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Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after. ~ Henry David Thoreau ![[Linked Image from i1261.photobucket.com]](http://i1261.photobucket.com/albums/ii582/teehjaeh57/I_subscribe_zps69249d43.gif)
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Nate,
How much did that female that still had her eggs weigh? Oops my bad, its another fish below and behind her that makes it look likes she's full of eggs.
Ice fishing for walleyes on Erie was great this year due to obvious reasons. I took in a good number to mount. One customer said there was 18 inches of ice 10 miles out. Unbelievable!
Nice fish!
Last edited by Cecil Baird1; 04/24/14 10:51 PM.
If pigs could fly bacon would be harder to come by and there would be a lot of damaged trees.
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Nate,
Where were you fishing roughly? Trying to understand where the fish are so I have an idea where to start May 3 when I get out there on our annual trip. This year is much colder than almost any that we have fished (even 1996) and expect the fish to be west of where we normally fish. We stay on South Bass Inland with our own boats so hoping we don't have to go all the way to the reefs to get fish, that is a 18 mile one way run. Hoping that they are just west of Green or around NW reef those are not bad runs. Looks like it was a good crankbait bite for you, we haven't had a good crankbait bite in years (water was too warm, meat bite) hoping we have one this year. We used to go the last week of April and that is when we would have the good crankbait bite but now going the first week in May it is more a meat bite. Changed the trip to the first week in May since the weather is more stable and we get to fish more days and the limit is 6 walleyes in May vs 3 (now 4) in April.
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Nate, glad that you got away from "the office" long enough to wet a line.
It's not about the fish. It's about the pond. Take care of the pond and the fish will be fine. PB subscriber since before it was in color.
Without a sense of urgency, Nothing ever gets done.
Boy, if I say "sic em", you'd better look for something to bite. Sam Shelley Rancher and Farmer Muleshoe Texas 1892-1985 RIP
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Is it common practice to keep large numbers of trophy size walleye on Erie? Maybe they don't release well?
Enjoy your blog, but some of these picture poses turned my stomach..
Lambast me if I'm missing something.....
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Is it common practice to keep large numbers of trophy size walleye on Erie? Maybe they don't release well?
Enjoy your blog, but some of these picture poses turned my stomach..
Lambast me if I'm missing something.....
I sure wouldn't lambast you. I'm originally from your neck of the woods, and it is different. The lakes where I grew up are severely restricted this year, mostly with a one walleye limit per day on the Wisconsin side, because my Ojibway cousins can legally spear a large number of walleye in those area lakes based on a treaty that goes back to about 1870. I also know Nate Herman and his family quite well. I cannot imagine them doing anything to harm a fishery. They are the ultimate in providing fishery protection, proliferation, and family experiences. They do more for advancing fishing experiences for the elderly and kids than anybody I have ever met. I don't know the particulars of this trip, but I can't believe that the Herman family would do anything but enhance a fishery. Nate, his brothers, and his parents/grandparents, are the ultimate in wildlife enhancement. They are a very really good conservation minded family, who only have a mentality to improve fisheries management and fun for the disadvantaged. Regards, Ken
Last edited by catmandoo; 04/25/14 04:48 PM.
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Hall of Fame 2015 Lunker
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Is it common practice to keep large numbers of trophy size walleye on Erie? Maybe they don't release well?
Enjoy your blog, but some of these picture poses turned my stomach..
Lambast me if I'm missing something..... I have a much different comment than Ken (catmandoo), and there are reasons I agree with you, but ya can't post that stuff here.
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Is it common practice to keep large numbers of trophy size walleye on Erie? Maybe they don't release well?
Enjoy your blog, but some of these picture poses turned my stomach..
