DWR Response...Dead Walleyes at Willard

[FatBiker]

Bob, I agree with you. Not all fishermen own boats and this is their best chance to catch a few fish. Also, as you noted it has minimal impact on the overall fishery. If they want to close the inlet during the spawn, my suggestion would be to close the entire lake during the spawn.
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[fishday]

Thanks Chris for your insightful comments. As usually is the case, there is a lot more than meets the eye. Glad you guys have already thought of what was brought up about inlet netting. Those hoop nets look like they do the trick.

Out of curiosity a few questions come to mind. What do you estimate are the number of walleye running up the inlet to spawn? How many are the hoop nets catching? Are the other species of fish in your nets spawning also, possibly the perch anyway, or are they just going along for the easy meal? With the high water there ought to be a good natural spawn this year. Should be excellent fishing at Willard and other lakes for a few years.

I think you guys are doing an excellent job. Now if mother nature can just keep the water levels up...
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[fishday]

Don't they close fisheries in other states for the spawn?
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[gmwahl]

As a blanket rule.....no. It is common in other states to manage individual waters and as a result some lakes are open and others are closed.

We should allow our DWR biologists to manage our waters the way they see fit since they are the ones most educated on the specifics of each body of water within their geographic areas of responsibility. They have done an incredible job of providing a diverse fishing experience and they have also done a great job of listening to anglers and considering their requests as well. Sometimes anglers don't get everything they want and that is OK.

It is good to hear science and facts from Mr. Penn instead of emotions and knee jerk reactions.
As was stated:
1-The fish in the inlet are just a small portion of the walleyes spawning in the lake overall.
2- They see little success in their spawn due to environmental challenges within the inlet itself.
3- The DWR law enforcement officers have reported a near 98% compliance rate from those anglers fishing the inlet during the spawn and those numbers can be backed up with factual data.

There is an emotional feeling about it from many anglers on this forum, but they don't bring a lot of data and science to the table in regards to their feelings of why the inlet should be shut down, they just bring feelings (kinda reminds me of the gun control debate). I completely understand their passion as they love Willard bay fishing and in their mind it is being exploited by those that they are labeling "the masses" and "happy harvesters". Anglers are competitive in nature as it is, and many won't even tell you what they caught a fish on because of some strange belief that if they do then all the fish will be caught and it will ruin the fishery, so seeing or hearing about others catching "buckets" of THIER walleyes will make them flip out. Of course, the walleyes aren't being caught out, but appearances can be deceiving.

So......as much as I respect the opinions (and many of those fisherman, by the way) and feelings of those that are opposed to leaving the inlet open during the spawn, we must also consider the feelings of those that want it open and not vilify them and accuse them of wanting to break the law and overharvest when Law enforcement and biologists can prove with data that this is not the case.

For the record, I suggested in another thread that the DWR close it between 8:00 pm and 6:00 am during the spawn and it would make law enforcement easier and still allow those that aren't trying to fish on the sly to enjoy trying to catch fish from the inlet during the spawn. That seems like a common sense approach that should be good for those on both sides of the debate.

Feel the way you want about it everybody, but please don't attack each other on this board or any other for that matter over an issue that has indisputable facts to show why it is scientifically acceptable to allow fishing in the inlet. We are all entitle to our opinions, but in the long run we are not enemies just because we have different feelings about this subject. Let's finally put this to rest after these last few years.

Mike
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[fishday]

Mike,

I totally agree with most of what you said. Sorry I misspoke about the fishers closing I meant individual waters during the spawn.

I think the main issue of some wanting to close the inlet is the fact that a few, not all or even the majority of, fishermen are snagging and possibly over harvesting. I doubt many on this forum or anyone who is a responsible sportsman would advocate for the snagging of spawning walleyes. However, it is a legal practice for salmon in many places. But the salmon are going to die anyway so its a wash. Even if the fish taken out of the inlet are minimal in the overall scheme of things I think it rubs a lot of people the wrong way when people are taking advantage of the situation. This is just another case of a few bad apples ruining it for the majority of folks who try to be good sportsmen or women--although I doubt there are very many women out there trying to snag eyes.

