JIGS AND RIGS
As you troll or cast an area covering plenty of water, be sure to mark those locations where you catch fish," House said. "If you see those walleyes close together, you can go back and work it with jigs or live-bait rigs to pick up a few bonus fish,"

Tuma said a larger profile jigging setup is often the best, especially when there's an aggressive bite. He uses a plain jig most of the year, but in the fall, he prefers jigs with dressings for a larger profile. Experiment with different colors, which can make a big difference.

Lift-and-drop jigging can be productive, he said, but so can the technique where you drop the jig a few inches and then hold it steady. Jigging works great in deeper water, and getting down into the depths quickly means using a heavy jig for the job --up to half an ounce when the walleyes are at their deepest. Crawlers and leeches work, but minnows are best.

Larger minnows, such as redtails, are great in the fall, but don't forget to upgrade your hook size, Tuma said.

Tuma likes using Fireline Crystal when jigging because he is usually fishing deeper and needs to be able to detect the slightest strikes. If he finds himself missing strikes, he switches to monofilament because the stretch allows for a delayed hookset.

TIMING IS EVERYTHING
House's favorite period for fall fishing is during the new moon when the sky is dark.

"I like the full moon as well, but that's when everybody is going -- over the years my biggest fish have come during the new moon," he said.

Fronts seem to be less of an issue in the fall, probably because there are so many this time of year. While steady weather patterns are hoped for most of the year, a steady wind direction is most desirable in the fall. "Cold fronts don't seem to be as much of a deterrent as they are in the summertime," Tuma said.

PLASTICS FOR PERCH & MORE
On those mornings when the grouse came easy and there's some time to kill before the evening bite gets going, House takes the kids and fan-casts rockpiles, gravel flats and bulrush edges with 2-inch or smaller tubes and twister tails on 3/32- to 1/8-ounce jigs. The perch are up feeding in depths from 1 to 3 feet deep. The food chain being what it is, don't be surprised if you catch a big pike or bonus walleyes up there to feed on the perch.