If you're getting Target Walleye for the first time, a friend probably signed you up!
Today's Top 5
Red River teener caught!
Matt Cornell of Bruin Outfitting got himself an absolute UNIT to the tune of 14.48 lbs! The Red River, MB freakazoid went 31.5" long with a 21" girth. Here we go!
Not guesstimated – they hit it with the Rapala Touch Screen Scale. 🎯
Knowing that guy, it's probably not even his biggest lol. Congrats brotha!
Sloooow down for late-fall walleyes.
Still plenty of fish to be caught if you're willing to bundle up and sloooow down! No live bait needed.... 😏 This little weekend warm up is going to help extend our open-water opportunities around central MN, and I'll gladly welcome it!

I shot this video late last fall as a blizzard was rolling in. Water temps were in the mid-40s and I was targeting shallow rock transition areas (anywhere from 7-14β€²) where I'd expect to catch 'em first-ice. They were munching a 1/4-oz VMC Neon Moon Eye Jig paired with an AuthentX Ribb-Finn – here she be:
Had cameras running the whole time – something I've been trying to do more consistently all year. Know the video is a little long for some at 20-ish minutes, but I hope you enjoy it and pick up a few tips you can slap on your local waters. Oh, and I'm never shaving off my entire beard again...EVER haha:
Btw - thx SO much for watching and supporting the Target Walleye YouTube channel! πŸ™ It means a lot!! And the more views, clicks, comments and subscribers it gets...the more content I'll be able to kick out. πŸ‘Š
Wall-EYE pic of the year?! πŸ”₯
Okay, now Jake Billings is just showing off (lol)....
🀯 I mean seriously?!
Keep killing it, dude!
Fall crank trolling not about speed.
People get so focused on what exact mph they should be trolling at (I'm raising my hand) but John Hoyer will actually pay more attention to the feel of his baits rather than the GPS speed. That plus a few more quick-hitters in this vid from The Next Bite:
John is ALL about those new Berkley Hit Sticks for late-fall trolling...easy to see why:
Oh wait, that was an imposter Hoyer – his bro Andrew – I legit had to do a double-take. The "stunt double" landed his new PB wally (28" and 9.25 lbs) after John marked it on side imaging and they made 2 passes at her.

Here's the real Hoyer (no offense Andrew!) who also got in on the action:
> John: "The [Berkley Hit Stick] has a perfect roll and apparently a seductive rattle. The addicting part is how hard the fish bite these things, and the way they have it in their mouth when you land them...T-boned or completely choked is the standard look."

And it's safe to say Keith Kavajecz is all-in on the Hit Stick too. #StackedDeck
Good luck if you're sitting in a 🦌 stand this weekend!
Hope you've got your spot dialed-in like this:
News

In-store and online sales revenues grew another 4% year over year, reaching $3.9 bil! And it was the marine electronics category that grew the fastest, with revenue up 26% year over year.


Presented by the Brainerd Jaycees who also host the world's largest in-person ice fishing derby on MN's Gull Lake.

This new virtual tourney allows folks to fish all over the country and enter their catch thru the FishDonkey app for a crack at $67K+ in prizes. πŸ€‘


...in the "10th Annual 13 Fishing Pumpkin Carving Contest." Here's a look at the top-finishers!
Amazing. There were a pile of other great entries – I mean some serious effort! For sure worth taking a scroll down 13 Fishing's FB page to check 'em out.


Since Rapp is under 500 acres, the DNR doesn't stock it so:

> In the spring, the county's conservation dept asked the public for donations [of approx $1,500] to purchase walleye from the state hatchery to establish a population at the lake north of Shenandoah.

Goal = met βœ… and they recently dumped 500+ walleye between 6-8" long into the system.


Moved to new 205,000 sq ft distribution center in Stanford this fall. $15-mil project creating 60 full-time jobs for Kentuckians.

> …providing 1-stop purchasing for several thousand retailers of fishing products in 49 states and a few foreign countries, including all the major sporting goods chains such as Bass Pro Shops, Cabela's, Dick's and Walmart. It benefits from KY's logistically advantageous location to fulfill orders to the majority of customers in 1 or 2 days.


Moved operations to a bigger facility in Wadena. They make (among other things) those slick hybrid units that are a trailer + portable shack in one:

Both in Otter Tail County.


I ran the snot outta my StrikeMaster Lithium 24v last year and was super impressed! Think of it as a lightweight (6" weighs 13.3 lbs, and the 8" weighs 14.3 lbs) run-and-gun version of the already proven SM Lithium 40v.
That ^ compact unit is a new-last-season lightweight auger head combined with SM's popular Lite-Flite Lazer drill. Gets about 65 holes per charge with the 6" drill and 50 holes per charge with the 8" drill (based on 16" of ice). I bought an extra tank of gas for it and couldn't be happier.

You ever go to grab something you think is gonna be heavy and it ends up being WAY lighter than you expected? Like a moving box full of can koozies...grocery bag of paper towels...or maybe an empty suitcase.... The SM Lithium 24V has that same effect.
I almost feel bad about this...but I didn't even use my 40v last year until the end of Feb when there was 20"+ of ice!

Don't worry: The big-boy Lithium 40V isn't going anywhere. In fact they've even got a new Pro Lithium 40v Lite version out this year that comes standard with the Lite-Flite Lazer Drill Unit and has a beefy new 6-amp battery. The 8" will get you 'round 115 Holes thru 16" of ice. #MorePowerBaby


The Lund Fisherman is making a comeback. One of the most iconic boats in Lund's history – took a break for about a decade, and anglers missed it – so Lund is bringing it back in 2 models (1875 and 2075). Specifically designed for trolling BIG water.

I believe THE PROTECTOR Phone Tether 3.0 from Rogue Fishing was originally designed for in the kayak (?) but sure seems like it would come in handy while ice fishing.

On being named 2021 Clean Drain Dry Ambassador of the Year.


Bought it for $677 mil cash. #ChaChing


...found on stripers and sheepshead. 🀒
Headline of the Day
Tip of the Day

Couple quick (but great!) tips from Brett King in this video on The Next Bite's YouTube channel. Couple to save you, and another that will keep the next guy or gal from throwing expletives 🀬 your way:
Meme of the Day
This is either good or terrible news, depending just how crazy you are. Mother Nature can be such a tease:
Betcha most (non-casual) deer hunters are probably feeling the same way.
Parting Shot
No doubt #FishFlopFriday gets a whole lot scarier when the fish has meat to throw around – like this grip-n-grin from northern WI muskie guide Trevor Seis. 😱
Hope you have a great + safe weekend on the water or in the woods! ✌️
Sign up another fish-head!

If you're forwarding Target Walleye to a friend who loves to walleye-fish or want your fishing buddies to get these emails, just send us their email addresses and we'll take care of it! (We won't sell the addresses, use them for spam, etc.)
Check this stuff out!
Friends of Target Walleye
Who is Target Walleye

Target Walleye – walleye during open water and all species during hardwater – is brought to you by Al Lindner, Jim Kalkofen, Jay Kumar, Brett McComas and other diehard fish-heads like you!
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

ο»ΏTo 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.
 P.O. BOX 2782
Baxter, MN 56425
 (218) 824 5026