Use live bait with a slow retrieve to increase your chance of catching walleyes in these overwintering areas. Try a jig or a 3-way rig tipped with a fathead minnow. Use these same techniques to target walleyes in the Mississippi River tailwater areas below the lock and dams.
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What do walleye eat in the Mississippi River?
fish
Walleye eat primarily small fish, capturing them with sharp, backward curved canine teeth. Never one to pass up a meal, it also eats insects, crayfish, leeches and other small prey.
Are there walleye in Mississippi River?
According to pro fisherman Ted Takasaki, “the Mississippi River is home to more walleyes and saugers now than ever.” While many fishermen agree, there are still many among us who put back those large, trophy females to make sure the walleye population will be strong in the future.
What is the best way to catch walleye in a river?
To catch these suspended walleye, use a bright High-Ball Floater tipped with an Impulse Swim’n Grub. Rig these in a Carolina Rig using an inline sinker then an 18-48 inch leader followed with a high-ball floater. This technique will put jig right in the face of a walleye.
What is the best bait for the Mississippi River?
You can also get a variety of baits from your local bait shop such as shrimp, worms, blood bait and cheese balls. One of the most popular catfish bait used anywhere especially on the Mississippi River is homemade baits.
What lures do walleye like?
If live bait is not readily available or you’re set on targeting trophies, then lures are the way to go. These are some of the most historically popular lures: Crankbait, Grubs, Paddle Tails, and Ring Worms. The best walleye lure of all time, grubs on a jig, are the most popular alternative to live bait.
Are walleye bottom feeders?
Walleyes are basically bottom feeders, but don’t ignore those fish that suspend over drop-offs in deep lakes. Some of the best summer walleye fishing is provided by suspended fish.Big walleye are consistently taken from these holes.
Where can you find walleye in Mississippi?
Where can you catch a walleye in Mississippi? If you can get access, fishing streams like the Luxapalila and Buttahatchee during the late winter when the fish are spawning might prove productive. Your best bet, however, is to fish MDWFP State Lakes Monroe and Lamar Bruce, or USFS Davis Lake.
Are the walleyes biting on the Mississippi?
Fishermen often keep the big secrets to themselves, so Crowell’s source “didn’t say where, but the striped bass and walleye are definitely hitting and they’re jigging them.They’re not using lures. This is the first report I’ve had in two weeks that walleye are biting.
Can you eat fish from the Mississippi River?
“We don’t have any advisories on the Mississippi. It’s safe to eat the fish there,” says Langley.Langley says the Mississippi River “has such and immense volume” that it “would wash away just about anything.” So according to officials and experts, it is safe to eat that Mississippi River catfish.
Where do walleyes hang in rivers?
Brushpiles and logjams often hold walleyes but can be challenging to fish. Walleyes often hold in scour holes below woody cover. Depending on water level and current, fish may hold near the deep tip of the cover or along the front face closer to shore.
What is the best rig to catch walleye?
The best rigs for walleye shore fishing are the slip bobber rig, lindy rig, ned rig, and 3 way rig. Apart from the ned rig, each of these can be used as a stationary walleye shore fishing setup. Just bait the hook with live bait, cast out, and wait for walleye to come to you.
How deep do you fish for walleye?
Use a 7-foot, medium-action spinning rod and reel rigged with 10-pound monofilament line. Start walleye fishing at night in 10 to 20 feet of water, and then gradually work your baits or lures toward shallower areas that are 7 to 8 feet in depth if you aren’t getting any bites.
What is the largest fish in the Mississippi River?
The Pearl and Pascagoula rivers are the breeding grounds for what is likely the largest fish that swims in Mississippi freshwater: the Gulf sturgeon. “Three hundred to 400 pounds is about the maximum,” Paul Hartfield of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said.
Are there alligators in the Mississippi River?
Once considered an endangered species in the late 1960s, American Alligators have made a big comeback in the swampy marsh areas surrounding the Mississippi River. It is estimated that there are just over 30,000 alligators in Mississippi, with most centralized in the southern portion of the state.
What’s the best time of day to catch walleye?
morning
Generally, the best time to fish for Walleye is early morning and late evening. When the sun is high at midday, Walleye move deeper and hold tightly to shade providing Cover. During periods of low light however, Walleye will move in shallow to feed on baitfish holding close to shore.
Why are walleyes so hard to catch?
You’re cranking weed edges too slowly.
Walleyes relating to weedbeds often school tightly. To find them, quickly work a crankbait along the edges until you get a strike. You can pick that area apart slowly after you find the fish with a fast-moving lure.Deeper fish call for a diving crankbait with a pronounced action.
How can you tell a female walleye?
The anus on a male is circular while the anus of a female resembles a keyhole, and the female’s will become larger once it is time for her to lay eggs. Examine the weight of your walleye. A male will weigh less and look slimmer than a female, with a more streamlined appearance; female walleyes are rounder and plump.
How do you catch walleye?
There is no one way to catch walleye. In fact, there are many different ways. Popular techniques include casting a jig-and-minnow, trolling live bait, casting or trolling hard plastic lures and even fishing with a bobber. All work.
Are there walleye in Alabama?
Alabama sports a surprising number of lakes with a population of walleye. They include Lake Guntersville, Lewis Smith Lake, Pickwick Lake, Wheeler Lake and Wilson Lake. The walleye like it cold, so seek out the coldest sections of the Alabama lakes.
Where is the best fishing on the Mississippi river?
The Mississippi River State Fish and Wildlife Area is located between pools 25 and 26. Angling Opportunities: On Pool 26, Pohlman’s Slough, just above Grafton where the Illinois River flows into the Mississippi, is a good fishing spot, as are other backwaters in the area.
