The walleye caught in Michigan’s inland waters are going to range from barely legal 15-inch fish to somewhat heftier fish in the 18- to 20-inch range.
A good deal of Michigan’s top walleye destinations enjoy an open year around fishing season. Great Lakes waters in the Lower Peninsula and Great Lakes Connecting Waters, including the Detroit River, St. Clair River and Lake St. Clair, are all open to walleye fishing year-round. The lower Saginaw River from the mouth at Bay City upstream to the Center Street/Douglas Street Bridge is also open to fishing year-round.
Other inland waters, however, are a different story. The walleye fishing season closes on March 15 and doesn’t re-open until the last Saturday in April in the Lower Peninsula and May 15 in the Upper Peninsula. These inland water fishing regulations aim to give walleye a break during late winter and early spring, when spawning activity peaks.
A few of Lower Michigan’s most noteworthy inland walleye fishing destinations include the Muskegon River downstream of Croton Dam, the Tittabawassee River downstream of Midland to the Gordonville Launch, Muskegon Lake, especially the area where the Muskegon River pours out of the lake, Houghton Lake and up at the tip of the mitt, the big three known as Burt, Black and Mullet Lakes.
All of these bodies of water offer fishing enthusiasts an opportunity to target walleye without the necessity of owning a tournament-style boat. Each of these fisheries are readily accessible in a modest 14 to 16-foot aluminum fishing boat equipped with basic fishing essentials.
INLAND RIVERS
Both the Muskegon River and the Tittabawassee River enjoy solid runs of walleye during March and early April. When the fishing season opens on the last Saturday in April, most of the larger female fish will have spawned and left the river system, but significant numbers of smaller “eating-sized” males remain behind throughout April and early May.
The Muskegon River is a clear water fishery, better known as a steelhead and trout stream than a walleye fishery. In late April, the deeper holes can, however, load up with post-spawn walleye looking for an easy meal.
Anglers can target these fish by anchoring at the top of the hole and back-bouncing jigs downstream into the deeper sections of the hole. A jig tipped with a live minnow or half a nightcrawler produces the majority of the fish at this time of year.
Anglers also anchor in the shallow adjacent flats, side casting either a small jig or a split shot rig to the holes. In this instance, cast quartering upstream and let the current roll the bait downstream near bottom. Use just enough weight to reach the bottom. If after making a few casts no fish are caught, pull up and try working a different hole.
The Tittabawassee River could not be more different than the Muskegon River. The upstream waters from Midland down to the Gordonville public access site are mostly shallow flats and the water is heavily stained.
Pitching jigs tipped with half a nightcrawler or jigs dressed in soft plastics produces the lion’s share of the fish. Casting jerkbaits is another option to consider. Small jerkbaits like the Rapala X-Rap series can be very productive, especially when fishing after dark.
Downstream from the Gordonville launch to the Center Street Bridge, anglers will find lots more shallow flats with a few isolated deeper holes. Drifting downstream, dragging jigs tipped with crawlers is a popular tactic for dredging up walleye. Small crankbaits like Berkley Flicker Shads can also be trolled slowly upstream and downstream in the deeper flats and holes.
MUSKEGON LAKE
Post-spawn walleye are caught on Muskegon Lake near the Muskegon River mouth at the east end of the lake. Both the North and South Channels hold fish at this time of year. Trolling stickbaits with the help of in-line planer boards is a popular presentation.
This fishery is short-lived as the post-spawn females exit the river immediately after spawning. Smaller male fish make up the majority of the catch.
HOUGHTON LAKE
Houghton Lake, located in Roscommon County, is Michigan’s largest inland lake. This well-known walleye fishery has seen a lot of ups and downs over the years. Currently, Houghton Lake is enjoying a solid population of walleye, according to biologist Mark Tonello of the Michigan DNR Fisheries Division.
Houghton Lake is a shallow body of water characterized by lots of weed-covered flats and a few deeper areas where weed growth isn’t established. The trick to fishing Houghton Lake is learning the deeper weed flats in 8 to 12 feet of water, where weeds are present but not so dense as to prevent trolling.
The majority of Houghton Lake walleye are caught trolling small crankbaits, including Berkley Flicker Shads and Rapala Shad Raps set to dive just deep enough to tick the tops of emerging cabbage weed. Spreading out lures using in-line planer boards helps to cover more water.
Walleye are also caught flat-line trolling stickbaits such as the Rapala Husky Jerk 10, Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnow and Storm Jr. Thunderstick. These baits can be weighted using a few small split shot to get them a little deeper. Long steelhead-style rods are used to spread out lures at the back of the boat.
Flat-line trolling crawler harnesses are another popular tactic for targeting Houghton Lake walleye. A 1/8 to 1/4 bullet sinker is threaded onto the main line, then a crawler harness with a No. 1, 2, or 3 sized Colorado blade is added. The bullet sinker does a good job of pulling through the weed cover, but the hooks on the harness must be modest-sized No. 4 octopus style to keep snags to a minimum.
Floating attractors, like Yakima Bait Spin n Glo bodies, are often used in place of traditional metal Colorado blades. The Spin n Glo will spin and give off flash at slower speeds than is possible trolling blades.
Staggering lines by using short, medium and long spinning rods works to cover water efficiently. Crappie-style panfish rods work well for this style of fishing. Using eight, 10 and 12-foot rods, a nice spread can be set up. The new Meal Ticket crappie rods produced by Eagle Claw are ideal for this style of flat-line trolling.
BURT, MULLET, BLACK
Affectionately known as the big three, Burt, Black and Mullet Lakes, located at the tip of the Lower Peninsula, are three of Michigan’s most consistent walleye lakes. The water clarity in all three of these lakes is clear to lightly stained.
Walleye in the spring are found on deep-water mud flats and along emerging weed edges that taper into deeper water. Trolling small crankbaits along the weed edges is a good starting point. The best times to fish are the first and last hours of daylight, and at night. Walleye hunt along these weed edges, but the clear water makes for very spooky fish.
The deeper mud flats hold good numbers of fish that can typically be caught more consistently during daylight hours. Bottom bouncer and spinner combinations that are drifted or slow trolled produce the most action. Harnesses featuring No. 2 or 3 Colorado or Indiana style blades produce consistently when pulled just fast enough to get the blade rotating.
Walleye on these mud flats are feeding on mayfly larvae (wigglers) that burrow out of the bottom mud and swim to the surface, where they emerge as adult mayflies. The best fishing occurs in the weeks prior to a major mayfly hatch, when walleye have stacked up in numbers anticipating this feeding bonanza.
SUMMING IT UP
The last Saturday in April may not be an official holiday, but for those anglers who enjoy targeting walleye on inland waters, this calendar date is worth bookmarking. The end of April and the month of May are prime times to find fast action for inland waters walleye. A small boat, some basic fishing gear and commonly used presentations are all that’s needed to cash in on the fun. The fish that come to the net aren’t going to be wall hangers, but they will grace a frying pan and that’s what spring walleye fishing is all about.
