Walleye Behavior in the Great Lakes

On the average, most suspended Great Lakes walleyes are probably caught within 40 to 50 feet of the surface. Multiline planer-board tactics incorporating snap weights with crankbaits, big-bladed spinner-crawler harnesses, or spoons swiftly eliminate unproductive areas and determine productive combinations of depth, speed, lure style, action, and color pattern. Scout open water with electronics to detect the presence of suspended baitfish and larger walleyes below. Troll downwind through prospective schools to trigger bites. Mark hot spots on your GPS and circle back for another pass. Just don’t expect the fish to be in exactly the same spot tomorrow, because they likely will have moved miles under the whims of wind and weather.

In the warmer, deeper waters of central and eastern Lake Erie, walleyes may drop into the 70- to 100-foot levels in summer, requiring an adjustment in tactics. Trolling diving planers on heavy 20- to 30-pound line, and using shallow-running crankbaits, spinner harnesses, or spoons, reaches down to about 60 or 70 feet, especially on wire line.

For deeper water, however, downriggers become a must. The same lure combos can easily be fished down to 100 feet or more. Pressure changes when fish are brought up from these depths, however, tend to make a caught walleye not a candidate for release. Harvest a few, but don’t kill more than your share.

Seasonal Movement

Regardless of area, Great Lakes walleyes appear to be movers. They tend to migrate long distances throughout a fishing season, following schools of large baitfish; hundreds of miles isn’t unusual. Fish from the western basin of Erie, for example, regularly migrate into the central and eastern basins. Many also move north through the Detroit and St. Clair rivers and intervening Lake St. Clair, into the Lake Huron waters of Saginaw Bay. Even so-called resident fish of a large, fairly shallow area like Saginaw Bay move north to deeper, cooler water outside the bay mouth in summer.

So locating and staying on the peak of moving populations becomes essential. Word of mouth, fishing reports, marine band radio chatter, and grandpa’s trusty binoculars help determine general areas of recent activity. Once you’re close, begin searching, sorting, and sifting through presentations to fine-tune your approach to daily or hourly fish activity.

Perhaps these fish were suspended out there a hundred years ago, simply undiscovered? Likely not—at least not in similar numbers and size. Recent improvements in boat design, an expanding wealth of high-tech trolling apparatus, the advent of GPS navigation, and numerous other factors have come together in a cavalcade of big-water pursuit techniques. We now have the tools to chase fish in the vast open spaces like never before, and to return home safely.

Inshore, Onshore, From Shore

While classic Great Lakes walleye fishing today incorporates farflung offshore adventures, fish don’t live their entire lives out in the great beyond. As the water cools in fall, with bays, harbors and river mouths reaching favorable temperatures, suspended baitfish like shad, smelt, ciscoes, alewives, and shiners begin migrating to shallower inshore waters, within reach of anglers in smaller boats. Weather permitting, you can seasonally apply similar big-water tactics just a few miles outside a river mouth, within the confines of a relatively wind-protected bay, or around islands within quick retreat distance of shore, should the weather turn ugly.