On lakes great and small, enjoying solid walleye action from midsummer into fall hinges on staying in tune with seasonal migrations of the marble-eyed masses. Some of these sojourns span many miles, especially on big-water fisheries like the Great Lakes and massive reservoirs. Others barely cover the distance of 
a spirited touchdown run from the 50-yard line. Long or short, however, these journeys typically share a common theme—walleyes following wayward baitfish.
On the continent’s inland seas, such as Great Lakes Erie, Huron and Michigan, riding the transitional crest often entails keeping tabs on water temperatures and forage abundance, as the two factors go hand-in-hand dictating walleye location. Identifying walleyes’ favorite menu items from the underwater buffet can also help you dial in patterns other anglers miss.
On Erie, for example, hungry ’eyes binge on a baitfish bounty that includes white perch, yellow perch, shiners and shad. But savvy trophy hunters recognize that smelt are a favorite food of the biggest fish in the system.
Since smelt are cool-water creatures often found in 50- to 60-degree water, finding them in late summer can mean straining depths of 70 or 80 feet in the big lake’s eastern abyss. As water temps plummet from summer highs down to the 30s in late fall, staying on the big bite means moving westward toward Vermilion, Sandusky and Huron, Ohio, and fishing higher in the water column.
Similar scenarios play out on smaller scales across the Walleye Belt. On northern Lake Michigan, veteran guide Jason Muche plies the reefs out of Escanaba, Mich., for trophies topping 10 pounds. As typical summertime trolling patterns simmer, he fishes the night shift, pulling jerkbaits along the edges and over the top of reefs in the 17- to 6-foot range.
“I start trolling reef edges and move onto the tops as the night progresses,” he says.
Muche’s trolling program includes 10-lb mono mainline, planer boards illuminated with glow sticks or reflective tape, and a size 2 split shot ahead of a barrel swivel tied 6 feet from the lure. Trolling speed is from 1.5 to 1.8.
Continue reading this article at this LINK…..
—–
Join ODU Magazine on Facebook here at this LINK…..
Join ODU Magazine on our Twitter fishing site here at this LINK…..
Join ODU Magazine on our Twitter hunting site here at this LINK…..
.