Those who have walleyes on their wall--how big are they?

[LOW Lover]

Three years ago on LOTW (Canadian Side) I took two of my four sons up on a week trip Musky and walleye fishing. On Sunday of the week my first born (14 at the time) caught a 45 inch musky. The next day he turned around and caught a 51 inch musky. I thought we were having an unbelieveable trip watching him catch those Muskies. Well on Tuesday the whole trip moved up a notch further. The first born went out musky fishing for the day and I took the second born (who was twelve at the time)out walleye fishing with a few other guys. We were catching some nice walleyes on some deeper edges (28-30 feet) of some reefs with jigs and night crawlers when my son quietly says, "I think I have a nice one on!" He battles this fish for 20 minutes or so, back reeling, adjusting the drag, and working the fish under and around the boat with no assistance from me. My buddy who was in the boat with me had the net ready while I tried to stay calm. The fish finally surfaced and was netted and we all could not believe the "eyes" that we were looking at! The fish was 33 inches long and weighed close to 14 pounds. Today that fish is on the wall of our house. It is a memory that all the guys out on the lake that day will never forget! When we returned to camp that day several "old timers" were scolding my son for not releasing it. I defended him as a father should, and told the gentlemen that my son has released many fish in his young life and this fish was not doing well so he made the decision to keep it and have it mounted.
It is a father's dream to watch your sons catch fish like this and be a part of it. What a trip!

LOW Lover

[can it be luck?]

Big-G, Quite honestly, if I didn't mount some of my fish, they would've gotten eaten, at least on that particular lake. Some people will say "That's a terrible thing to do", but that's another story. Most lakes are fragile, and subject to overfishing. On the other hand...Some lakes aren't. You'll know when you find the latter of the two. You can argue that the fishing will deplete if there's continued harvesting of mature fish. I can also argue that it wont, and hasn't.....On CERTAIN bodies of water that is.

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[Guest]

I always open to a good debate, such as catch and release. Can you actually tell me what those "CERTAIN" lakes are?

[fiskyknut]

Man oh man LOW Lover I can't believe folks would give you a hard time for keeping a fish of that immense size, I surely would'nt have!!! Thirty inchers are kind of the mark for Walleyes in my book, anything smaller don't turn a head on the waters where I fish. My mounted Walleyes have decreased in size over the years, 92 I put a 33.75 incher out of the Red on the wall, followed by a 32 incher out of LOTW a couple of summers later. I have a fish just over 30 out of LOTW thats ready at the taxidermist's now which I caught last December thru the ice. This fish was hooked way deep at the meaty white base of the gills and was bleeding terribly or it would've gone back. What else could I do with something like that? I throw back more than a few big ones every year out of the Red and LOTW so I have no guilt! After seeing a 51 inch LOTW Pike a few years back I set my sights on getting one 48 or better, In the past 2 years I've let go a 45+ and a 46+, and maybe 20 or so between 40 and 44 and I am now starting to wonder if I'll ever see that 48 incher! Kinda wish they'd up the slot size on LOTW as I see a bunch of those measly 40 inchers taken home each year up here! To each his own if they're are in the limits of the law. Fished a few times out on Erie and Saginaw bay, You should see what those folks out that way consider 'eaters'!!!

Fisky

[curt quesnell]

Big G,

Lake of the Woods, Mille-lacs, Erie (actually
any of the great lakes) the Missouri River
system, Devils Lake, Mississippi River, Fort
Peck to name a few.

"Keep putting them fish on the wall and you
wont have any trophies to catch" is one of those blanket statements that only applies
to some conditions

There are limits on size and number that
protect the fisheries from overharvest by
hook and line fishers.

On your small neighborhood lake I agree with
you 100 percent. On big bodies of water
everything revolves around yearly hatch rates. If the hatches stay good, fishing will
stay good. If that sounds like another "blanket" statement you are right.

There are many many factors higher up on the
list than hook and line harvest when it comes
to the availability of big fish. Some of them are reproduction, forage and water quality.

Obey the law, use some common sense. if you
are releasing fish handle them with care. If
you release a legal fish that will die what
good are you doing?

