How is the fishing

There has to be someone that has fished Waubay recently that has a report. I know my brother-in-law was out there last week and really did well. More walleye then you can imagine. Anyone have any recent reports?

Is that more 15 3/4 inch walleyes than you thought could all be the same size?

LOL, good one. Yes, that lake has its share of those. Actually my brother-in-law got a few nice fish also. The 15 3/4 inchers provide the majority of the action though.

My personal opinion on Waubay is kind of like starting a politics/religion conversation. Unfortunately the catch and release mentality doesn’t exist when anglers drop their boat in or step on the ice. This lake has been abused by both the locals and non-residents. It’s a perfect example of “I remember when we used to be able to catch limits fo 18″ walleyes on Waubay”

Waubay has little, if any, natural reproduction of walleyes. The GFP doesn’t know why, but is has all the right conditions needed for natural reproduction. The slots and lower limits came, but too late in my opinion. I don’t blame the GFP, mostly the fisherman who went there time and time again to take home limits of 10″ + perch and fat 18-20″ walleyes. The early spring bite puts lots of added pressure in this lake because some of the neighboring states have closed seasons on walleye. Again, not pointing fingers at any one group, I’m pionting at all of us.

This was a gem of a lake, hopefully someday it will be again.

Anybody planning on any ice trips out to Waubay this year?

I’m planning on hitting it the first part of January by Headquarters….

Gary, I have several guide trips scheduled for late Jan. already. We usually hit first ice pretty hard out there, as it is usually a week or two earlier then we can fish here. Last year was a blast. I love running guide trips out there because you can catch quality walleye, perch, gills, crappie and pike all in one day. Now that is fun!

Scott,

Do you ever fish the public refuge right off Waubay. It can be killer at times. It doesn’t get a lot of pressure because of the limitations on motor vehicles.

What’s the status of the length limit debate on that 1999 year class of walleyes on Jan. 1? Sounds like the Webster locals are pretty excited. Better build a 6 lane highway and double the width of main street! The bunk house will be putting more people to a bunk than a prison in Texas. TGIF

Waterfowler;

When we went a few years ago, we went right out of “headquarters”. It was a blast!!!!
there were 4 of us.
1) drilling holes
2) cleaning holes
3 & 4) setting up the tip ups.

While I was setting up the tip ups, I dropped the first one down the hole. Went to the second hole, and the first one tripped. Pulled in an 8lb pike. I re-set the 1st tip up…….Set up the second tip up and just as I set it, the flag tripped in my hand……..4lb walleye……….Then the 1st tip up went off, as I was unhooking the walleye……..5lb pike. This all took place in about 2 minutes………

There were 4 of us, with 4 holes per person (legal). So we had 16 tip ups, spread out over an area of a foot ball field. We had a flag about every 10 minutes, all day long……

I’ll check with boys back home and see if they have heard any new news.

Gary…all I can say is yep, yep, yep.
Is there any fishable ice in the webster area yet?

Scott,
Which lakes would be good targets for bluegills and crappies?
I guess Waubay may not be as great for crappies as in years past for numbers anyway. There is one lake I heard has slab crappies, but I was also told that the fish out of that lake weren’t safe to eat either….the locals all had different names for it. TGIF

They have proposed a new slot limit on Waubay. It is my understanding that these will pass and when they do they will take effect in 2004. The limit will still only be 2 fish but you may actually get to keep 2 fish.LOL

Yes, I fish the refuge occasionally. However, I have found several areas near the refuge that get no pressure and usually produce bigger fish then the ones I get in the refuge.

There are a lot of good lakes for Crappies and gills. It is just a matter of what lake is “going” at that time. Waubay has a lot of nice slabs in it, but there is also a lot of water to fish to find them. We got into them last year a couple trips and it was a blast to say the least.

I will be in SD this weekend, it is my last hunting trip of the year, then I will be back just about every week fishing after that. Keep the reports coming, it looks like it is going to be WARM out there this week. That is not good.