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Home , Casting (fishing), Hook set, Walleye fishing

SPRING ON WASHINGTON LAKES BY RICHY HARROD | HARROD OUTDOORS

rods to spread out your fishing gear. TERMINAL GEAR A 7-foot to 7-foot, 6-inch moderate action, medium power graphic bait The selection of lures first rod works very well for the depends on whether or not you’re front side of the boat. in the back or , obviously, but corner of the boat, I like to run a more importantly on walleye 9-foot, 6-inch steelhead rod to forage. Walleye feed on small fish, get the trolling gear out as far as particularly perch or fry, possible so not to interfere with the leeches, crayfish, or insect larvae. front rods. If you find concentrations Lures that match the forage color Walleye are probably my favorite of fish, I like casting jigs or blade will improve your success. fish to catch and, most definitely, baits with a 7-foot spinning rod the best eating of our freshwater with fast action and medium light or Checking out the gut contents . Late winter and early medium power. can help you determine what forage spring is a great time to go walleye walleye are targeting. Tipping lures fishing on Washington lakes. Braided line is a must for me. All with nightcrawlers is preferred by of my walleye rods are spooled with most anglers, but live or artificial

The number of fish caught may 20-pound, green colored braided worms or leeches are preferred by not be as great as in the late spring line. Braided line doesn’t stretch, others. Scents can be used as well, and summer, but the average so it allows you to feel the bite very but I personally think nothing beats a size is greater and the fish are in well. “ big nightcrawler. great condition. There are many techniques for catching walleye, but I troll almost exclusively with Mack’s these methods have worked well for EARLY SPRING IS A GREAT TIME TO Lure Smile Blade® lures because me from year to year. of the large range of color options FISH FOR WALLEYE ON WA LAKES. and because of the action the Smile TOOLS OF THE TRADE “ — RICHY HARROD Blade® provides. There really isn’t one type of fishing If you have never fished with braid, rod that will fit all your fishing needs you have to learn not to set the hook when targeting walleye because as you would with monofilament. You you’ll want to try trolling and casting can literally rip lips with braided line. to see which yields the most fish. Some of my friends perfere to top Trolling allows you to cover the most shot their spool with fluorocarbon to water to find elusive fish. lower line visibility.

You are allowed to fish two rods My kokanee and sockeye rods are in most walleye lakes, so with four top shot, but I’ve never worried about Dark colors on cloudy days or early to six rods in your boat, it’s a good it while , and it doesn’t in the morning work well, while lighter idea to have a mix of short and long seem to matter in my opinion. colors work well in bright sunlight. MACKSLURE.COM Page 1 The new UV Glo® Burst, UV Copper, Use a GPS to mark spots where UV Lemon Lime and UV Purple Haze you catch fish and troll back over Smile Blades® have become my Walleye are largely found near the those spots, or mark them with a favorite colors. bottom, so I use bottom bouncers or smal lbuoy and jig those spots. I find heal weights to keep my lures close that my marked spots consistently In the winter or early spring, small to the bottom. In the late winter and produce fish year afte ryear. I see profile lures, such as the Smile early spring, you want to troll slowly lots of fishermen trolling all over Blade® Slow Death or Smile at speeds of 0.4 to 0.6 mph. As the the place and not focusing on any Blade® Spindrift® Walleye are water warms, faster speeds up to 1.0 particular spot. My saying is “troll perfect for slow trolling for lethargic mph work better when walleye are with purpose.” if you want to catch fish. Double Whammy® Pros, Cha chasing bait. more fish, fish spots where fish are! Cha® Crawlers or the dependable Wally Pop® Crawler work well when Walleye can be suspended at times, the fish are more aggressive. so don’t be completely focused on the bottom. Spring storms create the “walleye chop” and fish can move into the shoreline or along rock walls to find baitfish. I have run bottom bounces on one rod and another rod off my to position my gear in the middle of the water column. Watch your electronics and I hope these tips and tricks help position your gear where the fish are. you put more fish in your boat. The most important aspect of any type of Rod position is important when fishing is to let fish tell you what they trolling with bottom bouncers. The want. Pay attention to the details. If rod tip should be low near the water. you start catching fish on the outside Your main line should be at about a rod when you turn, then consider 45-degree angle into the water, so speeding up your troll. Likewise, Regardless of my lure selection, choose a bottom bouncer weight slow down if you catch them on the I always run long leader lengths of that will allow you to achieve the inside rod. Shorten your worms if at least 4-feet to keep the lure back proper angle for your speed and you’re missing bites. Constantly be a from the bottom bouncers and to water depth. student and you’ll become a better allow the Smile Blade® to move the . lure more freely. A hook set should be a sweep of the rod tip, parallel with the water Walleye are gregarious and surface. If you jerk the rod tip away groups of fish will locate on bottom from the water, you often will pull the structure, so jigging can work very gear away from the fish and you’ll well, especially as summer comes. A miss the hook set. lead head jig with twister tail plastics and tipped with a nightcrawler is Jigging technique is important, very effective. However, my favorite as well. Lead head jigs should be jigging technique is to use a Sonic dropped to the bottom, lifted slowly BaitFish™ rigged so that it behaves and dropped back to the bottom like a blade bait. Perch colors or without putting slack in your line. silver and blue have worked well for I like to lift the jig about two feet me. before I drop it. Walleye will often hit the jig on the way down. Plugs can be very effective for catching walleye, as well. Fish move Jigging Sonic BaitFish™ is similar, into shallower water after the spawn except the lift from the bottom and as the water warms. Plugs that shouuld be short and quick so that imitate small fish work perfectly, the lure will vibrate and flutter on the especially when pulled at higher way down. The bite on a jig is often speeds (2 to 3 mph) along weed aggressive and, unlike a crawler lines. carness, they aften set the hook themselves.

