Hey folks,
Quick question for anyone who may knows or has opinions.... I know that the walleye in Quinte like to suspend over deeper water but the majority of my walleye fishing is done on the back lakes in the Kingston area, i.e. the depots, wolfe, 30 island 14 island etc... My question is do the walleye suspend in these back lakes like they would in places like Quinte? I do mark a lot of fish over open water but never really targeted them, but rather fished the humps and shoals. Anyone have any luck or opinions on targeting suspended walleye in the back lakes?
thanks in advance,
Orrsey
back water walleye
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Pickerel Paul
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I would say no.
It depends, I think, on the forage. If you have smelt, alewives, herring, etc then, yeah, they might suspend.
But I think most "back" Lakes don't have the same food base as the larger "Open water" Lakes.
So having said that, then, after the fall turnover ,(mixing of the cool and warm water) most fish will probably relate to the bottom, and make feeding forays into shallower water, possibly in the latter part of the day.
It depends, I think, on the forage. If you have smelt, alewives, herring, etc then, yeah, they might suspend.
But I think most "back" Lakes don't have the same food base as the larger "Open water" Lakes.
So having said that, then, after the fall turnover ,(mixing of the cool and warm water) most fish will probably relate to the bottom, and make feeding forays into shallower water, possibly in the latter part of the day.
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eye-tracker
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Yup!
If the bait-fish (food source) suspend, so will the walleye. I have caught suspended walleye during July and August on most every body of water I have fished, even deep rivers. I will mention it is easier to target walleye that are relating to bottom structure than trying to pick them off out suspended in open basins. Somedays at 1pm in the afternoon walleye are suspended only 5 feet below the surface in 160 feet of water. 
-sheldon
-sheldon
Sheldon Hatch
Just a guy that likes to fish walleye
Just a guy that likes to fish walleye
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steve-hamilton
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walleyesummit
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ALL young of the year fish and baitfish suspend. Think about where their food is (plankton) during the day and you will find the bait and the fish. How many times have you looked over the side of the boat and seen minnows? I know I have.
So the simple answer is yes.... but these are walleye and they are not simple.
In most cases in-land fish suspend in relation to structure with transitions being the key feature. What I do is use my Lowrance set on double the depth and look for bottom transitions, while logging my chart so I can create a contour map later. Yellow is the strongest signal return and indicates the hardest bottom. The picture shows 2 key transitions.
Like Sheldon mentioned suspended fish are tougher to pattern and you need a high concentration of fish for it to really produce. What I often do is run a Bouncer and Spinner along with and in-line and spinner for suspending fish.
Hope that helps
So the simple answer is yes.... but these are walleye and they are not simple.
In most cases in-land fish suspend in relation to structure with transitions being the key feature. What I do is use my Lowrance set on double the depth and look for bottom transitions, while logging my chart so I can create a contour map later. Yellow is the strongest signal return and indicates the hardest bottom. The picture shows 2 key transitions.
Like Sheldon mentioned suspended fish are tougher to pattern and you need a high concentration of fish for it to really produce. What I often do is run a Bouncer and Spinner along with and in-line and spinner for suspending fish.
Hope that helps