Eight Walleye Angling FAQs From
Walleye Groupies to Substituting Structure
By Perry Good
During my travels around Walleye Country USA, I hear many
questions from anglers about angling tactics and professional
fishing as a career. With this column, here’s my take on a few of
the most frequently asked questions.
Q. My lake
doesn’t have any structure. How do I find walleyes?
Good: Where
no substrate structure exists, (i.e. flats or humps) substitute
weed or woody structure. These “fish bowl” lakes where I live
exist in southern Minnesota,but they are prolific all over the
country. On such lakes, you’ll find me targeting the shallow,
weedy shoreline areas or submerged timber. When in doubt, start at
the first breakline. Later in the summer, when fish tend to
suspend in bowl lakes, employ search baits. We’re talking
crankbaits or spinners and planer boards.
Q. When do you
know when to move off a spot?
Good:
Probably my most asked question. To me it’s just a feeling,
Sometimes you guess right and sometimes you guess wrong. I’ve had
hot spots go cold, then someone else strikes gold there after I
leave. Frustrating. This again gets back to prefishing and
research. Take notes on a spot under a variety of conditions.
Learn it, and you can make a much better educated guess about when
to move based on that game plan.
Q. I’ve read
that it’s best to always start shallow and work deep to find
fish. Is this really a good game plan?
Good: In
rivers, I always look shallow first because that’s where big
walleyes find food. I’ve never seen a tournament won on the
Mississippi in more than five feet of water. You’ll find numbers
of smaller fish deeper, but you won’t win tournaments there. In
the shallows, big walleyes find the food swirling in the current
breaks and over clam beds. On lakes, wind plays a much larger role
with this question, so consider wind first. With no wind,
generally, I’ll begin my search deeper, particularly later in the
summer. Early in the year, in windy conditions, you’ll locate fish
on the windward side of a lake where they’re finding forage. The
same rule holds on a lake with a lot of rock reefs. Another
problem with automatically starting shallow is that our
electronics won’t pick up fish as well, so it’s naturally harder
to work shallow water.
Q. With all
these new superlines, is monofilament obsolete?
Good: Not at
all. In fact, many Professional Walleye Trail (PWT) anglers use
mono vs. superlines, and that’s after originally switching away
from mono a few years ago. Walleye anglers need that natural
shock-absorbing feature of monofilament, otherwise you rip too
many lures out of their mouths. Superlines have very little
stretch, so when I’m using them, I’ll stick with a rod with a
soft, shock-absorbing tip. I still use Fireline for jigging in
over 30 feet of water or in current where it allows me to get away
with a lighter jig. Also, when trolling in weedy areas, I easily
can tell when I have weeds on my crankbaits by monitoring a
superline. Don’t get me wrong, some of the best jiggers on the PWT
still use superlines, but they use soft-tipped rods. Bottom line,
rumors of monofilament’s demise are greatly exaggerated.
Q. Will I learn
anything if I fish as an amateur in a tournament or will I just
get yelled at because I don’t know that much?
Good: I
think the tournaments, especially the PWT events, are great
learning tools for novice anglers. Most pros are good teachers and
will work with you very patiently. The ranks continue to fill, so
it must be working. Look at it this way: if you hired a guide for
three days at $400 per day, you’d be spending a lot more than the
amateur entry fee to work one-on-one with a pro. It’s a real
bargain! Nowadays, it’s almost mandatory that you spend a season
as an amateur. A lot of guys start as amateurs, get a feel for the
sport, then turn pro. It’s a good way to research the sport. I’d
note that a majority of amateurs eventually decide that pro
angling’s not for them.
Q. I get by
with one spinning outfit. Why do you guys carry so many rods?
Good: So
many anglers fish one way for walleyes, but when you consider
rigging, jigging, bobber fishing, trolling with lead-core,
trolling with mono, etc., you see there are a lot of options! In
tournaments, we have to be versatile and prepared for any
conditions Mother Nature throws at us. We’re on the clock, so we
need to have those options at our disposal quickly. The average
recreational angler doesn’t need 20 rods like most pros, but he
should be versatile to take advantage of his limited recreational
time. That’s the key to being a good walleye fisherman.
Q. What’s it
really like being a top-pro walleye angler?
Good:
So many people think we’ve got it made. The reality is
that you’re away from family a lot and must make sacrifices. If
you’re married, you better make sure you have an understanding
with your wife as to what she can expect from your fishing
lifestyle. For some guys, fishing tournaments are like gambling,
almost an addiction to competing. It’s nice when you win and get
the attention, but more times than not, you won’t claim top prize.
Also, you’re working out-of-doors in weather that’s marginal more
often than pleasant. Fishing is only a small part of being a true
pro fisherman. Most of the job is about promoting yourself and
your sponsors and being visible. Exposure is Number One, and of
course, the better you do on the tournament trail, the more
exposure you’ll see. I don’t mean to cast a negative spin. I love
being a pro fisherman, but I view it as a game that adults play —
almost like baseball. I feel very fortunate to do this, and don’t
take it for granted. My philosophy is to treat each tournament day
as “We’re going out and having fun.” I think you’re more
successful that way.
Q. There’s some
tongue-in-cheek with this next question, but what about all those
groupies that follow you touring pros around?
Good: There
really are groupies, but not in the rock star sense. I regularly
meet people who ask me to sign their shirt or hat, or even their
arm. I feel uncomfortable being put on a pedestal, but that said,
to some people, pro anglers are their heroes. I try to be as
humble as possible and just make the point that fishing’s about
research and hard work, not secrets. And I recognize that part of
promoting the sport means working with kids and obliging fans. Our
goal as pros is to get kids into fishing. They’re the boat and
tackle buyers of tomorrow. I participate in as many kid events as
possible.
