Michigan River WalleyeIf results from the recent Michiana Walleye Association (MWA) tournament were an indication of how the St. Joseph River has responded to stocking efforts, the answer is “very well!”

Thirteen teams competed on the stretch between Twin Branch and Elkhart during the eight-hour event. They caught 70 legal walleyes measuring 15 inches or bigger, not to mention more than 250 sub-legal walleyes.

That’s pretty darn impressive when you consider that state stocking efforts have fallen off the past decade and walleye fishing was on the downswing.