That bering said I am not in favor of closing the inlet for the good reasons already stated. What I am in favor of is when the ethical fisherpeople who are out there--I have never fished the inlet during the sapwn or any other time-- see someone committing illegal acts they should tell those scofflaws to knock it off or the DWR will be called. Some self policing by the people that the illegal activities affect might go a long way towards curtailing it. Closing it at night might be an alternative that would make it easier to police both for the ethical fishers and the DWR. People should stand up for what affects them and illegal taking of wildlife affects us all. It just too bad a few people don't see it that way.

I also think that if the DWR continues its excellent efforts to trap the fish in the inlet and not waste the eggs and fish heading to the inlet that that effort could go a long way towards alleviating the issue. Maybe then this won't be a yearly topic of discussion.

Dave
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[gmwahl]

I agree Dave.

I haven't spent loads of time there during the spawn, but when I have been there I have seen people watching each other and even some (The irritating blow hards) yelling out loud at every fisherman that hooked one to make sure it's not snagged. I myself have confronted two guys for a fish that they kept that was snagged by the head, but clearly not in the mouth.

I hate to see a few bad apples ruin it for all and I liken it to people wanting gun control just because a few idiots shoot a school up. By and large I think most people are ethical and will do the right thing. It's up to the rest of us to keep an eye out and rat out the violators and all will be well. And for Pete's sake, when we do catch somebody doing it illegally let's not be loud and make it uncomfortable for everybody else, rather lets confront others peaceably and within the law. Nobody needs to be hurt over a fish. Okay, I'm off my soap box now!

I wish more people thought the way you do dave!

Mike
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[TubeDude]

[#0000FF]Hey Mike, you make valid points. As most folks on this board know, I have stated my opinion that the inlet should not be open to wholesale harvest of the vulnerable walleyes during the spawn. But I readily admit that my stance is based more upon emotion than logic.

I do not fish the inlet...at any time during the year. First of all, I don't need that many new friends. Second, I have always equated fishing for spawning fish when concentrated and defenseless to the clubbing of baby seals on the ice...by fur hunters. Sure, it allows a harvest by folks who have neither the skills, knowledge or ability to pursue them around the lake like others. But it is largely lacking in anything close to "sport".

I do not begrudge legal and ethical anglers catching and keeping even a full limit of walleyes...legally...when they are massed up like that. But it rankles my old angler's soul to watch mindless and intentional snagging activities...with no release of anything caught...fair or foul.

You state that YOU have not spent a lot of time at the inlet...nor have you witnessed what others have described. And you question whether or not those practices actually happen. No data? You may choose to discount or not believe my statements, but I can attest to having witnessed hundreds...if not thousands...of walleyes leaving Willard in the buckets of those who have no respect for laws and regulations.

My observations go back to the 1970s, when there were no restrictions either. And it was rare to ever see a CO...in uniform or plain clothes. At some point it was recognized that there was a wholesale slaughter going on and the inlet was closed during the spawn...until recently. Now the "happy harvesters" are back...with cell phones and other means of communicating and warning each other when unknown new arrivals show up.

The lawless harvest does not go on 24/7. A lot of it happens after midnight...when a weighted spoon with a big treble can hang a walleye on almost every cast. Buckets are filled quickly and the "anglers" boogie before the morning shift shows up. I have not been there this year but have been the two years previously. And I am tapped in to reports from several other "regulars" who have also been known to "force feed" a few fish.

In short, it does happen...regardless of DWR stats on 98% compliance. Heck, there is probably 110% compliance when there are two DNR trucks in the parking area and uniformed COs plainly visible. What I am saying is that there are bursts of heavy harvest...when the world is not watching. At least closing this area to nighttime fishing would be a good move to reduce the worst of the offenses.

