This simple rig catches walleye, panfish and trout like crazy—and you’re not using it!

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WHITEFISH

John Whyte
John Whyte

Yet another different approach to drop-shotting comes from my friend John Whyte, a Lake Simcoe legend when it comes to catching whitefish. The technique he’s carefully crafted for tricking whities into biting is a thing of piscatorial beauty.

Because he never knows whether the fish are favouring minnows or bottom-dwelling insects, Whyte offers them a choice by using a ¼-ounce firetiger-coloured Badd Boyz jig, which resembles a minnow, as his drop-shot sinker. And on a red drop-shot hook placed 18 inches above the jig, he threads on a single soft-plastic nymph as the insect offering. “Because the Badd Boyz is nose-heavy, you tap the bottom with it ever so gently to stir up the silt and make it appear to be a feeding minnow,” he explains. “Then you slowly lift it up a couple of inches and let it hang.”

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After that, well, just be sure to hold on to your rod tight.

Fishing editor Gord Pyzer has caught all of these fish—and more—on drop-shot rigs.

Bonus tip: Shake the bait

If you’re going to shake your bait to draw attention to it, always make sure the weight is lying on the bottom and there’s a bit of slack in your line. That way, you’ll shake the bait and not the weight. And don’t overwork your offering. The angler who does the least while drop-shotting usually catches the most.