Cumberland walleye

[SSKY]

After reading the posts about cumberland musky i realize there was some confusion. My only question was about the opinion from those that are here weather the fish that exist in the lake may propagate with stable water levels like the self sustaining population in Dale and that was it. Now for the walleye,I realize that we have some pilot projects for the native strain walleye,so it appears I must shut up about that until we have some data. that being said I would assume that we will continue to stock the erie strain in cumberland and that is ok. The telemetry study on laurel gave some insight about their habits which is good. We have an ice free winter with erie strain in the lake. Would not a same telemetry study for winter walleye open up new fishing opportunities and tourist fishermen that are ice bound up north?I see the stuff up north for ice fishing but I never here of winter walleye fishing here aside from the powerplant dishcharge. Just a question?

[fishincreek]

So there is more than one strain of muskie?

[LarryG]

I'll bet there are at least three strains of musky. the tiger musky is a hybrid, the true northern strain of musky was almost fished down sothe tiger was a short cut, I think the southern strain that was native to some of the southern rivers is different from the ones up north. About those ice bound poor northern fishermen, Well let me tell you something, a lot of them park their Lunds, get out the snow mobiles,hook up the portable ice fishing sheds, and they fish like crazy. Some of the large northern lakes are fished just as hard during the winter, as the summer. and in some cases the fishing is better. At least it used to be till the ice fleas started to come out. Ice fleas? yes thats the same as southern jet skiers.

[fishincreek]

A tiger muskie is actually a cross between a muskie and a pike, which makes it a totally different fish rather than a strain. More info on muskie:



http://www.muskie411.com/fishid.html

[WIZARD]

From what I have read on some other sites, and in Esox Angler, there is also a Wisconsin strain, a Minnesota strain and I believe that they are even genetically different from the musky New York area as well as Canada.

[birdstrike]

Most of the northern states also protect walleye from fishermen during the spawn. I think that's an important step to take if you really want a world class walleye fishery.

[fishincreek]

Most northern fishermen do the ice fishing thing, so probably not much of a demand. Most of those fellas are also meat fishermen and they catch all they need around home. As a matter of fact, they probably have more fun at home. The boys up north have real FUN fishing, esp during the winter. It is a social event. They keep what they catch and they share the where- and- how. The more the merrier. No competition. Some have those Aqua-Vu cameras and they actually WATCH their own fish bite. The bite is stable and basically the same every year. The fish relate to structure , the lakes shallower and not so much shad dependent. Totally different down here. Take the Big C for an example. Normally in July the lake slowly gets pulled, all the way to winter pool. Big rain- up goes the lake, changing conditions. Our fish follow the food, which now seems to be those deep water loving alewives, and we as a whole aren't the best deep water fishermen, and they also are just as happy in open water, which further frustrates us. I really suspect, if anyone is serious about finding winter walleye, they would want to begin in learning what the alewives do during the winter and go from there. Also of note, you may want to google "winter walleyes" and read some of the articles. Seems from some of the tracking studies, that wintertime walleyes can be tough enough to pattern on those shallower rivers and northen lakes, let alone fish that feed on deep open-water bait.

[birdstrike]

Good Post Fishincreek.

Also with the rebound of the Great Lakes and the number of trophy fish being caught up there, I can't see anyone coming down here to grab a walleye or two. Now if we were catching 20# fish in the Big C, that might change things a bit.

[Mr. Crappie]

I'm new to site, been looking for awhile....nice place to be!
Some of us live in winter hell zones. (southern Ohio)
Lakes are covered in ice, but not safe enough to fish. Easier to come south with a boat than to go north with out shanties, augers, ice creepers and all the specialized goodies, lures, rods ect. I do go north for a trip or two, but changing locations, even a few feet, is not as easy as touching the button on a trolling motor. I haven't been to Cumberland in about 20 years, but do head to Weiss every Feb. or Mar.
I have a friend whose parents live in Somerset, so one of these years we're gonna get there.