Lambast me if I'm missing something..... I have a much different comment than Ken (catmandoo), and there are reasons I agree with you, but ya can't post that stuff here. Not to start anything but do you understand the Lake Erie fishery and how the harvest on Lake Erie is done with the Canadian commercial fishery getting the vast majority of the harvest and the nets don't select the size of fish. Keeping large fish on Lake Erie is very common and doesn't affect the fishery. The angler harvest is a very small portion of the overall harvest on Erie and the lake is very fertile with good to excellent recruitment the last few years. The fish that Nate caught are most likely from 2006 or 2008 (2008 was a very good hatch). I personally don't keep walleyes on Lake Erie over 28" don't care for them on the table but keeping them doesn't hurt the fishery. You have to realize the Lake Erie is totally different than most other walleye fishery (Lake Michigan Green Bay and some what Little bay and Big Bay are similar) than you are use to and have to understand this before passing judgement on someone. I would never keep a those walleyes on small lakes in Wisconsin even not on Winnebago or in a Canadian lake but then again you need to understand the capabilities of the fishery and treat it appropriately
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How can someone find a complaint in those pics (this is a pond/fish management forum). I understand I guess if you don't know N8 from the forum but the guy is one of the best definately the best from Illinois when it comes to fish management..
JKB I wouldn't expect anything less from you and J.meyer if he spent 10 minutes learning a little about N8 he'd prolly pull his comment..
I believe in catch and release. I catch then release to the grease.. BG. CSBG. LMB. HSB. RES. ![[Linked Image from i90.photobucket.com]](http://i90.photobucket.com/albums/k247/jmilczski/Fish/PBSubscribe.gif)
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Those big walleye on Lk Erie now happen to be abundant and some near the end of life. Harvesting them does not significantly impact the fishery. Harvest of these big fish is expected, planned and acceptable. Lk Erie is very big fertile ecosystem and fish growing machine. These big walleye are coming from very strong abundant walleye year classes of 1999, 2001, and 2003 hatches. The biggest oldest walleye are not the best spawning females which are 3 to 6 lb individuals and are a lot more abundant than the big females. As these fish get quite old the eggs are not as viable as compared to the younger females thus harvest of the big females is more acceptable in this type habitat compared to other inland lakes where walleye often do not spawn naturally, are supplementally stocked and thus are more limited in number.
For those not familiar with Lake Erie it is a huge fertile fish growing system. It is the 12 largest lake in the world and the shallowest of the Great Lakes. It is about 210 miles long and 57 miles wide. It covers 9,910 square miles. Fish harvest in the lake is monitored with limits adjusted annually to preserve the entire fishery.
Last edited by Bill Cody; 04/25/14 09:55 PM.
aka Pond Doctor & Dr. Perca Read Pond Boss Magazine -
America's Journal of Pond Management
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Nate,
Where were you fishing roughly? Trying to understand where the fish are so I have an idea where to start May 3 when I get out there on our annual trip. This year is much colder than almost any that we have fished (even 1996) and expect the fish to be west of where we normally fish. We stay on South Bass Inland with our own boats so hoping we don't have to go all the way to the reefs to get fish, that is a 18 mile one way run. Hoping that they are just west of Green or around NW reef those are not bad runs. Looks like it was a good crankbait bite for you, we haven't had a good crankbait bite in years (water was too warm, meat bite) hoping we have one this year. We used to go the last week of April and that is when we would have the good crankbait bite but now going the first week in May it is more a meat bite. Changed the trip to the first week in May since the weather is more stable and we get to fish more days and the limit is 6 walleyes in May vs 3 (now 4) in April. Mark, We were just 2 miles outside the harbor in port Clinton. The boys up there think the walleye will stay close this year because there was so much ice so late the water will stay colder than normal this summer.
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Looks like great fishing! I can see how Erie, with its size, wouldn't be hurt losing quite a few ten+ pounders.
I guess I've fished too hard in my day and have developed an admiration for a walleye of that size.
Bucket list to get out to Erie now. Hope the captain doesn't have a problem with me CPR-ing the big gals caught..
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Is it common practice to keep large numbers of trophy size walleye on Erie? Maybe they don't release well?
Enjoy your blog, but some of these picture poses turned my stomach..
Lambast me if I'm missing something.....
