On most every walleye lake I ice fish, there is a dependable walleye bite just as the light goes down. It might go for 15 minutes and sometimes it can last an hour or more, so rare is the day I pull up stakes and head home before the light has gone. To make the most of this opportunity it really pays to be ready for it before it starts, and by that I mean drilling holes from deep to shallow and a good number of them. If there are a few of us fishing, I’ll usually have in the neighbourhood of a couple dozen holes drilled. That way I will make contact with the walleye in the deeper holes as the bite starts up, and I can follow them in by hopping from hole to hole as they push into the shallow to eat. I will stay on a hole until the bite tapers, then I am quick to move to my shallower holes and the action will usually pick right back up.
Staying Late put us into lots of walleye.
Low light equals prime time.
If there are a few of you, you can take turns hopping holes and usually one or two of you will always be on the fish. When it comes to bait, I am a traditionalist, and I have never really had the need to change. I drop down a quarter ounce, or an eighth ounce jig tipped with a minnow and I thump it on bottom a few times to get the attention of nearby fish, then I slowly lift. That’s when I usually get my hits. To increase the length of the bite, I’ve started using glow jigs and I really believe it has increased my catch, plus I have certainly noticed an increase in the incidental burbot catch too. Fish bite great at low light, especially walleye, so plan to be on the lake when the light is low and I expect your fishing will be quite good.
A glow jig tipped with a minnow gets a lot of evening walleye.