddy when I catch a walleye of any size. Oh yea, and they taste great.[/size][/blue]
thanks for the info dennis. i have come to realize that the fisherman after the eyes are either for the challenge or for the table. i myself am a very novice walleye fisherman. had been fortunate to catch some very large walleye but not because i knew what i was doing haha. thanks for the info again everyone.
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