If you've ever spent a long day trolling only to realize you're likely driving right over the fish and spooking them, you know why planer boards for walleye fishing are such a big deal. These simple pieces of plastic and foam do one job really well: they take your lure away from the boat's wake and into the "strike zone" where walleyes are actually hanging out. Whether you're fishing shallow flats in the spring or chasing suspended fish in the Great Lakes, getting your lines spread out is often the difference between a limit and a "should've been here yesterday" story.
Why Planer Boards Change the Game
Let's be honest, walleyes can be incredibly finicky. They've got those big, light-sensitive eyes, and in clear water, they're notoriously spooky. When you troll directly behind the boat, the vibration of the motor and the hull cutting through the water can push fish to the sides. By the time your lure passes through, the fish have already moved.
Using planer boards for walleye fishing solves this by letting you run your lures 50, 75, or even 100 feet off to the side of the boat. It allows you to cover a massive path of water—sometimes 200 feet wide if you've got a good spread going. Instead of just showing your bait to the fish directly under your keel, you're presenting it to fish that haven't been disturbed by the big metal object humming over their heads.
Choosing the Right Boards
You'll generally run into two types of boards: the big mast-and-pulley systems and the smaller, inline boards. For most of us, inline planer boards are the way to go. They clip directly onto your fishing line, they're easy to store, and you don't need a massive boat with a permanent mast to use them.
Brands like Off Shore Tackle and Church Tackle have been the gold standard for years. When you're picking some out, look for ones that stay stable in a bit of chop. You don't want a board that dives or flips over the second a one-foot wave hits it. Most modern inline boards are reversible, too, so you can set them up to run on either the port or starboard side of the boat.
Setting Up Your Spread
Getting your boards out doesn't have to be a headache. The basic process is pretty straightforward: you let out your lure (whether it's a crankbait, a crawler harness, or a spoon) to the desired depth. Once you've got enough "lead" out—say, 50 feet of line—you clip the planer board onto the line.
Then, you simply open your bail or click your reel into freespool and let the water tension pull the board away from the boat. You'll want to stagger your lines. The board furthest from the boat should be your "outside" line, and the one closest to the boat is your "inside" line. This keeps things organized and helps prevent those nightmare tangles when you're trying to bring a fish in.
The Importance of the Tattle Flag
One of the best upgrades you can get for your planer boards for walleye fishing is a "tattle flag" kit. Walleyes aren't always aggressive hitters. Sometimes a smaller fish, or even a clump of weeds, will hitch a ride on your lure without you even noticing.
A tattle flag uses a spring-loaded system. When something pulls on the lure, the flag on the board drops down. It's a lifesaver for those days when the fish are biting soft or when you're dealing with "shakers"—those tiny walleyes that aren't big enough to pull the whole board back but are definitely too big to leave on the hook all day.
Reading the Board and Timing the Hookset
Reading a planer board is a bit of an art form. It's not always a violent "thump" like you get when jigging. Sometimes the board will just start to sag behind the others. Other times, it might start to wobble or "hunt" back and forth.
When a fish hits, don't grab the rod and set the hook like you're fishing for bass. The tension of the board and the forward motion of the boat usually do the hook-setting for you. Instead, pick up the rod, keep a steady bend in it, and reel slowly. You want the board to come back toward the boat smoothly. Once the board is within reach, you (or a buddy) unclip it, and then you finish the fight with just the fish on the line.
Handling the Turns
One of the biggest mistakes people make when using planer boards for walleye fishing is turning too sharp. If you crank the wheel, the boards on the inside of the turn will stall and sink, while the ones on the outside will speed up and might pull your lures out of the strike zone.
The trick is to make long, sweeping turns. This actually works to your advantage because it changes the speed of your lures. Sometimes that momentary pause on the inside board, or the sudden burst of speed on the outside board, is exactly what triggers a walleye to bite. If you notice you're always getting hits on the "slow" side during a turn, it's a clear sign you should drop your overall trolling speed.
Speed and Depth Control
Speed is everything. Usually, for walleye, you're looking at somewhere between 1.0 and 2.5 mph. In colder water, you might crawl along at 0.8 mph with crawler harnesses. In the heat of summer, those aggressive fish might want a crankbait screaming by at 2.8 mph.
Because your line is clipped to a board, your lure's depth is determined by how much line you let out before you attach the board. If you're using a deep-diving crankbait, 80 feet of line might put you at 15 feet deep. If you're using a shallow-running stickbait, you might need a clip-on weight (snap weight) to get it down to the fish. It's a bit of a science, and many guys use apps or dive charts to get it exactly right.
Dealing with Rough Water
Planer boards are great, but they can be a handful when the wind picks up. In heavy chop, the boards will bounce and surge. While this can actually provide a nice "jigging" action to your lures, it can also make it hard to tell if you've got a fish or just a big wave pulling the flag.
If it's really kicking out there, try shortening your leads and keeping the boards closer to the boat. It gives you more control and makes it easier to manage the lines when you're trying to net a fish while the boat is tossing around.
Keeping It Simple
It's easy to get overwhelmed by all the gear—the clips, the flags, the weights, and the different lure types. But at the end of the day, planer boards for walleye fishing are just a tool to help you be more efficient. Start with two boards, get a feel for how they pull, and learn how to clear them without tangling.
Once you get the hang of it, you'll probably find that you rarely want to fish without them. There's something incredibly satisfying about watching a spread of boards tracking perfectly across a sunset-lit lake, waiting for that one flag to dip and tell you that dinner is on the other end of the line. It takes a bit of practice to master the "trolling dance," but the results speak for themselves when the cooler starts getting heavy.