Fishing Presentations- Your thoughts

[EsoxAC3]

I think its fair to say that we all utilize presentations that work particularly well in the fisheries we target. Its hard to get away from tried and true fish producing tactics.

I recently read an article in In-Fisherman about the importance of having several tactical arrows in your proverbial quiver when walleye are in a 'neutral' to 'slightly negative' feeding state. One of the methods suggested as an effective presentation when eyes are fussy is a slip bobber rig. It presents leaches or minnows just off bottom with enough action to trigger a strike.

I thought this method was worth exploring this season.

What are your thoughts on changing presentation- completely? When is it time to do so? How many spots do you check using tried and true before changing it up? Has anyone had any success with the slip bobber?? Thought this might make for some interesting insights. Tight lines!!!

[Gill-T]

For sure walleyes that are neutral require a more subtle "ice fishing-like" vertical approach. Spend some time GPS marking some humps on Erie for just such an occasion. If the wind isn't blowing enough to get them active try going vertical

[Kevin J Legg]

I've tried many, many different approaches on the SLR (jigs, jigging spoons, drifting bait, slip bobbers, down riggers, lead core, wire, planing boards, dipsy divers, casting sticks and cranks) and have had some success with several. I think it's Important to try a variety of tactics to find what is working on a given body of water on a particular day. Sometimes you figure out something outside the box that is very effective. I actually have tried drifting worms and minnows on slip bobbers in the current but had no success,

[Landshark]

Walleyes that are neutral can actually be coaxed by just the opposite. By speeding up your trolling presentation , this can often trigger walleye by creating a reaction bite. Always try this before giving up your technique

Edited June 15, 2016 by Landshark

[John Kelley]

I have fished with slip bobbers for years and years, starting back in the late 70's.  I have some tips for you that might help you avoid some of the trouble I went through.  First, use a quality slip bobber, with a metal grommet at the top of the tube.  If you do  not do this, your line will eventually wear a groove through the plastic tube at the top of your float, the line will get caught in it every time you cast, and the line will not pass through it.  Second, NO walleye can resist a Jumbo leech swimming 3-6" off bottom under a slip bobber.  I preferred to use them with a glow in the dark, 1/4 ounce fireball style jig-head. The jighead is a two-fold attack.  First there is the added color and action.  The most important thing I like about using a jighead over a plain hook and split shot, is that the jighead will not foul up on the line during a cast, or on the way to the bottom, like a plain hook with split shots 10" above them have the tendency to do.  Third, actively work your float up to, around, and near good structure.  Once it arrives there, reel it in and re-cast it.   Don't just cast it out blindly and wait for it to go down.  Fourth, jig or twitch your float every once in awhile.  Sometimes a walleye is down there, just staring at your leech, and just needs a little nudge to make it grab it. A slight jigging motion upward, or a slight twitch can be that trigger. A favorite float technique of mine is to anchor about 30' upwind of a nice break-line, point, or sharp dropping edge of an underwater hump or sunken island .  Then let your leech drift right up and onto the top of the structure.  Usually the float will not even make it to the top, before it is snatched by a walleye.  Adjust your stopper, so that your bait is only a few inches above the top of the structure you will be fishing, and you will be golden.   This works very well on sunken roadbeds and rock-piles, as well. I have caught untold thousands of walleyes this way.  Hope this helps       

Edited June 16, 2016 by John Kelley

[EsoxAC3]

John, thank you for the great tips and information!! Have you used the slip bobber technique on the SLR or Lake O? I look forward to giving this a try over the summer. Thanks again and tight lines!!

[John Kelley]

I have used this technique all over the country, but not on the Saint Lawrence River.  It works just about anywhere and everywhere I have been, I just have never fished the Saint Lawrence.It has worked for me on the Missouri, the Mississippi, hundreds of lakes across the US and Canada, though.  I think I would stick to trolling techniques on big water like Erie or lake Ontario, unless you have some nice little pieces of structure to fish.  Open water eyes tend to be more of a roaming fish, chasing the large baits schools, like all the other predators.  In rivers with high current, I prefer to use either lures, or heavy jigs with leeches or large minnows, and no floats.  More of a smaller location technique.  I have fished some big lakes like Mille Lacs on some smaller structure effectively, with slip bobbers.  Just experiment around, and find out what works for you.  Thanks. 

Edited June 16, 2016 by John Kelley

[mhtrapper]

Well said and thanks for the advice.

[Roybee]

That's cool. I know a few places I could try this. Thanks

Sent from my SM-G900V using Lake Ontario United mobile app

[Xxx]

I have used this technique all over the country, but not on the Saint Lawrence River.  It works just about anywhere and everywhere I have been, I just have never fished the Saint Lawrence.It has worked for me on the Missouri, the Mississippi, hundreds of lakes across the US and Canada, though.  I think I would stick to trolling techniques on big water like Erie or lake Ontario, unless you have some nice little pieces of structure to fish.  Open water eyes tend to be more of a roaming fish, chasing the large baits schools, like all the other predators.  In rivers with high current, I prefer to use either lures, or heavy jigs with leeches or large minnows, and no floats.  More of a smaller location technique.  I have fished some big lakes like Mille Lacs on some smaller structure effectively, with slip bobbers.  Just experiment around, and find out what works for you.  Thanks

Not only this country, but Canada also, this method is proven buy the older guys when I first went to Canada, I was 10 years old, so 40 some years this method has worked. I remember when the slip bobber and the red dog bone that had 3 holes you threaded your line through came out. We brought the old timer some of these bobbers up and gave them to him, you would have thought he hit the lottery LOL. This was back when live bait was legal in Quebec. The old fella had minnows and leaches in a old bathtub with legs on it. Us kids fished leeches on a slip bobber for years till they came out with the original Mirro-Lure, which I still have 1 yet, I bet more eyes were caught off the old slip bobber, than any other method, from the 1900's till the Rapala lure was first floated in the U.S.. Excellent post John!!

[John Kelley]

Thanks Pap.  You can shrink your presentation down to a 1/16 ounce jig-head and the very smallest ribbon leeches you can get, and absolutely hammer the monster bluegills on  this setup, as well.  You will also want to shrink down your float size.  Those big 'Gills can't resist that leech swimming right in front of their face.  If you are into panfish, give that a try sometime on your favorite bluegill hole.

Edited June 16, 2016 by John Kelley

[Chas0218]

I always try to change my presentations but end up going back to the tried and true because the change didn't work. I always try to give an effort not just a 10 minute change and back to the old stuff. 

[BSmaster]

There are a few places in the river areas I fish where there are too many bottom snags to jig live bait.  This is where the walleyes are and so I use another presentation where similar to what i would use fishing for trout in the tribs where I have a float that tracks very easily and I weight it to submerge easily.  Lots of times a walleye will spit out bait when he fills that line.  Also why I never carolina rig when bottom bouncing.  Reaction bite works better (jerk baits and swim baits) than live bait sometimes too.  I usually start with that and see what happens.  Different times of the years reaction bite seems to work much better for me. 

 

So to try a new presentation.  It is one that I don't hear much about anymore is to drop shot with a floating jig head on loose line leader instead of tied directly to the main.  This works for me when I am in the boat and it is too deep for a non slip bobber rig.

 

Some of the techniques transcend different bodies of water but I am amazed at some of the water specific ways to target them.  Kinda cool.