Ah, the walleye. The most sought-after game fish in the northern states, and for good reason: they are one of the tastiest fish swimming. They have big teeth, so I suggest, if you are in northern Texas and catch one, don't try to handle it by the lower lip like a bass. I did that once. Once.
Walleyes are wimps. I swear that a 12" perch fights harder than a 20" walleye. Little walleye fight harder, but big ones, it seems, come right up.
Leeches, minnows, and crawlers are all good walleye baits, rigged on either leadhead jigs and dragged slowly along the bottom, or on the floating jig/walking sinker rig I discussed in Jigs and Jigging. If you are fishing for eater-sized fish (14-20"), this is the way to go. See Ethics for reasons to not use live bait for bigger fish. One thing to be aware of is that walleye are notoriously light biters. You may barely feel a bump and your bait is gone. You have to be patient: you'll feel a quick bump-bump. Wait a second or two, then set the hook. That technique often works. If you set it at the first bump you'll jerk it right out of their mouth.
I usually fish walleyes with crankbaits. I have had excellent luck with medium-sized Shallow Shad Raps in the color perch, which represents one of their most common forage fish. Orange-bellied hard baits of many types produce: Husky Jerks, Rat-L-Traps, Fat raps, probably because perch have orange bellies. People have told me that spoons work for them, but I don't believe it. Walleyes aren't as aggressive as most predatory fish, so it doesn't seem like a fast-moving spoon would get them to strike.
The problem with walleye is that they are usually in deep water, and therefore difficult for the shore angler to catch. Most walleye fishing is done from a boat, trolling live bait or deep-running crankbaits. You can catch them over fairly shallow structure, especially right before dark. If you can find deep water with rip rap on the shore, that's a good spot to try. They like to come up to that rip rap to forage in the mornings and evenings. Walleye originated in large rivers, so beneath dams might work. There are some large lakes in northern Texas that have walleyes of respectable size, according to the TX fish and wildlife folks.
Walleye get their name from the membrane in their eyes. They see very well in the dark because they are deep-water fish. This means that it is next to impossible to catch walleye on bright sunny days. Cloudy days, morning, and evening are the best days to catch them. As someone once said, the worst days for fishing are the best days to catch walleye.
Because they are deep-water fish, pulling them from the depths quickly can cause their swim bladder to expand, causing bloating and occasionally even the swim bladder forcing itself out the fish's mouth. If you catch a fish like this and don't intend to keep it (say, a really big one), release it as it is. Most of these fish will survive. There is a common practice called "fizzing," in which the swim bladder is pierced with a pin to release the pressure. These fish rarely survive.
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