Advise on shore fishing?

[fish2morrow]

Does anyone have any good advises for fishing for walleye's from the shore? Like what's a good bait to use, or lure to use, what time of the day is best for walleyes from the shore? How far out should I cast my line? What's a good lake to go do some walleye fishing from the shore for the summer.

[mainbutter]

My only luck with walleyes from shore has been on the Cannon River, incidental catches while soaking nightcrawlers for rough fish. I was essentially still-fishing, sinker with a foot or two of leader, hook on the end with a whole crawler. If you find 'em and put a 'crawler in their face, I think they'll bite.

[reinhard1]

i have a boat but still fish from shore from time to time. if i dont know the depth off shore within casting distance with live bait. i put a jig on the end of the line along with a slip bobber. i cast out with the bobber set at 10 ft for example and toss it out. if the bobber lays flat i raise it up a couple of feet and when the bobber stands up on the next cast i then put my bait on and start to fish casting out the same distance each time after that. i dont like casting out lures off shore unless i know the lake for fear of snags. i know this sounds simple but this is what i do and it works fine. as i mentioned above knowing that your bait [minnow or leech]is a foot off bottom is the important part. this would be on a hard gravely bottom i'm talking about. if the lake is bog stained you can get fish during the day. if the water is clear i would fish early in the morning or late afternoon. good luck.

[Crm7290]

I would try to cover as much water as possible, using as long of casts as possibly. I stand on the bank and cast out in a fan in front of me. If i get strikes I cast back to that area and see if I get more. I bass fish and don't fish for walleye but I think that it is the same concept.

I dont worry about the depth of the water, I just run my bait through as much water as I can. The lure depends on the weather. I typically come on here and see what people are using successfully. Read about walleye fishing to get to know the appropriate lure for the season and weather pattern.

[Slabasaurus]

Yes. I fished exlcusively from shore in the metro area last open water season, except 3 days on WBL and a day on Big Marine. (I fished 3-5x a week from May - November)

Good Lure: Spring I had a lot of luck on a #5 shallow shad rap from shore. Mid Summer I had shady luck, but was able to hook into a few evenin shoreline eyes on leeches and hook/boobber rig, as RH1 had eluded to.

Fall is the time for BIG CRANKS. I was using an 11 original floater rapala in silver minnow as my smallest lure. This was by far my most productive presentation and time of the year. I did manage to catch my first river eye dropping a drop-shot rig with a crawler into a backwater section, but only caught one eye this way.

Best time of day? I had my best luck in the evening. Partially this is because i did most of my fishing between 6pm and midnight. The most productive time was the hour before and after sunset.

Casting can be interesting. I like to fan cast from my spot. If i get something, i usually repeat where i last threw. If no bites, I'll make one more pass fan casting that spot then move up or down the shoreline depending on the structure I'm workin.

[fish2morrow]

Thanks guys that helped out a lot since I'm kind of new to walleye fishing. And this is my first winter here in Wisconsin. So as of right now trying to research as much as possible and try out different concepts and trying to get an understanding of what to do.

I've done some research and it's always saying that during the summer the walleye's are always around 20-30 feet deep. Is that always true or do they sometimes follow baitfish and come close to shore too. Another thing is that I heard walleyes feed by going low then aiming for what's on top of it. Is this also true or do they feed on the ground as well?

[Nick Kuhn]

In your area, I would fish the Chippewa River from shore. You can easily cast to where walleyes would be located (as often they will be in less than 10FoW on rivers). Plus, plenty of smallies and perhaps an occasional muskie could be had.

[Slabasaurus]

Ya. The deepest the river I fish gets in the area I fish it is about 10 feet... if that, unless it is spring, fall, or they're doing work on the dam upstream.

Loook for moderate current, with seams/eddies/backwater areas.

The first place I cast to when I get to the river is a spot where the current is broken by an object in the river.