I am not promoting keeping every big fish
you can legally keep. The real truth Big G
lies somewhere inbetween your position and
mine.

Have a good day

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Curt Quesnell
NorthCountry Outdoors Radio

[can it be luck?]

Curt and Fisky sum it up real well. On Lake Erie it's hard to catch fish under 24-25"s at times. 30 inchers are caught pretty much on every outing. My hook and line methods pale in comparison to the nets that are strung out throughout the lake....Yet the lake keeps putting out the big ones. BIG water, BIG fish, numbers too. G, look under the BWCA/Duluth Fotum, St. Louis River thread. I posted some info touching on this subject. Small fragile lakes I fish with a little TLC.

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[Guest]

I fully agree with you on your statement of big water / big fish. That, in a nut shell is where you are going to catch your trophy's.

Erie: That is the 8th wonder of the world when it comes to those big fish. It is truely amazing. LOTW, Mille Lacs, Lac Suel, etc: Those waters will produce 30" walleyes consistently. But I will still give you the comparison of the musky situation. With the growing number of anglers, and the advanced electronics. Care must be taken not to abuse what we have. I don't have a problem of putting your once in a life time trophy on the wall. But I do remember looking at the aniversery magazine of In-Fisherman. They had a picture from the 40's, where the rail workers working the Mille Lacs area had speared some pike in the winter. They had approximately 20 pike on a board. I would estimate that the smallest was 20lbs, and the largest: 30lbs. Those days are gone. Not because of spearing, but because of over harvest. Look at the musky fishing of today. It has NEVER been better. Why: Those fish are all released. Lac Suel had to establish a catch and release only, in order to secure the quality of the fishing, soley due to pressure.

Some systems will genetically produce big fish, but where is the limit? Do you find out too late, when the fishing quality declines? It has on the Mississippi in Pool 4. I know that for fact. Yes, you catch all the eaters you want, but the trophy quality is not what it used to be...

I again, will go back to the musky fishing. 20 years ago, there was over harvest. Today, it is now understood that you have to let those fish go, because the reproduction cannot keep up with the quantity of anglers.

On French lake in Faribault, 30 inches was a big fish, then 40 inches became a big fish. Now, because of catch and release, I had a fish that was close to 55 inches follow my lure to the boat 4 times in one afternoon. That fish did not get that big because of harvesting.....

Go musky fishing on LOTW and see what kind of response you get when you bring in a 50" fish to the lodge, because you want to mount it. You won't make any friends....

In short, I respect your method of thinking, however we need more people practicing catch and release when replicas give you the same result.

I guess my whole point is this: When the fishing pressure is at an all time high, as it is today, and the trophy you catch is going to live, why not put it back and get a replica? Is there something wrong with replicas??? Is it because it isn't the "real" fish???? Why don't you want a replica???

peace-
G-

[can it be luck?]

The fish of topic is walleye, not musky or northern. Discussing these other species, you'll probably get different responses to the question "What would you put on your wall". Lac Suel went to a "no bag" on what species? It's been about 4-5 years since my last trip to Ear Falls, a trip I've made several times. I fish the English River as much as the main lake when up that way, and I wouldn't keep a walleye over 20"s out of the English River. They're fatty and taste like ****! My personal slot for this river is 31". Anything over 20" and under 31" gets a free ride to the boat, a photo shoot with me, and a toss back into the lake. Hostility and ill feelings from other fisherman if I were to bring in a LEGAL fish? I welcome it! Jealousy plays a BIG part in "angry" fisherman. I CARE LESS about angry,jealous, fisherman. This may be a "bad" thing, but I'd make sure they got a peek at it, just to sooth my angry feelings towards them. Bad? Maybe so, but that's me. You start it , and I'll finish it mentality. I meet "angry" wannabes all the time, wherever I go. I'm now starting to have "fun" with them, I yell "Any luck"? as I drag a stringer past thier campsite, makeing sure they see. Peace back at ya, I'm outa here.

