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Fishing for Walleye on Lake St. Clair and the Detroit River is not an easy task. It takes the right mind set, the right equipment and a whole lot of common sense. If you are thinking of trying to fish Detroit River for Walleye as well as other species, check out this great article by our own Derek Laporte. Whether you are just a beginner or a seasoned pro, you will find useful information in this article.
JIGGING THE MIGHTY DETROIT RIVER FOR WALLEYE For as long as people have lived on the Detroit River, the most sought after freshwater game-fish in North America, the Walleye, has been flourishing here. In 2006 the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources reported a whopping sixty million walleye in the Detroit River and Lake Erie. 
This species is named after its uniquely large, cloudy eyes. The eyes of this species are extremely light-sensitive, and although walleye tolerate a wide range of environmental conditions, they do best in large, shallow, turbid lakes. Walleye avoid the light, and in lakes that are clear, walleye inhabit deeper waters and feed at sunrise, sunset and during the night. A closely related species of fish called the blue walleye, formerly inhabited Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. Sadly this species was heavily over-fished to the point of extinction. The abundance of these fish in our river system makes it easy for anyone with a little instruction to have many successful days of fishing throughout the season. My intention throughout this article will be to share with you my knowledge and personal experience jigging the river. So let’s get started! First and foremost safety is always top priority! Planning your trip. The Mighty Detroit River can be your best friend one day, and your worst enemy the next. Planning ahead is essential to having a safe successful day on the water. Keeping your eye on the forecast is very important. Thunderstorms can roll-up out of nowhere. I’ve been out on the calmest of days having a great time and within a matter of minutes the sky to the West turned pitch black. If that happens to anyone, the best advice I can give is pack-up and get off the water as quickly as possible. Wind forecasts are the most crucial part of your planning. There are three parts of the river that are affected differently by various wind directions. 1). Between Lake St. Clair and the Western tip of Belle Island favorable wind conditions are predominant North and South winds. East or West winds exceeding 15 mph can produce significant waves. Four footers with white caps are not uncommon throughout this stretch of the river. 2). Between Lake Erie and the Eastern tip of Fighting Island the most favorable wind conditions are predominant East and West winds. North and South winds here can also produce some extremely rough water. Last but not least, 3). The stretch between Fighting Island and Belle Island. This can be the most dangerous spot on the river regardless of the wind direction. Because of the sharp t urn in the river, strong winds tend to push large waves around the bend in the river .In turn these waves will bounce off the adjacent sea-wall’s and proceed to crash into the waves coming from a completely different direction. This can, and usually does create a dangerous cross-chop. The final step in planning safe day on the river is to study your charts. Navigational marine charts are not usually found in the storage compartment of the average fishing boat. The general consensus is that these charts are normally found on a pleasure-craft type boat. This is a false statement as navigating charts if read properly can put you precisely on any sub-marine point, hump, or hole. Not only are they useful for locating bottom transitions to find fish, but at the southern portion of the river, the deeper channels can be tricky to navigate in any larger size boat. I’ve been in this position myself. One minute you’re in Thirty feet of water, blink and you’re in three. A well planed trip on the Detroit River is a safer trip on the Detroit River. Locating the fish. Finding fish on the Detroit River is generally easy during the months of April thru the end of June. I’m not going to complicate this any more than it needs to be. If you know the river, you have your favorite spots. If you don’t, you can find Walleye pretty much everywhere. There isn’t a spot on the river that doesn’t hold fish during these months. Generally anglers hug the shorelines as there seems to be a little more rock structure there. Just look for the boats and follow their drift. The key is to be courteous and not fish too closely to another boat. It’s a great big river and there is no need to crowd another angler's space. Getting set up. There are many tackle options to choose from. Various weights and shapes for jig-head’s. Live-baits such as minnows, worms, and leeches. Plastic baits such as twister-tails or soft plastic crawlers, Gulp baits, or my personal favorite, Finn S minnows. I personally recommend a bait that closely resembles a natural baitfish such as a minnow, as this is what Walleye naturally will feed on year round. You will need a quality medium-action rod with your choice of spinning reel or bait-caster. 4-6lb Fireline is my personal preference for a quality fishing line. No-stretch super-lines make it easier to feel light strikes. These lines also provide the strength you will need to boat a monster fish if you hook into one. Jig color depends on the water clarity. Often there will be distinct mud-lines that can be very productive when jigging right along side of them. Bright colors such as chartreuse and orange are used in murkier water. Subtle colors such as white, blue, black, or even a plain lead jig-head are usually more productive when the water is very clear. Another big help for me when the water is very clear has been to use a fluorocarbon leader. Fish are less likely to take the bait when your line is visible. Leaders should be a minimum twelve inches. The river varies in depths ranging from two feet all the way down to fifty feet with the average depth somewhere in the 35 foot range. The current can range from five to seven mph. If you’re a newcomer and are not familiar with the technique of vertical jigging, I would suggest a heavier jig-head to help you fell the bottom. AS you become a more experienced jigger you can lighten-up if you want to. I know people who use nothing but 1oz jigs. Some of these guys have been fishing the river longer than me but it makes it that much easier to stay vertical. I will get into staying vertical in the next section. I generally use a ½ oz or 5/8 ounce ball jig with a variety of minnow-imitating soft-plastic baits. Let's go fishin! So you’ve found you’re spot and ready to get started. Wind vs. current play key roles in staying vertical. Staying vertical is keeping your jig directly underneath you at the same speed as the boat drift. Sounds easy right? Only if you’ve done it before. The key factor is always the wind. Wind will almost always overpower current on the Detroit River. I generally look for flagpoles on shore to determine exactly how to position the boat begin my drift. I fish from a14ft aluminum with a 15hp outboard. No electric. When I stop the boat I point my transom directly into the wind and slide into neutral. Now the motor only needs to idle until you’re ready to run back for another drift. Let out a few feet of line and watch your jig. Now is the time to determine your drift speed and direction. Your boat will be dominated by the wind, but your jig will always go with the current. Now pay attention! Open your bail and start letting your jig drop to the bottom. This is where most people get into trouble right off-the-bat. You need to watch your line carefully to know when you’re on the bottom. The second your line hits the bottom, flip your bail and start snapping your line in a vertical motion keeping constant contact with bottom. If you let out too much line, you will never feel your jig bouncing off the bottom, only dragging. Then you’ll spend the next ten minutes trying to find it again. When this happens, just burn it back to the surface and take another run at it. The key is to watch your line at all times. If your line is drifting faster than the boat, slide the motor into reverse until the boat catches up. All the while, keeping your eye on your line. One hand on the motor, one hand with your jigging stick. When using a bow-mount power source, the methods remain the same. The only difference is you keep the bow into the wind. Drift and jig the area you want. At any sign of resistance on your rod-tip, set the hook without hesitation. I’ve missed many, many hook-sets when not paying attention. Ask any experienced Detroit River angler and he’ll tell you that focus is another key element in having a successful day on the river. I have only one last piece of advice for anyone out there who is new to this area. Bring an ample supply of gear. Extra rod, lot’s of jigs and a variety of colors. The mighty Detroit River has some extremely rocky structure down in its depths. Be prepared to lose some jigs. And be prepared to catch some fish. I’ve been jigging for Walleye on this river for20 years. I hope that my experience and knowledge of this great river can help you to put more fish in the boat, more pictures on your walls, and more delicious meals on your tables. After all… Who doesn’t like walleye? Thanks for reading, CASTMASTER.
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