File - Ben Beattie Outdoors

BIG WAVES,
BIG WALLEYE
How the pros stay on fish when the going gets rough.
PHOTO: BEN BEATTIE
BY BEN BEATTIE
W
hen it comes to walleye
fishing, wind can be
both a blessing and a
curse. We’re all familiar
with the positive effects of a “walleye
chop,” but what happens when the wind
whips up and generates big waves that
make boat control and bait presentation
difficult. Struggling to control a boat
in such conditions, while still fishing
effectively, is daunting. Often, heading
for shore is the best option.
Fishing in rough conditions requires
careful attention to safety, boat control,
and angling techniques to consistently
put fish in the boat. If you’re a tournament
angler who simply has to compete, a
guide who has to put clients on fish,
or just a hard-core angler who likes a
challenge, though, you have to be up to
the task. Anglers with confidence to fish
rough water and proper equipment to do
so are often rewarded with a banner day
of walleye fishing.
July 2010 | WWW.ONTARIOOUTOFDOORS.COM
35
BIG WAVES,
BIG WALLEYE
Rigged for Success
The last thing
you want to do is
underpower your
trolling motor. You
need one that looks
like it’s way too big
for your boat.
long enough for your boat so the trolling
motor isn’t consistently bouncing out
of the water in the waves,” he advised.
“Powerwise, on a 16- or 17-foot boat opt
for a 24-volt battery system instead of
12 volts, and for a boat that’s 18 feet or
longer opt for a 36-volt system. Right
out of the chute, that’s going to get you
in the ballpark on a windy day.
Safety First
Predicting rough-water walleye location with any certainty is difficult, but be sure to
check out calmer lee-side waters. Fish occasionally seek such sheltered areas.
“The other thing that we all have at and waves get rough. A high-transom
the professional level is a kicker motor long-shaft tiller with the addition of
that has a tremendous amount of low- splash guards allows us to comfortably
end torque,” Parsons added. “They’ve backtroll in waves that would otherwise
got big props and can generate a lot of fill the back of ill-equipped rigs with
power in forward or reverse. All of the water.”
good kickers are four-stokes, because
you don’t lose power in reverse.”
Windy-Walleye Whereabouts
Windsocks are the third aspect to With the proper gear in place, the next
heavy-wind boat control. “I carry two step is trying to understand the effect
or three oversized windof a big wind on walleye
socks in my boat, but I only
behaviour and location.
use them when the wind is
Although every situation is
really roaring,” said Parsons.
different, there are certain
“With a big trolling motor
things to consider that will
and a kicker, I can handle a
give you an edge.
lot of wind situations without
Changing conditions,
a windsock. But when you
like a big wind coming in,
need it, you need a big one.”
will alter the position of
Tiller-style boats can also
fish in the water column,
be equipped to handle big
says Keith Kavajecz, who
waves. Mike Willems, guide Mike Willems
co-hosts with Parsons on
and owner of Silver Water
The Next Bite. “Usually,
Wheel Lodge on Lac Seul in northwest- this means a big change from what you
ern Ontario, knows all about fishing in were doing the day before,” he said. “If
rough conditions
you’re fishing open water and there’s
“Lac Seul is huge and can blow up a big wind, it tends to push fish closer
pretty bad,” Willems said. For this to bottom.”
reason, he has a fleet of large tiller
Kavajecz also believes walleye
boats rigged to handle the rough stuff. will seek shelter from a big wind by
“For precise boat control, all of my running into rivers or protected bays,
guides backtroll, even when the wind if possible. “A prolonged wind can
No fish is worth risking your life for. Make sure your boat
is large enough and equipped with safety gear to handle
varying degrees of rough water. Always check local weather
and wind predictions before heading out. You can do so
36
ONTARIO OUT OF DOORS | July 2010
through weather links at www.ontariooutofdoors.com/fishing.
