One of the things we can count on every winter on the river, usually by January, is water clarity from 4-8 feet. This window of clear water is usually only a couple months long and is the only time an underwater viewing system can be used effectively. I use this period every year to explore different areas not only to locate fish but also to find transitions and look for bottom content that we believe is beneficial to holding fish.
Below are a couple of videos shot in the winter on the upper reaches of pool 4 that confirm our beliefs that walleyes do typically hold in somewhat shallower water than saugers. As you will see, the first video shot in 12-18 fow, has quite a few more walleyes than the second one which was taken quite a bit deeper and has mostly saugers.
It seems that during times of extremely clear water, the shallower the fish are the harder they are to catch and exhibit a strong tendency to feed at dusk or after dark.