Biggest walleye of my life poundage wise

[Maverick]

no the guy I go to charges way cheaper than that per inch. id honestly prefer a skin mount. never was much of a fan of fakes and with my taxidermist he'll give me the meat so I can fry that fish up! like I said before I keep the big ones and release the little ones on the Columbia. I like to fill my freezer with walleye. people have tried tellin me the little ones taste better but I honestly cant taste the difference. to each their own when it comes to keeping or releasing fish. a lot  of people say keep the little ones and release the big ones but if people keep all the little ones then the little ones cant grow into big ones.

[DoubleJ]

A 15lb walleye will have thousands of more eggs in her than a 5lb walleye.  You're hurting the overall long term population keeping the larger ones and throwing the little ones back.

[Maverick]

Sorry man

[Russ McDonald]

Awesome fish.  Coming from a state I grew up in where the state fish is the walleye that is probably bigger then I have seen. My brother has a 12 lber on his wall back in MN.  Yes the smaller ones are always good eaters.

[WALLEYEGUY]

  If you are going to get a big fish mounted, way cool in my book to keep it. We fish Roosevelt a lot and the limit being 16 person is already starting to have an effect.  Typically this time of year we will pull 100 plus fish a day.  This year our best has been 70.  After watching people at the cleaning station last year with limits of 10-12" fish, is why I now throw the bigger fish back.  Besides, I am blessed enough to catch over a 1500 fish a year, 2K on good year. I don't share and eat all I clean.

[DoubleJ]

Sorry man

Sorry as in you didn't know or sorry as in you don't care?

[Maverick]

Sorry man

Sorry as in you didn't know or sorry as in you don't care?

Sorry as in I'm sorry that you don't like what I do with the fish I catch. The way I see it is I pay for a fishing license and I follow fishing regulations. Therefore what I do with the walleye I catch is my business.

[rippinlips22]

A 15lb walleye will have thousands of more eggs in her than a 5lb walleye.  You're hurting the overall long term population keeping the larger ones and throwing the little ones back.

True, but my belief is that once you start getting over the 15-16 lb mark on these walleye your percentage of survival rate of these eggs are going to go down tremendously. It is basically like a 50 year old woman trying to have a baby, odds are slim. I would have no problem with somebody choosing to keep a female walleye over 16 lbs if they choose. Not that I would, but to each there own.

[MtnMuley]

A 15lb walleye will have thousands of more eggs in her than a 5lb walleye.  You're hurting the overall long term population keeping the larger ones and throwing the little ones back.

True, but my belief is that once you start getting over the 15-16 lb mark on these walleye your percentage of survival rate of these eggs are going to go down tremendously. It is basically like a 50 year old woman trying to have a baby, odds are slim. I would have no problem with somebody choosing to keep a female walleye over 16 lbs if they choose. Not that I would, but to each there own.

I've never heard anybody including warm water bio's say that percentage of survival rates on a  15/16# walleyes' eggs go down drastically.   Maybe I'm missing something, but to me that's completely untrue.  No offense.

[Machias]

Wow nice fish!!!!  Congrats.  Glad she is still swimming around! 

[rasbo]

great fish,Im a novice on walleye but eager and still learning

[Mr Mykiss]

That's an awesome fish, congrats.
I've chimed in before about smolts...nobody gives a crap, they know it all already.

[MtnMuley]

I've chimed in before about smolts...nobody gives a crap, they know it all already.

  I might have to use this as my signature line

[teal101]

nice fish!

Ill disagree..I want them out of the columbia they eat a ton of salmon and steelhead smolt! Walleye have many places they can thrive or be stocked! but salmon and steelhead do not

No.  Studies have proven the depredation on Salmon and Steelhead by Smallmouth Bass and Walleye are very low and that Northern Pikeminnow is by far the biggest predator.

http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2012/1130/pdf/ofr20121130.pdf

http://www.dfw.state.or.us/fish/oscrp/CRI/docs/Pike1999.pdf

After conducting studies the ODFW has continued to only study the Pikeminnow and monitor it's status in regard to Salmon/Steelhead depredation.  They have deemed that Walleye and Bass have a very low rate of consumption.  There are anomalies such as Smallmouth at the mouth of the Yakima gorging on smolts, but overall population numbers indicate a very low percentage of consumption.  Crustaceans followed by Sculpins make up the majority of the Smallmouth diet.  Sculpins followed by Minnow Fish (Peamouth, Daces, Pikeminnow) make up the majority of the Walleye diet.  This is all backed by both ODFW and WDFW studies conducted on the lower and mid-stream Columbia for their own use as well as use by the BPA and other agencies using the river.

To be the devils advocate, the construction of Grand Coulee Dam has killed more Salmon and Steelhead juveniles and adults than any combination of introduced species on the Columbia.  Also, the introduction of American Shad is just as if not more detrimental than prey species.  The Shad consume the same food resources and juvenile Salmon and create direct competition.

I'm sure facts will be ignored though

[MtnMuley]

Great post.