Inexperienced boaters should take extra precautions when
dealing with windy and rough conditions. Staying off the water
is often the best decision when there’s a small-craft warning.
ROUGH WATER PHOTO: BEN BEATTIE, WALLEYE ON CRANKBAIT BY TIM ALLARD
Being prepared to catch walleye in
windy conditions requires a course
of action that starts long before you
arrive at the boat launch. Gary Parsons,
a professional walleye fisherman
from Wisconsin and
co-host of The Next
Bite television show,
m a ke s t h i s c a s e
quite clear. “Walleye
fishing is boat control,
and boat control is
walleye fishing,” he
said. “First address
this issue with your
equipment. It needs
to be able to handle
Gary Parsons
the wind.”
An adequate bow-mount trolling
motor is the first essential. “The last
thing you want to do is underpower
your trolling motor,” said Parsons. “You
need one that looks like it’s way too big
for your boat.”
He recommends a minimum shaft
length of 60 inches and as much power
as you can afford for a big deep-V
walleye boat. “Shaft length has to be
move them,” he explained. “If there’s a
place they can get out of the wind, a lot
of times they will do that. If they don’t
have anywhere to move, I think they
just hang out in the same areas, but
they might not move up onto structure
to eat if it’s getting too much wind.”
Fishing on the lee side (off-wind
side) of structure can also pay off.
Walleye often take advantage of feeding
opportunities created by wind-driven
current that wraps around structure.
“During really rough conditions,
catching fish on the lee side is often
easier, as boat control and presentations
aren’t as negatively affected by the
waves and wind,” said Willems.
Parsons agrees and says he’s
constantly fishing the off-wind side of
structure. He says that what anglers
were taught in the past regarding where
walleye should be in a certain wind isn’t
always the case. “None of that’s hard and
true,” he said. “I don’t allow the wind
to dictate to me where the fish should
be located. They are where they are.
When you think they should be where
the waves are pounding in, they might
be somewhere completely different.
Each lake, each point, each wind
condition gives us a totally different
set of parameters, and only the fish can
interpret where they want to position
themselves.”
Learning to use and interpret
onboard electronics is a huge part of
successfully locating walleye in windy
conditions. Parsons suggests using
your electronics to find a concentration
of fish before even dropping a line.
“Any time I fish a piece of structure,
I graph it all first before I fish it,” he
said. “Once you mark them, then you
try to catch them. I’ve pummelled fish
in practice on structure, gone back the
first day of the tournament, graphed it
and didn’t see any fish, so I didn’t fish
it because the fish weren’t there. The
real key is to start leaning a little bit
harder on your electronics.”
Dirty-Water Walleye
E lec tronic s play a big role in
deciphering the effects high winds
have on water clarity, which in turn
impact walleye feeding habits. A strong
wind can lower visibility by dirtying
the water with sediment, which can be
detected on your sonar screen.
This situation makes it hard for fish
to see your lures, says Kavajecz. “A lot
of times, your strike zone tightens up,
so you might have to put baits right on
the fish,” he advised. “Paying attention
to your electronics allows you to present
baits at the right depth, and this will
make a huge difference in how many
bites you’re going to get.”
When visibility is an issue, Kavajecz
has a lot of confidence in rattling
crankbaits. “I find walleye respond
better to a high-pitched glass-bead
rattle,” he said. “In dirty water, they’re
going to key in on the rattle. I also go
to bright baits: chartreuse, orange, or
anything with a lot of white in it.”
Stirred-up water calls for crankbaits, rattles, bright colours, and whites.
July 2010 | WWW.ONTARIOOUTOFDOORS.COM
37
BIG WAVES,
BIG WALLEYE
Another example of where visibility through the area. (For more on fishing
affects walleye behaviour is wind- lead-core line, see “Old School Fishing,”
generated mud lines. It’s a pattern pg. 29.)
