This can make the hike much more interesting. The club usually has a leader of the hike who will point out interesting things along the way. If you are not familiar with the trails, it is always good to go with a group and a leader who is an experienced hiker.

ALL FAMILY MEMBERS CAN JOIN IN ON THE HIKE

Even your little children will love to go along on a hike, providing the walk is not too far for them. You can always start out on short hike – some clubs will have a one-mile hike, five-mile hike, ten-mile hike and even more. There are also different type of hikes – such as day hikes and moonlight hikes. As with anything else, you should ask your physician before starting any kind of exercise program.

EXPENSES

Hiking is very inexpensive. You might have to pay a hiking club a fee to be a member. On most hikes, people will take some snacks and something to drink during rest periods. You might want to carry a small “fanny pack” with you in order to be able to carry all your snacks, etc. The only other cost involved would probably be the gas to get you to the hiking starting point. If someone is interested in being a “professional hiker”, there are much more sophisticated supplies, etc. you would need. Right now, we are just talking about hiking for fun.

WHY IS HIKING FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY?

First of all, it gives everyone a chance to be together. You have something in common to talking about. When you take your rest breaks, you can all get a chance to discuss the hike or any subject you want to bring up. You might even want to play a couple of word games while relaxing during the break.

HEALTH BENEFITS

Walking is often the recommended exercise choice by physicians. If you had a stressful week at work, what better way to relax then to take a hike with your family and enjoy the beautiful outdoors!

Then there will be the anglers who fall in between the two and use a little of each. There are ups and downs to both types of baits. Either is effective in latching walleye onto the line. Let us start out with live baits.

Bait presentation closely resembles that of live small fish like minnows. Walleye have a difficult time telling the difference between these and actual small fish swimming in front of them. Another desired effect of live bait is placement. In most cases, live bait casts so that it falls right in front of a walleye who may be hanging out in medium water depths. The sharp falling action towards the bottom instantly catches the walleyes attention.

When using live bait, match it up with a plain or colored hook. The colored hooks have number 6 or number 8 finishes. Add a colored bead to a plain hook or use a snell and a sinker to create a bare-bones rig with the live bait. Create a Stealth Rig using a sinker or spinner that will have live bait sitting up off the bottom surface floor. When all else fails, pull out a live bait rig. In times of desperate need, even the pickiest walleye will take a bite.

As for what types of live baits to use, let the walleye be the judge of that. Logic deems using small baits in the spring and larger baits in the winter. Walleye however do not follow logic. The best course of action is to stock a bait box with a wide variety of live bait options. There is no way to tell what walleye prefer on any given day until an angler is out on the water actively seeking the fish out.

Basic thinking is small minnows in the spring. Bring in leeches and night crawlers during summer months. Move towards medium to large size minnows as fall approaches. Winter should bring up the use of larger baits to mimic the slower movement of walleye. Walleye will do what they prefer. There is nothing keeping a walleye from snatching up a night crawler in the middle of spring.

Now let us move on towards plastic baits. This bait type quickly navigates its way through the water allowing an angler to cover more water surface than live baits would. Although plastic baits are year round tools, they are the most effective in warm months. This is when the water temperatures start to rise that coincides with the increase in walleye activity. Walleye are feeling frisky and up to a good chase when the water is warm.

Select jigs with quarter and three to eight ounce heads for warmer waters. Eight ounce heads apply to other situations but are the most effective in summer months. When chasing walleye out of cabbage weed locations, use the bullet shaped heads found on foxee jigs. Here is where the eighth ounce bait heads figure into the picture. This jig bait type navigates through the weeds causing walleye to strike once the jig sticks in the brush. Launch the jig/tail combo out over the weed tops and let it sink toward the deeper edge.