Let’s face it — not all walleye lakes are created equal! Some are blessed with thick, mile-long schools of gravel lizards, while others are spartan to say the least. Unfortunately, not everyone gets to fish on the top walleye factories every day. That’s why we made this video with Joel Nelson, to help those of you fishing the fisheries that are average at best.

Walleye Lakes: Strategies for Catching Walleye on “Bad” Lakes

I think the best advice I could give anybody to catching more walleyes on a body of water that doesn’t have a ton of them in them is to fish during the right times.

In a majority of these walleye lakes that don’t have a large population, there isn’t going to be a great day bite. So focus on key bite windows in the early morning or late at night even past dark.

You are also going to have to focus your efforts seasonally.

Generally the best time of year is going to be spring time when the walleyes will be moving shallower and they’re more active and concentrated.

Some key areas to focus are along the weedlines and on any type of brake structural elements. Any inflows or outflows on the lake will also be a point worth fishing.

I think the second piece of advice I could give you is to check lots of spots with your electronics. DOn’t be afraid to spend an afternoon scanning to better understand the layout of the lake. Look for any bottom transitions and for any submerged structure.

Check areas that might get overlooked by other anglers.

On these walleye lakes that tend to have low populations of walleye it is your goal to find the areas where other people aren’t. So often one of the main reasons there’s not as many walleyes in these lakes is because it’s a highly competitive situation.

Other people are fishing for the same fish you are and there’s just not enough of them to go around.

Taking time with your electronics to find those little details in the spots and then fishing during those key times of the year will help you excel on bodies of water with lower population of walleyes.