Jig and Minnow alternative for Fall Walleye?

[JiMinneye]

Over the years I have fished Leech Lake in the Fall and have used primarily a jig and a rainbow chub or a shiner. I get real tired of babysitting my minnows to keep them alive throughout the week as I am mostly a week-end warrior. Also the invasive specie laws are also in play. So I am really trying to find a good alternative to the real deal.
I am typically fishing wind swept points etc. in 5' to 10' of water. I have caught a few walleyes this year on jigging raps but not sure how they would work in the fall and the shorelines that I fish on Leech are quite rocky and would probably devourer my expensive jigging raps. Can anyone suggest an artificial minnow that may work in the cold fall waters of Northern Minnesota? I have tried Berkley Gulp Alive without much success. Maybe it's a confidence thing but I don't seem to catch much with them, and I usually resort back to live bait. Any and all suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks, Jim

[Jason Halfen]

Snap jig with 4" flukes or paddletail minnows.

I shot this with the Lindners a couple of years ago. The focus was on Trigger X minnows, but the general approach applies to a wide variety of soft baits. I have used this with great success on both Leech and Mille Lacs in the fall.

http://www.anglingedge.com/angling-e...ture#node-1153

[kzoofisher]

Plastics make more aggressive retrieves possible and the reaction strikes are well worth it. Getting used to the much more active presentation is the tough part. I've fished with guys who constantly revert back to a drag and tiny hop presentation like they use with minnows and they get frustrated. When the fall fish have the feed bags on the much more active retrieve pulls fish in and grabs the ones that are actively feeding. After a spot slows down I'll often fish it again with plastic and a bit of night crawler to pick up a few of the slightly more neutral fish unless I've got another spot nearby to move to.

[Bigstorm]

I've had times where plastics work very well in the fall (it seems to depend on the day). I generally use the Moxi worm from BFishN

[hnd]

moxies, pulse r's both from bfishn tackle.
Gulp! works really well
Straight hair jigs work as well.

[Huntindave]

Originally Posted by hnd

moxies, pulse r's both from bfishn tackle.
Gulp! works really well
Straight hair jigs work as well.

I'll second that, although I do like trolling a crankbait behind a bottom bouncer to control depth.

[CMesserschmidt]

Moonshine Shiver Minnows.....That's how I role!!

[kzoofisher]

I like the bfishn too, they have tremendous water resistance and move a ton of water. The difference is so great you can feel it on the pull. It also slows the drop a lot so when I want a really fast, darting action that isn't as expensive as a jigging minnow or blade bait I go with a zoom fluke.

[bacon]

What colors do you guys like with the bfishn? I bought a bunch a different colors and haven't used them much yet.

[teamlund]

I have been playing a lot more with plastics and have found that a very aggressive retrieve is needed in most cases. I use a snap jigging presentation with the best results. This allows me to cover a lot of water and find the active fish.