willard walleye

[wild_blue]

Anyone notice the drastic decline of walleye. Maybe the DWR (depleting our wildlife resources) can install flood lights on the inlet so the shore anglers can have even more opportunities to catch walleye during the spawn. Only took three years to eliminate the majority of fish! The Grandchildren really enjoyed fishing for and eating walleye. The photo's are from the good old days befofe it was legal to pillage the walleye spawn.
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[Fishsticker]

So you taking out stringers of walleye is ok......but those terrible people keeping walleye from the inlet ruined the population?
Seems legit
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[wild_blue]

You obviously do not understand the devastating consequences of taking out the walleye before they spawn. The large stringers of walleye were possible only because spawning fish were protected. But it sounds like that really doesn't matter to you. Quality fisheries are over rated.
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[WiperMac]

Let me start by saying I'm one of the three original members of the friends of Willard Bay, a non-profit organization that was created to help protect spawning walleyes in Willard.

That said, the overall health of Willard Bay has nothing to do with the south Marina and the walleyes that spawn in it every spring. Biology is biology and you can't argue with it. Fish that spawn in the South inlet do little to nothing to help the overall health of Willard Bay. It's not the division that's cause the decline of eyes. If anything they're helping us with this new stocking programs. The issue with the South Inlet is fairchase for fair game, not biology.
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[wild_blue]

The outcome of this little biology experiment is startling. Let me ask this, anybody remember why the inlet was closed in the first place? I do, low walleye numbers! That can all be fixed now with the latest computer models and a few key strokes. Technology is a wonderful thing.
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[retch_sweeney]

You should probably stop before you dig yourself any deeper. The [#ff0000]science[/#ff0000] shows that the walleye eggs deposited in the inlet get covered up by silt deposits and don't hatch anyway.
I love Willard Bay walleyes but I am also aware that stopping the fishing in the inlet has little to no effect on the walleye population.
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[HD7000]

Where have the water levels been at Willard over the last 3 years? Well below the rocks leaving next to no cover for any fish fry to be protected. Just like Strawberry does not depend on natural Kokanee spawning to repopulate the lake, Willard does not solely depend on natural walleye spawning to repopulate the lake.
I really don't think the bank inlet anglers have a huge effect on the walleye population, but it is real easy to point fingers when we have a slow day of fishing. Besides, the walleye fishing out in the lake has just started to turn on over the last week, get out and catch some!
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[dubob]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]Try pulling your head out of the sand and actually read & UNDERSTAND the science (CALLED FACTS) available from many sources that SHOW that fishing the inlet has little or no effect on the overall population of walleye in Willard Bay. Your posts so far have been 100% emotionally based and appear to show that you have no factual data to back up your concerns.[/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]Do violations of the fishing regulations occur at the inlet? Absolutely; just like they do in every other body of water in Utah. Are the violations being committed by everybody that fishes the inlet? Not even close. So should all the honest, law abiding fishermen & women who are restricted to shore fishing be penalized because of the violations of a few jackholes who don't give a crap about rules and regulations? I hardly think that's fair.[/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]Keep it open and increase enforcement is a better solution IMHO. I would also suggest to the DWR that allowing daylight fishing only in the inlet might make enforcement a whole lot easier and productive at lessening violations overall.[/#800000][/font]
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[cat-tech]

I agree looks like more than the limit in the fist photo.
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[remo_5_0]

I just find it funny that you post pictures of mounds of fish but complain about people fishing the inlet as the source of the depletion of fish in the reservoir, if 30 people a day went out and kept as many as you I think it would be putting a dent in the fish numbers.
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[buckhunterhart]

Settle down guys, I am pretty sure we are all on the same team. However, there is always a place kicker on any football team, so.....[:p]
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[wild_blue]

Science, theory or observed? How many of you have observed Willard since the 1970's? Here are a few observations.

1. Since the inlet closing and the introduction of Gizzard Shad, the Walleye numbers have dramatically increased.
2. Since the inlet closing and the introduction of Gizzard Shad, the Walleye numbers have held strong during decades of high fishing presure.
3. Since the inlet closing and the introduction of Gizzard Shad, the Walleye numbers have held strong during prior low water events.
4.Since the inlet closing and the introduction of Gizzard Shad, the Walleye numbers have held strong with high competition for forage from other species.
5. Since the reopening of the inlet, the Walleye numbers have dramatically decreased.

The first step in solving any problem is to recognize one exists. History has proven that those who create the problem are seldom the ones who fix it. They are just simply unwilling to accept the fact a problem exists.
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[retch_sweeney]

Correlation does not equal causation.
Willard Bay water levels have entirely more to do with Walleye numbers than all other factors combined.
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[gmwahl]

I have fished Willard Bay for walleyes since the late 70s. In that time I've seen many boom and bust years. It hasn't always been roses. The season has just started for walleyes, so (unless you only caught those during the spawn), what do you have to measure this season's walleye fishing by?

