Gord Pyzer’s 12 all-time greatest winter walleye tips

#3  TARGET THE WEEDS

Winter walleye anglers will often tell you the most difficult lakes to fish are shallow, flat and featureless. Don’t believe them. Those are actually my favourite types of lakes because the fish will bunch up like plump grapes ready to be picked in two often overlooked locations—weedlines and isolated pockets of slightly deeper water (see tactic #4). Just remember to focus on the weedlines that cast the longest shadows away from the vegetation. Simply look at which way the trees on shore are casting shadows, and the shoreline weeds in front of them will be doing the same thing. That is where you want to fish.

On the sunny side of the weeds, on the other hand, the lane the fish typically use to cruise the vegetated edge will be brightly lit and exposed. Under that scenario, the walleye will stay hunkered down under the canopy, waiting for darkness to descend. Fish at midday on the shadowy side, however, and you’ll be shocked at how shallow you will catch the fish—six feet would be considered deep. On my most treasured weedy walleye lake, in fact, I’ll typically watch a fish appear on the sonar screen, feel it bite, set the hook and lift it flopping onto the ice in one motion.