Finesse jigging for walleye

[Guest fishmaster]

All that my cold fingertips registered was a stop. Seconds before, a large shiner had been pumping its tail against the weight of my jigging spoon, but now the pulsing had stopped. I lifted my rod tip slightly and felt weight. Quickly dropping the rod tip, I tightened up on the line. Waiting for the walleye 10 feet below to turn and swim away took patience, but within seconds I could feel it moving. When I was ready, I sank the hook home. Four pounds of walleye soon emerged through the hole.

Jigging for winter walleye is exciting. Feeling a fish slam a jig can warm your soul during the dark, cold Ontario winter. Jigging is also the best method to use when you're running and gunning to locate walleye, at times surpassing set-lines for effectiveness. The problem is that most of the fast jigging bites come during first and last ice, when fish are aggressive. During mid-winter, walleye become less aggressive and often turn away from overworked jigs and even set-lines. Many anglers target other species when this happens. Walleye will hit in mid-winter, though, if you push the right buttons.

Two general rules guide my mid-winter walleye jigging strategy: first, walleye are about as lazy as a 5 a.m. teenager; and second, they move little if at all. To combat this, make it as easy as possible for fish to hit, and don't wait for them to come to you; move to them.

Moving to the fish is the easiest rule to follow. Mid-winter walleye might move only a few feet to engage your offering, so often the more holes you drill, the more walleye you'll catch. This doesn't necessarily mean you have to make long locational changes to get hits. Often, drilling a new hole mere feet from a dud makes all the difference. If I haven't had a hit in 10 minutes, it's time to push on to a new hole. Twenty minutes is my maximum at a hole, unless I've been given reason to stay (missed hit, a lost fish). Punch at least four holes per angler right off the bat. If those don't pay off, drill more holes nearby over different depths or along breaks until you find fish or are satisfied the spot has been worked thoroughly.

Last winter, I experienced one more example of how important even subtle moves can be. I was fishing a point where I'd been successful earlier in the winter. However, all I was catching that day were 6- to 8-inch walleye.

I moved out 20 feet. The water depth in the first hole I punched was about a foot deeper. After I had fished the hole for a couple of minutes, there was a slight tap on my jig. I set the hook, expecting another cigar-sized walleye, and was pleasantly surprised when a 17-incher emerged from the slush in the hole. The rest of the evening, I caught more big walleye a few strides from where I only caught dinks.

For many anglers, a standard ball-head jig is the winter lure of choice, and for good reason. It works. But, a little experimentation enables you to use the ball head to its full potential.

Most anglers I've observed hook a minnow on a jig the same way - spring, summer, and fall - through the lips, head, or mouth. This also works well during winter when the walleye bite is hot, but not when they're finicky. The minnow is either dead or has little ability to swim, which limits its effectiveness. Most anglers aggressively jig this rig to impart action, which works for active walleye, but not sluggish fish.

Rig a minnow through the back, just behind the dorsal fin, being careful not to hit the spine. The minnow will stay lively and struggle against the jig head, without moving too far. Lift and drop this rig with gentle 6-inch to 1-foot lifts, pausing for 10 or more seconds between jigs. The jigging action keeps the minnow moving and attracts walleye. The pause triggers a strike.

If walleye are really finicky, put the hook through the base of the tail. The minnow will still struggle against the jig, while remaining stationary. This can turn the most reluctant walleye into a biter. You need, however, to wait up to 10 seconds before setting the hook, to let the walleye get it in its mouth. You'll lose a lot of minnows with this rig, but it will catch fish when nothing else works.

While I often use standard walleye jigs, I must admit that my go-to bait is a jigging spoon. The flash and profile are hard to beat, but the aggressive jigging motion normally used with them must be toned down for mid-winter walleye. Before tinkering with setups, change the rate at which you jig. If fish stop hitting, let the spoon and minnow sit still for longer pauses between jigs. If this fails to trigger strikes, shake the spoon in place, instead of jigging. If you're fishing over mud or sand, another trick is to drop the spoon to bottom once in a while to stir up sediment. These little changes in presentation are often all it takes to entice mid-walleye.

