Trolling

[audiochem]

Thanks all! Hopefully by the end of March, temps are cooperative 

[rps]

3 hours ago, dan hufferd said:

I have always wanted to try a 3 way swivel weight and a flat rap or other floating stickbait. That you could work slow enough for any water temp. 

I might give it a whirl tomorrow.

If you do that, make sure your line to the weight is 2 steps below the main line and the line to your lure. If they are both 10#, the dropper to the weight should be 6#.

[dan hufferd]

3 hours ago, rps said:

If you do that, make sure your line to the weight is 2 steps below the main line and the line to your lure. If they are both 10#, the dropper to the weight should be 6#.

Got it. Thank you friend.

[MickinMO]

Find you a big SWish to NE cove and let those spring SW winds drift you from back of the cove to the channel. 2" grubs or roadrunners. Start close to shore and move out until you start catching them. Will catch crappie and whites mainly. Helps if you have a drift sock or 5 gallon bucket to slow you down

[lundone]

Three years ago there was a professional walleye tournament on Stockton on this March weekend.  The morning temps for those two days was in the teens and windy with skim ice in the coves.  The tournament was won by two local men (Stanton and Brown) who were trolling crankbaits.  I have caught walleye and crappie every season of the year trolling crankbaits.   I also fished with Brown today and we trolled crankbaits with no success so there are those days where things just don't work out.

  By the end of March trolling crankbaits in 15 to 25' of water should yield fish of some kind assuming water temps and other weather factors are favorable.

[powerdive]

Had some buddies who were pretty good at trolling up nice Stockton walleyes in Jan-Feb-early March. They were targeting 50', but it wasn't easy. As in, running 10 colors of leadcore with a 6" Reef Runner deep diver. (Leadcore has a point of diminishing returns due to water drag and line belly.) Talk about hard on the wrists when pulling up! Looking back, a 3-oz. inline or snap weight would've been much easier than all that leadcore. But it worked, and they caught some nice limits trolling the lower lake main and secondary points. I jumped in a couple times--all I can say is, you really had to want it.

Note that the best trolling of the year up north (Great Lakes especially) is in the cold water of late fall. The closer to ice-up, the slower the troll speed, and the better the bite. I even caught an 18"-plus crappie while trolling for eyes in Little Bay de Noc one November. Didn't even know there were crappies in L. Michigan.

I never would fish for eyes between 3/1 and 4/15 down in MO, as I didn't like the idea of fishing for pre-spawn walleyes. But come mid-April in a warm spring, the crankbait trolling bite would definitely be on--not so much in a cool spring. Stick with bouncers or jigs then.

[watermen2]

They are trolling right now in the detroit river with hand lines.  Up current with raps and SOG less than a half mile an hour.  Once you find them there are better ways to fish this early.  wiggle warts and hotntot type lures do well at very low speeds as well.

[powerdive]

17 hours ago, watermen2 said:

They are trolling right now in the detroit river with hand lines.  Up current with raps and SOG less than a half mile an hour.  Once you find them there are better ways to fish this early.  wiggle warts and hotntot type lures do well at very low speeds as well.

How to catch spring walleyes in high muddy water? I have no idea, and I don't know anyone who does. But a slow-trolled Rattlin' Hot'NTot sounds like it'd be worth a try! It's an aggressive lure that works at slow speed, crashes off rocks and has a flashy metal lip--maybe easier for the eyes to locate and nab???

[watermen2]

Caught these in high and muddy last spring on bright  or black 4" walleye assassins.

[MOPanfisher]

Hush now, brightly colored walleye assassin's are completely useless.