J. Meyer, no lambasting needed... I was a little surprised to when the guys from the area said to keep all the big female wallleye... They said if the guys hook n line don't harvest them than the netters will just get a bigger allotment the following years... It's def completely different scenario than the lakes of Minnesota.... Now I'm completely ruined for walleye fishing anywhere else the rest of my life... Lake Erie is unbelievably 100 times better than any other walleye lake out there... They limit out 24-36 walleye per boat per day every day that they have weather good enough to fish...
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So far this spring they have been limiting out before noon... It only took us 2 hrs each day to catch our limits..
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Chairman, Pond Boss Legacy award; Moderator; field correspondent Lunker
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Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after. ~ Henry David Thoreau
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Nate thanks than in a week I shouldn't have to run to far. As you said the fishing on Lake Erie is great if the water has 2 to 5 foot visibility, less than that and it is hit and miss. More than that and you really have to get the baits away from the boat with boards to catch anything. I had week long trip where we get out every day and limit out and I had week long trip where we only get out a couple of days and the fishing is tough due to no visibility. Been fishing Erie since 1988 and since 1993 from our own boats.
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I'm probably a little too instatutionalized in my way of thinking..
Just hope the captains and netters keep a respect for the fishery... I've seen Mille Lacs and Red Lake decimated up here from very poor management.
Amazing fishery!!
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I'm probably a little too instatutionalized in my way of thinking..
Just hope the captains and netters keep a respect for the fishery... I've seen Mille Lacs and Red Lake decimated up here from very poor management.
Amazing fishery!!
So you don't think the biologists that assess the population in Lake Erie have a handle on numbers, strength of age classes, and recruitment? And Lake Erie has a much much larger population of fish than Mille Lacs and Red Lake. I've actually seen aerial photos of hundreds of thousands of walleyes headed up a major river to Lake Erie to spawn and that is only a fraction of the population as many of them spawn on reefs. Are you sure the population in those two lakes you mention wasn't naturally cyclical depending on annual recruitment and the biologists got the blame when fishing sucked? As an avid angler and fisheries science grad I see anglers always looking for a scape goat when the fishing isn't as good as they want. I'm all for being a responsible angler but feel your concerns are unwarranted in this case. And don't even get me started on the keeping any fish is a mortal sin crowd.
Last edited by Cecil Baird1; 04/26/14 09:29 AM.
If pigs could fly bacon would be harder to come by and there would be a lot of damaged trees.
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I'm probably a little too instatutionalized in my way of thinking..
Just hope the captains and netters keep a respect for the fishery... I've seen Mille Lacs and Red Lake decimated up here from very poor management.
Amazing fishery!!
So you don't think the biologists that assess the population in Lake Erie have a handle on numbers, strength of age classes, and recruitment? And Lake Erie has a much much larger population of fish than Mille Lacs and Red Lake. I've actually seen aerial photos of hundreds of thousands of walleyes headed up a major river to Lake Erie to spawn and that is only a fraction of the population as many of them spawn on reefs. Are you sure the population in those two lakes you mention wasn't naturally cyclical depending on annual recruitment and the biologists got the blame when fishing sucked? As an avid angler and fisheries science grad I see anglers always looking for a scape goat when the fishing isn't as good as they want. I'm all for being a responsible angler but feel your concerns are unwarranted in this case. And don't even get me started on the keeping any fish is a mortal sin crowd. Mille Lacs and the Red Lake issues are rather different, but somewhat similar in that both are controlled by multiple agencies and groups that don't always agree. The Red Lakes have pretty well rebounded after drastic measures were taken by a combined group of local, state, and federal agreements. They stopped all legal walleye fishing for a couple of years, and introduced millions of walleye fry for several years in a row. Illegal poaching remains a problem that will probably never be solved. Mille Lacs has issues that the Red Lakes don't have. One is the zebra muscle, which has made it dangerous for the walleye to spawn. The sharp shells on the gravel cause open wounds on the bottoms of the spawning walleye. The lake has warmed considerably, killing off the "lawyer" (burbot) and there has been a near extinction of tullubee bait fish. This has put a lot of pressure on the yellow perch by both the northern pike and walleye. The slot limits have had an affect on the walleye too. There has been high mortality of large walleye being released in warm weather. They are tired after being brought in, and they stay in the warm water which is also low in oxygen. There is currently a lawsuit of the mismanaging of Mille Lacs.
