Spawning Patterns of Great Lakes Walleyes

In spring, mass movements of huge Great Lakes walleyes flock to and funnel through natural bottlenecks at river inlets, harbor entrances and bay mouths, within easy reach of anglers afloat or afoot. Thousands upon thousands of the largest walleyes in these huge systems may move hundreds of miles, concentrating into loose megaschools lingering at river or bay mouths, before running the final gauntlet to their spawning grounds. In extreme cases, as with walleyes moving upstream from Lake Erie into the Detroit River, it's not thousands but millions of fish, many of bewildering proportions, channeled beneath your hull.

Being in the right place at the right time to intercept such movements is a thing of beauty. Rather than pursuing monster walleyes out amidst the great void of midlake suspension, they instead have assembled en masse and come directly to you. The unnaturally high concentration of huge fish makes every bite a potential delight. Oddswise, this is about as good as it gets for catching numbers of fish exceeding ten pounds, with teens not unrealistic.

PRIMARY SPAWNING PATTERNS

Rivers--Whenever big-water fish enter rivers, they become river fish, behaving like river fish for the short duration of their visit. Therefore treat them as river fish, regardless of their mainlake origin, immense proportions and bewildering numbers. (OK, so you can use a bigger lure to trigger bigger fish if you wish.)

River walleyes all fall under the auspices of current rules, which basically state that current rules. Walleyes moving upstream follow current edges, ducking out of the flow whenever possible to minimize effort. At harbor mouths, fish tuck behind bridge pilings, and tight along riprap and pier edges, slipping upstream through small pockets and areas of reduced flow. At river bends, they drop down into the basins of holes where current moderates, resting awhile 'til moving upstream again, dodging from boulder to log to eddy on their journey to spawning sites. Likely spawning areas feature broken rock swept by current, be they natural spots like rocky shorelines or shallow midriver shoals; or manmade areas like riprapped shorelines, bridge foundations or pier faces.

During the peak of the spawning run, walleyes relating to shoal-pool combinations lie in the basins of pools during the day, moving shallow at night to spawn. During the day, drift through pools with jig and minnow combos, or three-way rigs tipped with minnows. Troll back upcurrent using three-ways to present wobbling minnow imitator crankbaits in the flow. At night, cast or longline troll diving crankbaits across the tops of shallow current-swept rocks.

Fish manmade structure at harbor mouths and river inlets, typically early in the migration prespawn fish, and later for postspawn walleyes dispersing back to the lake. Longline troll crankbaits at night, parallel and tight to riprap and manmade structure. Corners, projections and irregularities in seawalls create current breaks where fish can lie out of the flow, yet within easy reach of a passing meal. A big crankbait wobbling through the darkness creates a perfect target for a big 'eye on the prowl. Where midriver current breaks are scarce due to dredging and channelization, fish line up along shoreline edges, in perfect position for a longline trolling presentation.

Piers and walkways permit easy foot access to the river's edge. Where prominent structure breaks current flow, walk it, cast it, wade it if you can safely do so. Be stealthy, making long casts as parallel as possible to shore, retrieving your crankbait upcurrent. With so many fish entering the river, the chances are excellent for catching multiple big fish at night, perhaps even outproducing the efforts of anglers fishing in boats.

Water clarity determines the hours of peak walleye activity. Clarity often changes at river mouths, turning from ultraclear to dingy, typical of rivers. If so, expect good river fishing during the day. If the water remains clear, however, prime activity and movement occurs at night. Tailor your efforts accordingly.