I am not a competitive fisherman by any means. I am a very confident bass fisherman but I am fishing in a walleye tourney this Sunday. The group I am fishing with is either unexperienced walleye fisherman or just plain unexperienced fisherman. We are doing this for the fun of it and don't expect to win anything. We would like to catch fish though.

It is a drift only tourney out of Port Clinton. We were told that a lure called "the weapon" works well while drifting. It's basically one of those count down and retrieve lures with a worm on the back. I was hoping to try some drop shotting also, a technique I have been slaying bass with all year. Does anyone have any experience at drop shotting for walleye? Any feedback or other hints/suggestions would be appreciated. Also, any spots that you may know that are getting hot right now would also be appreciated.

Stick to casting the weapons, or use bottom bouncers with spinners/crawlers while drifting. It's a proven technique on Erie for catching walleye. You will only have so many hours to fish, so don't waste any time experimenting with the drop-shotting. My guess is the bass, perch, and sheephead will like it more than the walleye.

If your allowed to go to the Canadian side, the North side and Northeast side of Pelee island has been good for the drifters lately.

Good luck in your tourney!

Juls

no canada allowed. what weigth bottom bouncers would you recommend? does it have to be a pretty fast drift to drag bottom bouncers?

No more than 1-2 oz bb's is all you will need. It doesn't have to be a fast drift to use them. Just enough speed to make the blades on the spinners work.

Juls

I agree with what Juls said about trying drop shotting during the tournament. You are on a time restriction, and don't want to waste time on experimenting with something new.

Now, when you do have time to experiment, get the latest copy of walleye Insider and check out the article about drop shotting that is in there. I think it was by Johnnie Candle....but don't quote me on that.

Probably not the best technique at this time of the year on Erie, because most fish are suspended, but I will be trying it next spring during the "jig" bite.

Good Luck,

Captain Jay

thx for all the info....i'll have to check out that article. i have dropshot for suspending smallmouth and i imagine it wouldn't be much different for suspending eyes. what i did was put may weigth about 3 feet below the hook. then counted it down so the weight ended up 1-2 feet past the school. the lure (plastic leech) was just above them and the action was fast and furious. it was kinda like fishing for perch except not on the bottom. drop your rig down and work it right in their face...they couldn't stand it.

Bottom bouncers work for those eyes down'n'dirty. For suspended fish, I prefer casting weight forward lures. Erie Dearies or my favorite - "pygmy spins" <a more erratic motion>. Use the cast and countdown method. Depending on the speed of the drift, use either 1/4,3/8,or 5/8 oz., picking the weight that will keep the lure in the desired depth for the longest period while retrieving. A sensitive rod that allows you to feel the spinner spinning is preferred. Vary your retrieve rate and depths til you find the majic combo. Gold is king, but I've been having good success in sunny conditions with orange/yellow. Hope this wasn't tooo basic. good luck

GR

not too basic at all. i don't fish walleye or erie more than once per year so it needed to be basic. thanx for everyone's help, it worked. most of our fish were caught on the weapon counted down and slow retrieved in 33 feet.

we ended up catching 18 keepers with 6 guys. one of the first time fisherman caught 2...the other didn't get any but both had a great time. we all had a great time. we hugged the border all day near g can. most fish we 17-19", good eaters. our biggest was 21". the winning team averaged just under 25" per fish. the big fish was 28". of the 72 teams, 27 didn't get 5 qualifying fish. i was talking to one team of 7 who got 39 (around 20" average) in 12' of water on west reef. there were 403 people in the tourney and the food and festivies were great afterwards. can't wait for next year.

Glad to hear all went well, and you had a great time bubba! Thanks for the information.

Juls

Bubba 29,
I'm not big on tournaments, but I am interested in a drifting only tourney. Who put this tourney on? I would be interested in fishing it next year.
thanks
GR

It sounds like it was the Mel's Crows Nest charity tournament.