As Spring approaches Walleye anglers across the region begin to focus their attention on local rivers in search of monster eyes making their annual spawning run. While certain anglers catch fish after fish, other fishermen watch in frustration not knowing why they're not catching a thing .
Perhaps the most misunderstood aspect of Walleye fishing is vertial jigging in rivers. Each season literally tons of jigs are lost to the river's bottom debris by walleye anglers not familiar with the nuances of river fishing. Yet, spring river fishing is probably the most productive time of the year for landing numbers of walleye as well as hooking that wall-hanger that every fisherman dreams of.
Vertical jigging for river walleyes is not and does not have to be complicated although some fishermen never seem to get the hang of it.
To be successful at catching river walleyes its first necessary to understand the nature of the fish. First of all, early season walleyes are not aggressive feeders; after all, they're interested in spawning and not necessarily feeding so our presentation must be slow and methodical. Secondly, walleyes as well as any other fish don't spend a lot of time fighting the main river current; they'll almost always take the path of least resistence. When resting, they'll hold in areas out of the main river current. As with any fish the key to catching them is finding them and river walleyes are no exception.
For purposes of discussion I'm going to treat all obstructions to current flow, whether natural or manmade, alike since they all have a similar effect on river currents. First of all, any object or change in the river bottom will cause a change in the current or water moving around it. Even a change is depth by as little as a foot will result in an area of dead or slower moving water. As moving water approaches a rise in the bottom, it tends to upwell causing an area of little current at the base of the rise and as it passes over a sudden drop in depth it creates the same kind of dead area. Any obstacle to the natural flow of current will produce this same effect whether its a bridge abutment, rocks on an otherwise smooth bottom, fallen tree or a point that juts out into the river. These are all areas that successful river fishermen will concentrate their efforts on.
One of the most productive type of structure is an series of small humps or ripples on the bottom caused by the current sweeping along a smooth sand bottom. On your graph, this type of structure will often appear as a series of shallow trenches running perpendicular to the current flow. Imagine spreading out your fingers and running your hand gently through sand and you've got the idea.
Oftentimes these trenches are as little as a foot or two deeper than surrounding water but they can attract walleyes like a magnet. There are two reasons for this. First of all, they create current breaks for the fish to rest in and wait for food to be swept in by the river current. Secondly, this type of structure usually occurs right down the middle of the river where very few fishermen spend any amount of time so these fish are not as spooky and therefore easier to catch with the proper presentation.
Dams or any natural barrier to the walleye's upstream migration will cause the fish to stack up just below that object. Add some gravel, rocks or rubble and you have the makings of a spring hot spot. During daylight hours, the walleyes will most likely be found in the first deep area just below the obstruction. As darkness approaches, the fish will migrate into the shallower water where they'll feed or begin their spawning ritual depending on water temperature.
The same charecterists apply to walleyes in large rivers such as the Detroit and St Clair Rivers. The basic difference is that instead of moving upstream to barriers where they'll spawn, these fish have nothing to block their migration. Instead, walleyes in these river systems will congregate around natural and man- made current breaks in deep water adjacent to suitable spawning area such as areas of broken concrete or shore line riprap.
If the time is right for spawning, the walleyes will move onto the spawning areas in shallower water as night fall approaches. This didn't used to be the case before zebra mussels arrived. Prior to that time, the water clarity was not as good as it is today and both pre- spawn and spawning fish could be taken is relatively shallow areas at any time. This is no longer the case since the water clarity has changed dramatically.
Nowadays walleyes hold in water much deeper than they did before the arrival of the zebra mussel.Where in past years the fish could be found in water 8 to 15 feet,these fish are often found today in water as deep as 25 or 30 feet while awaiting spawning time. If runoff from spring rains cloud up the water, the fish will move into shallower areas.
Today's walleye anglers have to keep two key factors in mind when searching for river eyes, water clarity and temperature. Areas featuring large current breaks and silted bottoms will attract the most prespawn fish since the water temperature will be slighly warmer in these areas. Likewise, warm water discharges from power plants and factories will produce the same effect. It doesn't take much of a temperature change to spell the difference between feast or famine and temperature changes of as little as 3 or 4 degrees can have a major impact on prespawn fish.
Another quirk of prespawn walleyes in our large river systems has to do with sunlight. If you've marked fish on a cloudy day holding around bottom structure but can't get them to cooperate, fish elsewhere until the sun pops out for awhile and return to that area. For some reason, a short period of bright sun on an other- wise cloudy day causes prespawn walleyes to really turn on for short periods of time. I'm not certain as to why but its been proven too many times to ignore.
