Small river walleye discussion

Other than the little lowhead dams that tend to get pretty packed (especially this year since a lot arent working), does anyone venture out on their flatbottoms on the small rivers? Ive only ever went out with the intentions of catching catfish and really only ever did the dam thing in the spring and fall. Where do you look in the coming weeks? Into the summer? Saw one video on youtube where the guy is fishing snags and trees exactly like one would for channels. Saw another video i got a kick out of the guy was throwin 6 dollar crank baits. Other than throwin floatin raps, thatd cost 30-50 bucks every time out where ive went in the past.

I dont know why you would spend so much on crank baits... all ya need is a old bed spring and some cable throw out at one of them dams ya are talkin about !!

why not fish for cats

more meat and no limits or a lot less limits

I do fish for cats, usually starting in may throughout the summer. Tryin to broaden my horizons and its the first spring in i cant remember how long that the river isnt flooded.

Ha. I dont know if ive actually seen someone tossin cranks at a dam. Usually live bait or twisters. Theyre wise to ur bed spring tricks.

Where I am good spots for fishing for pickerel are where creeks enter the bigger river-especially after a rain.Lots of worms and bugs get washed down with the run off which attracts small fish,which attract the bigger fish.Good action normally as they are in feeding mode.

Just Above, below or under bridges on smaller rivers/bigcreeks around here there almost always seems to be a hole in those spots that tend to congratulate fish in such places, not so much on mid or larger rivers at least in my area anyways

Also where other creeks or streams enter or where there is a sharp turn in direction or there is a change in flow such as from a shallow rocky area to a deeper slower one

Or where flow is restricted by a narrow culvert ect fishing below such spots seems to be a productive area for me

In my area I have good luck pitching jigs up along the bank and hopping the jig down the edge of the drop off. If no steep drop off I just keep pitching up into the shallow water. In the spring the walleye seem to prefer being up shallow in the warmer water. Sometimes I catch the most fish in a foot of water. You can see the water swirl when they strike sometimes. Early on more subtle baits and jigging techniques seem better.

Spinners like mepps or panther martins will work, small spoons, the road runner jigs with a spinner blade attached to the jig head, minnow on a jig. Twister tails of course.

Any "hole" will hold them. I like to fish minnies for them on a number 6 hook that's the smallest wire size you can find.

There's is a definite knack to know when to set the hook! Anchor to the side of the hole/ spot you think they're at so your bait is dragging the bottom before it gets to a 45 degree angle from ya. If your bait just stops like your snagged, sit tight and wait for a little bit with a slightly slack line so they don't feel you. They'll sit there gumming it before they spit it out to flip it around. After they do that, they're yours.

I just use small split shot just big enough to get it bouncing along the bottom. Sometimes they grab it and run before they stop to turn it so he ready to give line. Mostly they just stop it like I said above.

I prefer what we call butter-chubs over shiners, hands down in our river. Some places they call them red-fins. One more piece of advice for rivir fishing, don't be bumping around in the boat. It will shut them down!

sucker minnows and shade over a deep hole.i spend my summers on a little creek known for trout but all i fish are musky and walleye.usually out of a 12 ft kayak.

if i could only use one lure here it would be the original 5 1/4 gold rapala.

Hippie, do you float downstream and anchor before u get to where you wanna fish to avoid spooking? Ive often thought that i probably spook some cats too when i motor thru a hole to check depth in unfamiliar areas. Thanks for the feedback guys. There were a few older guys around when i was growing up that could catch fish all over the river most of the year. They were tightlipped though. Sometimes we would see their trucks parked along the roads so we knew where they walked in but what they were doing or where exactly my buddies and i never really knew. Youd not see these guys showing up to the crowds at the dams.

Hey Pcr. When you say sucker minnows,.are you referring to riffle runners?

Yea, I get anchored up as quiet as possible.

Had them biting before and some other fisherman idled by and they'll shut down for a quarter to half hour. Morning and evenings are best producing.

DWC look for slack water spots or slower current , current breaks . Use a jig and minnow , or twister tail ,or split shot and #6 hook with a minnow . The Sioux can hold some nice eyes and pike . Right now the walleye are spawning on the Missouri so I would think they are on the Sioux as well . Best times to fish are before sunup to about 10 am and an hr or so before dark till way after dark .

Bingo, used to fish small rivers alot in southern Minnesota, white twister tails reeled in slow on the bottom always produced for me, also caught alot of other gamefish.

Post spawn should i stick to more sand/gravel bottoms vs mud or do you guys find them in slack water with muddy bottoms?

DWC fish them all if you are covering water fish as much as you can , those fish move around a lot in those small rivers

I had posted this pic in an earlier walleye post. I got these one evening last week out of my yak. I fish right where a river enters a local lake. Caught them on #7 black/silver rapala countdown in around 4-5 ft of water. All within 45 minutes of dark. And none after dark, fished about an hour. One thing I notice when I do good or better than this is mayflies hatching? If we see the mayflies coming off the water good normally we do well, if no flies then no fish. I've read where up north walleye will gorge themselves on mayfly larvae? Now most were males with sperm running out, but we hardly ever catch a female. This is just my observation and may be wrong.

man,you and i could have a ball.

Sorry PCR, they were eaten the next day. Going back tomorrow if the weather holds out! Come on down, the next week or two is prime time!

ya ever get near here holler,i'll put a 40in musky on the end of your line and let ya take a ride.

We use Shad Rap style crankbaits all the time in the smaller rivers casting and trolling the larger rivers. One of the best presentations a fish catching baits ever made. Losing a few here and there is just the price of doing business. I usually restock between $350 and $500 every February. I took some customers from Arizona out last year because they wanted to fish for Walleye. We ended up with 16 in the boat that night and about $150 worth of tackle at the bottom of the river that night. Everytime they felt the bump of the bottom they would set the hook like they would on a bass and snap off. I kept trying to tell them that we are trolling and the fish will hook itself but that didn't sink in too well. Luckily my company reimbursed me for everything. I just wish Rapala wouldn't discontinue colors. There are a few color patterns that were fantastic on my local river. I bought an airbrush so I could paint my own to those specific colors. I sell those to a few guys in a fishing league for $15 a piece.