According to Schulte, the best rig on the river is a jig-and-minnow combination with a little twist. Put a minnow on a first hook and attach a stinger hook to round out this very effective bait. When a fish chases the minnow, it’ll get hooked on the stinger.

Schulte said that most of the walleyes run from 9 to 14 inches, with a few reaching 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 pounds.

Leadlining is another favorite trick used by locals to tempt a few pre-spawn fish into biting their jig or crankbait. Troll upstream with color-coded leadcore line on a trolling rod for the best lure action. Be certain to let out enough line for the bait to contact the bottom. Bumping along on the bottom is the goal, so use relatively inexpensive baits to avoid becoming gun-shy, as the chances are good that you’ll lose a few lures.

The water can be turbulent, owing to run-off. Given the muddy water, the walleyes and saugers will probably bite well during the sunniest part of the day and back off some during low-light periods.

Keeping the bait on the bottom is key, no matter if you’re trolling or casting. Jigheads weighing up to an ounce are sometimes needed. Jigs and weights that are too light represent the most common mistake made by anglers here. Late-winter ‘eyes and saugers are bottom-huggers and often will ignore bait moving well above them in the water column.

Southern Missouri anglers don’t fare nearly as well as their northern neighbors, according to MDC fisheries management biologist Lynn Schrader. Below the St. Louis area, the Missouri River joins the mighty Mississippi and the river turns into good catfish water but loses its ‘eyes and saugers.

“We don’t have many good walleye holes in the St. Louis reach of the Mississippi River,” said Schrader.

Mark Haas, another fisheries biologist, agrees. “There’s not much to offer in the way of walleye and sauger fishing in the river in southeast Missouri,” said Haas. “I haven’t heard of people fishing specifically for those species at any time of the year (here). When we set nets for sturgeon sampling we occasionally take a few saugers, but no walleyes.”

New Madrid County Conservation Agent Rodney Ivie has seen a few saugers and a walleye come out of the river in his county, but catching them was a relative fluke. It would take a special eye for good habitat to find the few walleyes and saugers that venture this far south.

Even in the northern Missouri pools, the walleye population has been down for quite a while and no one knows why.

“We’re looking into it,” said Dames. “It could be that the dams are blocking the migrations, a problem in the habitat or other factors we don’t know about, but I’m sure it’s not a harvest issue.”

A tagging study is underway and Dames encourages anglers to call the phone number on the tag when a tagged fish is taken. Conversely, saugers appear to be thriving throughout the Mississippi River.

Shore-bound anglers essentially are limited to the earthen parts of the dam. Bank fishermen probably won’t be able to reach the fish since they’ll concentrate in two or three areas in a pool, usually away from the shoreline in the deeper water. The walleyes and saugers will be in schools that boaters can tap into easily, but bank fishermen are likely to end up missing the action. Though smaller rivers offer excellent shoreline opportunities, fishing the Mississippi River for walleyes and saugers usually demands a boat.

Launch ramps are provided throughout the length of the river and this area is no exception. Each pool in this area of the state has a ramp that allows access.

Anchoring below and off to the side of fast current can, at times, put anglers right on the fish. Walleyes and saugers will rest just outside of the fastest water, and a well-placed jig and minnow or a deep-running crankbait can be dynamite. If a boater isn’t careful, the current can become a problem.

Safety is always an issue on the Mississippi River. Maintaining the recommended 200-yard leeway both upstream and downstream from the dams can help avoid situations that can quickly turn tragic. Use a fluke or Navy-style anchor with more than enough rope to stay in one spot in the wind and current. Upwards of 50 or 60 yards of rope isn’t out of the question.

Navigation charts from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are available for a price from Gone West at 1-800-537-7962.

For more information contact the MDC’s St. Louis regional office at (636) 300-1953.