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| Just wondering, what are your thoughts on the Winnebago System going to a slot like Mille Lacs? Would it help the system? I'd love to see opportunities at 28+ inch walleyes. Anything between 20" and maybe 26" (instead of 28" like Mille Lacs) gets thrown back. |
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Member
Posts: 617
Location: Oshkosh, Wisconsin | A slot is a fish management tool designed to protect fisheries that could otherwise be exploited. Winnebago is healthy and does not need protection from over-harvest, so I would oppose any "slot" proposal.
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Member
Posts: 591
Location: in the boat off the east shore somewhere | Winnibago has one of the best walleye fisheries in the country.. why change whats working .. you want 28 inch fish? then catch 30 inch fish on the bay of green bay. once there that big they dont spaun effectivly anymore anyway.. look at the pictures of the big fish caught on mille lacs? you want 28 inch fish that weigh 6 lbs or do you want young 24 inch fish that wight 6 lbs. your choice ... stop messing with mother nature . bago is a walleye factory, lets keep it that way... why poeple want to fix and mess with something that aint broke dont fix it . bago is the only lake i know of with a no size limmit keep the thirteen inchers most will be males and that means females will keep swimmin .. there the ones that grow big anyway... and they make more 14 inch males for me to eat and yank on my slip bobber.. fun fun.. 13 incher on a planer board not fun! yummy but not fun... big heathy 24 inch female is fun but not as yummy , tho still yummmy if its not 15 years old, but rather eat a 15 incher. |
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Member
Posts: 874
Location: Neenah, WI | I've fished there, and the reason for the slot is because of the native American harvest via netting. The best thing they did on Winnebago was a few years ago they insituted a 15" size limit due to a huge hatch a couple of years before that. There are a lot of big fish out there right now due to that. I say leave it alone and just go fishin'. |
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Member
Posts: 538
| Ditto to all the above.
We have a healthy fishery with great eating fish. Green Bay is arguably one of the best place in the Midwest for a trophy fish. No to slots.
Take care,
Jim O |
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| I think it would be an excellent idea. It would be nice to have some trophy oportunities on Winnebago. Of course all the "meat" fisherman would get mad and petition the DNR. Kind of like the earn a buck program, it's the right thing to do, but it would create too much controversy. |
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Member
Posts: 1656
| The winnebago system is as healthy as it's ever going to be. The opportunity for "trophies" on 'Bago will always be limited. Why? Because most walleye fishermen classify trophy as 30", 'Bago tops out at about 28-29", (yes, there is always the exception to the rule). Metabolism is the real reason why these fish can't attain "giant" status. Their life expectancy is only a short 12 years on the average, compared to 20+ years on the great lakes. Lack of cool water is why their metabolism runs high.
No to slots, leave it as a factory. If you want trophies go to Green Bay it's only a short drive from 'Bago and the opportunity presents itself every spring and fall to even the smallest boats.
Good luck. |
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| You are WRONG, it is NOT the right thing to do. IF it were, the people responsible would have addressed the issue long ago. I have had this discussion with Kendall Kamke personally, "guest", and your opinion is way off base. ESPECIALLY considering the abundant year classes of quality fish. PLUS, the ARE trophy fish in the system. I catch fish (or someone in my boat catches one), over 10 pounds nearly every year this past decade. I have also caught a 30 inch fish in the Wolf River. Just because it's not a trophy FACTORY does not mean it doesn't have trophy fish. Your inane swipe at "meat fishermen" shows your stripes. Educate yourself first before blowing in the wind. Your opinion is fine, there should always be different points of view. But your logic, and juvenile jab, is what is incorrect. |
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| I personally wouldn't mind seeing a slot, yea go ahead and say i'm wrong, (except doc, no one is listening buddy) and say that it wouldn't help anything, but how do you know? Have the slots on bago not worked in the past? Oh thats right...... I say if were ever an option i'd be all for it. Just my $.02 |
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| Brian Kordus, what I wrote was based on an interview with the fisheries biologist. It is NOT my opinion. MY opinion has always been towards protecting the females in the spring but RESEARCH and information derived from working with the fisheries biologist has lead me to find out otherwise. The "slot" limit you referred to was a SIZE limit put on to protect the first two good year classes of fish after years of drought in the late 80's. After those fish got a chance to spawn, the size limit was lifted. What you are talking about is something quite different. There are many factors for NOT managing bago as a trophy fishery, mostly they have been stated so I did not repeat them. Forage base, length of growing season and a relatively short life span are the main issues. Because of that, the DNR and Kendall Kamke's assessment is that the system is best managed for multiple strong year classes. Based on recent catches of fish and successes in the marsh, MOST educated anglers would agree that they have been correct. So Brian, instead of taking a swipe at me and just being a wanna be fisherman blowing in the wind, educate yourself first. Unlike you, I get paid every week to write about such things and believe me, people DO listen. They listen when I am on the radio, doing a segment for Outdoor Wisconsin or writing for the states top outdoors newspaper. Catching 3 fish here Saturday qualifies you as nothing. |
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