Time To Get the Floating Bucktail Jigs Ready!

[Capt.Bob]

Man oh Man! Just no rest these day's,, 2 weeks ago I was kill'n the big Northen Pike on my home Lake, now it's time to get stocked up for the next 8 weeks hammering the largest Walleye run in the world! New boat I built from the 1950's model 15' Ouachita, now titled as a 2017 is rigged and ready! And now just finishing and tying a few more floating bucktail jigs,,, my HOT-TA-MOMMAS, and FIRE CRAWLERS,, better known as MY Walleye Killers,,,,

 

 

Should be another great 2 months, filling the freezer and then time fer some Bluegills on the beds,, and hot flyrod action!

 

[Gundog]

You got way more patience than I do. Good luck with them. 

[Capt.Bob]

Just what the Walleye want in the flooded waters of the largest tributary of all the Great Lakes durring the spring thaw and early rains.

 

[mattkenzer]

Absolute Beauties .... They may be in Trouble! 

[bassh8er]

May I aske where this run is?  I know you get into them every year.

 

As a guy who is lucky to catch an accidental walleye on my nearby lakes once a year, I am totally jealous.

 

I drive 5 hours to fish walleye and usually can’t catch 2 over 15”.

[Bdnoble84]

What are you using for a jig head

[thinkingredneck]

Looks like you are dialed in.

[Abby]

Great looking jigs....AND a great looking stringer of eyes

[Capt.Bob]

These come from the largest tributary of all the Great Lakes. The Largest river run for Walleyes in the world. If you ain't done it for years, be ready for combat fishing. There is about a 5 mile stretch of the Maumee River where this happens ever ice out. 

 

As for the material, it is EPS same thing a foam coffee cup or a Northland Floating jig is made from. But nobody sell's a floating jig with the same size head as a round 1/4 oz jig, with a hook larger than a light wire short shank Aberdeen in about #6 size. These are made in 3/16 and 1/4 oz molds, and use a #1 O'Shaughnessy jig hook.

 

I started making floating jigs using less than desirable material but, they proved to work better than lead 20 some years ago. People thought I was nuts, and within the last 12 or so years others started using them. I sold 5 gallon buckets of this stuff for about 15 years, by the sandwich bag (1 LBS). One bag would make over 1000 jigs this size. Today you seldom see anyone using a lead jig for these running fish. About 5 years ago I realized the benefits using bucktail over plastics, when fishing in these conditions. Fished Carolina style, or I prefer rigging them with a trolling sinker with about 2' to 5' leader depending on how fast a water I'm fishing, weights between 1/2 oz and 1 oz depending on flow and line weight are what works best for me.

 

20lb 832 sufix with a 8'to 10', 12# test leader to the weight, the the same 12# (Trilene Big Game) leader the proper length to the jig, I fish daily and never leave my 832 in the river 2 or 3 years on a single spool! If I could just educate the thousands that tie directly to synthetic line to use a leader, the river would be much more fishable for everyone. But it only takes one "idiot" even after having it explained to them refuses to to and breaks off 20 to 30 yard chunks of this line in a run,, the fishing is over! It runs down stream from where it's snagged up, and when others try and drift their line thru it, it just slides down the dead line, never getting down to the bottom where the fish are, and if you are lucky enough to pick one up, good luck getting out of a tangled snag and through the fast current. That is why I call it combat fishing! I thank God I have done it long enough, and no where to go to get away from these kind of folks that would like to think they are fisherman, and are solely there to screw the whole place up!! 

 

If anyone try's it,, good luck,, but be prepared for disappointment,, it is a well known destination in the early spring. For everyone that can be fished around without problems, there are 20 that don't understand anything and can't be told,, they never catch fish, but know it all!

 

[J Francho]

Looks like the Salmon R. in Pulaski, NY during the king run.

[Capt.Bob]

FUN FUN FUN,,,, but better eat'n! 

 

It only takes one to ruin the entire line! I liked to get off the beaten path and away from the masses. 

[J Francho]

Yeah, I can't believe all those guys that eat the mud sharks.

 

Walleye, that's another story!  Yum!

[Capt.Bob]

4 minutes ago, J Francho said:

Yeah, I can't believe all those guys that eat the mud sharks.

 

Walleye, that's another story!  Yum!

They are not river Walleye, they are fresh out Erie, and don't stick around when they are done. This river gets schools all the way from Lake Saint Clair, to Hutton Ohio or a little further east. But seldom a resident fish.

[J Francho]

I was talking about the salmon...they're all kype'd up and ready to spawn.  When this happens, the flesh turns from bright pink to gross, brown, and not so great tasting.  Unfortunately here, we aren't allowed to fish the walleye spawning run.  Too bad, because I've seen some pretty incredible runs in the feeder creeks on some of the better walleye lakes here.  Painful to see all those monsters, and not be able to cast at them!

[Capt.Bob]

Oh I know,, but they sure are fun,, aint bad with a good canning recipe, or smoked. But anything that break 65# 832 is FUN FUN FUN!

 

[joelhains]

I don't know why people fish shoulder to shoulder. I don't care how good the fishing is, its not worth it to me! I enjoy the peace and serenity that is fishing. That doesn't look like fun to me. I've fished the Maumee but refused to fish it during the run.

[Capt.Bob]

On 3/9/2018 at 3:19 PM, Capt.Bob said:

FUN FUN FUN,,,, but better eat'n! 

 

It only takes one to ruin the entire line! I liked to get off the beaten path and away from the masses. 

 

8 hours ago, joelhains said:

I don't know why people fish shoulder to shoulder. I don't care how good the fishing is, its not worth it to me! I enjoy the peace and serenity that is fishing. That doesn't look like fun to me. I've fished the Maumee but refused to fish it during the run.

That is peak of the run in that picture, if your willing to learn any river system, it can be as peaceful as you want it. It's all in how much your willing to put into it. Plus it's the only time of year you can catch 20 to 60 fish a morning, and these are worth eating, the rest of the year about all you can catch are catfish and bass, with a carp or sucker thrown in here and there. I don't drive over an hour one way to catch junk fish and throw em back. I'm filling the freezer, with the tastiest fish that swims.

 

Plus most don't do it because they can't stand watching others catch all the fish, and won't take the time to learn to fish it around others. This is totally different than the Lake, or any other river fishing. Anybody can catch em in the warm water periods, ice out is a whole other story.

 

Putting a new anchor system in the boat, got everything fabbed up and going to weld it up and install the mounting system today. Spent 3 days designing it just to get more away from the crowds in high water days. Then starting Wednesday it's fish on,, this is where my mail should go the next 6 to 8 weeks, the fish are starting in, and I wouldn't be anywhere else! I just can't change after 44 years spending most days in this river this time of year! 

 

Oh ya, and this why,,, 

 

 

 

[joelhains]

To each his own. I refuse to participate in combat fishing!