For really reluctant walleye, replace the standard treble on a jigging spoon with a long-shanked No. 1 to 0/2 hook. Hooks designed for twitching soft plastics for bass are well suited for this task. Add a medium to large minnow, hooked behind the dorsal fin. Fish the spoon and minnow with a gentle 1- to 2-foot lift and drop, then pause for as long as a minute. The spoon's flash will attract fish to the lure, while the minnow's struggles often persuade walleye to hit. Spoons with rattles can work well with a robust minnow that can make the rattles sound off.

Much of the triggering quality of these jigging methods relies on the action of a healthy, lively minnow. Dead or sickly minnows draw fewer strikes. Chub, dace, shiners, and even suckers can be good. Large baits often draw more hits, so choose 3-inch or bigger minnows that are swimming actively at the bottom of the bucket. If the minnow dies or becomes inactive on the jig, put on a fresh one.Ê Ê

Popular with serious perch anglers, dropper rigs can also be excellent for mid-winter walleye. A dropper rig consists of a hook on a short length of line, wire, or chain extending below a spoon or jig. Bait the hook with a minnow head or tail, or even insect larvae, and you're ready to go.

The dropper allows a walleye to easily inhale the bait. Reluctant walleye half-heartedly suck in a bait like a jigging spoon tipped with a minnow and, because of the spoon's weight, only get the tip of the minnow's tail or nothing at all. The angler gets a false or short strike, and the walleye moves off. A short dropper, however, allows the walleye to pull the minnow right in, because it offers little resistance to the vacuum created by the fish's flaring gills as it inhales the bait. The result is a solid hookup.

When fishing a dropper, a large, quick snap of the rig often results in a tangle. The heavy spoon drops below the hook, which will snag the main line, making the rig ineffective. A gentle lift and a controlled drop are more productive and limit tangles.ÊÊ

Droppers work best with slab- or plate-type jigging spoons, such as Mr. Champs and Swedish Pimples. They get the bait down quickly and don't spin and twist much, yet put out a lot of flash. Silver, gold, orange, chartreuse, and perch patterns are proven producers.

On most days, 3- to 4-inch droppers are adequate. When walleye are really spooky or in clear water, they want a lead of up to a foot. Whatever length of dropper you try, be sure it's at least 8-pound test. It will get a lot of abuse. You need a line that can take the abuse and still be able to land a large walleye.

For all these techniques, a sensitive jigging rod is important. Solid graphite ice rods are sensitive, yet powerful. They give you the advantage of being able to feel the minnow struggle on a dropper and the barely detectable take of a walleye sucking it in. Choose a rod with a flexible tip and a solid backbone in the lower two-thirds of the blank. Match the rod with a quality reel loaded with 8- to 10-pound test mono or low-stretch braid or fusion line.

Don't give up on mid-winter walleye when the fishing gets tough. Just shift gears and use finesse to pull more gold through your ice holes. Remember, though, with increased success, be sure to release the big spawners to keep our walleye fisheries sustainable. That way, you can still enjoy a few meals of tastier eating-sized fish for years to come.By: Drew Myers

[Guest FIN "S" FISHER]

very well said my friend. I gave up on dunnville,10 trips to speak about and only 1 catfish some smelt and a few snagged lures that wernt the cheepest.

keep the good work up.

[scottydog]

Nice fish and good article. Was that a clip from Ontario Out of Doors Article on winter walleye. I remember reading this before. Have used the jig and minnow, hooked through the tail,setup at Dunnville. Caught one small walleye this year with this technique. Thanks for the post. Good fishing. Scottydog

[denis]

Was that a grand river fish?

I read the same article I think it was last month

Scotty this weekend is sounding good i'll be in touch.

[Fishin-nut]

Well said . I think though you should put down that the info was taken from Ontario Out Of Doors pg.25 called Finesse Jigging For Walleye by Drew Myers. Wouldn't want you to get caught with plagiarism.

[Guest cplummer]

sweet.. dunnville moved up north? cool..

[The_Fish_Dawg]

that story was pulled off the Fish Onatrio home page

[Guest Big Bass Rich]

I don't think the article is so much for WHERE the fish was caught. It is more for HOW it was caught and the technique(s) would not only work up north, but also on the Grand River at Dunnville. And it says at the very end "By: Drew Myers"