Northwest Reel Life April 2023 Volume 2 Issue 10 - Flipbook - Page 35
mm. bead. Usually, either the plain
setup like that is going to be the
top option or simply sliding a Smile
Blade 0.8 onto it will be the ticket.
As the season moves on, blades
seem to be a bigger factor.
Generally, what I will do is just put a
different-colored blade on. If I have
multiple anglers in the boat, I will
keep on plain hook out or possible
put out a size #2 Colorado blade. I
will always keep my Smile Blades
out, but as the summer progresses,
I will be switching towards size #3
Colorado blades. I really like the
metallic colors with these blades.
Gold and silver are colors that I feel
are pretty universal and baits I often
have out when fishing a new body
of water that I’m unfamiliar with.
As far as Smile Blade colors go,
my favorites are Pink Silver Tiger,
Chartreuse Sparkle, Gold Sparkle
and Silver Scale.
Towards the fall, I begin the
transition to larger Colorado Blades
(#3 and #5) and Smile Blade 1.5.
This time of year, the bigger blades
resemble the bigger prey species
and many walleye are going to
be chowing on them. The larger
baits are also going to give off more
flash and vibration and really be
appealing, specially in dark and
dingy conditions.
Many anglers are switching to
crankbaits this time of
year, but the large blades do
tremendous work. Bottom
bouncing is a very simple concept.
This article outlined the basic setup,
but when walleye anglers get their
minds to work a simple concept
can become very complex. This
was all about laying the foundation
for the basic bottom bouncing rig.
Take these tips adopt your own
strategies and surely you’ll begin
landing more walleye in no time.
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