Walleye are a celebrated game fish in America for many reasons. Walleye live in a wide range of the country meaning that they can be fished close to home by most Americans. Walleye are excellent fighters that are fun to catch. And perhaps most importantly, walleye are a gargantuan tasting fish that is honestly simple to prepare. While some folks look down their noses at using bait to fish with, that is fine with me. I prefer to get fish than to not catch fish and as bait usually is more likely to result in strikes than artificial lures I am more than pleased to use them!
Walleye are a predatory fish that feeds on smaller fish and other creatures in the water. While walleye will probably eat about anything at one time or another, perhaps the two best baits are the nightcrawler and the minnow. As the nightcrawler is the most widely available bait in most parts of America, let’s take a look at fishing with nightcrawlers first.
Probably most fishermen and fisherwomen got their start catching bluegill and other panfish with a bit of nightcrawler under a bobber (or float). While fishing for walleye under a bobber is not all that accepted it can be done. Walleye that have been found suspended in a certain area can be fished with a bobber quite productively. A river with a slow current can also be fished with a nightcrawler under a bobber to slowly troll the bait through likely walleye areas. The standard nightcrawler rig for walleye is to troll the nightcrawler on a lumber sinker across the bottom. Simply allowing the nightcrawler to drift along the bottom in a slow challenging boat allow the fisherman to hit a lot of territory with itsy-bitsy work. A bank fisherman can slowly fish a similar rig along the bottom. Another way to fish a nightcrawler is in combination with a spinner. The spinner adds flash and vibration to further attract the walleye.
A minnow can be ancient-fashioned as bait for walleye with similar methods of the nightcrawler presentations as listed above. One advantage of the live minnow is that it does not need to be trolled as it can provide its own movement to entice the walleye. Minnows seem to be more productive than nightcrawlers in attracting a strike in the spring, at least in my experience.
Leeches are another productive lure for walleye. Frogs, salamanders, and other creatures are frail as bait for walleye as well. Nearly all of my walleye fishing with bait is done with nightcrawlers for the simple reason that they are easily obtained and simple to care for, but minnows and other baits certainly have their place in catching walleye.
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