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Cecil, you're very confused and know little on the history of the two lakes. Red lake walleyes are known to be almost netted/fished to nothing.. Your "biologists" admitted that.
Your post is way out of context.
Maybe this forum is reserved for you and a few of your buddies opinions..?
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The forum is open to everyone's opinion.. Some just can't handle others opinions and get nasty instead of trying to learn or atleast hear another opinion besides their own..
I believe in catch and release. I catch then release to the grease.. BG. CSBG. LMB. HSB. RES.
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Cecil, you're very confused and know little on the history of the two lakes. Red lake walleyes are known to be almost netted/fished to nothing.. Your "biologists" admitted that.
Your post is way out of context.
Maybe this forum is reserved for you and a few of your buddies opinions..?
My apololgies if you perceived my post as confrontational, but I never professed to know the history of the two lakes up there. I guess what gets my dander up is a one size fits all approach as in the harvest of any big fish is bad. You seem to be using your experience with your lakes to judge the management of Lake Erie which I think can be inaccurate. As far as "buddies' here I have several but we try to be friendly to all here even if we disagree. We're all one big family here.
Last edited by Cecil Baird1; 04/26/14 01:31 PM.
If pigs could fly bacon would be harder to come by and there would be a lot of damaged trees.
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I'm probably a little too instatutionalized in my way of thinking..
Just hope the captains and netters keep a respect for the fishery... I've seen Mille Lacs and Red Lake decimated up here from very poor management.
Amazing fishery!!
So you don't think the biologists that assess the population in Lake Erie have a handle on numbers, strength of age classes, and recruitment? And Lake Erie has a much much larger population of fish than Mille Lacs and Red Lake. I've actually seen aerial photos of hundreds of thousands of walleyes headed up a major river to Lake Erie to spawn and that is only a fraction of the population as many of them spawn on reefs. Are you sure the population in those two lakes you mention wasn't naturally cyclical depending on annual recruitment and the biologists got the blame when fishing sucked? As an avid angler and fisheries science grad I see anglers always looking for a scape goat when the fishing isn't as good as they want. I'm all for being a responsible angler but feel your concerns are unwarranted in this case. And don't even get me started on the keeping any fish is a mortal sin crowd. Mille Lacs and the Red Lake issues are rather different, but somewhat similar in that both are controlled by multiple agencies and groups that don't always agree. The Red Lakes have pretty well rebounded after drastic measures were taken by a combined group of local, state, and federal agreements. They stopped all legal walleye fishing for a couple of years, and introduced millions of walleye fry for several years in a row. Illegal poaching remains a problem that will probably never be solved. Mille Lacs has issues that the Red Lakes don't have. One is the zebra muscle, which has made it dangerous for the walleye to spawn. The sharp shells on the gravel cause open wounds on the bottoms of the spawning walleye. The lake has warmed considerably, killing off the "lawyer" (burbot) and there has been a near extinction of tullubee bait fish. This has put a lot of pressure on the yellow perch by both the northern pike and walleye. The slot limits have had an affect on the walleye too. There has been high mortality of large walleye being released in warm weather. They are tired after being brought in, and they stay in the warm water which is also low in oxygen. There is currently a lawsuit of the mismanaging of Mille Lacs. Thanks Ken. Interesting stuff! I wonder if the zebra shells have any negative effect on the walleye in Erie? Anyone know?
If pigs could fly bacon would be harder to come by and there would be a lot of damaged trees.
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Haven't heard that before above the zebra mussel. Before anyone want to make comments about Lake Erie and thing they know better should spend a little time on Ohio DNR web site and learn the facts. I spent time of that web site for maybe close to 15 to 20 years now and read the assessment of the walleye population every year, look at the fall trawling results etc. Don't try to make one size fits all especially if if you don't understand the fishery. Do a little research, it all there on the Ohio DNR site.
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