Stan Fagerstrom
10-16-2003, 06:27 AM
“A Way To Win With Walleyes”
By Stan Fagerstrom
Part Two
The Pacific Northwest has long been known for its tremendous salmon and steelhead fishing.
That picture has changed a bit in recent decades. Today you’ll find fishermen just as interested in fish other than the migratory species. One of the species that is attracting more and more interest is the elusive walleye. You don’t have to tell Midwest anglers just what super sport these big members of the perch family provide. The walleye is Numero Uno in that part of the world when it comes to sport fishing.
Someone who writes regularly about sports fishing, something I’ve been doing for more than the past half-century, always gets their share of questions related to fishing. In recent years more and more of them have dealt with how to go about catching walleye.
In the last column I told how Dave Eichler, an executive with Mack’s Lure, had caught some whopping big walleye from the Columbia. Since that column appeared I’ve had calls and e-mail messages from anglers who wanted more of the specifics on just how Eichler catches those big ones.
http://www.ifish.net/sfwrig2.jpg
Here's a close up of the rig Dave Eichler often uses for his Columbia River walleye fishing.
Note the illustration of the set up Eichler uses for trolling that accompanies above. It details exactly how he rigs from where his Bottom Walker is attached to his leader right on back to his lure. I’ve talked to Dave to get additional details to share with anglers who want to try Dave’s productive techniques. One of his favorite tactics is what walleye anglers call “Bottom Bouncing.”
http://www.ifish.net/sfwr1.jpg
Here's another view of the set up that has proven effective for some of the Columbia's trophy sized walleye.
“Be sure,” Eichler says, “that you’ve got a Bottom Bouncer that’s the right size. You don’t want your weight to drag along the bottom of the river. You want it down close, but it should just tick the bottom from time to time instead of constantly dragging.”
What Eichler does with his Bottom Bouncer is very similar to the technique utilized by an experienced steelhead angler drifting eggs on a Pacific Northwest river. Few newcomers to steelhead realize just how important having exactly the right size sinker is to catching steelhead. Your bait or lure has to work downstream right along the bottom, but it can’t be so heavy you’re forever hanging up. The same thing applies where bottom bouncing for walleye is concerned.
Boat speed, of course, is another essential. “I just don’t go out without my Luhr-Jensen Luhr-Speed troll speed indicator,” Eichler says. “It’s really accurate and I can depend on what it tells me.” The Luhr-Speed indicator is easily attached to almost any boat and is widely used among knowledgeable walleye fishermen.
The Mack’s Lure executive will tell you the best boat speed depends on a number of factors. Much of the time he slows way down if the water is cold and the fish not really active. “If the fish are lethargic,” he says, “I like to get down to a lure speed of about half a mile per hour. If you’ve got much wind it can be really difficult to pinpoint your boat speed. The Luhr-Speed troll speed indicator tells you exactly how fast you’re going whatever the conditions. Consistently moving at the right speed often makes the difference between catching fish or just going for a boat ride.”
Eichler has something else going for him where slow speeds are concerned. It’s the light-reflecting, easy turning blades that are part of his overall setup. Take another close look at the illustration. Up front you’ll see Eichler has the new Mack’s Lure Hot-Wings Mylar spinner blades. These blades are really something. They turn at extremely slow speeds and have almost no drag. The Hot-Wings spinner has two blades. These blades counter rotate. If you want you can connect two or three in a row for even more flash. The way these easy turning blades are constructed they give the user a full 360 degrees of light reflection and flash.
“There’s just no reason I can see not to use the Hot-Wings,” Eichler says. “I love the darn things. They have no affect on your Bottom Walker and there’s none of that rod-bending drag to deal with that you get with heavy metal blades.”
The last item in the lash-up Eichler runs by those Columbia River walleye in the Wenatchee area is a Mack’s Lure Cha Cha. The Cha Cha comes in two sizes. Dave usually opts for the smaller of the two---the Mini Cha Cha. This is a lure you can buy all set to fish or you can get the parts and rig your own and Eichler sometimes does. The necessary ingredients are all displayed in the Mack’s Lure catalog. If you’re serious about walleye fishing and don’t have one of these catalogs, it would be wise to remedy that mistake.
Finally, a word is in order with the regard to the Mack’s Lure Smile Blade that is part of the Cha Cha worm rig. Like the blades on the Hot-Wings up front, the Mylar Smile Blade spins and flashes at extremely slow speeds. I interviewed a fellow one time who was using a Smile Blade ahead of his minnow for ice fishing. The minnow finning around down there under the ice didn’t swim fast enough to turn a metal blade. The lightweight Smile Blade did continue to operate as the minnow moved and the angler who used it beat the pants off his fishing pals who didn’t have similar setups.
In the original column dealing with Dave Eichler’s tactics, I didn’t detail the rod, reel and line combination he favors. His favorite for bottom bouncing is a 7-foot, 9-inch G.Loomis GL3 model. His reel is an Ambassadeur 4600-C3. Dave uses both braided and monofilament line. He tells me Power Pro is one of his favorite braids.
So there you are walleye anglers. Dave Eichler loves to fish. So does his wife, Deborah. As I mentioned in my first column, the two release the large fish that come their way and invite a few of the smaller ones home to dinner. Now if I could just figure some way to get them to invite me at the same time those walleyes are their dinner guests I’d have it made!
