We figured with the cooler weather, the water temperature would have finally dropped enough to turn on the walleye bite. We launched right at daylight in heavy snowfall at about 20 degrees. The water temp was 48-49...which has been perfect in years past. There was good flow but the level was very low. It came up to full, with heavy current, throughout the morning. We covered all the spots, and tried different spinners. Never had one single bite. The most odd part of this very poor season for walleye, is that we have caught maybe 2 pikeminnow the whole season, and not a single chisel mouth. Normally it takes a dozen crawlers per trip just to weed through all these fish. Unless somebody has an earth-shattering secret to share, I'm not sure what is going to be the trick to finding some walleye this year. Unfortunately, no one seems to care, since it is such a banner year for salmon and steelhead. Maybe that fact has something to do with the poor walleye fishing......
Anyway, as usual it was fun to get out and give it a go. We have all the gear tuned up for winter fishing now. So it is time to head for Roosevelt and Rufus. Or maybe give in and fish for some steelhead...

BMGW

11/27/2010 6:44:00 PM

I think you put your finger on it: lack of bait in the usual places... Remembering that that the walleye is a nomadic predator. I would bet when you find the bait so will you find the eyes! Try adjusting the sensitivity on your electronics to show the bait better, if you have variable gain control. Heck you already have the 90% of it down by just being there, so keep up the good works. I always look forward to your reports.

fishinChristian

11/28/2010 10:45:00 AM

Found some suspended in Soda Lake under similar conditions. Glad to hear someone else finds steelhead a little too easy.

Lundegard

11/28/2010 3:09:00 PM

BMGW...the bait was there, or the walleye were there. We were marking fish in the usual spots, and in the spots where you'd expect to see walleye and/or bait (ledges, current edges, eddies, cobbly flats, etc.). You make a great point however....no bait, no walleye. Of the walleye I've harvested in this area, the only food I've ever seen in their stomachs (other than the occasional chunk of night crawler) is stickleback or eel. So then my question is, what fish were we marking? Time to adapt the Aqua-Vu for heavy current and find out what is down there!

Mcfisherson13

11/29/2010 9:29:00 AM

It just came to mind reading about the bait issue. All summer there were buoys all over up and down the river in all the good walleye holes with set lines for squaw fish! Maybe that had a major impact on the eyes and has displaced them since the bait is no longer there. When you go out with the Aqua-vu let me know, I would love to see how that thing works. Later Bud

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