There are lots of walleyes in Willard...at least by today's standards. I got spoiled fishing Willard before i moved to Arizona in the mid '80s. 30 to 40 fish days were not unusual...with very few of the fish measuring less than the 20" slot size. You could keep 6 walleyes, but only 2 over 20". Most trips ended with 2 "small" walleyes about 5-6 pounds and many larger ones released...and nothing under 20".

That's why I get emotional about this. It is a rare trip when I catch more than a couple of walleyes, and it is also rare to catch one over the low 20 inch mark. That is, unless you snag the big females at the inlet.

To repeat, I do not begrudge law-abiding anglers and/or their kids the right to have a shot at fish they might not otherwise be able to catch. But it makes my blood boil to know that many of the bigger fish I would like to catch post spawn will never make it back out into the lake...because of illegal fishing activities.

CRASH! Just fell off my soapbox.

Peace.
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[Optimizer]

I sold my boat last winter and don’t have another yet. I have never fished the inlet and with all the discussion about it, I decided to give it a go a few days ago (Thursday, 4 April).

I fished the inlet from 2:00pm to near sunset. I had a prime location next to spillway. I threw hundreds of casts with jigs. Every color and shape. I even sweetened them with worms and smell jells on occasion. The whole time I also ran mussel meat on a sinking line with slip bobber. There were probably 15 people there on average but many coming and going throughout the day. Nobody (including myself) got a single bite. I can assure you “no walleye were hurt” during this experience. In fact no fish of any kind were hurt during this experience. There had been two warm days since the Monday cold spell so I thought I would give it a go. It was a beautiful day, warm and sunny. No jacket needed in the afternoon. The water was flowing nicely through the spillway. Surface water temp in the channel was 49 degrees. DWR was netting Walley earlier in the day at the south Marina.

Now let me tell you about the other aspects of this experience for me. I was wondering about the people and their attitudes. I was so impressed about how nice everyone of them were! I could tell they were all law biding anglers. The first person I met was a Hispanic man with crooked teeth and a car that would barely run. The DWR have all the roads marked no parking and the only real place to park is their designated lot that cost $5 per day. We separated, and I watched him deposit his $5 cash into the envelope. I met up with him at the spillway where he had the prime location. He kindly offered to share his location with me so I could jig over top of his bait lines which were on the bottom. Wow! I hated to see him go empty handed after paying his $5.

I met a single mom with tattoos an two young boys. They were all sinking bait for wipers in the same large opening between the channel and spillway. She was from Ogden. I talked with her later and she was so friendly. I told her it my first time. She had been there often and freely gave me much advice on when to come and what to use.

I next met a supper nice Hispanic fellow, who was a disabled Vietnam Vet. It was his first time there as well. I listened to him tell me many interesting stories. His heart was amazingly kind and good.

I spoke with three advanced angles out in waders who were casting every jig known to man. They were nice as well. They only live 8 minutes away and come there often. They also gave me advice on how to fish the inlet. They said they had only seen 5 walleye taken in the last 5 days, but when it is hot it is hot.

Here is another interesting thing about my adventure. I watched about a thousand casts from everyone including myself. I saw a about a 20% snag rate and many lost jigs and lures (mine too). There are a lot of obstacles and debris under that water. If you are trying run Jig low off the bottom the whole time rather than keeping them a little off the bottom your snag rate may go up the 50-60%. I can’t imagine running treble hooks along the bottom. By the way the professionals I saw were snagging even more than me an sometimes getting my line. There is a lot of brush around the edges and there aren’t many openings good for casting into the head waters. From what I have heard, it was a slow day at the water hole. I can’t imagine the bank tangling that would normally be going on. Honestly there are only a hand full of prime locations to cast which are around the spillway.

In summary, all the anglers I saw seemed to be honorable law-abiding citizens. These bank tanglers were working hard for a fish. They were not even littering. I had spent the morning at freeway bay rock hopping. The entire area is covered in litter. The spillway area is fairly litter free compared to the rock dikes.

This is my report. I have no problems with this spillway being closed down at dark durring the Walleye run, but why not let the bipeds have access during the day .
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[TubeDude]

[#0000FF]Sorry you didn't get more fishy love. And glad you were able to meet some nice folks.

