The one fish hook that catches almost everything

SPINNER RIGS

Spinner rigs trolled behind a bottom bouncer, at speeds ranging from one to two miles an hour, are a prime way to catch walleye, perch and pike. Octopus hooks work great in spinner rigs, and by tying them yourself, you can alter the size, number and spacing of the hooks to give you the ideal set-up for the situation at hand.

When building perch rigs, I prefer to use size 6 octopus hooks, while size 2 hooks are my go-to for walleye. When the walleye seem to be biting short, I build some rigs with a size 2 in front and a smaller size 4 in the back as a stinger. The distance separating the hooks is determined by the bait I plan to use. When fishing with large nightcrawlers, for example, I’ll often space two or three hooks about two inches apart. If I’m using leeches, I’ll go with a pair of hooks about an inch apart, or even just a single hook.