Seasonal Keys To Catching Walleyes On Flats

The most common and prolific flats pattern in reservoirs of all types takes place in early spring. Prespawn and Postspawn walleyes congregate on flats immediately adjacent to spawning tributaries, in this case, in the back end of a major creek arm. Some walleyes spawn on riprap shorelines near dams, collecting on shallow, shoreline-oriented flats nearby. In creek arms, walleyes follow a consistent progression, moving gradually toward the main lake and gathering on large fertile flats along the way. By early summer, most walleyes are on main-lake points at the mouths of these creek arms. Depending on water levels, weather, and dominant forage species, active walleyes may feed anywhere from 5 feet to 25 feet during early summer. Some move progressively deeper as they spread out into the reservoir. Deep flats with humps and submerged islands become the most dependable patterns in late summer. By late fall, many walleyes are back on primary points leading into creek arms, but tend to use vertical structure close to the main river channel.

When searching shallow, concentrate on flats where the wind blows into shore. Two or three days of winds in the same direction can concentrate fish. Sparse weeds mixed with some hard bottom on the outside edge, which make lots of pockets and indentations in the weedline, are key areas on a shallow flat. Deeper fish are less affected by changes in wind and weather, though suspended fish following pelagic forage like ciscoes might move long distances over a 24-hour period during stable periods with steady winds.

Presentation—Working shallow flats requires the same basic approach in summer as in spring, but actual presentation should be more aggressive. Where snap jigging was laid back, movements now should be sharper, the jig should travel farther, and plastics or feather jigs should replace the shiners and redtails of spring. At times, quartering and drifting across flats should give way to trolling. And bottom bouncers with spinner rigs and crawlers take on added importance.

But a key tactic, especially in early summer, is to continue drifting or quartering jigs across flats. As walleyes shift down to mid-depth flats (15 to 25 feet), follow along with 1/4- to 3/8-ounce jigs tipped with minnows, leeches, or crawlers.

As fish scatter along larger secondary flats, trolling becomes more important, in order to cover more water in less time. On mid-depth flats, cranks like Shad Raps, Wally Divers, and Hot’N Tots that get down 12 to 17 feet, cover water to find fish quicker. Casting or trolling these shad-shaped baits along weedlines on shallow flats produces in summer, too. Don’t overlook the crankbait pattern when steady winds blow into weedlines for several days. Another overlooked way to find walleyes on flats in summer is to troll with three-way rigs and minnowbaits. The same lures mentioned for night fishing in spring are effective pulled 4 to 5 feet behind a three-way swivel with a 3- to 4-foot dropper holding a 1- to 3-ounce sinker.

Lighter sinkers are better for keeping the lure well behind the boat (yet near bottom) on mid-depth flats, while heavier sinkers allow for an almost vertical presentation in depths of 15 to 20 feet and a semi-vertical presentation down to 50 feet. This keeps the lure accurately within striking distance of what you see on sonar while trolling breaks along the edge of a flat or following rock fingers or points that roll down from a 15-foot to a 25-foot flat. The advantage comes with the versatility to cover water shallow and deep with the lure remaining equidistant from bottom on the same trolling pass.

As summer progresses, the most overlooked pattern for big walleyes is trolling for suspended fish over main-basin flats. In natural lakes, these suspended fish generally chase ciscoes, while in reservoirs or on the Great Lakes, the forage might be smelt, shad, or alewives. With 3 or 4 anglers in the boat, it’s possible to cover the water column from the top 2 feet to just above the depth of those big hooks that appear on sonar.

Use in-line trolling boards to spread the trolling swath and pull unweighted Rapalas and Shad Raps on either side, then long-line several deep-diving minnowbaits—Storm Deep ThunderSticks, for example—to the precise depths of the hooks on sonar. Use one of the several books now available for translating length of line behind the boat into precise depths lures are running. If walleyes are below 25 feet, use Water Gremlin Rubbercor sinkers or Clip On weights from Off Shore or Church Tackle to take the lure deeper.