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 Fall Walleye Fishing on a Lake within a River System
By Sam Anderson

Fish activity is changing at this time of year.  Largemouth bass begin to form larger schools and start feeding voraciously.  Northern pike move in from larger schools and start feeding from their deep open-water locations and actively cruise weed flats.  And walleyes shake off their summer doldrums and begin to enter shallower feeding waters. When the ducks begin to fly down the river, all but a few-diehards hand in their fishing rods in favor of shotguns.  But if you’re interested in a trophy walleye, that’s a mistake.  In a normal year, most of the 8-pound plus walleyes taken in river system are caught in October into November.  The big ones turn on in early October as they begin moving from their summertime haunts upriver toward the dam.  They’ll frequent rocky spots along the way.  You can follow their progress by watching
fishing reports.  During the first part of October, most of the big ones are taken at a staging area well below the dam. This area could be a barrier area or a large hole that keeps fish until it is time to move on.   By mid-October, the best reports are from the central portion of
the lake.  Key places are spots like the rock bars, gravel points, weed edges, and wing dams.  As the water temperatures cools, the summertime baits like willow cats and nightcrawlers lose their effectiveness and white or yellow jigs or shiner minnows produce the best results.  Don’t be afraid to try shallow water either in October and November.  My best
catches at this time of the year have been in water from 4 to 8 feet deep.  I’ve also had tremendous success with a fluorescent orange jigging  fishing current breaks and transitional zones along rocky points and contour edges. Just as during the spring and summer months, the weedbeds will still be a key location for the fish, as long as the weeds are still green.  Just as you worked the weedbeds in the summer months, seek out and
concentrate on points, turns, pockets, and other changes in the weedline.  Especially notice where rocks meets the weed edges as the temperature drops.  The fish will be near rocky weed edges due to the rocks being more dense and holding heat longer. These rocks will also attract baitfish, especially rocky shorelines, as this is where the fall spawning baitfish will spawn.  An example of prime sauger fishing in Lake Pepin on the Mississippi River.  This fishing starts in mid-September and continues to be hot into October.  Large sauger concentrations build up in the upper end of the lake prior to their migration to the Red Wing Dam.  Best areas include rock shorelines, riprap, and large flats in the upper regions of
the river.  Jigs are especially effective in the fall, with 1/8 ounce yellow or chartreuse  Fuzzy Grubs, are my best choice. With the cool weather of fall all that we know is that winter is not far behind.  The leaves are beginning to turn colors and the birds and ducks are on the wing.  The call of the fields and the woods are sirens to many an outdoorsman. The angling pressure is no longer present and the fish must feed in order to store fat for the winter.  The boat should remain out and ready for the warm, "Indian summer days" to come, and you should head for any lake/river combination to and catch a few of those monster walleyes and sauger