Northern Angler

Hello Everyone,

Fishing for walleyes after they've spawned can sometimes be very difficult but when conditions are just right, the post-spawn bite can be fantastic. The reason for this is that the Walleyes eat very little during the spawning period, the fish are famished, and this can be seen by their sunken bellies and their lack of size.

The reason is, walleyes bite like crazy a week or two before spawning, but once the spawn begins, the action comes to a sudden stop. The male’s have other things on their minds and the spawning leaves the females in a weakened condition and the bite picks up again a couple of weeks after the spawn ends as they are now moving towards their summer locations.

If you live in northern Alberta, environmental conditions can be a major contributing factor to your success to catch these post spawn walleye’s like a sudden cold snap like we had this week when it snowed so start by fishing the windy shoreline. 

A windswept shoreline will almost always produce more post-spawn walleyes than a protected shoreline-for a lot of reasons. The wind blows in plankton, which attracts minnows and, in turn, walleyes. The wind also roils the water, reducing light penetration and allowing walleyes to feed in the darker environment they prefer. And, if the sun is shining, the wind piles up the warmer surface water along the downwind shore, activating the food chain from the bottom.

So the next time your out in early spring trying to catch the post spawn walleyes and the wind is blowing give the windswept shoreline a try and see if you land more fish in the boat.

Clarence Wesloski

that would be good for Wally's on the fly.