WALLEYES IN WARM WEATHER
By Bob Jensen

In July and August it is common to hear anglers talking about the "Dog Days of Summer" and their effect on fishing. The general consensus is that fishing, especially for walleyes, slows down quite a bit during the hottest days of summer. While it is true that some anglers have difficulty catching fish this time of year, there are things you can do to put a few more fish in the boat. Remember, in the summer when the water is at its warmest, the fishes metabolism is at its highest. They need to eat, and if they're going to eat, it may as well be your bait.

Many anglers like to troll crankbaits in the summer. Crankbaits allow an angler to cover lots of water and running depths with lures of different colors, shapes, sizes, and speeds. Best of all, walleyes like to eat crankbaits.

This time of year, go with a larger crankbait. The Frenzy Medium Minnow is a good all around size this time of year. It does a great job when the walleyes are in the seven to twelve foot range.

Experiment with crankbait colors. Firetiger is generally a good color in many bodies of water, but it seems like the walleyes in different lakes show preferences to different colors. Try a variety of colors until the fish show what they want.

Crankbaits are excellent when the walleyes are spread out. On overcast, windy days it works very well to get on a large walleye structure and just start trolling. You'll catch a walleye here and another one a little farther down the structure. Keep covering water and you're going to get bit. Make a mental note of the depth where most of the fish are caught and concentrate on working that depth.

Some days the fish school up tightly on a little piece of the structure. Now we need to switch techniques. On the overcast, windy day they were spread all over the area. When the sun comes out, frequently they will group tightly in one particular spot on that same structure. This is when I use my Legend 3000 sonar to pinpoint the exact location of the fish. This sonar unit does a great job of separating the fish from the bottom, which is very important. When the fish are tight to the bottom, they can be very hard to locate without the proper sonar.

Once they are located, a Roach Rig will be the best way to fool the fish in many situations. You want to use a slow presentation when the fish are tightly schooled, and you can't get much slower than a Roach Rig.

Work slowly back and forth through the group of fish with the Roach Rig. Keep a close eye on the sonar to make sure you're fishing where the fish are.

Leeches or crawlers will probably be the most effective on the rig this time of year. Make sure the bait is healthy and active. Most anglers keep a small cooler with ice in the boat to keep the bait active. For crawlers, a Frabill Lil Fisherman in the cooler with ice will keep the crawlers active and appealing to the fish.

Don't give up on fishing this time of year just because you've heard the action can be slow. When the fish are spread out, cover water with crankbaits. 

When they're schooled tightly, slow down and give them a crawler or leech to look at. You'll catch walleyes in the warmest part of the year if you keep these ideas in mind.