Erie Walleye Sizzle for Jig and Minnow Following the Fish Hens Indians
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THE BLADE: TOLEDO, OHIO t SATURDAY, APRIL 10, 2004 SECTION C, PAGE 5 Erie walleye sizzle for jig and minnow Following the Fish By STEVE POLLICK Middle Sister BLADE OUTDOORS EDITOR Island n C a el U a he jig-and-minnow ig nn n na East Sister h ha it da ic o C ed Island fishing action for i ing M h pp St walleye on western O hi at T S es Lake Erie in recent days has Walleye Hen Island been so hot you might scald Lake Erie Chick Island Turtle Little Chick Island yourself if you put your hand Island Toledo Big Chick Island in the water. Harbor Light Pardon the exaggeration, Hot Spots Gravel Pit West Sister Northwest but it makes the point. Fish are reef Ennis Walleye Island Transport reef Wagon being taken just about any- West reef Wheel Sister reef where from Maumee Bay to ous blade reef the reef complex off Davis- baits, which can Little Cedar West North Bass Point reef Besse Nuclear Power Station be jigged or A-Can B-Can C-Can Island Crane between Toledo and Port Clin- “snapped.” Toledo Big Water Intake reef Little Sugar Island ton, and action should remain Note that Pickerel Cone Pickerel Middle Bass reef reef excellent if the weather holds. blade baits, reef Rattlesnake Island Island Walleye stage around west- equipped with L-Can Niagra South Bass Ballast Island reef ern basin reefs and move onto treble hooks, or Flat Island Rock Crib them to spawn from late the popular reef reef Green Island March into April. They also “stinger” treble Turtle Starve Island reef Locust congregate in Maumee Bay, hooks that fre- Point Starve Island reef Toussaint Mouse some to spawn and others to quently are pig- reef reef run up the Maumee River. The gybacked onto Island Round reef Davis Besse West periods before and after jigs, are illegal in reef Mouse Island Harbor spawning can be times of feed- Maumee and reef Middle ing frenzy, and some of the Sandusky bays Catawba Harbor largest walleye are taken. until May 1, as Clinton Island reef reef Lakeside “That full moon [Monday] they are on the reef seems to have gotten some- Maumee and thing big started,” said Chris Sandusky rivers. Vandergoot, a biologist with Many famil- the state’s Lake Erie Fisheries iar sites in Research Station at Sandusky. Maumee Bay — Limits of three fish lately from around Port Clinton can take as little as 20 minutes, Turtle Island and and anglers spend the rest of the Toledo Har- their trip catching and releas- bor Light to shal- ing, which is legal. As for “sort- low water off Lit- ing,” that is, trading a fish in tle Cedar Point, possession for a bigger fish you Toledo Water Intake, and the Jeff Kuelling, left, and A hair-jig with stinger-hook, dressed with a minnow, left, is the spring standard in just caught, it’s OK. Just be sure chart site marked “Gravel Pit” Dave Whitt admire a Erie walleye waters. Right, a homemade blade bait, also popular in spring fishing. the fish you release from the — may produce fish in the freshly netted walleye. livewell is alive and well, or Toledo area, as may most of you could face a ticket for wan- the inshore reefs off Davis- last 10 to 15 years, said Fergu- angler preference. game. The angle [fishing line to pendicular, presentation is not ton waste. Besse, including Toussaint, son. Too, some anglers who pre- the water] is the thing with jig working. For the most part the rig of Turtle, Crib and Locust Point. “Our guys use the real fer to troll can take walleye and minnow.” “Another thing,” said Whitt, choice has been a heavy jig — “Anywhere up close,” said heavy jigs so they can thump almost from ice-out by towing In other words, sometimes “at this time of year in these 5/8- to 3/4-ounce — with a Dave Whitt, a charter guide the bottom,” he added, plastic crankbaits tuned to the it is not a matter of vertical jig- shallow reefs is boat pressure.” hair tail and dressed with a from Port Clinton, who fishes explaining that Wisconsin