The Low Down on Low Light Walleyes
by Ron Anlauf
As the sun
begins to sink in the western sky good things start to happen,
especially if you’re an ice fisherman looking to hook up with a
few walleyes. When the last bit of the daylight disappears the
action can really heat up, and is one of the best times for
finding good numbers of walleyes with a serious nackin’ attitude.
By design a
walleye’s eyes provide them with exceptional low light vision,
allowing them to herd up and scarf down minnows and baitfish that
aren’t as fortunate. Walleyes instinctively know that a low light
situation is custom made for fulfilling their basic need to feed,
and when they can do so with the least amount of energy expended.
It’s all part of a natural scheme, and is where anglers in the
know come into the picture.
There
are peak periods in angling when the odds for hooking up with a
certain species of fish are at a pinnacle, and that last hour
before the sun goes down and the next couple after can make for
one of the very best times to be on the ice. If you happen to be
chasing old marble eyes during the mid day hours it’s rather easy
to be left feeling like you’ve been beating your head against the
wall. A long slow day on the ice can be a little defeating and may
send anglers home much too early, and empty handed. If patience
isn’t one of your virtues, it might be a good idea to simply key
on the peak activity periods and arrive late, and leave even
later. If you have the patience, and some extra time between
hookups doesn’t bother you, try to concentrate your daytime hours
on classic walleye structure, especially the deeper areas.
The author reveals the secrets to nailing big walleyes like this
Determining
what constitutes “deeper water“ is the next step, and is relative
to the body of water you happen to be fishing. Likely hot spots
can range from ten feet to over fifty, depending on what’s
available.
That doesn’t
mean you can’t run into active fish in shallower water during the
day as you certainly can, it’s just that on any given the day the
percentages are better when working the deep stuff.
“ Classic
structure” includes bars, reefs, and underwater points as well as
the accompanying fast breaks and drop offs. Look for the deepest
edges of the breaks, (especially where hard bottom meets soft ) to
hold the majority of midday biters. Finding the transition from
hard to soft is going to take a little elbow grease but it can
definitely be worth the extra effort.
The task of
finding deep or shallow structure can be made a lot easier by
using an electronic depth finder, especially the type designed
specifically for that task alone, like the LX-i from Marcum
Technologies. The LX-i looks like and is about the same size as a
flashlight and displays depth exclusively. To get a depth reading
pour a little water on the ice and hold the LX-i flat to the
surface, push the button and presto; you have the present depth.
Compare that to dragging a full sized depth finder around with a
transducer dangling, a transducer that can build up with ice and
become difficult to get an accurate reading. The LX-i can fit in
your pocket which makes it extremely handy and handy is good.
On the other
hand a good depth finder will actually allow you to see fish right
through the ice, and can help you uncover the hard to find
transition areas. The LX3 can do just that, and does so by
indicating changes in density with color. The LX3 is a flasher
type depth finder that utilizes three different colors with red
indicating the greatest density (or the most signal returned). A
red mark or series of marks next to or just off the bottom would
likely indicate fish. In fact any red mark no matter how high it’s
holding off the bottom has the potential to be a target species.
With
a heavy jig or spoon and a graphite rod you can actually feel the
thump when you drop the bait on a hard bottom, and help recognize
the nothingness of a soft bottom. The Mammoth Outfitters model
SCF-28U is an excellent choice as it has a graphite through cork
handle blank that provides the utmost in sensitivity.
Good lights
out hot spots include the very tops of said classic walleye
structure. A smart plan of attack would start by working the top
edge of a break, and then moving right up on top into the middle
of the structure. A spot within a spot would include a small flat
adjacent to a hard break, and can make for a real sleeper. One
would think that if a small flat is good, a larger one should be
even better. That could be, but it also creates problems as you
can’t be in every place at the same time. By concentrating on the
smaller spots you limit the amount of acreage that the active fish
might be found, and increase your chances of being in the right
place at the right time.
A typical
walleye feeding movement starts out in deeper water and increases
in intensity as hungry ’eyes move up into shallower water where
they spread out and bust up schools of bait. By working the top
you’ll be in position to be where walleyes are most active, and
most likely to take a properly presented bait.
The odds on
favorite for nailing top heavy walleyes is jigging with a spoon
tipped with a piece of minnow.
All of the
thrashing and commotion that a spoon that’s being pumped hard can
create will help to draw fish in from a long distance, and bring
them to you instead of visa versa.
Getting
noticed is a big part of the program, and where a bait the glows
really comes into play. Having spent countless hours watching
lures on a Outdoor Viewing Systems underwater camera, it has
become apparent that the benefits of using a glow bait during the
day are nonexistent. The exception would be dark or stained water,
where visibility is greatly reduced.
The key to
the successful use of a glow bait is using a bait that glows.
Sounds simple enough but if you’re not constantly treating your
bait you’re not glowing enough to make a difference. To treat a
glow bait you need to charge it with light, which can be done a
couple of different ways including hanging it front of a
flashlight or lantern, or using one of the slick new lights
designed for super charging your bait fast. In a couple of seconds
you can be charged up and ready for action, unlike the
aforementioned method. See you on the ice, on top after dark.
Ron Anlauf
