I don’t often write about walleye fishing because in recent years I haven’t pursued them as frequently as I have in the past. Sure, I manage to pick up a few walleyes every year but it’s often while I’m chasing some other species of fish like bass or pike. In years past I would often make trips to the St. Lawrence River or to some lake in Canada with the sole purpose of catching mostly pike or walleyes although we wouldn’t turn down bass if they were also available. The walleye hanging on our trophy wall at home is a 31 incher my wife caught in the St. Lawrence River years ago using a Mepps spinner with a black twister tail hanging from the rear treble hook. I also remember flying into some remote lakes in Canada just to catch pike and walleyes. On a couple of those trips catching 50 to 100 walleyes per person per day was the norm. Don’t expect that kind of action around here although I may want to back off on that statement a bit since it’s not necessarily the case.

Lake Erie although not in our backyard but certainly within reasonable driving distance has some tremendous walleye fishing going on right now. It will require an overnight stay for a day or two but trust me it’s probably time well spent. I recently talked with my brother-in-law who frequently visits Lake Erie and he and his fishing buddies are catching good numbers of walleyes on every trip. He said they usually troll with the aid of planer boards but jigging over the side of the boat can also produce.

In the meantime there is some walleye fishing right around here; certainly the Susquehanna River right here in our backyard is capable of producing some decent walleye fishing along with several lakes in our area. Don’t expect to go out and catch dozens on any single trip but there can be some worthwhile action.

The good thing is you really don’t need a lot of specialized gear to go after walleyes since it’s very likely your existing bass gear will suffice. Actually a medium action spinning rod and spinning reel with six to ten pound test line will work; line strength depends on the type of water you’re fishing; go with heavier line in weedy water.

Some of the same lures we use for bass will also work for walleyes. Crankbaits are a good example; the big lipped lure which tends to run deeper when retrieved can be very productive at times and so can vibrating or lipless lures which also run deeper. Even minnow type lures like Rapalas and Rebels either in a weighted version or with some type of weight added ahead of the lure can take walleyes. The key is to get down to the fish since walleyes are generally not found on or near the surface but rather on the bottom or suspended. Spoons and spinners will also take walleyes and can easily be fished in deeper water. Also the good old reliable lead head jig with a soft plastic grub or worm added and we certainly wouldn’t want to leave out a deer hair lead head jig. A good way to “spruce up” a jig and make it even more enticing is to add a minnow or night crawler.

There are some special rigs made just for walleye fishing and they are definitely worth having on hand. The weight-forward spinner rig and some special spinner rigs made for the purpose of attaching night crawlers are great for getting the offering down to the walleyes hang out. Walleyes are surprisingly soft biters so don’t necessarily expect arm jolting strikes.

By the way, besides being fun and challenging to catch walleyes are probably one of the best tasting fish you could ever put on your plate.