There’s something about the month of June that steers my heart and my mind toward fishing for walleyes on the Allegheny Reservoir.
Most of my best days on the reservoir have been in June. Early summer is a fabulous time to fish for walleyes, just about anywhere in North America. One of the main reasons why June can be so good is due to prime water temperatures. When water temps finally reach somewhere between 60 and 70 degrees, walleyes tend to become extremely active. This is the time of year when their metabolism increases and they get hungry.
I’m not a great walleye fisherman, but it seems like almost anyone can have success in June. On the right day, I swear just about every walleye in that body of water will be willing to bite your bait. Whether you’re a boat fisherman or a bank fisherman, you can easily bag a limit of walleye all throughout the reservoir in June.
My favorite way to fish for walleyes is from the boat, slow trolling bottom bouncers and harnesses, tipped with nightcrawlers. The slow-death trolling rigs can be deadly in the summer months. If I’m marking fish on my fish finder, I’m usually catching them. You can also catch walleyes on the Allegheny using pretty much any tactic this time of year. Some anglers do very well with crank baits, while others prefer the jigging methods. June is a very versatile month when it comes to fishing tactics for walleyes.
The best time to fish is in the evening. Those last two hours of daylight can be phenomenal. In the evening hours, a lot of walleyes shift into shallow water to feed. I’ve had a lot of success trolling the contours of the shorelines at dusk. But, that doesn’t mean the bite is short lived. There’s always schools of hungry walleyes at all times of the day during June. I like to be aggressive when it comes to locating active fish. I won’t sit on fish in hopes they will eventually bite. I feel you are better off looking for those active schools throughout the reservoir. Sometimes you have to check a dozen locations to find a hungry pod of walleyes.
You also have to keep an eye on bug hatches in June. This is when the bite can really fluctuate. If there are heavy bug hatches, the fish might not be as hungry and can definitely be harder to catch. I’ve learned that during certain bug hatches, walleyes will shift from rocky points and breaks to mud flats. If you’re fishing this time of year and you’re not able to find fish, be sure to seek out those areas with muddy bottoms. Where there’s food, there are walleyes.
You’ll find most walleye anglers fishing the northern end of the reservoir, which is home to the Seneca Reservation. This is closer to the Allegheny River system, which tends to be the main spawning waters for walleyes. There’s also a lot more fishable structure at the northern part of the reservoir. Most of the river breaks, road beds and railroad grades that are underwater are in perfect depths for walleyes. However, I love the scenery at the southern end of the reservoir. I enjoy observing the thousands of acres of remote forest at the southern end. Nevertheless, there’s still some pretty good walleye fishing south of the New York border. During June and the rest of the summer is when the southern portion of the reservoir really starts to turn on due to warmer water temps. The northern part of the reservoir warms up faster since it’s shallower and closer to the river system. Usually by June, the walleye bite gets really good at the southern end. There’s also some beautiful bays to fish on the Pennsylvania side. On windy days, you can find calmer water inside of the bays, plus there’s much less boat traffic due to the no-wake zones inside of the bays.
My best walleye on the Allegheny was 27 inches long and I estimated the weight to be around 7 pounds. That fish was caught during the middle of June. This is a time of the year when some of the bigger females really start to bulk up and feed heavily due to stressful spring spawning. June is a great time for both catching a limit of walleyes as well hooking into some big ones on the Allegheny. Indeed, June will always be my favorite month to fish for walleyes.