MACKSLURE.COM Page 2 Today, the smallmouth and did either. I’m inclined to agree with those hard to figure fish called the that myself. As far as I’m concered, STAN’S SPACE walleye are all over the place. I know that shoul dbe expected. Why? It’s experienced bass fishermen who because that building population of tell you they’re finding some of the walleye in the Columbia was virtually best smallmouth they’ve ever untouched by fishing pressure in the had on the Columbia. All you need beginning. to do to check the potential size of the big river’s walleye is to look at That certainly does not hold true the Washington and Oregon state today. It didn’t ake long for Oregon records. and Washington anglers to discover the many challenges consistently I’ll save you time. The current catching walleye presents. Many Oregon State walleye size record also didn’t know going in about the is 19-pounds, 15.3 ounces. The wonderous things a fresh walleye biggest walleye ever taken out fillet can do for a hot frying pan. IS THERE A 10-POUNDER OUT of the Columbia by a Washington THERE FOR YOU? PART I State angler is 20.3-pounds. It’s not I wish I’d had the opportunity to BY HALL OF FAME ANGLER STAN FAGERSTROM uncommon to find walleye anglers in spend more time fishing Columbia both state who’ll tell you they expect River walleye than I did when I lived The message came from a the river to eventually produce a new in that part of the country. I did fisherman I’d never met. world record. manage to sample a limited amount of it. Even with that limited time, I But while I hadn’t met the man who They could darn well be right. saw walleye of more than 10-pounds wrote the e-mail message, I indeed Before you snort something about my put in the boat I was on and to had heard the question he asked. saying that simply sounds like wishful shoot pictures of one that topped It went like this: “Where would you thinking, do you know what the world 13-pounds netted in a friends boat. recommend a guy like me should go record for actually is? I can if he wants to finally catch a walleye tell you. It’s 22-pounds, 11-ounces. How does that compare with that weighs 10-pounds or more?” This big one of all time came out what you’ve seen in your own walleye of Greer’s Ferry Lake in Arkansas in fishing back in the Midwest or other I wound up sending that guy a March of 1982. areas of the U.S. far better known for stringer full of my own questions producing walleye than the Pacific along with a bait bucket full of “ifs” The size of the Oregon and Northwest? in my endeavor to respond. The Washington records already caught questions for the most part were my aren’t all that far below the record own. Most of the “ifs” came from fish. I’ve heard rumbles about even angler who is as knowledgeable larger ones having been taken in as they come when it concerns Indian nets on the Columbia. Those the walleye fishing in the area I reports haven’t been substantiated, suggested the guy should go. but as far as I’m concerned it wouldn’t be all that surprising if it So what was the area I suggested? happens. It was the Columbia River. I was, you see, living almost within casting What you’ve just read provides distance of the big river where it some of the reasoning I used in divides the states of Oregon and providing what I thought was a Washington when those elusive reasonable answer to the question I critters called walleyes first showed talked about in the beginning. I know up there. there are many excellent walleye lakes in other areas of the United I started writing an outdoor c States. But none of them, that I’m olumn for a daily newspaper in aware of, have been producing the Washington state way back in 1946. size of fish as has the Columbia There weren’t any walleyes in the River. Columbia River at that time. For that matter, at that time in the sloughs There are those who will tell and backwaters of the lower river, you that the Columbia isn’t now there weren’t any smallmouth bass. producing as many big fish as it once

