Handlining wins Detroit River, Best leader knots, Reel wrong handed rant 😵

Given the tough conditions (extremely cold and dirty water) Paul decided hunkering down in areas that held fish would be the best use of his time – instead of running around with lines out of the water. He focused on 15-30' breaklines in the Trenton channel that a lot people overlooked since they were only about a half mile from takeoff at Elizabeth Park Marina.

He was using a technique called "handlining" that was actually designed on the Detroit River to fight the current. This throwback write-up does an incredible job of breaking down what handlinging is and how folks do it:

Basically your arm is the rod and your hand is the drag. Sending down a massive weight (up to 1 or 2 lbs!) to the bottom and running crankbaits off leads so you know exactly where your crankbait is running and keeping it in the strike zone the entire time.

Few specifics Paul had to say about his winning presentation in the NWT Insider Report:

> "You have to present your baits where the fish are. A lot of people can go out and handline but not catch anything. Well, there's variable reasons for that, but I think people don't usually look at how you can use it to put your bait right in the fish's mouth.

> "You have to rig your leads up right on your rigs. Just because there are places on your leads to put your lines doesn't mean you'll be in the zone to catch the walleye that you're targeting. When you're going slow like I was (0.8-1.0 mph) your baits won't dive to where the fish are. So I used a lighter weight on my handline and put my leads lower on my shank. I busted a couple bills off some baits, but hey, I caught some big fish too."

While others downsized their cranks because of the conditions, Paul upsized because he figured "big, pre-spawn females would want a bigger meal to make it worth their while," and clearly he wasn't wrong!

He was running the biggest #11 (4-3/8") and #13 (5-1/4") Rapala Original Floaters in stock colors – said anything with chartreuse or orange, and bleeding hot olive:

Get this: All top-3 teams were handlining with Rapala Original Floaters. 🤯

*Alexa, add to cart* LOL

One more snippet from Paul:

> "I can't be happier, this is pretty amazing. I do want to thank the people of the Downriver Walleye Federation here in Detroit. The organization is top-notch and full of some really good and nicest guys around. I was a member for so many years as a tournament director and I met so many guys and learned so much about how to catch walleye on the river and Lake Erie. I can't be thankful enough for those guys."

BIG congrats on the win, Paul! 👏👏👏 Seriously impressive.

There's a PILE of options out there for what I like to call "joiner" knots = connecting your mainline to a fluorocarbon leader. I came across this post on The Technological Angler's FB page taking a look at the pros and cons of his favorite, the Alberto Knot:

> "This is a very easy knot to tie and in my hands, is very strong - to the point that some other link in my tackle chain always seems to fail before this knot when dealing with a snag, a foul-hooked giant carp, or some other fishing catastrophe.

> "On the minus side, it's not the most compact knot available, so it does click through the rod guides on the cast. This causes the knot to wear down (I probably retire once or twice a day to keep it fresh) and likely costs me a few percent on my casting distance.

> "...the pluses outweigh the minuses, so the Alberto knot is where I tend to land."

I've heard good things about the Alberto, but haven't personally tried it yet. Time to play!

Gotta admit I've always been a big Double-Uni Knot guy because it's the fastest for me to tie on the water + hasn't let me down yet.

Only issue I have with it is the tag ends can catch in the spool if you're doing leaders longer than about 7' or 8', so I typically won't run them any longer than that. But I'm stubborn and have a tough time switching to anything else with how quickly I can crank out a Double Uni – literally can tie it with my eyes closed:

All that said, there are definitely times when running a longer fluorocarbon leader is a must. I've seen 20-25' leaders being the deal on ultra-clear lakes such as Mille Lacs. If you're wanting to run 'em longer than that, I'd just spool up the whole rig with fluoro....

From everything I have heard the best "joiner" knot for longer leaders is called the FG Knot, because it has a super slim, streamlined profile. It's also one of the strongest ones out there. BUT the first time you take a crack at one you'll feel like you need to be a rocket scientist to pull it off lol:

No matter which hand you reel with, someone will always call you out for using the "wrong" hand, reeling backwards, being a southpaw, whatever you wanna call it. So I wondered: Is there a "right" way?