and depths where the walleye are ging — wind-drift pushes the His personal tolerance is for no minnow, preferably an emer- out of Wild Wings Marina near Minnesota jig-fishermen use hanging out. Some trollers also boat along too quickly to keep more than six or seven boats ald shiner. Rick Ferguson, at Al the power plant. lightweight jigs, as small as a will pull bottom-bouncers and a line vertical. “Some days they on a reef. More and “it’s time to Szuch Live Bait in Jerusalem In a brief trip Tuesday with 64th or 32nd of an ounce. “A worm harnesses at very slow want a high lift, some days a reef-hop.” Township, said the best colors Whitt and Jeff Kuelling, anoth- quarter ounce is heavy to speeds. Last Saturday, Jim gentle lift,” said Whitt. Added This is Whitt’s favorite time at midweek were jigs with er guide, it took seemingly no them.” Fofrich Jr., of Toledo, reported Kuelling: “I’d say 70 to 80 per- of year to catch walleye. “It’s blue, blue/chartreuse, time to box a limit of fish just It is only during the post- taking some fish, including cent of the time vertical is bet- realistic to say you can catch blue/white or purple hair. offshore from the power plant. spawn period, say in early May two 28- to 29-inch post-spawn ter, or at least as vertical as you 100 fish a day [for a six-person Some anglers were even taking Jig and minnow fishing in as the lake waters warm some- females, trolling off the reefs. can get.” So experiment a little charter] this time of year.” fish just on the jigs, with no early spring was a quietly kept what, that walleye seem to While jigging minnows off if the fish are not hopping on minnow, or with jigs and plas- secret for years among knowl- switch preferences to weight- Davis-Besse Tuesday, Whitt the jig. Pay out more line to Contact Steve Pollick at: tic wiggling tails. A few anglers edgeable old-timers, but it has forward spinners and night- offered some jig-and-minnow change the angle with the [email protected] also are using any of the vari- become very popular in the crawlers. Or maybe that is an angling pointers. “It’s the angle water if a more vertical, or per- or 419-724-6068 Durham Toledo On deck: Hens vs. Charlotte Knights Royals 3, Indians 1 ab r h bi ab r h bi Hens French cf 5 2 1 0 Gomez lf 4 2 2 1 t When: Today, 7 p.m.; Franklyn German had much Indians Cleveland AB R H BI BB SO Avg. Maxwell 2b 4 0 0 0 Morris 2b 4 2 3 1 Belliard 2b 3 0 0 0 1 0 .435 Cmmngs dh 5 1 2 2 Klassen ss 5 0 1 2 tomorrow, 5 p.m.; Monday success pitching at home last V izquel ss 3 1 2 0 1 0 .292 Continued from Page 1 Diaz rf 4 0 1 0 Smith 3b 4 2 1 1 Continued from Page 1 Gerut rf 4 0 1 0 0 0 .292 LaForest c 3 0 1 1 Thames rf 3 0 1 1 and Tuesday, 6:30 p.m. season, allowing just two Blake 3b 4 0 2 1 0 1 .320 o u t d o u b l e b y M i d r e C u m - Sandberg 3b 3 1 0 0 Barkett 1b 4 0 1 1 t ear ned runs while striking out Stewar t came in to face Guiel Lawton lf 4 0 1 0 0 0 .333 Guzman 1b 4 1 2 0 Ust dh 4 1 1 0 Radio: 1470 AM VMartinez c 4 0 0 0 0 2 .154 15 in 142/3 innings here. AEscobar dh 3 0 1 0 0 0 .222 mings, who then scored on a Gomes lf 4 1 1 3 G. Rdrguz c 4 1 1 1 t Affiliation: Charlotte, Chi- and gave up a two-r un double. Cantu ss 4 0 2 0 Logan cf 3 1 1 0 The Mud Hens’ Opening Day THafner 1b 3 0 0 0 0 1 .214 t w o - o u t d o u b l e b y P e t e Totals 36 6 10 6 Totals 35 9 12 8 cago White Sox. Tony Graffanino then made it Crisp cf 3 0 0 0 0 0 .190 LaForest. Durham 200 000 400 — 6 roster featured players who Totals 31 1 7 1 2 4 t 3-0 with an RBI single for the Bu t a f t e r t h e He n s s c o re d Toledo 342 000 00x — 9 Pitching probables (Hens were bor n in seven different Royals, who stranded 12 r un- Kansas City AB R H BI BB SO Avg. DP–Durham 1. LOB–Durham 6, Toledo 7. listed last): today, LH Josh Berroa ss 5 0 0 0 0 1 .211 three in the bottom of the first, 2B–Cummings (1), LaForest (1), Guzman (1), countries. While 15 players ners. Beltran cf 3 0 0 0 2 1 .267 E n n i s t h r e w f o u r s c o r e l e s s Morris 2 (3), G.