MACKSLURE.COM Page 3 in the water in front of him. It had SONIC BAITFISH™ (SBF) absolutely no swimming action and resembled a dead stick in the water. TIPS & TECHNIQUES Once Bill replaced his snap swivel, with one of my snaps, he caught two good bass on his first three casts while slow retrieving. That simple change turned a bad trip into a great trip.

A very slow retrieve, with a lively natural swimming small lure, is one of the very best actions for catching fish anytime, and most especially COOK YOUR CATCH when the fish are not active. Often, inactive fish will strike a very small lure TUNA CASSEROLE before striking a large lure. Whether TIPS FOR SLOW RETRIEVING saltwater jigging (casting in a dead THE SONIC BAITFISH™ tide), or during a poor weather front BY CAPT. PETE ROSKO in freshwate, small lures almost always outfish large lures. Because of its versatility, the Sonic BaitFish™ (SBF) can be fished In the photo above, the top SBF is so many different ways. At times, it’s rigged with the single hook directly also fished incorrectly. Any serious attached to the tail. This rig runs angler will check the action of his more vertically versus sideways, with lure before fishing and always check a more natural swimming action of the lure when fishing it for the first a real . The bottom SBF is time. rigged with a split ring attaching the Ingredients (5-7 servings) single hook to the tail. This causes Several weeks ago, I was invited the hook to ride more sidways versus • 1 (12 oz.) package egg noodles; to fish several bass lakes with a more vertical for the top SBF. • 2 cups frozen green peas; friend of mine, Bill. I wanted Bill to • 2 (10.75 oz.) can condensed fish our 1/16 oz. Sonic BaitFish™, As a result, the best swimming cream of mushroom soup; which is a killer size for largemouth action is with the top SBF and the • 2 (6 oz.) cans tuna, drained; bass and when field-tested. best skipping, and vertical jigging, • 1 onion, chopped; It’s designed to exactly work like a actions are with the bottom SBF. I • 10 slices American processed live bait fish swimming in the water, prefer the top SBF when I am finesse cheese; especially on a very slow retrieve. casting or vertical/horizontal jigging • Ground black pepper to taste with a small SBF. This is because After about an hour, i hooked I have a truer feel of the lure with Directions about two dozen bass and Bill less components (split rings). The hooked zero. In my initial haste to same is true when the lure is tipped 1. Bring a large pot of water to a fish, I failed to notice that Bill had with live or dead bait — the action boil. Add noodles and frozen attached his SBF to the nose with a is deadened on small lures. In either peas. Cook until noodles are snap swivel instead of a side bend example, with or without a split ring, al dente, drain well. Return duo-lock snap that is provided in the is a matter of personal preference. noodles and peas to pot. SBF package. On a slow retreieve, Both are excellent fish producers, the swivel connection to the snap just make sure your hook point is 2. Mix soup, tuna fish, onions, causes a hinging effect that kills the always needle sharp by carrying a processed cheese, and pepper action of the lure. fine-tooth hook file. into the pot. Stir constantly until all of the ingredients are Only use a snap if line twist occurs Remember, this artcile is only well-mixed and the cheese has during speed-retrieving or trolling. devoted to slow retrieving. Because melted. The hinging effect is reduced the of its versatility, the SBF can also be greater the speed of the lure. retrieved by skpping over the surface 3. Drain on paper towels and near shoreline vegetation or slowly serve. But, back to Bill. I traded rods bottom-bounced in deeper holes. with Bill and pulled his SBF sidways Best of luck out there!

