Where are the Walleye?

[ratfink]

I fished Dunkirk area Thursday, picked up 2. Talked to a bunch of guys back at the launch and nobody had done all that well, very few nets out. If you noticed there was a ton of bait on the screen, I mean loads of it. Could be the culprit for the slow fishing.

[jig]

fished today tried 60 to 70 fow didnt get any ran out pass elk turn back toward ne and went half way back to walnut pick one and that was it i think we where about 150 to 160 back . walnut

[walleyerick]

I got out onto the lake at 7 this AM. As I was leaving the small boat harbor I saw the windmills spinning at 12-13 rpm. I was hoping for a calm day on the lake but as I cleared the harbor, I was greeted with 3-4 ft waves. I started trolling about 1/2 mile out and right away I caught a nice 3# walleye. He fought half way between a sheephead and a bass. I put him on the stringer and kept trolling west. By 9 AM I picked up a 1 1/2 # bass and it was getting really windy. By 10 the winds died doen and the lake started to flatten out so I trolled all around the international buoy in 42 fow : nothing. Later I trolled back in a hit a 3.5 # bass an a sheephead. After I threw the bass back in, I was thinking I should have kept it to eat. Anyone ever eat bass ?

6 hrs of fishing one walleye. It's a lot of work. (I'm still going up and down).
BTW, if the windmills are 10 rpm or less the water is pretty calm.

[blk97]

We also was at it again yesterday, Left Grand Island RAMP 8:AM headed For the lake, surprized again with 3-4 footers.We trolled, we drifted we tried spinner and worm, we tried stick baits, no walleye. Somebody please tell me what i`m doing wrong.I`m using copper colored spinners, blue & black bomber-A stick baits, i even bought a green renosky, i over heard two guys talking at the bait shop, so i said why not try it, this could do the trick. No luck. Where are the walleye.

[walleyerick]

Personally, after fishing for yellows for 50 years, the only thing that consistently works are worm harnesses with big fat juicy crawlers. It doesn't matter what color except that under some lighting conditions (dark, sun, overcast, etc.) some colors are better than others so that the fish are attracted by sight. At 40-50 fow, the light is usually attenuated quite a bit, so that clean, polished, reflective spinners work best. Assuming that we won't get lucky enough to troll right through a school, it is important for the fish to see the bait from a long ways away as possible. Once they see it, if they are curious or hungry, they will check it out, then strike.

Having said all this, there aren't near anywhere as many walleye as there were 5o years ago when commercial fishermen plied the lakes in the deep water. Let's hope it gets better.

With my little boat I am not going out 10+ miles to troll at 80 ft. So I guess I will just enjoy the suspense of whether I will catch the big one.

[blk97]

Walleyerick, thanks for the info. I love walleye fishing and is willing to pay a charter .Do you know any that guarantee walleye? I want to learn when where and how to catch walleye on the Eastern end of Lake Erie. I will not stop until i learn.

[walleyerick]

If you can get a money back guarantee, take it ! Personally I'd be surprised if you could get one. When the season opens up in May, the walleye are just done spawning and they are in shallow water. The water is probably low 50s.
Later on as the temp rises in L Erie, they usually go to deeper water because they like it cooler.

But who knows ? Someone said a while back "that's why they call it fishing, not catching". Truer words were never spoken.

Walleye like to run in schools, but the bigger ones are mavericks and they travel alone.

[blk97]

Walleyerick, i had a charter on lake Wylie, North CAROLINA. The charter was money back or a free outting. We fished for crappie. Had a ball. Where are the walleye?

[walleyerick]

Lake Erie is a big lake and they could be anywhere ! It is about 10,000 sq. miles in area. If a charter boat guarantees walleye or your money back, let me know. If you have a sonar fish finder that should help locate reefs and schools, but it's still a big lake and even the best hi tech equipment won't guarantee fish. If I find 'em, I'll let you know where.

Good luck.

[captainjoe]

I was out there trying to catch a few of those fish Sat. & Sun. Sat. I left Strugeon Pt. and went west 9 miles trolled east - only got one silver bass. I was by myself. Sun. I went east out of Sturgeon Pt. about a mile - trolled east with the waves about 7 miles. NO HITS! Decided to call it quits at about 12:15 pm. Popped the downrigger - found something heavy on it. Played it for several minutes - Big Ass channel cat. I was trying to get the hook out of it and David was reelin in the other lines and found a WALLEYE on one line hooked by the gill. They are biting funny these days. He tried to lift it but fell off. Where are the Walleye?? Last Fri. David and Ed went out of Dunkirk - saw alot of fish on the screen but NO HITS?? Whats going on??