WAY OF THE WALLEYE CD
ROM
Fishing Summer Peak Rivers: Creek Mouths
By CD RomCo
This information is
presented as promotional material for Way of the Walleye CD Rom
and is protected by copyright. © 1996 CD RomCo and its Licensors
Occasional heavy
rains flush
food into the
main river via
inlet streams,
drawing fish
toward and
into creek mouths,
perhaps even flooding
a bit of cover. Toss
a snag-resistant
lure like aspinnerbait
into the grass or
logs and work a short
way up the inlet
until the water gets too
shallow or the weeds
too thick to
attract fish. This is mostly
small pike territory with
the occasionalinflux
of smallmouth
bass, but don't discount
the
possibility
of a few walleyes
taking up
temporary residence
in the feeder creek until water levels
begin to drop
again and fishreturn
to the main river. Most of
the time, however, traverse long shallow
featureless sections,
dodging
propeller
busters and inch-deep sandbars,
then spend your time in and
around deeper slots
and holes.
For walleyes,
lower baited
three-way rigs or jigs to the bottom, crank up a
couple inches,
then let the
current move
you around a large
eddy,
occasionally dropping down to reconfirm
that your
bait is near bottom.
Eddies tend to
be large and
slow when the river is low, and
walleyes can
be spread
throughout
a hole instead
of tightly
concentrated.
If a hole's
large, try power
trolling a
minnow imitator on a
three-way rig
to cover water faster, or try longline
trolling
a diving
crankbait. Select
a lure that dives just deep
enough to scratch bottom in the
deepest
portion of the
hole, yet doesn't snag
too much if debris
is present.
Troll upcurrent and downcurrent.
Sometimes fish
display
a preference.
Downstream is
the most natural bait presentation,
but speed is necessary
to make crankbaits dance.
Lures wobble
better when they're worked upstream, but
slow down just
enough to get
them rolling.
Whatever works. Pause
occasionally to cast to prominent
shallow
outcroppings. It's
amazing how many
large walleyes you catch
while casting cranks against
rocky
shoreline points and shoals
for smallmouths,
and how many
big smallies you catch while trolling cranks
through deep slots
and holes for
walleyes. All
is fair on the
river. Domains
overlap, and you never know
for sure
which species
will bite next.
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