By Stan Fagerstrom
Part Two
The Pacific Northwest has long been known for its tremendous salmon and steelhead fishing.
That picture has changed a bit in recent decades. Today you’ll find fishermen just as interested in fish other than the migratory species. One of the species that is attracting more and more interest is the elusive walleye. You don’t have to tell Midwest anglers just what super sport these big members of the perch family provide. The walleye is Numero Uno in that part of the world when it comes to sport fishing.
Someone who writes regularly about sports fishing, something I’ve been doing for more than the past half-century, always gets their share of questions related to fishing. In recent years more and more of them have dealt with how to go about catching walleye.
In the last column I told how Dave Eichler, an executive with Mack’s Lure, had caught some whopping big walleye from the Columbia. Since that column appeared I’ve had calls and e-mail messages from anglers who wanted more of the specifics on just how Eichler catches those big ones.
http://www.ifish.net/sfwrig2.jpg
Here's a close up of the rig Dave Eichler often uses for his Columbia River walleye fishing.
Note the illustration of the set up Eichler uses for trolling that accompanies above. It details exactly how he rigs from where his Bottom Walker is attached to his leader right on back to his lure. I’ve talked to Dave to get additional details to share with anglers who want to try Dave’s productive techniques. One of his favorite tactics is what walleye anglers call “Bottom Bouncing.”
http://www.ifish.net/sfwr1.jpg
Here's another view of the set up that has proven effective for some of the Columbia's trophy sized walleye.
“Be sure,” Eichler says, “that you’ve got a Bottom Bouncer that’s the right size. You don’t want your weight to drag along the bottom of the river. You want it down close, but it should just tick the bottom from time to time instead of constantly dragging.”
What Eichler does with his Bottom Bouncer is very similar to the technique utilized by an experienced steelhead angler drifting eggs on a Pacific Northwest river. Few newcomers to steelhead realize just how important having exactly the right size sinker is to catching steelhead. Your bait or lure has to work downstream right along the bottom, but it can’t be so heavy you’re forever hanging up. The same thing applies where bottom bouncing for walleye is concerned.
Boat speed, of course, is another essential. “I just don’t go out without my Luhr-Jensen Luhr-Speed troll speed indicator,” Eichler says. “It’s really accurate and I can depend on what it tells me.” The Luhr-Speed indicator is easily attached to almost any boat and is widely used among knowledgeable walleye fishermen.
The Mack’s Lure executive will tell you the best boat speed depends on a number of factors. Much of the time he slows way down if the water is cold and the fish not really active. “If the fish are lethargic,” he says, “I like to get down to a lure speed of about half a mile per hour. If you’ve got much wind it can be really difficult to pinpoint your boat speed. The Luhr-Speed troll speed indicator tells you exactly how fast you’re going whatever the conditions. Consistently moving at the right speed often makes the difference between catching fish or just going for a boat ride.”
Eichler has something else going for him where slow speeds are concerned. It’s the light-reflecting, easy turning blades that are part of his overall setup. Take another close look at the illustration. Up front you’ll see Eichler has the new Mack’s Lure Hot-Wings Mylar spinner blades. These blades are really something. They turn at extremely slow speeds and have almost no drag. The Hot-Wings spinner has two blades. These blades counter rotate. If you want you can connect two or three in a row for even more flash. The way these easy turning blades are constructed they give the user a full 360 degrees of light reflection and flash.
“There’s just no reason I can see not to use the Hot-Wings,” Eichler says. “I love the darn things. They have no affect on your Bottom Walker and there’s none of that rod-bending drag to deal with that you get with heavy metal blades.”
The last item in the lash-up Eichler runs by those Columbia River walleye in the Wenatchee area is a Mack’s Lure Cha Cha. The Cha Cha comes in two sizes. Dave usually opts for the smaller of the two---the Mini Cha Cha. This is a lure you can buy all set to fish or you can get the parts and rig your own and Eichler sometimes does. The necessary ingredients are all displayed in the Mack’s Lure catalog. If you’re serious about walleye fishing and don’t have one of these catalogs, it would be wise to remedy that mistake.
Finally, a word is in order with the regard to the Mack’s Lure Smile Blade that is part of the Cha Cha worm rig. Like the blades on the Hot-Wings up front, the Mylar Smile Blade spins and flashes at extremely slow speeds. I interviewed a fellow one time who was using a Smile Blade ahead of his minnow for ice fishing. The minnow finning around down there under the ice didn’t swim fast enough to turn a metal blade. The lightweight Smile Blade did continue to operate as the minnow moved and the angler who used it beat the pants off his fishing pals who didn’t have similar setups.
In the original column dealing with Dave Eichler’s tactics, I didn’t detail the rod, reel and line combination he favors. His favorite for bottom bouncing is a 7-foot, 9-inch G.Loomis GL3 model. His reel is an Ambassadeur 4600-C3. Dave uses both braided and monofilament line. He tells me Power Pro is one of his favorite braids.
So there you are walleye anglers. Dave Eichler loves to fish. So does his wife, Deborah. As I mentioned in my first column, the two release the large fish that come their way and invite a few of the smaller ones home to dinner. Now if I could just figure some way to get them to invite me at the same time those walleyes are their dinner guests I’d have it made!