11 year old Carter starts his fishing trip with a bang with this 10 lb walleye. Nice beginning to a lifelong sport!
Catching eating-size walleyes for the skillet is fun. But, who wouldn’t want to see a 10-pound walleye in the net?
Big fish get big because they’re wary. They’ve got what it takes to avoid the hazards of the fish-eat-fish world they live in, and they’re tough to fool into biting. That’s what makes hoisting one into the boat something special.
Two things are needed to have that dream come true. One is attention to detail. You can’t have the fish of a lifetime up to the surface only to have your line snap.
The other important ingredient is to fish where big fish live and fish for them when they’re most vulnerable. If you want to increase your odds of a trophy, be prepared to travel to trophy destinations like Wawang Lake.
Now’s the time to start planning a trip in order to make sure this is the year your dream comes true.
Wawang Lake
It’s no secret that Wawang Lake is a trophy lake by all the photo’s we’ve documented over the years on sites like www.ontarioanglerawards.com
There is no best or particular time that’s better to fish Wawang Lake as the BIG walleye are simply in the lake and waiting to be caught. Our slot size sees to it that none of our trophy fish leave the lake making it good fishing for the next angler. The largest personal best walleye of 17 pounds was caught by a novice angler that was 34 1/2″. The camp record was five walleye, 30″ to 34″ caught on a four day trip by a single angler and the group caught 50+ walleye over 25″ during one afternoon. Outstanding fishing on our lake for sure!
Trolling with boards is one of the best ways to cover water and connect with a 10-pound-plus fish since they prevent fish from spooking away from the boat’s shadow. Afterall, remember they are wary and this is the reason they get big…..they are smart!
Cold water temperatures are the normal in the spring and fall. The water will range from 45 to 55 degrees F. What the temperature gauge can help reveal is what trolling tactic is likely to be most effective. The rule of thumb: crankbaits work best under 50 degrees and spinner rigs and nightcrawlers work best over 50 degrees.
For cranks, try Reef Runners, deep diving Rogues and Husky Jerks. Be sure to try purple, blue prism and firetiger but experiment with other colors, too. Let the fish tell you what they want on any given day.
Use 10-pound Gamma High Performance Co-Polymer line, on line counter reels. Ten-pound diameter is the basis on which the dive curves in the book, “Precision Trolling” is based. Often called the Troller’s Bible, this book makes trolling at specific depths easy. Simply look at how deep you want your lures to run and see how much line to let out to get them there.
Productive depths are usually 10 to 20 feet down over 30 to 50 feet of water.
Go slow, 1.5 to 2 mph. Use planer boards to take baits away from the boat. Troll in S-turns to cover more water and vary the speed of the lures. As you turn, lures on the ‘inside’ will slow down, and those on the ‘outside’ will speed up.
Use your GPS to mark locations where you connect with fish and vary your trolling path. You’ll soon have an idea of the exact location and size of the school. Humminbird’s new side imaging technology marks suspended schools of fish off to the side of the boat.
Trolling spinners requires even slower speeds of 1 to 1.5 mph. Use #4 to #6 blades in metallics for sunny days and clear water and colored blades on cloudy days or when the water is murky. The X-Change clevis makes changing them a snap. Slightly off colored water, where you can just barely see the bottom of your prop, is the best.
Bottom bouncers and snap weights should be used to take the spinners down. Lindy’s new Shake-E-Blade bottom bouncers provide a unique action/vibration in addition to attractive flash to your spinners. Vary the weight of snap weights to cover different parts of the water column.
Target big points of main creek arms where walleyes will be on the tips or humps just off the tips.
Note wind direction and concentrate on the windy side of the lake. This is where a little bit of a mudline lets walleyes use their lateral lines to attack baitfish.
Follow the breaks as precisely as you can. Rather than planer boards, use long rods to keep baits away from the boat as much as possible and troll with trolling motor at 1 to 1.5 mph.
Use a run-and-gun approach. The more points you fish, the more likely you’ll intercept the fish you’re after.
The sinker can be the conventional Lindy sinker, a NO-SNAGG sinker, or a Shake-E-Blade bottom bouncer. Three-eighths of an ounce to one ounce should be heavy enough. Add a bead for color.
Join us for some OUTSTANDING FALL PIKE Fishing
Wawang Lake Resort 