Dan, don’t laugh! I’m a single mom taking my kids on vacation to northern MN. I’ve fished all my life, but have never taken a walleye off the hook. Tips for getting them off the hook without getting cut by all those teeth? We leave 7/18. I can’t wait!

You want to keep your hands out of the mouth! As a rule of thumb fish that have a mouth of teeth use it as their own defense mechanism and that is why they will bite. However, you can grab a walleye just about anywhere on the body and be fine. They don’t have any ability to poke you.

With a good grip use a pair of needle nose pliers to remove the hook. You will find plenty for styles and options of them out there. You can get a standard pair you have in your garage or you can get those from a bait and tackle store that are specifically for removing a hook from the mouth of a fish.

You will be able to use them to grasp the hook because they are long and give you plenty to work with. If the walleye has swallowed the bait deep into the mouth you will be glad you have pliers with a long handle.