Under the cover of dim twilight shadows, a school of walleyes follows a weedline along a shoreline point, moving from the depths toward a large, shallow food shelf. Like a wolf pack stalking prey, the school, progresses slowly, almost leisurely, using the eerie shadows and each slight depression, rise, curve and weed clump along the route to help cover their approach.

Occasionally a confused perch darts out of the shallower weeds, beyond the cover of the weedline, into the faint evening shadows. Easy prey, the closest member of the school rises and snaps up these vulnerable victims like a hungry dog snatches dropped scraps. Otherwise, the school just swims along casually – until it suddenly reaches a pronounced inside turn along the weedline.

Rounding the corner, the school meets a large group of perch feeding on a school of small shiners. Eager walleyes slash into both schools, scooping up the surprised baitfish and causing a feeding frenzy not unlike that of a crazed pack of sharks featured on a National Geographic TV special. Amongst the swirling water, bubbles, stirred bottom silts and chaos of the feeding frenzy, the distant, silver flutter of an injured baitfish darting and flashing catches the eye of a scrupulous twenty-nine inch walleye.

Rhythmically, the bait thrashes up, then flutters down helplessly. The walleye moves in closer, and as the bait drops, his predatory instinct invites the walleye to dart forward, flare its gills and sink its sharp teeth into the soft, plastic twist tail tipping my Swedish Pimple.

Ten feet above, I note the distinct tap of a walleye strike at my rod tip, instinctively set the hook – and five minutes later ice a fat, twenty-nine inch walleye, an after a brief fight, rounds out my limit.

Such scenes are not uncommon among ice anglers following specific winter walleye strategies. Few things occur randomly in nature. Each predator has adaptations to find forage given certain conditions. Their survival depends on it.

So it is with walleye foraging patterns. Walleyes seldom wander aimlessly in search of prey. Rather, they follow distinct patterns throughout the winter that instinctively tell them will produce life-sustaining food. As anglers, if we understand these patterns and know how to pinpoint potential feeding locations and migration routes, we’ll be better able to locate primary fishing hotspots – and consequently, catch more winter walleyes.

TIMING

With most species of fish, I consider location the most crucial factor in determining consistent winter catches. After all, you can use the most refined presentation in the world, but if you’re not on fish, you simply won’t catch them.

With winter walleyes, however, timing is of equal magnitude. You may be on the best combination of structure, cover and forage in your lake, and have a huge school of walleyes located right in the midst of it all. But if your timing isn’t right and the fish aren’t active, you may as well be jigging a winterkill lake. The fish simply won’t bite.

The key here is understanding this unique species. The walleye’s light-gathering eyes are adapted to feed under low light conditions when prey species are at a sight disadvantage, making it easier for them to capture surprised prey. Bottom line? Unless you’re fishing a dark water lake or waters covered by a thick layer of ice and snow, for maximum success with winter walleyes, focus your efforts during twilight periods.

Once you’ve got this down, the next step is pinpointing the walleye’s primary locations and movements.

LOCATIONS/MOVEMENTS

In addition to the walleye’s ability to see in darkness, walleye use other tactics to surprise their prey, orienting their location, positioning and movements to bottom configurations, weed growth, currents and other features that can be used to their predatory advantage. Understand this behavior, and you’ll dramatically increase your catches.

Start by observing. Review a hydrographic map, searching for likely winter walleye holding structures such as points, humps, shoals, bars and flats – features walleyes use to sneak up on unwary prey – mark them, then head to the lake and continue observing.

The presence of walleyes within a general area is often determined easily by the location of other anglers. Arrive early on such sites, and using your hydrographic map and sonar, decipher what specifically seems to be attracting the walleyes. Is it structure, bottom content and configuration, cover, forage, current, oxygen or a combination of the above?

Once you know the general bottom configuration and have located primary areas of secondary cover or "microstructure" – actually, ambush points – punch a number of holes across the top and breaks around key areas, focusing on "combination" spots of secondary cover, working from shallow to deep water – being sure not to overlook the potential of shallow water. Some of my best winter catches have come from less than five feet during twilight and evening winter walleye feeding frenzies.

