"Think outside the box" is a phrase that is used a lot in today's fishing world. To watch a fishing show today one can easily be convinced that the next bait they should throw is a spaceship with hooks. The average angler could be up late at night trying to reinvent the wheel staring at their tackle box and be undecided about what to try next. At LOA we understand the need for variety and change; nuances and tweaking, but really sometimes we need to just find fish and be more active in our pursuit. We tend to favor phrases like, "time honored" or "battle tested", baits or techniques that have endured the test of time because of their effectiveness.
An LOA client with a nice walleye.
One approach that falls into this category is fishing walleyes with Lindy rigs. Invented decades ago by the Lindner's, tweaked by hordes anglers along the way; the Lindy rig is still here today and still catching fish. Being around so long, used by so many people, what else could there be to talk about? Well, FLW Pro and Leisure Outdoor Adventures Co-Owner, Toby Kvalevog has indeed added his own nuance and changed it a bit, but still kept the time honored design the same but made it more effective.
First let's talk equipment; line, rod and reel. Line, a good braided line is paramount to the program and attach to that a quality fluorocarbon leader. The reel should be something that is smaller in size to increase sensitivity and that pairs well with your rod of choice. Rods, the key to the whole thing, so don't skimp here. Pick a rod with a fast or extra fast tip that maximizes sensitivity but absorbs some of the tattling ability a no stretch line will have. Jason Mitchell Elite Series spinning rods both the 7' and 7' 6" are fine choices in the regard. The length and the fast tips will also allow you to get the bait away from the boat and adjust to depths changes that come with fishing drop-offs and underwater points. Lastly the hook, for minnows and crawlers, Toby recommends a wide gap hook ranging from size 1/0 for bigger chub minnows to #2 for shiners and smaller minnows; for Crawlers go down as small as #4 hook. With Leeches, Kvalevog suggests the #8 Octopus style hook to allow the leech to move freely in the water.
Now that we have the equipment taken care of, let's talk about how to put it all together. With rigging, boat control is the variable that will separate average from good anglers and good from tournament pros like Kvalevog. As evidenced by his two FLW wins on classic rigging lakes Cass and Leech lake, Kvalevog is a maestro where boat control is concerned. Backtrolling in 3-4 foot rollers, he utilizes his transom trolling motor to keep himself in position to put fish in the boat. Once over fish Toby said he tries to keep his line 45 deg or less, "I lift and pull my sinker closer to me, slowly drop it down and pause until my line is tight from the boat moving away (line returns to original angle) then repeat". Kvalevog noted that it was often during the pause when the fish would bite. When Toby finds that school of fish he will use the lift and drop method to go through the school first to pick off the active fish. After that, he will then go back through and hover over some of the better fish to entice the more stubborn eyes into biting.
When you get that bite, feed it line like you would with typical Lindy rig fishing, shorter to start out, and adjust as necessary; when you know the walleye has the bait, point your rod tip in the direction of where the fishing was running. Make sure your rod tip is high, point a little upward and start reeling quickly, watch as that tip loads (bends toward the water), keep reeling quickly until you feel that fish. When you feel the fish, you can just reel as you normally would and let the rod, reel and drag do the work for you. Gone are the days where after you feel the bite, you close the bail, reel a little, try to feel the fish, reel a little more, etc. All this does is allow the fish detect you at some point along the way. With Toby's system of utilizing quality no-stretch line and a good rod and reel, you will miss far less fish. This system is perfect for novice fisherman as it eliminates any and all guess work about when to "set the hook". One simply needs to feed the fish line, close the bail and start reeling, it's that simple! Be aware when trying anything new, it will take some getting used to but be patient and trust your equipment.
When guiding this past summer for LOA I had a client out on Leech Lake and he refused to try what I was teaching him. Finally after the score was 4-0 in favor of me, he tried and was successful. Not only did he hook more fish but I had hooked another client on modern Lindy rig fishing! For more tips from fishing pro Toby Kvalevog contact him at tobyk@leisureoutdooradventures.com.