Unfortunately, your experience is a negative reinforcement of the statements I have made, regarding the cycles and waves of fish showing up at the inlet. Actually, I suspect that the spawn is close to winding down and there are not likely to be as many walleyes from now on...but the wipers will be coming on strong fairly soon.

Believe me, if the walleyes had been "in" you would probably not have found a rock to stand on. Word travels fast among the regulars and they show up en mass to harvest them. But if the pickings are slim they just stay home and wait them out...until they get a call from one of their buddies.

During a full walleye spawn period, there will be periods of peak activity...followed by days with far fewer fish showing up. As with a lot of fishing, it is a combination of perseverance and luck. When the fish are more numerous, there is a better chance of catching some legally. But...as the snaggers know...it is also better for their activities.

Serious walleye chasers know that as soon as the walleyes settle down from the spawn they put on the feedbag and REAL fishing gets much better. The key...as always...is to first find the fish and then to serve them something to which they will respond.

Keep at it. You will get there.
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[AllFish]

Over the past few years I have personally gone to the inlet to see what all the fuss is about with the walleye spawn. Thought that maybe I was missing out on a valid opportunity to catch walleye legally in the mouth with bait or jigs and wanted to try it since it was now legal and the fish would be stacked up.

What I witnessed each time was elbow to elbow fishermen jerking sharp jigs and spoons through the stacked walleye. In hours of fishing on each of these occasions, I saw dozens of walleye brought in. All, and I repeat all, were foul hooked, not even one was legitimately hooked in the mouth.

Snaggers had a method and certain spot they fish from, casting across the fish, letting the snagging apparel sink to the bottom then slowly bringing it in across the bottom until they felt any kind of resistance, then giving a sharp jerk, which often produced a fat spawning female walleye, tail caught and dorsal caught being the most common catch.

Using bait, I caught one fat mudcat for all this effort, my son caught one fat walleye that was foul hooked and released.

Garbage was rampant, especially beer and soda cans. We picked up as many as we could and hauled them out.

Far as I am concerned, fishing the inlet during the walleye spawn is just a practice that shouldn't happen.
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[TubeDude]

"Far as I am concerned, fishing the inlet during the walleye spawn is just a practice that shouldn't happen"

[#0000FF]The emotional side of me agrees with you. But the logical side suggests that merely adding some additional restrictions...like NO night fishing...will help a bit.

You echo what I hear from lots of other anglers with whom I maintain regular communications. Most of us who know and love Willard are apalled by what goes on when not controlled by DWR or fellow fisherfolk. The snagging DOES happen...despite what some naysayers on the board proclaim.

I have been surprised by the attitude of DWR on Willard walleye snagging. Much different than Utah Lake. In the early years of walleye fishing on the lower Provo the common belief was that walleyes did not bite during the spawn...and the only way you could catch them was snagging. And on any given day there were numerous wild-eyed "anglers" jerking their "Provo River dry flies" (large treble hooks with a bell sinker and a piece of yellow foam) through the holding holes for spawning walleyes.

DWR observations were that there was plenty of successful spawning around the lake...on rocky shoreline and dikes...so there was no need to protect the spawners in the Provo. But they wanted to offer protection from snagging, so they put a no-fishing restriction on all tributaries from March to May. Interestingly, there was still a lot of nocturnal "dredging" for walleyes...in areas not readily watched from the road. In some places there were teams that would send guys up into the trees with lights to locate the fish for shoreline snaggers.

With the recent appearance of more northern pike in Utah Lake, the no-fishing ban in the tributaries has been relaxed...but the no walleyes in possession rule remains. Again, not so much to improve spawning success but to curtail snagging.

I have fished all over the country...including many areas of the upper midwest where walleye are a religion. There are different regulations in different states and on different waters. The fisheries departments make walleyes a top priority of management. They have hatchery and stocking programs for walleyes and often have strict slot limits and possession limits.