If nothing is obviously breaking the flow up, I'll find the inside edge of a bend and fish that. The current is typically much slower at these spots, and there's also some decent structure on either side of the bend.

[fish2morrow]

Sounds good I'll try that out early in May and see where that takes me. Thanks again guys.

[DonBo]

Nick nailed it. In your area, the Chippewa River should offer lots of spots worth trying.

[Hory]

The Chippewa River has a real nice mixed bag of fish. I fish that river when I am home in the Spring and Summer between other fishing trips. However, I do fish from a small river boat. I would look for anything that breaks the current, as previously stated. Anything that redirects the current on that river can carve out some massive holes on the bottom. If you can reach any small creek inlets by foot, fish those as well. I also try and fish any rocks I can find. (the transition between sand bottom and rock). Last season the majority of my fish came from working shoreline rocks. A buddy of mine was even lucky enough to boat a few small sturgeon. Don't get discouraged too fast if some days are slow...It can be tricky to figure out at times. The joy of never knowing what could be on your line is what keeps me going back to the river more often than not.

[fish2morrow]

These are some great tips guys. Thanks for the heads up. It is kind of discouraging to fish the chippewa river for me because it's so red making me feel like there's no fish in it, but with these great tips I'm definately going to give it a shot. I've seen the river but have not fished it yet, but will try. Thanks again rh1, nick, slab, crm, and hory.

[Nick Kuhn]

It is pretty dark/muddy, but that is actually to your advantage, particularly on sunny days.

[Slabasaurus]

I'll never forget the first time I fished a river. It was a mostly sunny day in August, probably about 78 degrees by the time I hit the water after work. I noticed a tree down over the water, an inside bend, and a slight rocky area just downstream. I thought it looked rather Ideal actually.

So my buddy and I walked to the shore. Before I even have my shad rap on there I hear my buddy swearing. Look over and he's stuck in a tree. I chuckle, and proceed to cast into the water.

I hit near the opposite bank (pretty skinny part of the river) and reeled in. As I passed over a small hole, I watched a smallie swim to the top of the water and SLAM my bait. Nothing huge but man it was cool. Happened a few more times after that, until I had to put my rig down to give my buddy a hand. By this point he had soaked his italian leather shoes (don't ask) so I figured he could use some help. I had 4 fish before he even asked for my assistance.

Well once he was all set, the fish had left that little pool. We walked upstream, and I tried drop shotting, and hit some walleye in a backwater area.

[fish2morrow]

That's a great story one to remember slab. I would of laughed so hard I wouldn't of been able to fish if it was me. Lol.

So are you guys crank fans or more of a jig fan? when it comes to fishing?

[nofishfisherman]

When shore fishing I'm a big jig fan myself. I fish pool 2 of the mississippi during the spring for walleye and use nothing but jigs. When i first started fishing the river i used cranks and anything else i could think of. Every lure had problems with snags at some point so i switched to jigs figuring that if I lost a few its no big deal because they are cheap. It turned out that a jig and a minnow out fished everything else i used 10-1, plus I don't really lose that many jigs, maybe 1 a trip (they seem to bounce over snags pretty well).

Since then I've been jigs using nothing but jigs from shore. I simply fan cast the structure and then move on up or down the shore.

There are also other advantages.

1. I can methodically work the structure with my bait staying in the strike zone almost 100% of the time.

2. I can pack everything I need in my pockets. Small box of jigs, a bag of Mr. Twister Sassy Shad and I'm off. If I'm walking a shoreline its nice to move light without added gear and bags of tackle.

3. More current no problem, just go with a bigger jig. Early in the spring I start with 3/8th oz and I go smaller as the current subsides, most of the time I'm using 1/4 oz.

[fish2morrow]

That sounds kool, nofishfisherman. I've just recently moved here, but I've visited my wife (now), back when we were still dating and they've taken me to the mississipi for white bass. However, I still don't know where pool 2 is at nor do I know anything about the mississipi besides those nasty asian carps I've been hearing aoubt.

