No matter where you are fishing, be it inland lake, reservoir, river, or Great Lake, you have the chance at catching fish on these easy-to-use lures; pay attention to small details and you’ll have the chance at landing a limit. 

One of my first experiences fishing soft baits (plastics, at the time) for walleye was while fishing an early-spring Professional Walleye Trail (PWT) tournament on the Detroit River. At that time it was thought that if you weren’t fishing with live minnows while vertical jigging the fast water of the Detroit, then you were not going to catch fish. But through trial and error my partners and I discovered that we could use four-inch twister-tail grubs and catch just as many fish, if not more. We could vary colors as the water clarity changed, and, unlike live minnows, the lure did not rip off the hooks, even when we would get snagged up. It was quite a discovery for the time. Nowadays, soft baits are commonplace on the Detroit River. Good for the
lowly ol’ minnow, bad for the walleye. Since that tournament on the Detroit, my usage of soft lures and jigs has increased immensely. Oh, it wasn’t a fast jump over to the soft side, but a gradual one that occurred as the lures themselves metamorphosed into what they are now — the next best thing to the real deal.

THE WAY IT IS
Today’s soft baits come in so many lifelike shapes it’s hard to pick out just one or two to fish with. In general, walleye like longer, slender-shaped baits over short and fat ones. Worms, minnows, and grubs and minnow/grubs are by far my go-to for walleye.  Three-and four-inch rubber worms, such as Berkley four-inch PowerBait Power Worm and three-inch Gulp! Fry, and four-inch Northland Slurpies Ringworm, are great when walleye are weed oriented as these super slender-shaped bait can be ripped through vegetation without getting caught up. And even with such a narrow shape, worms fall slowly, which gives them more time in the strike zone before touching bottom. Worms work well when used with 1/8- to 1/4-ounce jigheads.
Minnow-shaped soft baits, on the other hand, fall faster than the aforementioned, making them good to use when the walleye are more aggressive and want something that falls fast and needs to be worked in quicker. 

Examples of my favorite minnow-shaped soft baits are Northland’s 2-1/2-inch and three-inch Lip-Stick Grub Tails (with their ever-wiggling “Teaser Tails” that resemble the tentacles on a tube bait) and Berkley’s two- and three-inch PowerBait Power Minnow and their two- and three-inch Gulp! Minnow. Minnow-shaped baits are the most versatile when it comes to the jig weights they can be used on, with 1/16- up to one-ounce, and all weights in-between, working well. Minnow baits great, too, for vertical jigging directly below the boat as they always stay in a horizontal position when fished.  Grubs and minnow/grub, in general, are great choices when walleye want something cast out and worked in with a swimming motion rather than a
jigging motion. Their bodies are fatter than worms and minnows, and the added water resistance from their twisting, turning tail keeps them from falling to the lake floor as fast as other shapes. Berkley’s two- and three-inch Gulp! Minnow Grub and their two- and three-inch PowerBait Power Grub, as well Northland’s two- and three-inch Swim’n Grub are some of my top choices of grubs. Jigs from 1/16- to 1/4-ounce are best for these soft baits. 

Another great way to use grubs is by putting them onto a jighead, which is then attached to a spinner and arm, turning them into mini spinnerbaits. Northland makes the Rainbow Jig Spinner, which will turn any jig into an off-set spinnerbait. The Johnson Beetle Spin is another mini spinnerbait that works well for walleye and comes already preassembled. Jig heads from 1/8- to 1/2-ounce work best on these types of rigs.

TIPS FOR RIGGING AND EQUIPMENT
Fishing with soft baits and jigs requires more than just skewering on a body and casting it out in hopes a fish eats it. There are little details that in what and how you do things that will make all the difference.  First tip is to always use the lightest weight jig that the depth and wind will allow. Too heavy of a jig and your soft bait will fall to the lake floor before a walleye has time to eat it. And when you’re casting jigs, their weight should be just enough that the wind does not lift your line up and off the water. On the other hand, you shouldn’t use too light of jig that it won’t get to bottom in deep water. Jigs up to 1/4-ounce work well in depths less than 12 feet. Go heavier in water deeper then that.

Always tie your line directly to your jig; that means no snap or snap swivel. I use eight-pound-test Flame-colored Berkeley FireLine for nearly all my jigging. Contrary to popular belief, fish will not spook when they see the bright-colored line so you do not need to tie on a mono or fluorocarbon leader. A Palomar knot is a good knot to use when using FireLine. 

Jigs come in all different sizes and shapes, and all have their moments of glory. Don’t be afraid to tie on several different styles throughout the day and see what action trips the trigger of the fish. A Northland Eye-Ball Jig has a different action than their Tip-Up Jig Head, Thumper Jig, or Whistler Jig. Some, like the Whistler Jig, are great for swimming soft baits while others, like the Tip-Up Jig, fall quickly but stand the soft bait up right on bottom.
And last but not least, rarely is there ever an arm-jarring strike when a walleye eats a jig and soft bait. More than likely you’ll just feel a “tick”, like a bug just ran into your rod tip. No matter what, set the hook at the slightest feel of anything different; you’ll be surprised at how many more fish you’ll hook. 

Looking for one of the simplest ploys for taking walleye this summer?
Look no further than fishing the jig-and-soft-bait combo. Tie on a worm, minnow, or grub directly to you line and work ‘em back to the boat. And don’t be afraid to try different shapes, styles, and weights through out the day. The bite can change fast, but with soft baits and jigs, you have the means to catch fish no matter what. Mark Martin is a walleye tournament pro (markmartins.net) and fishing school instructor (fishingvacationschool.com) who lives in SW Lower Michigan.