As you sit in your comfortable heated ice shack slamming the bluegills and crappies through the ice, don’t forget that in a month or two it will be time to hit the water. It takes a lot of preparation to get ready again for the open water, specifically the walleye run on the rivers.

Ice fishing is a lot of fun and puts fish in my freezer every year but not much is more anticipated annually than the river walleye runs. It is time to start organizing your equipment and doing any maintenance that will be necessary to have everything working in top form for the run.

Start with you fishing rods and reels. Check your rods for any broken eyes or damaged eyes or reel seats. Replace or fix any damaged parts. Then take you reels clean and lube them and make sure they are working properly including the drag systems and back reeling for the big ones that can be caught in the spring. The change the lines this is very important. You don’t want to use last year’s line because of possible damage and wear on it. In the spring I primarily vertical jig so I prefer to use low stretch lines with a thin diameter like Fireline, ProLine, or Spiderwire in a 4-6 pound test. It has little to no stretch and is extremely sensitive, with a small diameter to cut the water. I will also use other lines such as Berkley Vanish.

Now that your rods and reels are ready for use, time to start organizing the tackle box. Jigs are one of the primary weapons for spring fishing, so stock up on lots of them because you will be guaranteed to lose some in the river systems. I prefer to use Fin-Tech tackles Knuckleball jigs. They are setup to harness a minnow father up on the hook to help with the short biters. There new Day-Brite jigs are a great change from traditional painted jigs as they are plated in metallic colors. They have proven to increase success in testing over painted jigs especially under sunny conditions and the finish holds up much better. If you are fishing heavy current use the Zone-R knuckleball jig as it has extra weight and narrower profile to cut the water better.

Other tackle needed of course are crank baits. I like to run a dead stick with either a three way rig with a hook and minnow, Phelps floater with a minnow or a crank bait. My crank baits of preference are Dave’s Lures Nitro Shiner and Winning Streak, as well as Rapala’s Husky Jerks, and Reef Runners Little Ripper. Make sure all the hooks are sharp and either sharpen them or replace any faulty hooks. Use a quality hook like Daiichi.

Make sure to have plenty of rigs pre-setup for break-offs. It will save a lot of time on the water.

Next is boat maintenance. Start by cleaning your boat if you didn’t when you put it away. Check the motor for any damage and have repaired or replaced and broken or worn parts. Charge all the batteries every month to make sure they will hold a charge. Made sure all the electronics are working as well as any electric motors including the trolling motor, bilge, and aerator pumps. Check your seats and make sure they are working properly. Check you life jackets and safety equipment for wear and damage including your fire extinguisher.

Once the general maintenance is complete go through a final run through the week before you leave and double check that everything works and runs properly including running your motor.

Remember be prepared for the worst and it will make you experiences much easier and safer on the river this spring.