Maybe I'll stick to jigs for the river systems. I was planning to crank, but since there's a lot of rocks. Jigs sounds good.

One questions though does top water lure work for walleye?

[fish2morrow]

What pool is it on the Mississipi R. near Fountain City?

[Acemac]

walleyes are river fish they are much bigger and eaisier to catch in moving water. stick with the river and dont be scared to get in the water.

the best walleye spots are alwasy on rivers and are usally only assecible by foot or canoe.

[delmuts]

Jigs are a main stay for river fishing! Be certain you have plenty as you will loose them! My main size is a 1/16 oz, but that will depend on the current etc., so have several sizes. The great thing is all kinds of plastics will work. ( pladdle tails,twister tails,minnows,lizzards, and ????)

Crankbaits can be a great bait; and yes you will loose some of them, but, learning to pop your rod, and learning how to bounce off the rocks without getting snagged helps!( but it takes time to learn!)

Wading ( keep it safe though!!) can be a big plus!

I'd save the surface lures for bass.

[Nick Kuhn]

Fountain City is Pool 6 I think, though Pool 5 is not far upriver and Pool 7 is not far downriver.

[OnAFly]

Not sure if it's been mentioned yet, but longer rods are nice for shore fishing. Longer rod=longer cast=more fishable area

[fish2morrow]

I see, thanks for the info. Well I don't know if I have a long enough rod, but I did manage to get a steal on a 6'6" Shimano crucial for 129. So going to try that rod out and see how I it goes.

[TooTallTom]

Well I don't know if I have a long enough rod, but...

Never say that out loud.

I'm a big fan of using what you've got/ can borrow until you know what's going to work for you. Your style/ preferences might make you inclined to go a different route than the next guy.

[fish2morrow]

Lol, because I research and ask around a almost everyone I know in person uses 7' polls, which makes mine look like it wont produce.

However, I love my rod even though it's a 6'6" because shimano is in my blood.

[OnAFly]

6'6" rods are pretty standard. Like TTT said, fish it a while. If you don't like it for shore, get a longer rod. The 6'6" is still a good all around rod. You can never have too many rods!

[fish2morrow]

Thanks for the good supporting words. That's just making me love my rod more. I'll take out for early walleye's and take pics.

[Slabasaurus]

Nice. Yeah, i use 6'6 rods for my walleye fishing, mostly. and as onafly said, you really can't have too many. Just picked up another rod at a half off sale just because it sounded fun.

Cranks- Big cranks- in the fall. Be careful though.. near Coon Rapids I had a 20 dollar day, that was really dumb. You think I woulda figured out to tie on a jig after say 12 bucks had gone down the river.

I'd say nowadays I split between Jigs (std and floating) and cranks almost equally. It really depends on the situation. tiwster tails have been very productive for me when jigging. I don't usually bring live bait to the river, but when I do, i drop shot crawlers, play a little fish roulette. Odd thing is I've only caught eyes and smallies out of the river. Nothing else to date...

River eyes are a blast. Get em in the current and it's pretty fun.

Good luck!

[fish2morrow]

Sweet.

[nofishfisherman]

Sounds like you have all the info you need. That 6'6" rod will be fine, thats what I use and I out fish my buddy who has a 7'. What's the old saying, "its not the size of the boat, its the motion of the ocean".

Sometimes its an advantage to cast a little farther out but in the area where I fish that extra distance just puts you in the main river channel which isn't where the fish tend to be. Any advantage gained by distance is usually cancel out when trying to bushwhack with a longer rod. A 7' rod has an extra 6" to get snagged on trees and brush.

On my shore fishing trips I actually like to use a 2 piece rod, I can then break it down and its a ton easier to get through thick brush. I can also strap it to the side of a backpack and keep my hands free if I choose. There are times when I have a longer walk along open trails to get to the fishing spot and its nice to just strap everything to my back and away I go.