When you fish for walleyes through the ice, it’s important to make the most of every opportunity. Sometimes, you only have a few seconds to get a fish to bite. Little things can make a huge difference between catching fish and going home empty-handed.

My football coach in college was John Gagliardi, the all-time winningest coach in college football history. He used to say that we needed to become “brilliant at the basics.” This same idea works in many aspects of life, and also applies very well to icing more walleyes.

Jigging rod and deadstick

For years, most walleye anglers have used two rods at the same time: a jigging rod and a deadstick. Part of this has to do with some states’ regulations; other parts are more strategic in nature. Think of it like blocking and tackling in football. It’s one of the basics. This strategy alone will catch you more walleyes.

The jigging rod does two jobs. First, it attracts fish to your area. Second, it catches the more active fish and sometimes tricks lazy fish into biting on instinct.

The deadstick, your second rod, is typically set up with a live minnow that sits stationary in the water. It’s there for tempting walleyes that aren’t in the mood to chase anything.

Cracking the code

A big part of catching walleyes is figuring out what they want that day. Actually, their mood can change every few hours based on what’s happening around them.

Lots of things affect how walleyes act:

• How much they ate yesterday

• Weather changes

• Whether a storm is coming or going

• How much food is available

• If the water is clear or murky

• Whether you’re fishing shallow or deep

• How many other people are fishing nearby

You don’t need to figure out why they’re acting a certain way. You just need to figure out what their mood is, so you know how to catch them. The key is finding what makes them bite.

Use your electronics

Electronics help us understand walleye moods better than ever. Just knowing that fish are swimming through your area is important information. By paying attention, you can quickly learn if fish are reacting to what you’re doing, which tells you when to change your bait or how you’re fishing.

Work together and stay alert

If you’re fishing with a buddy, work as a team to figure out what the fish want. Start with different lures: try different sizes, colors, and types. Keep your tackle box close so you can switch lures quickly.

Also, pay attention to what jigging action got a walleye to commit. It’s all part of cracking the code.

Try something radical

Consider using at least one extreme presentation, something that really gets attention, like aggressively ripping a lure like a Rapala Rippin Rap or using a gliding minnow bait. Even if they’re too aggressive for the fish that day, they’ll attract fish to your area. This helps your deadstick or your fishing partners catch more. If they aren’t working, switch, but don’t be afraid to come back to it later in the day.

Downsize

When I see walleyes and saugers coming through on my electronics but they’re not biting, downsizing has put a lot of fish on the ice for me.

For your jigging rod, try using a really small jigging spoon with a tiny minnow head or just a small piece of minnow tail.

Change how you move your lure

I usually start by jigging twice, then letting the lure settle into what I call the “strike zone”—the part of the water column where I think fish will bite or where I can see them on my fish finder.

When I see a fish, I do my normal thing, and they don’t bite, I immediately change things up. I drop the lure to the bottom, lift it into the strike zone, and hold it still.

No reaction? I shake the lure like crazy, almost like it’s vibrating. I don’t want to be so crazy that I scare the fish away. I shake it for a couple seconds and then hold it steady. Interestingly, when watching pro walleye anglers in the open-water months utilize forward facing sonar, this shaking motion is used a lot with a jig when they are on a fish, to get the fish to commit.

Finally, I shake the lure with super-tiny jigging motions and slowly reel up at the same time, so the lure rises through the water. Many times, when you get a fish to start chasing, their instinct kicks in and they’ll eat.

When they are chasing a lure that you are raising in the water column, don’t slow down; keep it moving away from them. If they stop chasing, drop your lure down and start the process again. Oftentimes, the fish is fired up enough, and will pursue your bait a second and even third time.

Remember, when a walleye flies up to hit your lure, you won’t feel a tug. They’re actually pushing your lure up, so you’ll get slack line. Set the hook while reeling at the same time to catch up to them.

Helpful tip: I used to raise my lure with my arms when teasing up a walleye, but I’ve learned to use my reel instead. If I raise up with my arms and the fish follows and hits, I have nowhere left to go to set the hook, because my arms are already all the way up; and if in a collapsible fish house, I have actually hit the roof on a hookset. Using your reel to take in line gives you full hook-setting range and catches more fish.

Deadstick adjustments

Move your weight closer to the minnow. When using a deadstick, I normally start with a sinker on the line about 8 inches above my minnow. On a tough bite, I’ve had success moving my weight much closer to the minnow. This gives the minnow less room to swim around. Fish in a neutral mood usually don’t like to chase, and this small change can make a real difference.

Use a plain hook. For your deadstick, there are lots of good lures or jigs you can use with a minnow. But if walleyes are passing them by, using a plain hook has been a go-to setup that’s put numbers of fish in the bucket when nothing else was working. It’s super simple, it’s natural, and both active and inactive fish will bite it.

Fish wanting bait higher in the water column. There have been many times when I pulled my jigging line up a few feet just for a moment when I needed to step away from my holes, simply so my rod doesn’t fly down the hole due to an aggressive fish. Maybe I have on a jigging spoon and a minnow head, for example or even a Rippin Rap. Not live bait.

Many times, I’ve watched fish slowly rise up a few feet off of the bottom to my bait (which is just sitting still with a piece of minnow on it) and hit it. When I’ve tried to jig these same fish as they’re rising, they often dart away. At times, they seem to want it just sitting there, and then “thump”. I see the tap and set the hook.

Because of this, if I’m not catching many fish, I’ll set my deadstick a few feet off the bottom instead of 6 inches to a foot off (which is where I normally start). This can trigger fish and get them interested when a minnow hanging right in front of them near the bottom does nothing.

The bottom line

Walleyes can be picky. When they swim through, you often only have seconds to figure out what they want and get them to eat. Becoming “brilliant at the basics” will definitely up your odds, often turning a day of fishing into a day of catching.

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