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Well despite the weather i hit willard today for 2 hours. only two hours because in my hurry to try to get to the lake before the storm hit i forgot my coat and wading shoes. so i got drenched in the hail and wind and rain and kicked around in my float tube with the shoes i was wearing leaving me barefoot to go home in haha. marked alot of fish and actually caught my first cold weather wiper. surprised me measured 22 1/2 inches. little over 5lbs. I know one thing they dont fight as hard when the water is colder thats for sure. Missed a couple others not sure if they were smallies or wipers. Over all a decent couple of hours before i froze my tail end off and left. So do i win the wiper tournament a day later? haha.
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XMan you are a nut, but thanks for adding fuel to my post about record wipers. How big do you think that fish will be in the fall?
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][size 3]If I know Xman, there will be a new Catch and Release record for wipers soon. Glad you got a little action. Where were you fishing and what were you using?[/size][/font]
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Way to go Xman, that's a good fish. I've got the same questions for you that BLM ask. WH2
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Fished along the north dike. She was about 15 feet from the rocks. Using the traditional curly tail grub, pearl white on a hunter orange jig head. It was pretty nuts since I underdressed and was in a tube. But made a good experience. But heck I cant remember the last time I was the only person on willard haha.
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Now that's dedication way to go and better luck next time.
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good question pescador. i dont know the average growth rate of a wiper. i think the 5lbers or 4 lbers are 3 or 4 years old if i remember ready right. if that is the scenario it should be not much longer but put on another 1/4 lb of weight or so in that time. Anyone know the average life span and growth rate of a wiper?
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It varys according to location and type of lake. Colder waters tend to grow the fish slower but they live longer too. Warmer waters grow them fast but thier life span is shortened. Food type and availability will also determine size of the fish. Nebraska has some impoundment lakes very similar to willard that hold bolth walleye and wipers as well. If I remember right, they have grown fish up to thirteen pounds in less than six years in some of those waters. I am not a biologist and dont know the differences between the ecology of the two lakes so I cant say they are capable of the exact same results. Lake cumberland grows some mosters. They get mixed in with the stripers and take 12 inch live bait minnows fished under floats. I think the thing you have to remember at willard is that in the beginning the stocking program wasnt as regular and as heavy as it is these past couple years. All the big wipers that went over six pounds took a while to get that big. But lets say for example that ten years ago they stocked 5,000 wipers. Just to see how they would do. Then the next year they brought in 5,000 more. By the time they were big enough to catch, there wasnt very many people fishing for them. Then they get big and those original fish start getting harvested. By the time those fish are five years old and quite a good size there is not a whole lot fo them left. we now have an agressive stocking program and plant about 500,000 of them a year. But we also have tripled the daily limit and the popularity of the fish has sky rocketed. Theres still a few of the old fish in there, but I believe that with good shad populations and heavy stocking programs that in another five years we will see more of the big fish survive long enough to get big. That is if anglers use good judgment in thier harvest.
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I agree with the management outlined in you post that is for sure. I dont know how many days I have seen 3 guys walk off the bank with 16 or so 4 to 5lb wipers. Which ok they are feeding the family. but just to see the same thing the very next day and walk home with a little less. Then the next day maybe nothing then another day wipers turn on another 16 fish day. I literally counted over 250 wipers taken home from the southeast corner from shore last year. I know cause I spent every day there for 2 and a half months. only a couple hours after work etc. so those are numbers just for the time i was there. quite staggering. As for growth rates i was just curious if anyone knew statistics on willard wipers. I should have outlined that before. I know cumberland and colorado and nebraska all have different results and programs going. so i was wondering if willard had a string of stats showing . average year life of fish in willard for wiper. average weight at this age etc. any thanks again for the info.
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So next time Tom P comes on lets talk about the stats and effects of the last years new regulations.
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my thoughts exactly haha
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]hey xman good job on the big wiper. were you fishing out of the north or south marina the reason i ask out of the marina's is because i haven't caught any wipers in the marina's thanks trfishin