Did a quick poll over on Facebook to see what people thought:

• (37%) Switch hands depending if it's a spinning reel or baitcaster

• (34%) Reel left-handed

• (29%) Reel right-handed

That's dang near an even split. Does that mean everyone's wrong? And if anyone isn't right, wouldn't it be the people that switch hands and do both??

That'd be like writing left-handed with pencils, but right-handed with markers 'cuz they're beefier? Or shooting lefty with a .22, but switching to righty when you use a shotgun?? Never did understand the switching thing – most people that do it can't explain how they got started with it lol.

What it all comes down to is just doing what feels comfortable to you...unless it's this:

BUT don't let all the strange and ever-changing regs keep you from making a roadtrip to fish "The Big Pond." There's a TON of quality fish in the system if you're into catching and not just fishing....

2. MN biologist says electronics not a "threat" to walleye population.

> "...there is little evidence suggesting an impending problem. As to fishing pressure, boats and electronics, I don't think boats or electronics are fundamentally all that different from 20 years ago. The biggest angling changes happened from the 1960s to 1980s...."

Full Q&A here talking about the proposed walleye limit cut.

3. Dusty Minke partners with Two Brothers Innovations.

Makers of Elliott and 2B Fishing rods. Btw Dusty just took another top 10 in the last NWT – guy can catch 'em!

4. Tom Boley launched a new fishing app.

Called "Walleye Now" that's loaded with 130+ videos that haven't been released before. Sounds like you choose the time of year + type of water you're fishing = it kicks out content to help you catch a limit of tasties. I haven't had the chance to dive into it yet, hopefully soon, but there's more info here:

5. MN: Hey Twin Cities folks....

Twin Cities Walleyes Unlimited is having guide Matt Klug speak at their Thurs, Apr 7 meeting.

6. Otter is accepting pro-staff applications for the '22-'23 szn.

7. Alexandra Cattelan = new CTO for Brunswick.

Brunswick owns Lund, Merc, MotorGuide, Lowrance, etc.

> "...will be responsible for continuing to advance Brunswick's ACES strategy and, more generally, for maintaining Brunswick's position of technology leadership in the marine industry.

> Cattelan has more than three decades of experience leading electric propulsion and advanced mobility programs and organizations, most recently serving as Vice President, Engineering, Connected, Controls, Electrification and Autonomous Systems for Polaris Industries."

8. Ice fishing: Great video breakdown...

...on reading the "dead zone" on your flasher or fish finder. Basically the bottom couple feet on the screen (usually on steep breaks) where you can't see your bait or the fish:

How to catch late-ice crappies you can't graph.

If you're still crazy enough to be sneaking out on the hard stuff, the ~~fishing~~ catching can be downright amazing. Panfish will make a break for shallows when the water starts to run back into the holes during a melt. Here's how Jason Mitchell catches crappies you probably don't even know are there, unless you're watching down your hole:

> Often those fish will be suspended just under the ice where they won't even show up on your electronics. Too often anglers get in the habit of dropping their bait right down to the bottom and right past these fish.

> Crappies may come in so high that they actually need to roll sideways to hit the bait to avoid bumping into the ice above. This is one of the best opportunities you're going to get for aggressively feeding crappies each winter.

> Target these high-riders by fishing them from the top down – using a long rod to dip the bait just 1-2′ under the ice before you move on, never needing to touch the reel in-between holes.

> I like to fish horizontal jigs and longer-profile soft plastics this time of year so that they glide and swim like a small minnow vs quivering like an insect or invertebrate.

> Slide the Palomar knot towards the jig – which goes against everything you've read. But causes the jig to really dart and slide out more on the stroke.

One of Jason's favorites is the Clam Drop-Kick Jig. No matter which tungsten jig you're using, it's important to make sure they're tuned, just like you would a crankbait in the open water.

Thanks again for the info, Jason!

Brett McComas is the main man for Target Walleye He was discovered in Brainerd, MN after years of wondering how in the heck people break into the fishing biz. He's in it now, but still can't answer that question.... Brett is one of those guys who majored in marketing, only because there was no such thing as a "fishing degree" at the time.... Get him at brett@targetwalleye.com

To send us walleye pics, ice shots or whatever, just respond to this email or click here to email us. Or post it on the Target Walleye Facebook page.

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