It’s called the “one two punch” when ice fishing. Jigging one line and deadsticking or basically a live minnow under a bobber on the other. The jigging line attracts walleyes and if they are somewhat active, there is a good chance they will whack whatever is being jigged. In some cases, when walleyes turn to more of a neutral mood, the deadstick can be the hottest stick in the fish house. Success with a deadstick isn’t just about hanging a live minnow under a bobber. By really paying attention and dialing in some nuances, the deadstick will turn into your hot stick.

Traditional Deadstick 

The most common set up is a plain hook or ice jig with a live minnow hooked just under the dorsal fin under a bobber set at about a foot off of the bottom. This set up catches a lot of walleyes, but when the fish are not reacting very well to this presentation, mix it up.

Raise It Up

After dozens of hours watching fish react to my presentations on my Vexilar, there is one behavior I have seen that is somewhat consistent. At times when I would set my rod down just for a moment to do something else, with my lure a few feet off of the bottom and out of that proverbial “strike zone” which I know as a foot or less off of the bottom, I would watch a walleye rise slowly off of the bottom to eat my suspended offering.

Walleyes are used to feeding up or even sliding up in the water column to catch minnows. Sometimes, it can be very effective and almost triggering to have your live minnow on your deadstick set higher up in the water column vs six inches to a foot off which is a normal starting spot for many anglers.

Color

Color absolutely makes a difference and can change from hour to hour based on forage, snow cover, cloud cover, and the angle of the sun. When you are fishing with others, try different colors until you figure out what the walleyes want that day. Small details such as the color of your hook can make a difference.

In stained water, gold, glow and bright colors are good bets. In clear water, silvers and more natural colors are a good starting point.

Deadstick Lures 

In addition to plain hooks combined with a minnow, there are a lot of effective ice jigs for deadsticking on the market. A plain jig head with a minnow will work but there are other options. The Jig-O-Bit uses a Kahle hook attached to a lead head in a variety of colors. With a live minnow, it hangs nicely. The demon is a well-known crappie bait but in larger sizes does well for walleyes and saugers. Something about that lure just works.

There are definitely a lot of options. Some deadstick baits have propellers, small spinners, UV glow paint, glitter, rattles, single hook, treble hooks, etc. Again, experiment until you find out the preference that day or for that particular body of water.

Good electronics really helps the process of deciding to change lures. If fish are coming through and not reacting positively to your offering, it is time to change things up. Without electronics, it would be hard to know if the fish are not reacting or if the fish are even there.

Change The Flavor 

Walleyes can be particular. One day they prefer fatheads, the next day it has to be emerald shiners, on other days, a good rainbow will do the trick. The trick here is have at least a couple of different options of minnows and try and have both options down in the same fish house if you are fishing with a partner or two. The walleyes will tell you what they prefer that day and eventually everyone can hone in.

I recall a day on the ice when the fish were very inactive. It just so happened my cousin had some freeze-dried wax worms he had purchased on clearance years back in his tackle bag. He had never used them before and decided to add one to a small spoon. While hardly moving the bait, walleyes and saugers were picking it up despite their neutral mood. There are times throughout the winter walleyes and saugers will be feeding on critters in the mud. This was probably one of those times.

Another interesting nuance related to bait was a day in a fish house with a buddy who was using a glow hook with a shiner and catching most of the walleyes. The ticket was, he using dead shiners vs live. For whatever reason, the walleyes and saugers wanted dead bait that day. Paying attention and changing things up even just subtly, can make a big difference.

Size Does Matter

Size can relate to the ice jig you are using. At times, walleyes will prefer something larger as it is a bigger target, acts differently, displaces more water and makes more noise. A larger jig can also have a different action as the minnow cannot roam as freely. Larger lures allow you to bang it on the bottom which can cause the fish to become active.

Other times, they want small. Maybe it’s their mood, maybe what they are feeding on. Regardless, it’s about us as anglers noticing and tweaking our offerings to what the fish want.

Size also matters when considering bait. Some days the fish prefer a larger minnow. On other days, especially when in a neutral mood, they prefer a very small minnow. There have been many times when a crappie minnow is my most desired minnow amongst a bucket of larger minnows. The point is, experiment and figure out what the fish want that given day or even hour.

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Hook That Minnow

The most common way to hook a minnow is just under the dorsal fin. Another nuance is to clip off half of the tail of the minnow which changes the vibration of the swimming minnow. The minnow will also work harder to swim often enticing that finicky walleye.

Some anglers will hook the minnow through the mouth giving it a different look. Others will hook the minnow back by the tail but on the bottom or underbelly of the minnow. This causes the minnow to sit upside down in which they will work hard to upright themselves which can trigger a bite.

Remove The Bobber 

I can remember it like it was yesterday. It was many years ago on Lake of the Woods and we were fishing the late afternoon bite. One of the anglers fishing with me was a long time guide. Instead of using a bobber on his deadstick line, he had a fairly flexible tip on the end of his rod and would lay his rod over a bucket with the minnow set at the desired depth. Instead of watching the bobber which can be difficult to detect the light bites, the walleyes would lower his rod tip just the slightest bit. He would pick the rod up slowly, feel just a bit of weight and nail them.

The thought process is when the fish are just breathing on the minnow, the bobber isn’t as sensitive as a flexible rod tip. He out-fished the other two of us in the house that day with his deadstick alone. It made me wonder how many times a walleye gave me a chance on my bobber line and I didn’t notice. After that instance, I will lay my deadstick line over a five-gallon pail or on the floor next to me where I can see the tip move when a walleye or sauger breathes on it.

Deadsticks do not receive the attention the jigging line does. It’s often set and left alone. There are many days when a deadstick can be the most productive rod in the fish house. Paying attention to details and trying a variety of presentations will increase the number of walleyes and saugers pulled through the ice hole. It may not be as sexy as the jigging line, but on any given day, the deadstick can definitely be as productive.

Thanks to Joe Henry from the Lake of the Woods Tourism Bureau for this guest post.