Are there snagging problems with walleyes in other areas? Of course. But I have never seen it greater than the problems we have in Utah.
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[perchound]

Very well said tubedude! I feel exactly the same way about it as you just explained, guess I need to be more detailed in my comments so's not to be attacked.
However, if you let your emotions get in the way it means absolutely nothing to the folks that live by the facts and only the facts. The days of catching big walleye's at Willard are definitely great memories but nearly nonexistent now.
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[TubeDude]

[#0000FF]When someone claims to be right...based upon the "facts"...I always have to question the origin of those facts and how many times they have been "adjusted" to show only what the presenter wants presented. Too often the "facts" are tweaked to reflect exactly the point being made by the person divulging them. Heck, I'm married. Been know to "manipulate" a few facts myself. Self preservation.

The emotional side of any argument is often based upon personal experience...tempered with personal interpretation and personal biases. In other words, "empirical" knowledge is still subject to mental modification and may not always be 100% applicable 100% of the time either.

Bottom line is that both sides of this issue are right. Removing a few walleye from Willard at the inlet...by fair means or foul...probably isn't going to make any kind of noticeable change in overall walleye populations. But that doesn't mean that those who love to catch walleye...around the rest of the lake during the rest of the year...can't feel a little bit of pain whenever they see some doofus carrying off a bucket full of walleyes that may or may not have been snagged. To us wallieologists, each of those fish sure would have been more appreciated on the end of our lines than in that guy's bucket. Whimper whimper.
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[fishday]

I'm with ya TD. I once took a college class titled "How to Lie with Statistics" that was dedicated to exact thing you were wrote of--how to manipulate the numbers and facts to 'prove' just about any point you wanted to make. Alternative truth if you will. A fact or two does not necessarily make the truth. Moral of the story is--don't believe everything you hear or read. But if you seen it with your own eyes then that is in fact the truth--unless of course one lies about what they saw and we know how fishermen are at times.

Yes indeed the thought of seeing or hearing about ill-gotten gains is what drives a lot of the emotion on this issue as well as others in life. Who likes a cheater?[pirate]
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[TubeDude]

[#0000FF]Thanks fer yer support.

After I wrote the previous diatribe I chuckled as I remembered an old joke. Seems the wife of a big shot businessman made a surprise visit to his company. She zipped by the receptionist and charged right through his closed office door. WHOOPS. The guy was in a liplock with his secretary. BIG WHOOPS.

But he was a fast thinker and fired off the first round. "Yeah, I know what you think you saw. But who are you going to believe...me or your lying eyes?"
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[cyprinus_23]

fishday,

Good questions. We haven't done a population survey to quantify how many walleye are running up the inlet. That said, there are creel surveys from the days when the inlet was open back in the 60's and 70's estimating annual harvest of walleye from the inlet ranging on average from about 2,000-10,000 fish. There were even a few years back in the late 60's where it up to 26,000 fish harvested from the inlet. Those extraordinary years involved a stunted walleye population and aren't the norm. In addition, even back in the years when harvest was around 2-10K fish, those were the years when walleye were the top predator in Willard. Since the mid 90's the walleye have shared their top predator status with wiper, so its likely there overall numbers year to year are lower now than before the establishment of the wiper fishery. I'm hesitant to give a estimate of how many walleye are in the inlet these days, but it seems reasonable that it would be somewhere towards the low or middle end of that harvest estimate from the 60's and 70's and depends upon the year with influence from factors like population density, weather, inflow, etc.

We've been setting a total of eight hoop nets, and all together they catch a modest number of fish, which is about 20 females and around 40 males on a good night. This is a decent catch when you multiply that by the number of nights they are fished during the spawn, but there are surely many fish that are swimming over and around the nets. For comparison, a single gill net will catch anywhere from 20-50 walleye and we've been setting up to 6 of those gill nets per night. One thing to note with the gill nets is the type we use for the walleye spawn are made of nylon and not monofilament like the ones we typically use for our trend netting. The nylon nets don't have much give to them, so fish appear to get less tangled and there is considerably less mortality and stress with the nylon nets used for the spawning program. Perhaps one of the best things about the hoop nets for us has been that we can work them in any weather since the inlet doesn't get the whitecaps and waves the main lake does. When the lake gets stormy, we can't work gill nets, so the hoop nets give us fairly consistent source of fish when bad weather hits.

