Walleye

As summer begins to wind down and the season edges towar

Vertical: It is a double-edged sword when it comes to catching through-the-ice walleyes.

My partner Tom Ference flipped his

Pure Fishing Pro Mark Brumbaugh offers BPS 1Source a glimpse into his ample bag of tricks when it comes to catching walleyes.

With fall on its way and the water cooling down, I like to head to the river where walleyes and saugers will be strapping on the feedbag. One of my favorite presentations is pitching a light jig tipped with an artificial tail to rocky shorelines, wing dams and various other fish-holding structures.

To mention walleye is to think "northern climes." Millions of tourism dollars have traditionally flowed to the northern tier of states where walleye is king. However, in the last four decades, the traditional lines of walleye fishing have slipped southward. Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky and Tennessee have produced the four largest walleye on record, all over 21 pounds. Tennessee holds the big fish title with a whopping 25 pounder caught from Old Hickory Lake in 1960.

Tube jig

Autumn is a great time to target walleye. Generally speaking, fish are active and big ones are prowling and eager to eat.

Throughout much of the walleyes' home range, river systems provide a significant though somewhat polarized angling resource. Due to shifts in location driven by propagation needs, forage considerations, and current level and water temperature changes, consistently catching "here today, gone tomorrow" river walleyes is a challenge.

With the rapid approach of fall, water temperatures are dropping. And the walleyes will be biting.