Soft Plastic
Soft plastic jigs are suitable for fishing in clear water. You can pitch the jig long distances, and the bright-colored plastic is visible to the fish. According to Fish Sniffer.com, the bulky plastic also helps suspend the jig and minimizes hooking rocks and obstacles on the bottom. Pitching jigs and using different retrieve patterns can be used to catch walleye in most environments. Bright-colored plastics are best for clear water, and dark waters should be fished with darker plastics. Plastic bodies can also be purchased pre-scented.
Marabou
Marabou jigs are effective for imitating bait-fish. The marabou material assumes a slim profile when wet and moves through the water with motions similar to a fish. Marabou jigs can be found with numerous color patterns, but white, black, olive, red and pink are the most common when jigging for walleye. Marabou jigs can also be fished using several methods. You can allow the jig to sink to the bottom and bounce it up and down, or you can pitch and retrieve the jig.
Live Bait
The addition of live bait to a jig is a popular method of fishing for walleye. Worms used on a crawler jig are known to catch walleye off the bottom and can be used for other species as well. Tournament fisherman Doc Samson recommends using a thumper bait and leech below a slip float. The use of blade jigs with leeches uses the scent of the leech and motion of the jig and blade to attract walleye over long distances. According to Samson, the jig should be positioned within inches of the bottom.
Article Written By Zach Lazzari
Zach Lazzari is an outdoor writing specialist. He has experience in website writing as well as standard newspaper writing. He wrote an outdoor column for the Silver World in Lake City, Colo., and articles for Colorado-mountain-adventure.com. Lazzari is currently completing his bachelor's degree online through Arizona State University and lives in southwest Montana.