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[honker23]

This is always an interesting discusion among anglers. I feel that it really depends on the body of water and the #s you are catching.
In a small MN lake if catch one for the wall I have no problem with that, if you catch and kill 20 large fish a year, that sucks.
In a trophy factory like the ones mentioned, I have no problem with people keeping one or two for the wall, because as mentioned the pigs dont reproduce well anyways.
I think most people get jealous about the fish others are catching and they hide this by saying what's ethical or right. Bottom line for me is everyone is entitled a trophy or two or three, but after that it becomes a little senseless, and they should let em go.
original question: 29.5' x 14.75', gull lake

[Guest]

I'm a bit conerned over the statement of "jealous" or "angry" fisherman. It is too bad that some folks can't maintain their composure. It is also very dissapointing that people take threshold of other persons lack of luck and attack it with snied comments.

Maybe I came accross a bit assertive. However I have no "jealousy" or "anger" on my end. Good for you that you landed a trophy, however if you want congrats to those who land the trophies and release them, then I'll give you a pat on the back. Treasure your moments of big fish and take your pictures.

Yet, I haven't seen a response back as to the negative aspects of having a replica made?

It is correct that big fish don't produce the eggs and their smaller counterparts, but does that mean we abuse what we have and stick them on the wall? Where is the conservation side of OUR fishery.

The problem I see is that there are too many big "ego" trips out there, where people feel that if they don't have a fish on the wall, then they ain't squat. If that is the case, then you can tell most of your major fish publications that publish readings of the masters of our sport that practice and promote catch-n-release (In-fisherman, Simply-Fishing, Esox Angler, Musky Hunter, Angler's edge, and many Bass publications), that those folks are wrong.

Yes, some waters will consistently produce big fish, however if you abuse it, you won't have it.....

[Bushwacker]

This topic has been fun to follow and keep up with but now it is turning into an ethics discussion. I am not naming names, but if someone wants to debate replicas vs. skin mounts, why don't they go under the topic:
"Replica mounts, legitimacy, and other thoughts on the subject: Need feedback" There is already a lot of good debate on the subject in that thread. For those new to this site you can do a search of old threads and find a lot of great information. This above mentioned topic is also under the Open Water Main Forum on page 3 in the history at this moment. Back to the subject. I have no walleyes on my wall as of yet. Really got into walleye fishing last summer and have a 29"er to in my photo album, but only 30"+ is going on the wall. This topic is a great to show that they are out there, just have to keep trying.

[curt quesnell]

I think Bushwacker is right, I dont think
that "can it be luck" was bad mouthing
Big G with the jealousy and angry statement.

As I posted way earlier in the thread I wont
keep any big fish to mount as I have 2 already. It would be a very special fish
for me to spend mounting money when a GOOD
pic framed up nice does the job for me just
fine.

I dont know enough about Pike or Muskys to
discuss it.

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Curt Quesnell
NorthCountry Outdoors Radio

[Guest]

I just let em go. We shoot video so we can relive the experience whenever we want to. Get a video camera for 500 bucks and you can tape all your big fish. Wanna show your friends the fish... show em the video and you'll never get out of the rec room. Unless you need a fresh cold one. I never mounted a fish and I probably never will...that said I do find a fish mount an interesting topic when visiting a home with mounted fish. Deer and birds make better mounts than fish. I'm staying with 30 inches is your mark for mounting a walleye. Want to see a 32 get released visit www.fishfever.com. Mounts are cool but if we all mounted em....what ever happened to all those big muskies on Lac Suel anyway?

[can it be luck?]

