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Huge Walleye!/Spring walleye report

can it be luck?
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can it be luck? Mentor

can it be luck?

Posted
Posted

Hey, did anyone happen to see that huge 13lb 12 oz walleye in the Wausau Daily Herald today? I guess I get a little "lucky" once in a while. grin.gif
Jim Lee, the Outdoor editer for the Herald has a nice article about spring walleye fishing. It looks like the fishing sould be getting even better in the next years to come.


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Sun, Apr 11, 2004

Spring walleye fishing good



By Jim Lee
For the Wausau Daily Herald
It's been a super spring for eager walleye anglers.

Excellent success is reported on the Wisconsin, Wolf and Fox rivers, the major waterways open to year-round fishing in central Wisconsin.

"Action has been really good on the Wolf," says Mike Remme, owner of Ma's Bait & Tackle in Fremont.

"Fish were moving up from the downstream lakes in late March and people were catching lots of walleyes in the 14- to 16-inch range."
A surge of unseasonably warm weather and rains in late March created flood conditions and prompted walleyes to migrate upriver in search of spawning grounds. Cooler temperatures arrived with April and have delayed spawning activity. Depending on weather conditions, spawning on the rivers is expected to peak in the coming week.

Wolf River walleyes have the unique habit of spawning over flooded marsh grass, then returning to Lake Winnebago and other downstream lakes to spend the rest of the year.

"When the fish are in the marshes and focused on spawning," says Remme, "there is a five- or six-day period when it doesn't even pay to fish. You just can't get at them or get them to bite."
But when spawning is over and the fish begin drifting back downstream, some of the biggest fish of the spring are caught.

"Prior to the spawn, anglers concentrate their fishing in shallow water, usually sandbars in six feet of water," Remme said. "After the spawn, they fish deeper water. A lot of big female walleyes just ride the current about three feet below the surface. Some fish can still be taken near bottom, but it pays to try different depths."
Small male walleyes typically dominate the pre-spawn fishery, but that is not a problem for Wolf River and Upper Fox River anglers, who enjoy walleye angling under regulations that allow a five-fish limit with no minimum size restrictions.

Gary Schmidt, owner of Mosinee Bait & Taxidermy, said the Wisconsin River in Marathon, Portage and Wood counties has been producing some walleyes, but the best action should come in the next two weeks.

Walleye anglers in that section of the river face a slot-size restriction. While the daily bag limit is five fish, there is a minimum size of 15 inches, along with a stipulation that no walleyes between 20 and 28 inches may be kept. One trophy walleye exceeding 28 inches is allowed.

"The fish haven't spawned yet," Schmidt said. "If the weather warms a bit, it may start this coming week. In the pre-spawn period, the walleyes seem to stack up in deeper water. There hasn't been much going on in the river shallows, but that will change as water temperatures rise."
Fox River anglers at the entrance to Green Bay encounter tight regulations during March and April. The daily walleye bag limit is one fish at least 28 inches in length. For all practical purposes, it is a catch-and-release fishery until May 1, but that restriction has not dulled its appeal.

"You'll see hundreds of boats (on the river below the De Pere dam) on a nice day," said Steve Hogler, fisheries biologist for the Department of Natural Resources.

"You can't beat the fishing when you can catch 100 walleyes or more in a half-day."
Mark Hoffmann of Mosinee boated one of the largest walleyes caught on the Fox River this spring when he landed a 321Ú2-inch, 13-pound, 12-ounce female on March 26.

"We fished the river the first time this year on March 24," he said. "We fished below the dam from noon to 10 p.m. and caught close to 200 fish. The average size was 16 to 22 inches.

"I came back on the 26th with two other guys. We fished from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. and probably caught 40 fish. I caught the big one about 7 p.m. The walleyes weren't close to spawning."
Hoffmann said he fished in about four feet or water adjacent to the river channel, which dropped to 18 or 20 feet. The anglers cast three-eighths-ounce jigs tipped with a small plastic twister-type tail and a fathead minnow. On another line, each angler still-fished a minnow on a plain hook and slip-sinker.

On the first trip, "it was a horse apiece as to which tactic worked best," Hoffmann said. "They were biting good. At times we had to fish with only one line because of the number of fish we were catching. They were biting everything as long as it had a minnow on it."
Hoffmann said spring fishing on the lower Fox appears to be the best in several years.

Hogler said Fox River anglers are reaping the benefits of strong walleye reproduction in 2001. Males in that year-class are 16 to 19 inches long. Female walleyes typically enter the spawning cycle a year later than males.

"While the 2001 spawning period was excellent, results of the 2003 spawning season were tremendous," he said, "so the 2006 spring fishing season (when male walleyes from the 2003 class will be sexually mature) should be even better than the current season."

[This message has been edited by can it be luck? (edited 04-14-2004).]

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outdoor ran Mentor

outdoor ran

Posted
Posted

Wow that is a pig, when is it getting back from the taxidermist. I have always wanted to go south instead of going north in the spring for early walleyes but I have no clue where to go. Cant really find much info on getting started.

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Gingerbreadman Rookie

Gingerbreadman

Posted
Posted
shocked.gif That is a big fish!!
Do the walleyes bite on the Fox all year round? I'd like to fish there if there's big ones like that!!
Congratulations on that big fish!

------------------
Run, Run, as fast as you can! You can't catch me I'm the Gingerbread Man!

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