Category: Nick’s Tips and Tails

Spring fishing is a special time of year in South Dakota. Anglers come from across the country to take advantage of the year-round walleye season, put their boats in the Missouri River, and fill stringers of walleye. As the weather warms, the grass turns green, and other fisheries open up across the region the same […]

Whether you are walking through the local tackle store, ordering baits online, or even scrolling your social media feed you’ll encounter hundreds, if not thousands, of baits you can utilize for trolling crankbaits for walleyes. So many baits yet you can only tie on one to each rod at a time, how do you decide? […]

Trolling crankbaits is a popular way to target walleye throughout all of the open water months. Regardless what time of year you’re trolling crankbaits, an important component of your trolling program is a planar board. Planar boards serve a variety of purposes and when deployed properly, will help you crank more fish into the boat. […]

While many anglers may get wrapped up in hot colors, secret spots, magic baits, and the time of the moon rise the best anglers are going to be focused on a much less glamorous, but more important aspect of their presentation-boat control. Whether you are bottom bouncing, dragging jigs, casting crankbaits, or trolling crankbaits mastering […]

The Missouri River reservoirs in South Dakota can produce some of the best bites of the season to start the year. Anglers flock to areas such as Pierre, Chamberlain, Mobridge, and Platte to take advantage of the year-round walleye season and excellent bite the areas can produce in the springtime. However, when Mother Nature decides […]

It’s no secret that spring means fishing in South Dakota. As the weather begins to cooperate in March and April, Interstate-90 becomes a literal boat parade as anglers head towards the river, the rocky shorelines begin to be lined with camouflage coats, and the forgotten holes in duck hunting waders are rediscovered. It may not […]

Your rods are packed, electronics are charged, gas tanks are full and it’s time to hit the road on the ice fishing trip you’ve been planning for months. You pull out your phone to text your friends and see “WINTER WEATHER WARNING” pop up on your screen. You’ve got to be kidding me. Shouldn’t there […]

Trolling crankbaits is a popular way to target walleye especially in the summer months, but as the leaves begin to change and the brisk fall air takes hold don’t put those crankbaits away quite yet! Indeed, crankbaits can play a major part of your success especially in the early and mid-fall. In the fall, walleyes […]

The Missouri River and spring walleye fishing just go hand in hand. The river often produces some of the very first open water opportunities in the Dakotas and walleyes are often eager to strike. Whether anglers are pursuing a stringer of fresh walleye filets or a fish for the wall, the Missouri River reservoirs have […]

Walleye fishing on the Missouri River reservoirs isn’t just a hobby, it’s a tradition. For decades, reservoirs like Lake Oahe, Lake Sharpe and Lake Francis Case have attracted anglers with the lure of stringers full of walleye and the opportunity at catching a trophy for the wall in the same day. While the tradition remains […]