MACKSLURE.COM Page 4 NEW PRODUCT RELEASE o SMILE BLADE® UV DIAMOND

UV RED

Mack’s Lure, Inc., manufactuer or the industry’s most versatile spinner blade, the Smile Blade®, has added yet another dynamic design to its line. The UV Diamond Series, is unlike any blade Mack’s Lure has released.

The UV Diamond Series is now available in two sizes, 1.1- and 1.5- inch, and five colors — UV Red, UV Blue, UV Orange, UV Green and UV Pink. The UV Diamond Series can of year, to name a few. The one also be purchased in assorted packs. GUEST COMMENTARY trolling technique that remains consistent when targeting predator “If you’re looking for maximum fish, such as rainbow and lake , attraction,” Bob Schmidt, owner of is not to troll the same speed for the Mack’s Lure, says, “the flash from the entire time in which you’re fishing. holographic diamonds and the high We hear and read all the time that UV glow base colors will make this precise trolling speeds can be ideal, your go-to pattern.” however this doesn’t mean that you only troll that one speed consistently. The UV Diamond Series has been extensively field-tested and offers Predator fish like to chase their the same versatile attraction that prey! When a bait fish is trying to you’ve come to expect from this escape a predator, it doesn’t swim tournament proven lure, which TROLLING TIP: ALTER SPEEDS exactly at one rate, but rather provides action at speeds as slow as they make quick bursts through the 1/4 mph. BY DANNY COYNE, MACK’S LURE PRO STAFF water. Think of casting a spoon or a crankbait and how we retrieve it. They’re also easily tuned to fit your Most anglers are aware that We don’t just keep reeling the lure needs. Use a wide angle blade for paying attention to trolling speeds is in at one speed — we jerk the line, a slow, rolling wobble or a narrow critical in achieving a successful day speed our retrieve up and down angle blade for a vigorous shake and of fishing. If we troll too slow, some of to create more action to the lure. spin. the gear we use won’t work correctly. The same idea applies to trolling. And if we troll too fast, our gear can Many anglers experience very good You can now purchase the Smile actually repel fish rather than attract results when using planer boards Blade® UV Diamond Series at them. There are numerous factors and there’s a reason why — when the MacksLure.com or look for them to take into consideration when planer board surges in and out of in your local bait and tackle shop selecting your trolling speeds, such the water with the waves, it transfers this summer. For more information, as the lure you’re using, the species erratic burst like action to the lure, contact [email protected]. of fish you’re targeting and the time which encourages a striking reaction

