03-17-2016, 01:54 PM
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I am not from Utah; I grew up in Michigan where we also close the walleye season completely during the spawn. However, after fishing Willard for a few years I find it hard to believe opening the inlet for fishing has any detrimental effects on the walleye population whatsoever. On any given year you can circle Willard during the spawn and witness walleye practically throwing themselves at the rocks all around the reservoir and yes plenty of folks fish them each year during the spawn even without the inlet access.
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Snagging is something that folks will do regardless if whether the inlet is open or not, it’s a matter of location and opportunity. I honestly believe we will see better walleye fishing in Willard due to the fact water levels are expected to go up and remain higher, this will allow for more shad cover and spawning hideouts...ultimately this should disperse more shad allowing the bounty to last longer which could create more hungry fish....in any case the real danger to walleye or any fish in Utah for that matter really isn't the amount of anglers or snagging, it’s the ups/downs of the water levels resulting in a fluctuation of food sources.
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I am not from Utah; I grew up in Michigan where we also close the walleye season completely during the spawn. However, after fishing Willard for a few years I find it hard to believe opening the inlet for fishing has any detrimental effects on the walleye population whatsoever. On any given year you can circle Willard during the spawn and witness walleye practically throwing themselves at the rocks all around the reservoir and yes plenty of folks fish them each year during the spawn even without the inlet access.
[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"] [/font]
Snagging is something that folks will do regardless if whether the inlet is open or not, it’s a matter of location and opportunity. I honestly believe we will see better walleye fishing in Willard due to the fact water levels are expected to go up and remain higher, this will allow for more shad cover and spawning hideouts...ultimately this should disperse more shad allowing the bounty to last longer which could create more hungry fish....in any case the real danger to walleye or any fish in Utah for that matter really isn't the amount of anglers or snagging, it’s the ups/downs of the water levels resulting in a fluctuation of food sources.
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