Fall is in the air. the temps are dropping, and the fish are feeling that cool down and getting ready for the upcoming cold months. All over the state on local lakes and rivers fish are setting up in their fall patterns of moving up shallow at night chasing bait and relaxing in stable water during the day.
So, I'll chat about some of my favorite fall fishing spots and tactics in this article. Specifically on Green Bay waters.
The Big Cool Down
As the air temps start to drop down the fish start to think a little differently about how much they need to eat to sustain themselves through the winter and over the last 2 seasons on the bay I have noticed a trend in the type of prey they prefer over summer patterns.
In the screen shot above you'll see just a mess of fish that I came across stacked along the deep drop from a shoreline in Door County waters.
Not all of them marks are walleye but most of them are, we did get a couple sheep head out of this school of fish but mostly it was walleye. These suspended fish were chasing small pods of bait higher in the column and breaking them up into even smaller pods.
When I come across a screen like this it's hard to pass up breaking out the lead-core and snap weights and pulling my favorite fall stick baits out of my boxes and going for a troll.
These northern walleyes are no stranger to deep water, I often see boats focused on a shoreline or reef structure where those fish were at back in July or August and overlooking the deep water nearby. In my opinion the larger mass of fish move out to this deeper water during the temp dropping phase to find the most stable oxygen rich waters. With the fall temps dropping comes some nasty northerly winds and that can really screw up a shallow structure related bite. It will also create some wicked currents on the bay that are coming from different directions at times so watching your speed will be an important factor.
Day time VS Night Time
Mid-day in in the fall up here in door county can be a trick bite to figure out. typically, i spend most of my time in 20 feet and deeper all the way out to 70 feet! looking for those suspended school of walleye that are willing to play along. I bring with me an arsonel of different action cranks from deep diving to shallow diving, most often than not the action and size of the crank will be the determining factor over color in the fall.
Sound of the rattle or how it tail kicks vs side roll is what will get them to trigger.
Top 5 fall cranks
Bandit Walleye deep & Shallow When it comes to bandit they make one heck of a productive crank bait. The deep clack of the rattle and wicked action at slow speeds just drives the walleye nuts, the size is perfect for door county waters with there large bait fish like smelt and alewives.
Storm Thunder Stick Both the deep and the shallow thunder sticks are a staple in my boxes. I regularly start with at least 2 Deep Thunder Stick JR in my spread and when i move shallow after dark I put out 2 of the original shallow thunde rsticks. Both the deep and the shallow thunder sticks are a staple in my boxes. I regularly start with at least 2 Deep Thunder Stick JR in my spread and when i move shallow after dark I put out 2 of the original shallow thunder sticks.
Smithwick When it Comes to cold water big walleye I can't think of a trip where I haven't run a Smithwick product. P10 Elite 8 and pro rouge are a staple in my fall lineup.
Berkley Hit Stick Probably my favorite newer crank for casting and even shallow water trolling. Mainly in size 13 it casts a good long distance and the slow rise action seemed to really fire those shallow night time eyes up!
Reef Runner less common but still very good, pain in the but to tune but worth it for sure. More so due to the awesome diving depth you can achieve with these baits along with the slow speeds they can be worked.
Don't overlook the deeper waters at night either. Yes, there may be fish up shallow in numbers but recently I have found those fish gorging on plentiful bait and hard to get triggered. instead of spending large amounts of time trying to catch fish that are laying there with full bellies in the dark I would slide back out off the drop and targeted the highest fish in the water column with successes.
What structure to look for
I tend to lean on shoreline related structure as the fall rolls in. More so a shoreline that has some deep water nearby with an adjacent flat that tapers up to shore. I look for a flat that is at least a couple hundred feet wide that is in those 5-10 feet ranges with 30 feet + right alongside of it. Door Countys east shore is full of areas like this from south of little sturgeon all the way up to the tip of the peninsula. A sharp drop off or break will give those suspending fish a wall to trap bait fish next to and typically has a good current associated with it bringing in nutrient and oxygen rich waters attracting bait and game fish.
It's not uncommon to find all sorts of game fish out in the deep waters in these areas. On one charter we had 2 muskie several big pike along with our walleyes.
After the sun goes down break out your headlamps if its calm and clear start looking for those fish. Don't be afraid to look way up shallow. Last week I caught fish in 2 feet right along the shore!
Speed can be a big factor as the temps drop more and more through the fall. SLOW IT DOWN. Don't be afraid to drop down to 1mph or just a little under just remember to give your rods a slight tug when going really slow to get that hook set in but not too much!
Trophy size fish
As it gets later in the season the bigger female fish start to become very regular and it becomes easier to get that next trophy walleye! Please keep in mind that this fishery is something we want to preserve for many years to come and with these bigger fish being vulnerable try to be selective on what you are keeping. Try and let those bigger female fish go to spawn.
We run charters until the ice comes in so if you're in the mood to brave the cold weather fall into early winter can be a fantastic time to get your trophy Green Bay Walleye!
All in all slow things down, dont overlook the deep water and find those shallow feeding flats. Fall is just like spring. You will find all of your favorite spring spots will hold fall eyes as well.
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