Ask the Walleye Pro: Richard Lacourse

Q: What is the history of handlining and why is it so effective in river systems? What is your opinion on the ethics of handlining?

-Jud, Hastings, Minn.

A: Handlining has been around for over eighty years. Anglers fishing the Detroit River invented this system to catch fish while battling the strong currents found there. Like many other rivers in the country, but even more so in the Detroit River, they are loaded with large rocky areas that hold fish. This can be a problem for anglers, because it makes it difficult for them to keep from continually snagging their baits.

Handlining is a method of fishing that lets the angler feel everything on the bottom as he or she passes over it, allowing them to spend more time fishing than getting snags free and re-tying baits on. The first handliners learned long ago that they didn’t have to fight the strong current, but instead that they could make the current work for them.

Handlining can best be described as, “an exact and precise form of trolling, nothing more and nothing less.” What makes it so effective is the fact that an angler can keep the baits in the strike zone 100 percent of the time.

Below is a brief description of how the system works:

It is a technique that involves using a spring-loaded reel, heavy wire and weight, what’s called a shank and long mono leads to pull stick baits with. The more current the river has, the more effective handlines will be.

The reel is mounted on a rail on the side of the boat, and the angler most commonly sits in the back of the boat with his or her arm over the side, working the wire. The weight is used like a bottom-bouncer. By touching the weight on and off the bottom, it insures that the baits are working as close to the bottom of the riverbed as possible.

The mono leads play an important role in handlining. Generally, two leads are attached to what is called a “shank” and run on each side of the boat, giving tournament anglers the right number of legal lines in the water for an FLW event. Most shanks are from four to six feet in length with a clevis every six inches.

Each time you move a lead up the shank to another clevis, it will raise the bait off the bottom by two inches, or if you go down the shank it lowers the bait down by two inches. What I can tell you about the leads, is that the bottom one will always be half the length of the lead above it. This allows the stick baits to run one right behind the other, with both baits on, or near the bottom of the riverbed. This is what makes it so effective.

Controlling the boat at a 60-degree angle against the current, keeping your wire at a 45-degree angle and maintaining the right speed to keep that 45-degree angle is the basic principle. This technique works great when working a break-line, or even a shallow flat next to deeper water.

As little as 10 years ago, the art of handlining was still a local Detroit River method of fishing. I was taught by some of most talented old timers on the river many years ago. Since then, I have implemented this technique on waters all over the country with successful results. This technique has come a long way in just a few short years. It is no longer a secret local method, and is popular among the angling masses as an effective presentation. I’ve lost count of how many people I’ve taught who wanted to learn it!

Is it legal? Yes! In every state and province.

Is it sporting? Yes! Is it ethical? Yes!

It still comes down to the fact that an angler must first find the fish and then make them eat. Handlining does not guarantee that the fish will bite on any given day. Some days the anglers jigging, using three-way rigs, live-bait rigs, leadcore, or trolling will do better. It all comes down to what the fish want. The angler who wins will be the person who put the right program together for four straight days.

Like all presentations, handlining takes just a few minutes to learn, but it takes a lifetime to master. It’s the skill set of the handliner that makes the difference.

One experience that I would like to share is a memory of one morning when I was handlining on the Illinois River in Spring Valley a few years ago. I was fishing alone when two DNR officers pulled up next to me. They stated they were watching me fish, and were intrigued and interested in what I was doing. One of them said he had heard about handlining, but wasn’t sure how it was done. I asked him to jump in my boat to let me demonstrate how it worked. Once I gave him a short lesson, I set up a handline system on his side of the boat, so that he could try it. After one pass he had caught three out of our seven fish, and he turned and said to me, “This is awesome! I’ve never had this much fun fishing before!”

Q: As a veteran walleye pro, what do you think the future of professional walleye fishing holds? Do you think we’ll ever have payouts similar to the bass guys or is walleye fishing too regional for that? What would you like to see changed in the future?

-Kris, Jamestown, N.D.

A: Kris, as I gaze into my crystal ball, I see great things in the future! If you take into account the wonderful family of sponsors and the number of new sponsors coming on board with FLW Outdoors, and the explosive coverage of walleye fishing on FSN, the opportunities seem endless.

FLW Outdoors is exposing the sport and creating new fans like never before. As far as the payouts, look at what we pay to enter an event and look at the paybacks compared to the bass events, I think we are equal to them. It took bass fishing over 30 years to get to where they are today, and it took walleye fishing less than half that time to get to this point. Percentage wise, if you compare the entry fees and paybacks on both tours, we are in the ballpark. We pay less than half of what the bass guys pay in entry fees, and our top prize is still an impressive $100,000.00!

The only change I would like to see for the FLW Walleye Tour is for it to grow to five or six regular season events plus the championship. This would increase the chances for more anglers to participate and give added exposure to our family of sponsors.

Q: What type of structure do you fish on the Detroit River? How will the fishing be in early April?

-Trenton, Mich.

A: The Detroit River is a wonderful place to fish because it has it all. I believe that there are approximately 40 miles of prime walleye habitat which includes channels with heavy current, slack water areas, and hot-water discharges from steel plants. There are also islands, flats, and steep breaks all holding fish during the spring. When you come to the Detroit River you had better be prepared for anything.

The water clarity will play a major roll on how to fish this river. If the water is clean, you’ll want to jig the channel edges and breaks. If the water gets dirty, which happens a lot in the spring, the classic method of handlining could be the key to catching more fish.

The river has a resident population of big fish, but the main target in the spring is the migration of fish moving between the big lakes to spawn. Fish upwards of 10 pounds are common this time of year. If the conditions are right, catches of 25 or 30 pounds will be common. I predict it will take just over 80 pounds to make the final day cut.

Q: What is the best bait and presentation to use for early-ice walleyes?

-Sarah H., Minneapolis, Minn.

A: Sarah, thanks for the great question! Being from the Great Lakes region, we do things a little different. Time of day isn’t as much of a factor as it would be on an inland lake, because Lake Erie fishes more like a river than a lake, due to the current flowing through it. Time of day on the inland lakes is more favorable at first light and at dusk.

When I finally get on hard water, I like to start off with a Northland rattle spoon, or No. 7 jigging Rapala loaded with whole minnows.

Here on Lake Erie the fish seem very aggressive and hungry with first ice. When I fish smaller inland lakes, or more northern waters, I like to downsize my lures and fish a more subtle presentation. Smaller jigging Rapalas and spoons baited with just a minnow head get the thumbs up from me. I also set several tip-ups with a very lively minnow (hooked in the tail) just off the edges of structure to trigger the fish into biting.

Rick Lacourse is a veteran walleye angler who has fished the Wal-Mart FLW Walleye Tour, Professional Walleye Trail and Master’s Walleye Circuit. The Port Clinton, Ohio, resident won the 1997 PWT Championship and finished in fourth place at the 2004 FLW Walleye Tour Championship. Lacourse’s favorite walleye technique is trolling crankbaits. Lacourse’s wife, Julia Davis, also fishes as a pro on the FLW Walleye Tour. Lacourse’s sponsors include Ranger Boats, Evinrude, Minn Kota, Lowrance, Gemini Sport Marketing, Off Shore Tackle, Panther Marine Products, Dixie Marine, Clamps, Inc.