Walleye Fishing Secrets The Vertical Jig

It swims, hops, wiggles, sinks, snaps, and twitches to attract fish. The jig does about everything except jump tall buildings and fly. A vertical presentation is only one of your choices to catch walleyes.

Vertical jigging is a technique where the boat is stationary or moving slowly. Boat control is very important for this method because you must move slowly to stay vertical. Always watch others jig as there are many variations of each presentation.

Practice and use what works for you, but always try to match the jig action of the angler who is catching the most fish just like you change colors if your buddy is catching them on red. I have found that I can not imitate everybody's jigging action no matter how hard I try. Some days you look like the magician and some days you look like a clown.

Below is a list of some vertical jigging presentations.
• Lift and drop
• Suspend
• Twitch
• Drag
• Snap



Lift and drop is the most common presentation. You lift the jig a few inches or a few feet and drop the jig to the bottom. Walleyes often pick up the jig as it drops and you will feel the walleye as you lift the jig. When you drop the jig, you can keep slight tension on the line by dropping your rod tip as the jig falls. This way you can see the bite by watching the line as if the jig doesn't seem to reach the bottom it is in a walleyes mouth. This will also slow down the drop. Walleyes prefer both fast and slow drops.

The jig can be suspended off the bottom and held motionless or twitched.
Your bite can often be more aggressive with this method. Jigs can be left on the bottom and dragged as you move slowly. When dragging a jig try to add other actions episodically to entice a bite or just wait for a walleye to pick it up.

Vertical snap jigging is very similar to the action used when using a jigging spoon. It I s also like lift and drop only the speed of the lift is much faster. The jig still drops freely. You will get your most aggressive bites with this presentation

Source MNWALLEYES.COM