MACKSLURE.COM Page 5 from the trout. boat, set your RPMs at 1,200 and hundred yards from the spot and you’ll catch plenty of fish. That being begin your procedure of setting out Introduce this trolling technique said, there is a very special event your lines. You want to have all your regardless if you are long lining or that takes place every May on Shasta lures in place when you reach the fishing off a downrigger. Find a Lake. It is the unique and exciting bloom. consistent speed that is making your trout bite in plankton bloom and I lures work the most effectively. Then, have only found it to be present on Color, depth and distance are every couple of minutes, adjust your one arm of the lake, the Pitt arm. important. Since the plankton is throttle to mimic a bait fish bursting kind of copper, orange and gold through the water trying to escape Why the Pitt, you ask? Good colors, I’ve found that similar colors from a predator. question. I don’t have an exact or work best. But remember, visibility scientific reason, but I suspect it’s is tough, so bright and fluroescent When practicing this method, be because the Pitt River from the colors work well. Depth is important sure to select lures that mimic a bait Lassen drainage runs through the because the plankton are usually fish, such as plugs, spoons, Wiggle fertile farmland and ranch lands of near the surface in the top 15-feet Hoochies™ and a variety of bucktail the Burney and Fall River basin. Many of water. In fact, plankton are light flies. I can guarantee you that this of the nutrients needed to create this sensitive and tends to move with teh will increase your hook up ratio and massive bloom of plankton is flushed sun and the shade of the surrounding put more fish in your net. out every spring down into the Pitt mountain side. River, then into the lake. Now, I’m not educated enough to explain the My favorite lure combinations GARY’S FISHING CORNER entire process, all I know is that every for this event are as follows: May, we get this massive bloom of plankton so thick that it’s easily visible 1. Sling Blade™ 4” Copper as you travel up the river through it. Orange trailing 3-feet back and tied directly to a Hum The key to finding this bloom Dinger® Copper Orange. is water temperature. As you’re traveling up river, the water 2. Sling Blade™ 4” Orange Gold temperature in the main body of the trailing 30-feet back and tied lake is usually in the low- to mid- to a Hum Dinger® Red Gold sixties. As you approach the upper Sand. reaches of the Pitt arm, you’ll see the water temperature drop drastically I set up these combos on my THE TROUT PLANKTON BLOOM from the sixties into the fifties. This at five feet and the is important to notice because this is other at 8- to 10-feet, 150-feet back. BY GARY MIRALLES, MACK’S LURE CONSULTANT the proper temperature needed for I like to use Cripplures on the surface, the bloom. Once you begin to notice set at about 200-feet back. I never The weather is settling down and the temperature drop, look close run more than four rods. the fishing will be improving as the for signs of the bloom. Usually, you barometer settles down and the will notice a lot of surface clutter, Now that you’re set, just troll 2 mph water temperatures get warmer. May such as leaves, needles, stick and through the middle of the bloom has always been one of my favorite branches. I’ve even seen huge logs while navigating your boat to avoid months to fish Shasta Lake (Calif.). in this area floating on the surface. larger surface clutter. You will hook The lake is always at its highest level up one or two fish every time you in May. That means that there is 365 Often times, you will see the fish pass through the bloom. The average miles of beautiful miles of beautiful, feeding in these areas as they size fish range from 18- to 25-inches tree-covered shoreline to witness as cruise the surface, inhaling massive with an 18-inch rainbow weighing you fish the many areas of the lake. quantities of plankton. Once you two and a half pounds. observe this scenario, look closely One of the biggest advantages at the water for what looks like a The bloom is only 200- to 300- to fishing Shasta in May is that the massive wall of rolling mud. You can feet in distance, so make fast, quick trout are prevalent, active and on literally watch the fish swimming turns and head right back through the surface. You can practically through this massive wall of nutrient- again. Also, remember the plankton catch fish anywhere on the lake in rich food as they inhale large are light-sensitive, so you need to be this month. You can even catch trout quantities with every pass. up there before the sun gets above trolling behind your house boat. Just your head, which is normally around put your favorite Cripplure™ on the Once you’ve located the area 10 a.m. Also, stay in the middle of the surface about 300-feet behind the to fish, move back a good three- lake to avoid submerged trees.

MACKSLURE.COM Page 6 QUESTION HOT DEAL OF THE MONTH OF THE MONTH Have a question? We’d love to answer it for you! Shoot us an email at media@ mackslure.com with your question and you may see it featured in an upcoming issue of the Mack Attack Magazine!

Q: I’m fishing for trout. How do I know which size of hook to use?

A: That’s a great question! The number one thing you can do is to talk with your local bait and tackle shop as to the area PHOTO OF THE MONTH of which you are fishing. Talking with the Bob Loomis, filming an episode of The Northwest Outdoorsmen, shows off a massive locals who fish those waters can provide rainbow trout caught a Sling Blade + Smile Blade Hoochie combo on Sprague Lake. a plethora of information, as well.

There are a lot of great lures that Mack’s Lure has to offer in regards to trout fishing, too. If you were trolling for 15- to 20-inch rainbows, the preferred sized Wedding Ring® to use is a No. 4 while trolling at 1.8- to 2.0-mph.

Trout like a faster trolling speed and a flashy presentation; that’s why our Wedding Ring® spinners work really well.

Try using a Double D™ Ddoger with a 24- to 36-inch leader behind the dodger and see the results. Another alternative to use is the Wedding Ring® UV Spinner. All fish can see objects in the water that are emitted from the sun’s UV rays. This PHOTO CREDIT: Harrod Outdoors spinner looks exactly like a Wedding Ring® Classic Original Series, but all of the components are high UV, which can VIDEO OF THE MONTH be seen on sunny or cloudy days. Mack’s Lure Pro Staffer Brad Hole targets cutthroat trout on Lake Sammamish in an episode of Angler West TV. Hole shows the versatility of the Pee Wee Wiggle Hoochie If you’re looking for a lure with two hooks, our Ringmaster® Series is a Wedding Ring® with two hooks in a No. 4 size, as well.

Best of luck!

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