The Berkley GULP! Minnow is one of the most common options in the soft plastics aisle for walleye anglers and rightfully so, the GULP! Minnow simply catches fish. One of the most versatile soft plastics available, the GULP! Minnow is best fished on a jig but can be fished a variety of ways.
Fish It Like Nick
“I started fishing the Berkley GULP! Minnow when I was at SDSU in Brookings and paired it with a 1/16 oz jig,” says Nick Harrington, Owner of Lip Ripper Fishing. “A four-inch plastic and a 1/16 oz jig seems like an odd combo, but it allowed me to really float the bait along the rocky shorelines I was fishing.”
The versatility of this bait makes it perfect to fish on any waterbody.
“I’ve fished it on jigs, I’ve pulled it on spinners, there are numerous ways to fish this bait,” continues Harrington. “My favorite way to fish it is still with a light jig and a large body though.”
The larger bodied plastic, coupled with a lighter jig, allows the bait to float and swim more naturally in the water.
“Say you’re fishing it across a rocky shoreline, the heavier jig it will fall right into the crevices,” elaborates Harrington. “The lighter jig the more you can float it above the rocks and where the fish are going to be sitting.”
The fork tail also allows anglers to fish this bait more slowly, as opposed to a bait like the Ripple Shad that speed and action is needed to engage the paddletail.
“Even if it’s on a sandbar I still go light and just twitch it,” concludes Harrington. “You can even let it float a bit in the current on the Missouri River reservoirs, it’s a very natural option to fish that can provide a beefier profile, variety of color, and allow you to trigger fish conventional live bait may not.”
Bait Details
Bait Profile: Minnow
Body Composition: Soft Plastic
Favorite Colors: Pearl
Favorite Size: 4 inches
Favorite Waterbodies: Lake Sinai, Lake Sharpe, Lake Francis Case
Get Geared Up to Catch More Walleye
Want to learn more about the gear we use when targeting walleye? Whether it’s on the Missouri River, Glacial Lakes region of South Dakota, western Nebraska reservoirs, or anywhere else across the Midwest we share our favorite baits and how we fish them on our Getting Geared Up page!