Every female you kept in those pictures was stopped from spawning every bit as much as if you would have snagged them at the inlet. The time of year makes no difference. It's just easier to visualize or rather blame someone else keeping fish on your lack of fishing success this year.

When I fish the gorge for Kokanee's , I have some years that are easy and some that aren't, but I don't blame other fisherman and the Kokanee spawn is fairly consistent there from year to year. It's just fishing, and as much as some of us like to think that we ALWAYS can catch fish and we have it down pat, we can pull up a skunk when others are doing well at it.

I'm glad you kept that pile of fish in your pictures and I'm sure you enjoyed them for many a fine meal. Don't you think a shore fisherman is just as entitled to catch and keep that many? My guess is that if you saw a couple of guys fishing from shore with stringers full of walleyes like you had that you would be mad about them.

The spawn happens all over the lake....not just in the inlet, so unless you think all of Willard Bay should be closed to fishing from February through the end of April you really have no biological basis for griping about the supposed walleye slaughter at the inlet.

Mike
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[wild_blue]

Entitlement, that tells me all i need to know about your point of view! Nobody is entitled to anything, you earn it!!!!
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[dubob]

[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]Boy, you sure don't listen, do you? Here it is one more time (and is backed up by a whole lot of science and factual data):[/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]THE WALLEYE SPAWNING IN THE INLET PRODUCE ZERO OFFSPRING - ZIP, ZERO, HADA. IT DOESN'T MATTER IF THEY ARE CAUGHT AND REMOVED OR NOT. CATCHING AND REMOVING THEM FROM THE INLET HAS ZERO IMPACT ON THE OVERALL POPULATION. CLOSE IT, DON'T CLOSE IT; IT WILL HAVE NO EFFECT ON THE OVERALL POULATION. WATER LEVEL, WATER CONDITION, AND FOOD SUPPLY WILL HAVE AN IMPACT. REMOVING FISH FROM THE INLET WILL NOT.[/#800000][/font]
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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#800000]Please re-read the above paragraph as many times as it takes to fully grasp and understand what it says.[/#800000][/font]
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[gmwahl]

Well, if you are accusing me of supporting entitlement then you REALLY have no clue who you're talking to here! I've never taken a freebie in my entire life, but we're talking about fishing here so let's stay on track shall we!

I 100% support you keeping the fish you catch from Willard bay if you want to, but my point is just because your fishing from a boat, that in no way means you "earned it" any more than a shore fisherman. Let's face it here, many of the guys and gals you see fishing from shore at the inlet are minorities and I've been there and heard all kinds of off color slurs and rudeness directed at them and a lot of that is due to the fact that they can out fish the average joe! They are good at it so I guess you could say...in your words...they "earned it", but believe me, they have in NO WAY affected your fishing or ability to catch fish from that pond!

And now sport, back to the entitlement issue you brought up (since that was obviously a jab at me). The DWR manages that fishery for the benefit of all who chose to fish there, so everybody is as "entitled" (it can be used as a non-negative word) as the next guy to be able to reasonably access the fish in that reservoir. You've paid no more dues with your license and tackle purchases than the next guy with his, so "entitled" means that we are all allowed to have just as much opportunity as the next guy....see how that works?[]

My original post was in no way meant to peave you, but rather to explain another viewpoint and also correct your false assumption that keeping spawners from the inlet has something to do with lower walleye numbers, but now I could really care less about if your miffed at me and would offer this advise....if YOU PERSONALY want to affect the walleye numbers in Willard for the positive then quit keeping walleyes when you catch them! Undoubtedly many of those that you caught and kept would have spawned in other areas of the lake (other than the inlet) where they COULD HAVE spawned successfully and you, therefore, wiped out thousands of potential walleyes.

Of course, you could just forget about all that BS and just fish when you want, keep what you want, and enjoy yourself knowing that the DWR works their tails off to provide a top notch fishery like Willard bay, but it's probably easier to piss and moan about it being the DWRs and other fishermans fault instead of your own bad luck!

Mike
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[wild_blue]

I signed up to voice my concerns and observations and get attacked for it. I really ejoyed your rants about science and fact while you engage in farcical speculations about me. That leads to the next question, why are you like that? What a swell bunch we have here!
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[BagABigOne]

Some of the people on this forum are very knowledgeable about the biology of the different fishing locations and are trying to help us understand the ins and outs of different places.

But there is one thing for sure, sometimes you can't educate some people you just have to let them be wrong.

The fishing at the inlet does effect the population of the walleye just not to the extreme you think it does. Your post has made you look selfish and ignorant. I hope that can change.
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[a_bow_nut]

Troll on troller.

Do you have a relative by the name of Cliff?
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