By Louie Stout

Lake of Woods Should Produce More Keeper Walleyes This SummerLake of Woods Should Produce More Keeper Walleyes This Summer

Want to catch keeper walleye?

Try Lake of the Woods in Bremen, Ind. this summer.

If Hoosier biologists’ fall survey is any indication, the “Woods” should be one of the better Michiana hotspots for walleye.

District Fisheries Biologist Tom Bacula had a research team shocking the shallows last October and turned up a surprising number of quality fish.

A generator on the flat bottom boat pushes electricity through electrodes that dangle in the water over the bow. There’s just enough juice displaced in the water to stun nearby fish in 5 to 6 feet of water – without killing them – and allow team members to net them for closer inspection. Scale samples and length measurements are recorded before the fish are turned back into the lake.

The DNR does these night-time surveys every two years. They launch at dark and prowl the same flats most likely to inhabit walleye. The captured fish results are compared to the previous survey.

“The size structure and quality was a lot nicer this year than what we saw two years ago,” said Bacula who was analyzing the data for a report to be filed soon. “We were really impressed with the healthiness of the fish and how fat they were.”

The age 3 fish accounted for 18 percent of the fish they turned up which is quite high for these kind of surveys. Those fish ranged from 14 ½ to over 17 inches long and will be bigger by the time spring and summer arrives.

The longest fish shocked during the four-hour effort was over 19 inches. Since these types of surveys don’t account for every walleye in the lake and only provide a snapshot of the population, it’s safe to assume a few bigger ones likely exist there as well.

The age 2 fish shocked up by biologists provided 55 percent of the catch. Those fish were pushing 14 inches and Bacula said he wouldn’t be surprised to see them at legal length (16 inches) by early summer.

“We’ve found we get the best walleye growth spurts in fall and spring when the water is cooler,” Bacula explained. “So there’s a good chance that many of those sub-legal fish will be 16 inches or bigger this season.”

Walleye tend to grow pretty fast at the Woods. For example, the 1.7-inch fish stocked there last May and June were up to 7 inches in October.

The increase in healthy 3 year olds is attributed to a good stocking survival during their first year in the lake.

However, Bacula attributes a lot of the lake’s walleye growth spurts to a reduction in stocking numbers a few years ago.

That may not make sense to some anglers who believe more stocked walleye equates to better fishing.

That was the case when walleye were first planted at the lake in the early 2000s. At that time, the lake had an abundance of forage and the walleye thrived.

However, the predator/prey equivalence got out of whack quickly.

“About 15 years ago, the lake had a good number of largemouth bass, white bass, channel catfish and crappies that were whittling away at the forage base,” said Bacula. “So we cut back stocking numbers (now 50 walleye per acre) and the forage balance returned. By reducing stocking we are getting good walleye development and better bass fishing, too.”

Gizzard shad account for most of the forage but Bacula said the lake also has an abundance of other minnows the walleye will eat.

As noted earlier, other game species appear to be doing better. Although the survey focused on walleye, Bacula’s team noted several nice bass, white bass and even a few jumbo perch.

“The perch surprised us,” he said. “We generally don’t see many there.”

Bacula said the survey was conducted on areas that had firm bottoms, the preferred habitat for walleye. Although the fish captured were on the flats, most were near the drop-offs.

“It was a full moon and a beautiful evening for shocking,” he said. “That may have had something to do with our good returns. But regardless, we think the walleye fishery is in excellent shape and anglers should reap the benefits this coming fishing season.”