When actively spawning, the walleyes will stay in suitable shallow water areas for most of the day. The spawning period itself can last for several weeks or as little as a few days for the majority of fish depending on the kind of weather being experienced. a normal spring with gradually warming temperatures will result in an extended spawning period while an unusually cold spring marked by a sudden warming trend will result in a short-lived but dramatic spawning period.
Once the walleyes have spawned, they'll retreat to deeper areas such as mud flats in large rivers or pools below spawning riffles in smaller rivers where they'll spend from a few days to over a week recuperating from the rigors of spawning before going on a feeding frenzy.
With the improvement in water clarity that we've been experiencing in recent years, anglers have been forced to adapt to the changing conditions. Long gone are the days when you could go down to the river armed with your bass rods loaded with 10 or 12 pound line and 1 ounce jigs and expect to catch your limit of walleyes. Today's conditions call for lighter lines and smaller offerings.
My personal choice is a 5 1/2 to 6 foot graphite rod with a medium or medium-heavy action and a good quality spinning reel spooled with 6# Fireline for river walleyes. The small diameter of the Fireline along with its no- stretch charecteristics coupled with a sensitive graph- ite jigging rod allows me to detect anything out of the ordinary happening to my jig and minnow combination.I also have the luxury to downsize my jigs to as little as 1/4 ounce while a 3/8 ounce jig will usually suffice in deeper water. As a rule of thumb, use the lightest jig possible that will still allow you to maintain a good sence of feel and bottom contact. Its also a good idea to use a small swivel a couple of feet above the jig to eliminate unwanted line twist.
Jig color is also becoming increasingly important as water clarity improves since the walleyes have more time to see the jig before it passes out of sight. Subtle colors seem to work better for prespawn fish while brighter colors come into their own after the spawn is over and the walleyes get more aggressive.
Bait size is another critical factor when chasing river walleyes. Prespawn and spawning walleyes are not actively feeding so its best to pick out the smaller minnows while post spawn fish are actively feeding and show a definite preference for larger minnows.
Whether or not you use a grub or twister tail on your jig is more a matter of personal preference than a practical consideration. Adding a grub or tail to a jig will create a lightening effect to an otherwise heavy jig, making it easier for the fish to inhale without detecting as much weight.
Many walleye anglers prefer using a stinger hook as well. I usually use a small stinger hook when fishing for prespawn and spawning walleyes since these fish are not aggressive biters and the stinger will usually account for a few more fish. Once the fish have spawned and begin actively feeding, I don't feel that a stinger is nearly as important.
Knowing where to fish for river walleyes and what to use is only half of the equation. The most important part of river fishing is by far presentation.
Its hard to beat a verticle presentation for river walleyes whether in a small or large river system. For small, shallow rivers, a verticle presentation can be achieved by using a slip bobber set to hold your jig a few inches off the bottom while drifting downstream. This approach is necessary because trying to verticle jig below a boat in shallow water is usually an effort in futulity.
On large rivers, boat control is the primary concern for jig fisherman. A verticle presentation is an absolute must if you expect to feel the subtle take of river eyes. Anything short of a verticle presentation will result in many minnows and jigs being lost with no fish to show for your efforts.
The easiest way to maintain a verticle presentation is by using a bow mounted electric trolling motor to "follow" your jig as it moves downstream with the current while keeping your jig within a few inches of the bottom at all times. On some occassions, a straight drift works well but for the most part, a gentle lift and drop presentation will produce the best results. The key ingredient remains in keeping your offering as verticle as possible at all times.
With a wind blowing against the current flow you will have to chase your jig downstream while a wind blowing in the same direction as the current will necessitate holding your boat in the current to overcome the wind's effect on your boat. Side or cross winds can be easily compensated for by side-slipping against the wind. A little trick that I learned a number of years ago in- volved the use of a drift sock. Instead of using the drift sock to slow my drift as you would in open water, I used the drift sock to catch the river current and keep my presentation fairly verticle when faced with strong winds blowing against the current.
Nothing can be more frustrating than fishing with another angler who's inexperienced with verticle jigging on rivers or faced with a strong cross wind. When put in this situation, its common for the angler in the bow of the boat to maintain a decent drift while the poor guy in the stern of the boats feels like he's tied to a tail-wagging dog. When put in this situation its best for both anglers to move to the bow of the boat and jig on opposite sides. You'll catch more fish and avoid a lot of frustration.
Try these tactics this spring and you'll see your success rate for river walleyes improve dramatically. With a little practice on the water, you'll find that verticle jigging is fairly easy to master.