Anglers ready for walleye opener

On your mark, get set—fish.
The growl of outboard motors soon will fill the air as hordes of rod-and-reel fanatics descend upon the Ontario portion of Rainy Lake, and other area bodies of water, for the opening of walleye season this Saturday.
Darryl McLeod, a biologist with the Ministry of Natural Resources office here, said local anglers can expect good to very good walleye fishing this weekend, barring unfavourable weather conditions.
“Walleye fishing usually improves into late May and early June as spring progresses,” he noted. “As water temperatures continue to warm, post-spawn walleye feeding activity increases, and the fish resume their normal behaviour patterns.”
Ice-out occurred on Rainy Lake on May 5 this year, right around the average date, with walleye spawning activity expected to have taken place by Saturday’s season-opener.
McLeod said several strong classes of walleye produced over the past decade, especially two years ago, should lead to a beehive of busy fishing activity on Rainy Lake.
“Anglers will continue to see improved abundance of young fish, as well as increasing numbers of larger fish in the protected size over 45 cm,” explained McLeod, who added small and large fish also should be plentiful on other area lakes.
There have been no regulation changes this season, with McLeod stating the MNR wants to minimize the number of changes as much as possible so those who fish can more easily keep on top of the situation.
“Anglers in this area have been very co-operative, and the regulation changes we have made in the past have been very successful because of that,” McLeod remarked.
Over at Pinewood Sports and Marine, just west of town, the sales floor has been hopping with people snapping up everything from lifejackets and other boating gear to brand new boats.
“The remote control co-pilot system for Minn Kota trolling motors has been a very popular item,” said Pinewood spokesperson Tara Ahrens, who also cited Lowrance fish-finders and GPS guiding systems as other big sellers this spring.
Customers also have come out of hibernation at fishing supply stores like The Great Bear along Highway 11 east of Fort Frances.
“We’ve had a fair number of people come through getting ready for the season,” store owner/manager Greg Gustafson said, indicating a high proportion of American anglers have walked through his doors.
“I guess the rumours about SARS and the lack of Canada’s participation in the [Iraq] war don’t seem to be having much effect on [Americans] coming in to shop, and neither has the low water levels.
“I’ve seen more rocks than I’ve ever seen at this time of year, but they don’t seem to be worried.”
But at Rusty Myers Flying Service here, base manager Mike Dick said bookings have been quiet so far.
“Many anglers expected the ice to still be in place on the lakes at this time of year,” he remarked. “This year, everything’s open.
“It might also be a little slow because of the war and people losing their jobs because of the bad economy down south,” Dick added. “Our business is 99 percent American clients, and many of them own their own businesses.
“But in the long run, we’ll be all right.”
Not everyone will be racing out to the water this weekend to snag the premium positions to reel in walleye. Some already have had their rods spinning for weeks.
Local fishing guide Harry Bell, who oversees 30-40 fishing trips per year as part of his Rainy Lake Guide Service, said most of his bookings are from bass and northern pike anglers, for which the season already is open.
“Bass and northern pike are better game fish than walleye,” said Bell. “They put up more of a fight.
“Walleye fishing is easy,” he added. “But a fish is a fish. You really have to know your fish to taste any difference between bass, northern pike, and walleye.”