G, I was responding to YOUR statement of "dirty looks", and "not makeing many friends". If I, or anyone were to keep a LEGAL 50" musky from LOTW. Dont be concerned, I dont want those people as my friends anyway...I have my own. My response was that of my own experiences. I've tryed, and helped many, many people whenever and wherever I may be. Fishing or not. Even after **** near holding the pole for "perfect strangers", they still failed to catch fish. While fishing at lodges, campgrounds, public lakes, people have gotten angry and jealous over my success. Most resorts run from Saturday to Saturday so you see how the rest of the camp is doing at pace with you. Silver Rapids Lodge in Ely is a prime example. A man and wife actually left a few days short of thier payed stay. The husband was skunked for 3 days, I told him to follow me out one day to the spot I was fishing. The area had current, so an upward cast was made, and with the right cast, weight, drop, and feel, the fish were going crazy! This man was 25' away and caught nothing but snags. Told and showed him what to do, in a very polite and understandable way, but he couldn't catch a fish. While filming, picture takeing, laughing, and haveing a great time, I could sense he was getting angry. He started moveing closer, casting and snagging our lines, and becomeing very quiet. Later at the dock he was packing up to leave. My girlfriend and I were sitting on the dock fishing with minnows and bobbers, relaxing mainly, and we caught several nice fish while he was finishing up his packing. A few fish later he was unloding his fishing gear and sat down on the dock to fish. Needless to say he got skunked. He packed up and went home, but before he did he made several rude remarks about how much I fish and never "giving up". I told him, "Give up"? I was always in the game, YOU better give up! One of many stories with the same situations, most people appreciate it though. Do you think I keep all large walleye for mounting? I can tell you I dont. I'm not bragging, but I dont have enough room to mount every large walleye I've caught. I may keep a limit of fish on the lakes that can support it. What's so wrong about catching and eating fresh, legal fish?? Many days it's strictly CR. Ive had one day that I caught and released 96 walleye, many 30" plus. As far as mounting, I have a friend who's a taxidermest. My mounts are darn near free, I swap fishing time for mounting in a way. I dont ask, but he insists, As far as I'm concerned, his company is payment enough for me. So now you know...."The rest of the story". PS: As far as replicas, Fake leather, fake people, fake foods, fake fish, whatever.....Not for me!

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[This message has been edited by can it be luck? (edited 09-17-2003).]

[Guest]

One thing I am pushing for on the Red River is a 1 only over 28" per day restriction all season long.

Right now this restriction is in effect during the spring conservation season only on the Red here in the USA. I feel it needs to be extended to cover the whole year.

Why, well unfortunately there are still more then a few anglers who will keep 4-6 30" walleye a day if they can catch them. Yup, I see it almost every season, makes me sick!

The 1 Walleye over 28" per day limit would still allow for a trophy opportunity yet protect the fishery from unscrupulous over harvest.

Personally if I could I would like to see all walleye over 28" released, but that will never happen. Plus that may lead to waisting of injured fish, so the 1 over 28" rule in my view would be a win-win for everyone.

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Backwater Guiding
"ED on the RED"
[email protected]
701-281-2300

[Guest]

I believe the question is how big should a walleye be before you mount it? 30 inches. Lighten up fellas. If the walleye is less than 30 give the guy crap, if it's bigger congrats are due, if he lets it go buy him a beer.

[This message has been edited by wgmsa (edited 09-18-2003).]

[Guest]

Guys,
I want to apologize to all for coming across unruley. My intent was not to insult any of you, by any means.

I get a little a bit awry when I see excessive harvest of our lakes, all because of abuse. We have all seen it and we have all seen great waters abused to no end where our fishing has been destroyed. It happened in the past and unfortuately it still happens today.

Catching your trophy is in the eyes of the beholder. The memory that you share with your best buddy, your father, or your child will last a life time in your mind. Placing that one trophy on the wall to keep that memory is up to you. Whether you choose the real mount, a replica, or a big picture in a nice frame (or even a video).

You and only you will decide if it is a trophy or not. Everyone has their own standards.

I often see "small" bucks mounted, but when you ask the person about it, their eyes light up and they tell you an awesome story about it (first buck at a young age, for example).

Your trophy is what you decide, not what others think!

good luck and tight lines!
G-

[This message has been edited by Big G- (edited 09-19-2003).]

[Bushwacker]

"Your trophy is what you decide, not what others think!" Big G-

I think that statement hit it right on the head. My youngest cousin who is presently a 13 year old has a 17" walleye mounted on the wall in her parents den. Nothing special to 95% of fisherpeople, but this fish will be more special to her than most 33" for most people. Her late-grandfather mounted it for her and she caught it with her father and her late-grandfather when she was 10. I think that is the best reason to mount a fish that there is. Great memory and the fish reminds her of it every time she walks past it.

[CRANKBIT]

I have 2, one faces left, the other right on either side of our picture window. 10 and eleven pounds. I don't think I'll keep anymore, when I get one in the teens I may have a replica made.