Last summer I
stumbled upon a fantastic tactic for catching walleye. Believe it or
not, I uncovered the technique while targeting northern pike... but
I'm not picky about the results.
It was a hot
afternoon in July ? the sky was clear and the sun was shining
brightly. I had just finished splitting a pile of wood and decided
the hard work was to be rewarded with some time on the lake. With the
water being warm, my thoughts were that the big northerns would have
a heated bite. At the very least, I figured the nice weather was sure
to generate a feeding frenzy amongst the largemouth bass. With a plan
in mind, I gathered up my gear, loaded up the canoe and set out
into the bay.
My strategy was
this: I stationed myself in approximately 18ft of water and about 40ft
away from a large weed-bed with the intent of casting toward the
shallower water. Considering big pike will eat about anything, my
choice of lure was not exactly limited; however, without live bait
and a depleted stock of soft-plastics, I decided to turn to a good
ole crankbait.
My pick was Reef
Runner's Rip Stick. The bait
of choice is 4-5 inches long with a curved, minnow-like body that
sports a dark, purple-flecked design. It also comes in varying
colours and sizes, but currently I only have two in my arsenal
(figure 1). The Rip Stick
dives between six to ten feet deep and will slowly rise to the
surface during a pause. Also, this lure has AMAZING action, but I find
its true calling lies within the Rip and Retrieve method. Oh, and did
I mention it rattles?
Knowing
that pike are driven into a beserker's rage by erratic movements, I
casted toward the weed-bed and put my thoughts to the test. Once the
lure hit the surface, I gave three quick jerks of my rod causing the
bait to dart down into the water. I then began to reel in my line
normally for a few feet before initiating another three or four rapid
rips - for added presentation I would add a pause sporadically before
retrieving the lure.
Within
five casts I had my first fish on. And to my surprise, it wasn't the
small pike that I had suspected it to be. It was a 3lb walleye!
After a few more casts, I caught another one, only this 'eye was
slightly smaller; in fact, this beauty was the perfect eating size.
Needless-to-say, I continued to fish with the Rip Stick
in the aforementioned style for a couple of hours. Before succumbing
to hunger, I reluctantly packed it in but felt elated by the success
of the outing. I had caught five walleye, the biggest being 4lb and
the smallest being 1.5lb, and a dozen or so largemouth which were of
a decent size and offered a good fight.
For
the rest of the season I proceeded to utilize this lure and the Rip
and Retrieve technique - every time I was rewarded with spectacular
results. Funny enough, though, I only managed to catch one pike which
came off the Hot Tamale versioned Rip Stick. Regardless,
I wanted to share this tactic with you so that you could benefit from
its glorious results.
Before
I leave you, here are a couple of things I would like to make
note of:
I
caught walleye ANYTIME of the day - whether it was morning,
mid-afternoon, or night, Rippin' and Retrievin' the Rip
Stick
produced fish.
These
fish were HAMMERING the lure - it was not your typical walleye
nibble, it was a full-out strike every time.
The
hit would more often than not come directly AFTER the rip sequence ?
the fish attacked the lure either during a pause or right before
normal retrieval.
The
Rip Stick has THREE triple-pronged hooks ? having a set of forceps
handy is highly recommended.
This tactic and lure works well for a VARIETY of fish - I caught Walleye, Pike, Smallmouth and Largemouth bass
Thanks
for reading and happy angling folks!
Remember,
always follow the laws set forth in your area of fishing. This means
keeping fish within their allotted slot size, proper quantities, and
so on. Let's make it possible to fish for life!