It seems the inlet discussion is winding down and I'm going to try to make this my last response for a while as I've got a pretty busy schedule this week and next both at work and home, but I wanted to bring up a few items I've also noted in the historical documents about the inlet that might of be of interest. First, there was indeed a lot of snagging or foul hooking that went on prior to the closure of the inlet back in the 70's. I'm sure everyone knows this, but an interesting point I haven't heard is that while outright snagging was illegal, it was legal to harvest fish that were foul hooked back then and the creel surveys indicated around 99% of the fish that were caught back then were foul hooked. Second, during the final years before the closure of the inlet, there was actually a nightly closure. The official hours the inlet was open were from 4:00 AM to 9:00 PM. There was also a single prong hook rule as well.

Finally, while it hasn't necessarily been stated - I've gotten the feeling that there are many that feel that DWR is opposed to closing the inlet. We are quite neutral on this issue. As I stated before, we manage for the public and in the case of the inlet in 2013, there was an opportunity to provide more shore anglers an opportunity to catch walleye and more people wanting it open than closed. I've been asked my opinion on the inlet several times and my response is that my opinion does not matter. I am an angler myself and not without an opinion, it just wouldn't be fair to let that opinion dictate how fisheries are managed. Our role is to deal with the biology and use it to make the things anglers want happen. The biology of fish harvest at the inlet is sound, so the social details of the inlet are up to you, the anglers. So again, I would encourage those truly interested in seeing changes at the inlet to get involved and make your opinion heard. There are RAC this year for new regulations and sooner than that, we will be doing our annual fishing regulation survey, which has a write in and open comment area.
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[gmwahl]

You're right Pat, I have not spent tons of time at the inlet fishing during the spawn, but I have spent time there just watching for the antics. I've fished it 5-6 times is all, but gone and spent a 1/2 hour to couple hours watching on several occasions as I drive by.

I have absolutely no doubt that snagging happens, especially very late at night after the normal people go to bed, so that is why I vote for closing it at night only (as if my opinion matters anyway).

The thing is, I would hate to see a few bad apples spoil it for everybody. I probably will never Fish there's again because I'm more of a solitary type of fisherman and a sure fire way to get me to leave is to have a large group show up and screw with my peace and quiet, but I'm weird that way.

As for the wholesale snagging during daylight hours and extreme behavior I'm afraid that I haven't seen it during the times I've fished there or stopped to watch. I've fished as late as 8:00pm at the latest and honestly I thought the fishing sucked. On two occasions I've been there while people were catching a fair number of walleyes, but not many of them were snagged and with the exception of two snagged fish that I witnessed, all were returned back to the water. Most fish I saw caught were caught in the mouth.

I don't blame you for having more of an emotional response toward it because it makes sense after all of your years fishing there. Heck, I've fished Willard for walleyes since the early 80's and remember some stellar walleye fishing trips, so rest assured my friend, I am not in the slightest offended by your stance and hope I didn't get under your skin much either.

Btw, I like fishing for the walleyes more in May, june, and July than I do during the Willard spawn.....it's much easier! Also, I hit the Bear river today to try for walleyes and got 2.... and a dozen nice smallies as a bonus, so the crowds can have Willard for now and I will kindly stay out of their way, hehe!

Mike
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[fishday]

Thanks for the info Chris. Over 330 limits of eyes taken out of the inlet during the spawn based on the estimates you gave! Dang that's lot of hours boat fishers would have to spend to get that many limits based on my experience. I may have fished out there about 20 times and caught a limit of walleye maybe twice. Limited sample size I know and I likely am not the best at catching them but i usually catch one or two a trip, but sometimes none. So if 20 boats catch 3 eyes a piece that's 60 fish per day 10 limits per day--that seems like a lot and probably is a high estimate. In any event, thats over 30 days to catch as many fish as bank tanglers catch in 2 weeks. What does everyone else think based on your experiences out there?