Anchoring can be an effective
that any good walleye angler is aware
method of boat control if the
of, says Parsons. “I look at mud lines Go With the Wind
structure you’re fishing is small,
such as reefs and sunken islands.
like I do structure,” he said. “They’re Whether trolling structure or open
Parsons won a Professional
there, just like a drop-off is there, but water, heavy wind creates challenges
Walleye Trail tournament on
it doesn’t necessarily mean the fish are for boat control and bait presentation.
Lake Winnebago in Wisconsin by
going to be there. If the mud line is in With proper equipment and a modified
anchoring off small reefs in the
shallow, I’ve got to fish it to see if fish approach, though, trolling in rough
main lake. “The wind howled 30- to
are there. If it’s deeper, I can scan it with water is still a viable option for catching
35 mph all across the lake,” he
my electronics.”
fish.
related. “Everyone else was in the
rivers and I was the only guy out on
His approach to fishing mud lines is
Trolling against the wind for walleye
the big lake.” His winning system
fairly simple. “Mud lines are best within is almost always a bad idea. “Use the
included using two anchors to
three to four hours of when they’ve wind to your advantage,” said Parsons.
hold his boat off structure, while
started, before it gets too muddy,” he “Going with the wind and slowing down
pitching jigs and crankbaits.
offered. “The baitfish get
your boat is a lot easier than
disoriented and the walleye
trying to fight the wind.
Field Tip
In rough water,
move in to feed.”
If you do, you’re going to a ballasted planer board, such as
upsize weights of
Mud lines, in many cases,
compromise boat control.”
Off Shore boards with weight in the
jigs, sinkers, and
are expansive, and most
If the wind gets too heavy, bottom. “They bite into the water better
bottom bouncers
walleye fishermen fish their
Parsons uses a combination and they handle big waves better,” he
to maintain
edges. However, Parsons
of trolling motor, kicker, said. “When you’re in big waves, the
feel and keep
said, “I go right into them
and windsocks
problem is that your boat
in contact with
and use the trolling motor
to maintain the
will be surging, causing the
bottom.
to cover the area.”
right speed while
boards to surge and start
His preferred presentation for fishing trolling. “I put down my
jumping waves.
mud lines is a bottom-bouncer rigged trolling motor and run it
“Another thing I do is go
with either slow death (a special bent in reverse, so it’s pushing
to a softer rod,” he added.
hook that when tipped with a worm straight back to slow me
“Normally, I use an 81⁄2-foot
rolls slowly through the water) or a down,” he said. “Learn to
trolling rod, but in a big
crawler or minnow spinner harness.) slow your boat down and
wind I will go to a 10-foot
If the mud line is in deeper water, say you will catch just as many
rod because it has a bit softer
15- to 20 feet, at times Parsons will turn fish and have a lot easier
tip that will take up some of
to lead-core line and crankbaits to troll time handling your boat.” Keith Kavajecz
the surge from the boat.”
When battling the wind, Kavajecz
The last thing you want in big waves
also uses dual motors to control his is for a board to come off. “In rough
boat. “If the wind is driving right into water I switch to stronger clips that have
Mounting a mechanical suspension
the structure I’m trying to fish, I use a lever that you can really clamp down
system on your boat seats will
the bow-mount to steer the boat, while on the line,” said Kavajecz.
dramatically reduce the impact to
the kicker controls the speed.”
Taking the necessary steps to ensure
your body from rough conditions.
Trolling with planer boards is that your equipment, skills, and
Products on the market use
another proven method for catching experience level are prepared for the
springs with hydraulic shocks to
minimize the impact from hitting
big walleye that comes with its own challenge of rough-water conditions will
big waves. For more information,
challenges when the wind is blowing ensure that you’re ready for big waves
visit, www.smoothmovesseats.com
hard. Kavajecz recommends using and big walleye, too.
Anchors Out
A Smoother Ride
Smooth Moves
seat mount
38
ONTARIO OUT OF DOORS | July 2010
PHOTO: BEN BEATTIE
or www.glyde-ryde.com.