03-18-2016, 05:08 AM
Exactly wiperhunter.
Another thing to consider is how many fish are we losing there to people that don't have a fishing license or are keeping more than their limits? I'd would be willing to bet that the number of walleyes kept that have been illegally snagged pale in comparison to the amount poached out on boats and kept in the live well until they get home. We don't see that in plain sight so we don't worry about it, but we DO see a bunch of guys having fun at the baffles and just assume that they are all "happy harvesters" and pilfering our precious walleyes. Only a small handful are breaking the law and again, probably a lot less than those out on boats where they can't be seen as easily.
As long as they are obeying the law let's allow the shore fisherman a decent shot once in a while to catch the walleyes. I'm sure far more are kept along the rocky shorelines during the spawn than are being kept at the inlet, and even if not, those that are caught along the rocky shoreline ARE able to successfully spawn and therefor theoretically should be impacting the population, yet the walleyes are still in there in decent numbers. The walleyes in the inlet don't really contribute to the recruitment.
As long as we just have fun and obey the law at Willard Bay and keep an eye out for those that are breaking the law there should be no problems.
And what's next for those so opposed to fishing the walleye spawn....no fishing for the crappies during their spawn?
Mike
[signature]
Another thing to consider is how many fish are we losing there to people that don't have a fishing license or are keeping more than their limits? I'd would be willing to bet that the number of walleyes kept that have been illegally snagged pale in comparison to the amount poached out on boats and kept in the live well until they get home. We don't see that in plain sight so we don't worry about it, but we DO see a bunch of guys having fun at the baffles and just assume that they are all "happy harvesters" and pilfering our precious walleyes. Only a small handful are breaking the law and again, probably a lot less than those out on boats where they can't be seen as easily.
As long as they are obeying the law let's allow the shore fisherman a decent shot once in a while to catch the walleyes. I'm sure far more are kept along the rocky shorelines during the spawn than are being kept at the inlet, and even if not, those that are caught along the rocky shoreline ARE able to successfully spawn and therefor theoretically should be impacting the population, yet the walleyes are still in there in decent numbers. The walleyes in the inlet don't really contribute to the recruitment.
As long as we just have fun and obey the law at Willard Bay and keep an eye out for those that are breaking the law there should be no problems.
And what's next for those so opposed to fishing the walleye spawn....no fishing for the crappies during their spawn?
Mike
[signature]