South Dakota offers a unique “blast and cast” opportunity, which is combining a day in the field chasing pheasants and concluding with a day on the shore casting for walleyes. This can be quite simple and doesn’t require bringing your entire rod locker to take advantage of the bite!
Fishing for fall walleye from shore can be done with a very simple set up, and a 6’6” to 7’0 Medium or Medium-Light rod with a fast or extra-fast action is best. Combine this with a quality spinning reel, and spool up with an 8-10 pound Berkley Fireline mainline.
A 12 pound fluorocarbon leader is also a good idea, particularly in the Glacial Lakes region where there can be abundant pike populations. This also provides abrasion resistance for fishing areas with abundant rock, which are often the best fall walleye shore spots.
The bait selection is usually a shallow running crankbait or jig and plastic. Rapala Shallow Shad Raps and Berkley Shallow Money Badgers are top options for crankbaits. A 1/16-3/16 oz jig and a Berkley Ripple Shad, BFishN Authentix Moxi Ringtail, or Berkley GULP! Minnow are the best bets.
Keep the set up simple, you don’t need to bring your best rods or a big box of crankbaits. A quality spinning rod, a box of crankbaits, and some jigs and plastics are all you need to turn your South Dakota pheasant hunt into a complete blast and cast adventure!
