Go Big or Stay Home – The keys to icing big Walleye
by: Yannick Loranger

Hanging from the side of the 31¬ inches of Ottawa River gold’s mouth was a 5” golden shiner. It was the second time that winter that I had topped my personal best for walleye and one of those eureka moments on the ice. It was the third oversized walleye I had caught in as many months and all three on oversized minnows. One is fluke, two can be luck, but three is a pattern.

Oversize is the right size
We’ve always been told that the best way to catch big fish, is to use big bait. This strategy has been put to use thoroughly by muskie and largemouth fishermen who have been upsizing to 13” swimbaits and 10” worms for years, but it seems to have been overlooked by most walleye fishermen who would prefer to offer small subtle offerings to supposedly finicky walleye. Let the truth be heard! Big walleye love big baits, and winter time is the best time to offer large baits to concentrated populations of oversized gluttonous marble eyes.

For a moment, put yourself in a fish’s scales. Except for a short period in the year when reproduction is your key function, your main goal, is to grow. Now put yourself in a large walleye’s position. You’re overweight and surrounded by bite sized morsels of low energy swimming snacks. To thrust your tail to try to catch one of these minnows would result in a negative caloric intake. You’re looking for a meal that will supply you with a big intake of calories in exchange for a small expansion of energy. You’re instinctually programmed to find something big and easy.

Location
It’s no secret that walleye will begin migrating towards spawning grounds months before the actual spawn begins. Take the Bay of Quinte as a prime example of that. The walleye arrive roughly in November and early December for an April spawn. The same biological principles apply to all walleye waters, making catching large fish under the ice a fathomable feat for all walleye fishermen. River mouths (or even the actual river), adjacent flats, deep holes off shoals, and bay mouths are all prime spots to find trophy winter walleye. Once you’ve located a potential holding area, don’t be afraid to explore all depths related to this spot. In my experience, walleye will always be on a “spot” but at different depths on different days, and obviously at different times of day. Don’t be afraid to go deeper than your comfort zone, and more importantly shallower. Flats with as little as four feet of water can and will hold walleye especially at dusk and into the night time. Look for areas that hold perch and other panfish to attract large walleye at dusk. As mentioned above, large walleye don’t get and stay large by eating small minnows. As with any kind of fishing, the key is to fish, where the fish are. You can use the perfect lure at the perfect time, but if you’re fishing the wrong area, you’re just washing lures.

Presentations
It’s almost unbelievable to me to still see fishermen that either don’t jig, or conversely, will only jig and not have a deadstick. Both jigging and deadsticking will get large walleye, in almost equal proportions, but the key is to be adaptable. On some days, or even some winters, walleye will hit anything that moves. Adversely, a much more subtle and natural approach is often necessary. That is why using both a jigging rod and a deadstick is crucial. Treat every outing like your first time on a new lake, using go-to, high confidence presentations first, and then if need be, moving on to establish the days’ pattern.

Large jigging spoons have become a staple in my big walleye arsenal. When heading out on a trophy walleye hunt, I always have a rod rigged with a #7 Swedish Pimple in either Orange or Blue and another with a Northland Buckshot. Buckshot spoons have become synonymous with walleye in recent years and even smaller sizes like a 3/8th ounce will catch big walleye when the bigger spoons aren’t getting the job done. On most days the key to making spoons appealing to large walleye, is to tip them with large minnows. Golden shiners or large emerald shiners both work well. My preference is towards golden shiners due to their hardiness, but if unavailable I’m still confident using emerald shiners. Either way, never forget to attach a stinger hook.

Deadsticks Have Their Place
When it comes to eadsticking, my preferred presentation is a dropshot rig with a #2 dropshot hook and the lightest sinker I can get away with. Tipped with a large lip hooked minnow, this set-up has become my go-to deadstick presentation. It is very rare for me not to have a dropshot rig in the water unless I’m fishing very shallow. The advantage of the dropshot rig is that it can be jigged very effectively, and is also productive as a deadstick. Just like you’d use a dropshot for smallmouth bass, let the sinker on a dropshot rig rest on the bottom and gently lift and jiggle the minnow on slack line. Feel for a very distinctive tick when a fish picks up the offering.

Fishing a drop shot rig takes some getting used to. I always use it on a jigging rod, placed in a rod holder. Because of the size of the bait, and position of the hook in the bait, you always have to let the fish “take it” longer than with other rigs. Also because of the horizontal position of the hook, a strong hookset is necessary. When a fish strikes a drop-shot, gently lift the rod from the rod holder. When you think the fish has sufficiently taken the bait, slowly lift until you feel the weight of the fish and then sharply continue the lift. I like to keep the drag as tight as possible on the reel, and then loosen it once the fish is hooked.
Occasionally jigging a deadstick serves well to entice nearby fish to attack. Similarly, leaving a jigging rod sit for a few moments can also entice bites. Even when the fish are obviously more prone to hit a deadstick, it can be wise to continue jigging. Notice how often the deadsticks closest to where you are jigging will get hit. When fish are in a neutral mood, jigging may not catch many, if any fish, but it can certainly serve to attract fish and trigger feeding instincts.

Rods & Reels - An Uncompromising Compromise
A multitude of ice fishing combos will work nicely on large walleye. The truth is that even when targeting large walleye, most of the fish caught will be less than trophy size. A heavy rod, built solely to handle large fish will result in overzealous hooksets and less playability on smaller fish. Because of the range of fish they can handle, I own a fleet of 27” combos that I use on both sauger and walleye. Although this set-up is smaller than ideal for large walleye, it has been a very suitable compromise and has yet to let me down. The upside is that it handles smaller, eater size walleye very nicely. Any rod with a sensitive tip and rigid front half will handle trophy walleye. When it comes to reels, drag smoothness is essential. It may be necessary to manually pull line off the reel during a fish’s initial runs until the drag is set perfectly. Also, be extra delicate when the fish is at or nearing the hole. Large walleye will tend to come up 90% of the way with ease and then fight vigorously when they approach the ice. Play these fish gently, and you will be rewarded. Using tip-ups decreases your ability to effectively play a fish, hence my preference for using jigging rods even with deadstick presentations.

Bring a Camera
There is a new community-wide respect for large walleye. Practicing catch and release on large walleye not only insures the future of a trophy walleye fishery, but also encourages regeneration for future age classes of eater-sized fish. Not only are most large walleye females in their reproductive primes, but they also make for less than stellar table fare.
Take advantage of the hot first ice bite to enjoy a few meals of fresh walleye, but when the slow mid-winter bite has fish in what seems like a dormant state, drop big baits in high percentage areas, and make room on the wall...for a lovely replica mount.

Mistakes are a drag
Don’t preset your drag to fight the fish. Keep your drag at its tightest setting until after you’ve set the hook. Before you hook onto a big fish, experiment with your drag to know how much to back off once the fish is firmly hooked. I know that with my reels, after the hookset, backing off the drag half a turn will have it set just about perfectly to fight a big walleye. Drag smoothness and ease of operation should be main considerations when purchasing a new reel or combo. Don’t forget to loosen your drag all the way if you plan on storing your combos for an extended period of time.