Next, rotate your fishing effort across the structure, spending ten minutes or so in each hole, trying to cover as much area as possible before activity on the ice spooks active fish. Once they’re spooked, catching becomes tougher – within that particular area, anyway.

But when the fishing gets tough, the tough get going. Mobility now becomes the key to consistently locating and catching active winter walleyes. Too many anglers stroll onto the ice, drill a few holes and plunk down for the duration of the trip, regardless of whether the fish are biting or not. "Waiting ‘em out", most will say.

Not always – but usually – this is a mistake. Hours of study, conversation with experienced anglers and biologists and thousands of hours using a two rod jigging/tip-up combination system have led me to believe walleye use discrete depths and structure and often follow specific migration routes – routes which can often be found only a few steps away from a nonproductive location. The trick is to locate these routes. In Wisconsin where we’re allowed three lines, I drill sets of three holes a couple feet apart across different depths and structures, then jig two holes simultaneously while watching a Polar Tip-Up placed in the third. Often, I’ve taken limits from one hole, but few or none from others, despite the fact they’re positioned only a few feet apart.

If there’s a lot of activity on the ice and the action shuts down across the entire pressured area, reference your map, and look for similar locations. Often, you’ll find almost identical combinations of highly productive structures and cover holding active schools of walleyes in other parts of the lake that are virtually untouched – and have these locations all to yourself!

Understanding the deliberate way foraging walleye move is also important. Almost every ice angler has experienced the frustration of being ten feet away from someone hauling out one nice walleye after another, while their own efforts were futile. Under these circumstances, anglers are more likely to question choices of presentation, and not believe that moving just a few feet can make a difference.

But it can. Next to microstructure, primary travel lanes are probably the most overlooked factor in winter walleye fishing. Always try to locate combinations of secondary features – and additionally, visualize how, when and where fish move through these areas.

Walleyes move mostly during morning and evening periods, especially early in winter. You can count on walleyes moving from deeper to shallower water food shelves, or in shallower lakes, from thicker cover toward openings, pockets and weedline edges. These schools continue moving until they locate prey, then linger in these locations until they’re full, the prey moves or the sun rises, whichever comes first.

For the most part, any shallower, heavy cover area or mid-depth structure such as bars or points leading from the main lake to a viable food shelf has the potential to be used by migrating walleyes. The trick is to determine their exact travel lanes on or along such structures.

Say I’m fishing a long, main lake point and a few anglers are catching walleyes. Based on good versus bad holes and other people’s catch rates, I can often refer to my map and determine approximately where the fish are coming from and the direction they’re heading – and hence, attempt to visualize their travel lanes and look for primary fish holding features along these routes. Often with just a minor location change, these fish can be intercepted.

Similarly, walleye can be caught as they feed along a weedline or bottom contour along a prominent structure. If you notice fish being caught along a fifteen-foot contour, for example, that depth will often remain hot as it winds around the structure. If you try the same contour where others are catching fish but action is slow for you, try moving further along the same contour. It’s possible your holes are positioned over thick weeds or an obstruction fish have to detour around on their migration route – a situation easily remedied by simply moving a few feet.

CONCLUSION

As a whole, serious ice anglers who wish to increase their winter catches must realize walleye use specific structures and defined pathways while searching for prey, then try to visualize these movements based on their knowledge of underwater bottom configurations, conditions and timing, then in turn, cut holes on these structures and along these primary routes, systematically moving in search of active fish.

In a nutshell, the difference between catching a few and really scoring big on winter walleyes is fishing the right times in the right areas, then carefully moving within these primary fish holding areas – or along specific migration routes – looking for fish-holding secondary cover and microstructure.

Remember: since walleyes don’t sit in one place nor roam erratically, neither should you.

If you wish to have your copy(s) personally autographed by Fish & Game Finder Ice Pro Tom Gruenwald, please indicate so when ordering.