It has been a busy week with so many walleyes on the line it is plain hard to count!
Starting a new season with a new boat always makes me nervous. I get very attached to my boat. My 2004 Lund Pro V IFS 2025 is a hall of famer. 3000 hours still no leaks, fishes as good as the day I bought it. My new Lund Pro V GL 208 boat has a very tough act to follow. Jon Balaski will run my 2004 Pro V. It could not be in more capable hands. Jon is an excellent fishing guide. Jon has that seek in destroy mentality, he will put you on the fish, no matter which specie it is and make sure YOU catch the fish. One thing to remember when you hire a guide, they should be helping the guest catch fish; you should not be watching the guide catch the fish.
On May 24th I fished current areas, very strong current. On May 18, 19, and 20th five inches of rain fell. The dams are at full flow. The walleyes are setting on the edges of the heavy current in 12-18 feet of water. Any place there is a point large or small extending into the river or narrows you see ripples and smooth water created by the point (or as some people call them wing dams). I have been fishing the points on the upstream side casting towards the ripples or slicks but not onto them. We have been using either ¼ oz. or 3/8 oz. jigs tipped with a chub minnow in the current.
May 25th my group fished shallow bays casting 1/8 oz. jigs tipped with chub minnows. Walleyes were very sensitive to water temperature. The bay was essentially forty-nine degrees everywhere. We found a small under water point that was trapping water that was fifty-four degrees. Game on. The walleyes went crazy for close to three hours on one spot. We fished other points finding a couple with warm water and the same thing walleyes packed tightly into an area small in size but big on fish.
May 26th we traveled t o an area that had heavy current, and bays with warm water. We fished a wall that was giving up nice 20 inch plus walleyes along with many smaller pike. We moved to a windy point on the end of an island and the fish were stacked on it. We stayed for three hours drilling walleyes, nice northern and even a whitefish! We ran out of minnows. The boys from Dallas had never experienced anything like it.
Monday May 27th I joined a group of friends from Iowa on our Lady of the Lake II. Walleye warriors is the best way to explain their fishing mentality. We fished points; the water was warming up nice with the sunshine and warm temperatures. The walleyes were absolutely on fire, close to every cast with a jig and minnow or a jig and Gulp 3” minnow. Smallmouth were right in with the walleyes biting jigs and minnows. It looks like the smallies are getting ready to go on a good bite. During the evening we fished slip bobbers off the swim platform of the Lady and just creamed the walleyes.
Tuesday was more of the same walleyes going crazy out of minnows by one o’clock.
Wednesday we went and fished heavy current working the under water points or wind dams. Walleyes were in the spot, almost all big fat ones! We could only keep six walleyes; the rest ran from 19-26 inches.
Tip of the week:
When there is lots of flowing water in the lake like this year current plays a role in the bays to. You can tell which way the current is being routed through the bay with a slip bobber. Toss it out and it usually will drift back in to shore with the wind. With current you will see it move with the current not the wind, it is often subtle but it will also help you find the warmer water, look down the shore and where the shore turns or begins to exit the bay you will find warmer water.