Ice fishing for walleye: best time, depth, lures, tip-ups and the moon

Ice fishing for walleye: first ice and late ice patterns, the low-light bite at dawn and dusk, best depth and structure, jigging spoons and rattle baits, tip-ups and deadsticks, top lakes, and moon phases.

Walleye are the most targeted fish through the ice across the northern US and Canada, and for good reason: they bite well in cold water, they school up on predictable structure and they taste great. The trick is timing. Walleye have eyes built for low light, so the hour around sunset is often the whole game. These tips on ice fishing for walleye will help you be in the right spot at the right moment.

Where to go: top walleye ice fishing lakes

Lake of the Woods (Minnesota/Ontario) and Upper Red Lake (Minnesota)
Mille Lacs Lake (Minnesota)
Devils Lake (North Dakota)
Lake Winnebago (Wisconsin) and Green Bay
Saginaw Bay (Michigan)
Lake Erie's western basin, when it freezes safely
Lake Oahe (South Dakota) and many Canadian lakes

Always check local ice conditions: 4 inches of clear ice is the usual minimum for walking, and more for vehicles.

Best time: first ice and late ice

Period	What to expect
First ice (December)	Often the best bite of the year: walleye still on shallow and mid-depth structure, aggressive and feeding
Mid-winter (January–February)	Slower, fish deeper; short feeding windows at dawn and dusk
Late ice (March)	Fish move toward spawning areas, bite picks up again; watch ice safety

Best time of day

Walleye have a reflective layer in their eyes (the tapetum lucidum) that lets them see in low light much better than baitfish. That's why:

The hour before and after sunset is the classic window.
Dawn is the second-best window.
Cloudy days, snow and stained water can extend the bite.
At night, on some lakes, walleye feed for hours after dark.

Where walleye hold under the ice

Breaks and drop-offs near shallow feeding flats.
Points, humps and reefs, especially rock and gravel.
Mud flats in mid-winter in some lakes (insect larvae draw perch and walleye).
Weed edges that still hold green weeds at first ice.

A common pattern: walleye hold at the base of a break (20–30 ft) during the day and move up to the top of the break (10–15 ft) to feed at dusk.

Lures that catch walleye

Jigging spoons (such as Swedish Pimples, Buckshot spoons): tipped with a minnow head.
Jigging raps and darting baits that swim in a circle: aggressive and great for calling fish in.
Lipless rattle baits: the noise draws walleye from a distance in stained water.
Glow lures in low light and at night.

Jig aggressively to attract fish, then slow down or hold still when a walleye shows on the flasher.

Tip-ups and deadsticks

Many anglers combine jigging with a second line:

Tip-ups with a live shiner or sucker minnow set a foot or two off the bottom.
Deadsticks: a rod with a minnow under a slip bobber, a few holes away from the jigging hole. Walleye that refuse a moving lure often take a still minnow.

Check how many lines your state allows through the ice.

Electronics

A flasher or live sonar is the most useful tool: it shows your lure, the fish and how it reacts. If a walleye comes up and leaves, change your cadence or switch lures.

Does the moon matter for walleye?

Walleye anglers pay close attention to the moon. Many report strong bites around the full moon, especially at night, and good dusk bites around the new moon. Most agree that when a solunar major or minor period lands near sunset, the window gets even better. Read more in best moon phase for fishing and our walleye fishing tips.

Plan with Solunar

Solunar shows sunrise, sunset, moon phase, moonrise and solunar windows on one 24-hour dial with a 1–4 star day rating for your exact spot on the lake, offline, even on the ice. You see at a glance whether today's window lines up with the sunset bite.