Slip Bobbin’ Eyes
This is actually one of the more productive ways to stay on top of walleye whether its early spring on the Great Lakes, fishing inland lakes or on your Canadian trip. Come to think of it, its a pretty good way to stay on top of the schools in late fall too as the fish bunch up in shallow while feeding at night.
What do you need, the tackle changes slightly from inland to big water fishing, but mostly just in the line choices and maybe the rod as well, depends on your locale. When choosing your line, I am still sticking with my 8 or 10 lb Power Pro. I want my line to be as directly below the bobber as I can to help in recognizing the slightest twinge on the float’s action that might indicate a strike. The Pwr Pro helps with its thin diameter in cutting in any possible current action below the surface. The biggest difference is actually in my selection of strengths for my leaders. On local inland lakes, or in Canada, I will use a 6 lb Vanish fluorocarbon leader. Big water and fishing at night, I switch up to 10 or even 12 lb fc leads.
What do you need for rigging your float? There are several types of bobber stops available on the market, I like the thread and bead rigging. Always rig your stop above your bobber! This helps in keeping the float upright for higher visibility, better casting because your extra weight is at the end of the line, and quicker detections on a bite. If you rig the stop below the bobber, it becomes harder to cast in deep water (too much line out), and the fish can swallow the offering before you know what’s happening.
Inland lakes, keep it simple. A hook and split shop are your prime choices. On the bigger waters of the Great Lakes, you want to switch over to a roundball jig or even a Fire-Eye Minnow ice jig available from Northland. Anchor you jig behind the dorsal tail of a shiner, and let the minnow swim against the action weight of the jig. A wounded struggle happening below the float often entices light biting walleye. Ice jigs are not just for the frozen water months folks, they have GOOD applications year around, and often out produce the traditional jigheads. Course you can rig just about anything you like on these presentations, a minnow, leech or crawler work just as well. When water current conditions are at their best, a plastic twister tail provides enough action to get the job done. Regardless of the type of jig that you use, try a glow jig at night to improve your catches.
In extreme conditions, where the walleye are finicky, a clear casting bobber works best. Most times I like the bubblegum colors available from Lindy on their stick bobbers. Just easier to see, and at times miss when you look away and then come back to the location. At night a lighted bobber rules. It might be a glow stick above the bobber, for a glow in the dark type.
My rod choices vary. I like the 8′ slip-bob St Croix Walleye Tournament rod for its length and action. The rod is long enough where I can drop it straight down from the side of the boat, place it in a holder and get to work casting jigs, cranks and rigs. Its medium light action is just right detecting bites, and it telescopes away for storage and travel. If its too pricey for your tastes, I also have a 7 and 1/2 ft Avid ML that I use for slowly trolling livebait presentations like a Roach Rig with a walking sinker. The rod easily doubles as a slip bobber rod. There is also a Premier spinning rod, available in a 7′6″ ML model.
For big water presentations, specially piers in the spring and fall, an 8ft, 6 inch steelhead rod in the Wild River St Croix series works best. I like the longer handle while working the drift. Same reason I like it for steelie fishing on the Huron River in Flat Rock. Its easier to manipulate the drift and keep contact with the bottom. Its a medium action rod, and casts better with the heavier jigs or weights that I am using.
This type of fishing, can be reworked and tweaked to apply to several types of fish species. Could be pike all the way down to crappie and gills. Change sizes, baits, strengths, lenghts and weights to match your quarry.