Where be the walleye?

[Garshouse]

Anyone catching eyes?  Anywhere?  Anyhow?

[lovesmelt]

Just got off the humps in chassell landed 2 walleyes one 15 inches and the other was 17, what is wrong with this fisheries, 6 years ago i caguht over 10 each day this year and the last 3 years i noticed that it was on the decline, but i did land these fish

[BiG ARN]

6 years ago was probally the last time they planted any eyes....the vhs scare put a hold on stalking.   Dnr says there going back to 80% stalking this year and 100% next year. So hopefully in about 10-12 years we will be able to fish all our favorite spots where we used to catch walleye!

[Bobberbob31]

i would not wait 10 years to try for those planted fish. walleye grow quite fast. by two years old they can be 10 to 14 inches so three year old fish are usually over the legal size...

[ER1993]

i would not wait 10 years to try for those planted fish. walleye grow quite fast. by two years old they can be 10 to 14 inches so three year old fish are usually over the legal size...

Walleyes grow quite fast in southern warmer waters with a longer growing season and with good/great food sources but up here in the north is a different story.. With the cold water and shorter "growing season" and sub par food sources a 7-8 year old walleye would be most likley in the 2lb range.. So in short it will be a good 10-12 years before most lakes have "decent" walleye fishing...

[Wardo]

With the cold water and shorter "growing season" and sub par food sources a 7-8 year old walleye would be most likley in the 2lb range.. So in short it will be a good 10-12 years before most lakes have "decent" walleye fishing...

They will get to legal size in about 3 years if there is a decent forage base. 

[ER1993]

They will get to legal size in about 3 years if there is a decent forage base.  

If you call "decent" walleyes 15" have at er.. A decent walleye in my book is 20"+ and those fish are more than likley older than 10 years old..

[ER1993]

Went back in the archives on Upangler and found this interesting info for you..

2 guys caught tagged walleyes in LBDN here are the results.

1st fish-was caught 253 days after being tagged and it grew a whopping .1" and was a 22" fish estimated at 8 years old.
2nd fish was caught 1,716 days after being tagged and grew .5" and was a 23" fish estimated at 12 years old.
3rd fish was caught 275 days after being caught and grew .3" 21 when tagged 21.3 when caught. (8 years old)

Keep in mind this is Lake Michigan/ Bay de noc that has great forage and the one fish only grew .3" in one year and the other .1" in a year..

[jon johnson]

ER...you're comparing apples to oranges!  Once a fish gains a certain size the growth rate will certainly slow.  I'm in the midwest also and our 3 year old fish can easily be 15-17". 

[jon johnson]

And yes, a 15" walleye IS a "decent" fish to me.

[ER1993]

Well Jon i don't know how you think im comparing apples to oranges but so be it i guess.. I was simply saying in order to get a good sustained walleye fishery here in MICHIGAN its going to take a good ten years to get fish from the 20"+ range all the way down to your idea of a "decent" fish at 15". As far as a 15" walleye being a decent fish, i would beg to differ.. As far as the growth rate im well aware the when fish get to a certain length the growth rate slows.. I was just showing some interesting info for those who might be interested...

[jon johnson]

er....I did a bit more checking and it looks like it takes 5 additional years for those 16" fish to become 20"ers.  So you are real close on with your 10 year assessment if you are looking at 20" fish. 

[Flag UP]

Jon J. I can remember a few years back where some tourists caught a 6 lb. walleye in Portage Lake. They had signed up for a summer long fishing contest operated by the local chamber of commerce and were very excited to bring it in to the local sporting goods store to register it. They were dumbfounded when the guy at the store told them that it wasn't worth entering a fish that small. The walleye fishing has declined greatly in recent years but it used to be common to catch 30+ inch long fish each year. I know that there was a time where I looked at a fish under 24 inches as a small fish. I know, I know, I was spoiled.

[BiG ARN]

Yea...its kinda suprising when u read how old a legal to hawg size walleye is!   A 30+ wall mounter is probally in its 20s in the u.p......that's alot of years to get that size!     Makes ya really think about why they should of left the slot limit on bay de noc!

[michlw39]

And yes, a 15" walleye IS a "decent" fish to me.

For me too--and darn fine table fare!