It would be helpful to see current creel numbers and be able to tell the percentage of fish taken versues the number that are using the inlet to spawn. Closing the inlet at night seems like the only practical way to get an accurate count on harvest as well as being better able to police it.

Other questions come to mind. Do you guys use a formula based on the number of fish you catch in your nets to estimate the number of mature fish in the entire lake? Is there an app for that?? If so how many mature walleye do you estimate are in the entire lake? What is the creel count for the entire lake over the course of a soft water season? People might be able to make a more informed, as opposed to a more emotional, decision on keeping the inlet open or closing it if they knew what those estimates were. No hurry on any possibly revised or more current numbers, but if any were available prior to the next RAC meeting participation might go up. I say might. If numbers aren't available this year, which it doesn't sound like they are, then maybe next year.

Thanks again for all your and your crew's hard work. There are lot of people out there that are reaping a lot of enjoyment and good eating out of your efforts.
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[TubeDude]

"Btw, I like fishing for the walleyes more in May, june, and July than I do during the Willard spawn..."

[#0000FF]Perzactly! I used to fish the dikes during the "run"...mostly over at the NW corner. And I caught a lot of fish. But I can't remember the last time I actually fished at the inlet. Like yourself, I'm really not into making a lot of new friends while fishing. I enjoy the solitary aspect of the sport and I'm really not into full contact fishing.

You are 100% right. Fishing post spawn walleyes is a lot easier and more fun. The fish actively chomp your bait or lures and even fight a bit more. I chase them post spawn in Starvation, Willard, Utah Lake and Deer Creek. Anglers who know these lakes...and how to fish for walleyes...can usually count on scoring well after the spawn. And there are a whole lot of walleye that are caught at this time by anglers who are fishing for other species..."on accident".

I took no offense at any of your comments. You know what you experienced and that is real to you. Just the same as I have my own experiences and observations to shape my own outlook. We each have our own realities...and we are entitled to them without attack from anybody else with differing opinions.

You and I have had past communications and have even shared the water at Bear Lake a couple of times. I respect you as a knowledgeable and ethical fellow fisherman.

We're good here.
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[cyprinus_23]

Keep in mind that back when those surveys conducted it was legal to keep all those foul hooked fish. That really increased the number of fish that could be legally harvested. While we haven't creeled the inlet since it's reopening, there is likely considerably less legal harvest now than back in the 60's and 70's.

Fishery biologists rarely conduct population estimates on reservoir fisheries so I don't have a population estimate for walleye on the reservoir. The reason actual population estimates are rarely done is that they involve mark and recapture, which requires collecting and marking a large number of fish and then following up on multiple occasions to collect those fish. In addition, by the time we have the actual estimate, it is assumed that the population will have changed by then. So basically there has to be a strong question for us to conduct a population estimate on a reservoir population of fish. Instead of population estimates we track populations in reservoirs through "relative abundance", which is a measure of how many fish of the species of interest we see in our trend netting catch from year to year. Basically, what we do is run a calculation on how many nets we have to set to detect a real change in the population. If we set too few nets, any changes we see might just be due to random chance or getting lucky by hitting a school of fish. If we set too many nets, than we are wasting time that we could be using sampling other waters. Basically, we look for the sweet spot of how many nets we need to actually track the population with confidence. With this in mind, if the numbers we see in our nets go up, it is assumed the population has gone up and if the numbers we see in our nets go down, it is assumed the population has gone down. Using this concept of relative abundance allows us to keep track of many fisheries in one year, where if we tried to do population estimates we would probably limit our knowledge and sampling ability to just a few waters. We definitely need the ability to keep tabs on multiple waters in a year as my office alone is responsible for overseeing Rockport, Echo, Pineview, Mantua, Willard, East Canyon, Lost Creek, Hyrum, Bear Lake, Newton, part of the Uintas, the Weber River, Logan River, Blacksmith Fork, and more.
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