Category: Fishing

In my eyes, I feel walleyes are one of the most difficult freshwater fish to pattern. Why? Well, for starters, there hasn’t been a real long history on walleye fishing. When I was a kid in the 80s, everything was DEEP, DEEP, DEEP…we all know nowadays that that’s not always the case. Walleye fishing has evolved a lot in just 30 years. We used to fish everything SLOW when I was a kid, and while there are times that’s necessary, it’s also not always the case. I’ve slammed big walleyes trolling 3.5 mph with crankbaits in the spring, so the slow

I have the utmost respect for ice, and you have to if you spend a large amount of time on it fishing. I’ve already been walking on the ice for around a month and logged some pretty good outings so far on walleyes. But now as deep winter sets in, I’m getting tired of walk-ons, I want to get my ATV in the mix and get to where I really want to go… For some guys, the winter doesn’t start until they get their large ice house and truck onto the ice. It seems the moment you see 10-12 inches, you

The ice fishing scene is changing fast, and the evolution of jigging spoons is no different.  Let me explain. Traditionally, you have a flat lead spoon that is molded into various shapes and sizes.  Add a ring and a hook, and you’ve got yourself a fishing lure. But nowadays, they’ve taken the jigging spoon into new realms and they’re really catching on under the ice. I don’t buy as much fishing tackle as I used to.  I mean, I still do but my variety is getting more narrow as the market has gotten flooded with ice fishing spoons.  Ironically, the shelf

Lipless crankbaits are a combination of old and new.  I say they’re old, as I used to throw rattle traps when I was a kid for pike and bass.  We’re talking 20 years ago, so a lipless crankbait isn’t new in that sense. But it’s new in the fact that they’re being WIDELY USED now, even for ice fishing. While you can fish lipless crankbaits in various ways, I’m finding myself using them more now in the ice fishing game.  While historically, crankbaits are casted or trolled; the new style of lipless cranks are being fished heavily vertically (such as ice

It’s getting to be that time of year when the cold weather is inevitable, and the ice is starting to thicken.  I’m planning an upcoming trip to Devils Lake, ND ice fishing in the next week, so I thought it would be a good idea to share on how I plan for an ice fishing trip such as this, including our ice fishing checklist we use.  It’s really not rocket science, but it makes for good planning and to ensure you don’t end up without… Use a Shareable Document Online Using a shareable document, such as Google Docs, is a great

Probably my favorite time of year to chase walleyes is on early ice.  While I know many guys who prefer the spring, that’s usually when I’m chasing snow geese so I spend most of my focus early in the winter.  The strong sun rays of the spring deteriorate the ice quickly, so you’re window of opportunities in the spring can be short. Catching walleyes the first few weeks of the season isn’t rocket science, you just have to know their tendencies.  And I will share the 3 tips that I follow when fishing most any lake in November or December for

Ice fishing season is upon us, and it’s time to gear up for the season.  I’m not the kind of guy who has to replace or upgrade every year, but I am always looking to be more efficient on the ice.  When it comes to my ice fishing gear, I factor price and longevity with every purchase. I can’t stand ice fishing gear that doesn’t last, so I thought I’d break down my personal top 10 must-haves for ice fishing  I will start with the NEEDS and end with the WANTS. Ice Fishing Gear Needs Ice Rod/Reel Combo Let’s face it,

Oh no, another article on jigging raps right? Wrong. I’m not going to talk about how great they are, just how to use them effectively.  At this point, you’re already interested and possibly convinced they work for catching walleyes (and they do)… I kind of fought the jigging rap craze in the beginning. To me, it wasn’t an exciting way to fish.  And it takes a while to get a good technique down (as well as not losing fish).  I get more satisfaction from the thump on a jig. But when you’re jigging and baiting a spot, and someone shows up

One thing I’m guilty of and I see I’m not alone these days is my addiction to custom painted crankbaits. Fishing is all about confidence, no matter the presentation or species you’re targeting. I mean, if you don’t think you’re going to catch anything, are you going about it the right way? And this is where confidence and custom crankbaits come into play. I say this all the time, and I apologize for repeating, but have you shopped the crankbait section of your favorite sporting goods store lately? There are isles and isles of lures. Remember when there was like 3

(Updated 6/24/19) I don’t care where in the world you live, whether you’re fishing a small river or lake to large reservoirs; there’s a place in your arsenal for trolling or casting crankbaits for walleyes.  I personally LOVE trolling crankbaits for big walleyes.  In fact, our river opens up as early as February and March and you can find me trolling plugs all the way up to freeze up in the late fall. If you have the right techniques, you can fish crankbaits in as little as a foot of water all the way into the deep basins.  There are so

They say muskie fishing is about a fish per 10,000 casts right? Well the heck with it, we’re going muskie trolling. Musky trolling is something we’re still learning every time out. Myself, I consider myself a complete amateur. I make the trek to Minnesota about 2-3 times a year to fish for muskies. But for my buddies Ben Simonson and Ben Evenson, it’s a way of life. Considering I’m a walleye nut, it’s nice to mix it up a bit and fish a different species. I love trolling for walleyes, and there’s a lot of things that are similar; yet different

More often than not, I find that most anglers who cast crankbaits just tie the fishing lure straight to the line.  No matter the knot, the problem is it doesn’t allow the crankbait to have that erratic action. Especially when it comes to jerkbaits and crankbaits like it.  You want the lure to get going a bit sideways, and a Rapala Knot (also called a Rapala Loop Knot), is perfect for this. Rapala Loop Knot Diagram The key to the Rapala knot is being able to tie it efficiently.  Sure, it’s easy when you’re staring at a knot diagram…but can you

Summer is coming and this signals the time of year when we search for kings amongst our favorite waters. These kings I speak of are the Chinook Salmon.   And here, it’s salmon trolling season. I spend a lot of time pursuing salmon in my favorite waters and occasionally travel to new ones.  There are several things that hold true everywhere when it comes to salmon trolling, and I will explain in detail. There are several keys to putting more fish in the cooler and less frustration on the mind. First Key is Understanding the Water Temperature.  The ideal temperature range for

One of North America’s largest man-made reservoirs, Lake Sakakawea, can be found in the heart of North Dakota. This lake has countless miles of shoreline, it’s an adventurer’s paradise. In fact, it has more shoreline than the state of California.  You can fish the entire lake throughout the year and never fish the same spot twice. Lake Sakakawea is a deep lake, with average depths of well over 100 feet in the basin. This lake has a lot of character. The shoreline is littered with red bluffs, rolling hills, and other hints of the badlands. It’s very uninhabited and vast, so