All eyes on walleyes

[Woody]

For stocking program, the eggs are the prize, but for station's visitors, it's all about the fish.

By BRIAN S. PETERSON
Outdoors Editor
Brainerd Daily Dispatch

PINE RIVER - DNR fisheries specialist Kevin Mott scooped up the walleye in the net, walked 20 feet or so to a holding tank and added the fish to the mix, just as he has with hundreds of walleyes this spring.

Just another fish.

But for even the casual observer - and there were a few on hand Wednesday - this wasn't just another fish. Long and fat with eggs, it had to be at least 12 pounds.

Mott wouldn't hazard a guess. At the walleye egg stripping station near Pine River, the fisheries specialists don't necessarily think in terms of length and weight of fish. Trophy fish don't necessarily register.

Their focus is collecting walleye eggs and milt for the DNR's walleye-stocking program.

The stripping station, located on the Pine River near Delta Bay on the Whitefish Chain, is a key player in the stocking program. And big fish? Well, same old, same old for fisheries specialists.

But with open water everywhere, and the open-water fishing opener still five weeks away, the stripping station can be a refuge for anglers anxious for a glimpse of a walleye. Actually, lots of walleyes. And some of the biggest "live" walleyes you'll ever see.

"When it comes to the first half of the run, that's not uncommon," Tim Brastrup, area fisheries supervisor in Brainerd, said of big walleyes at the stripping station. "We've seen bigger fish. We've seen over 15-pounders. Twenty-five years ago one of the employees said they measured one at 17 pounds. We throw the fish back in (after stripping) and they go upstream then dump back down. People will fish right out there in front of the delta."

Each morning this time of year - actually, like the early ice-out, the spawn/egg stripping is about two weeks ahead of schedule, too - DNR fisheries specialists gather on a platform on the Pine River. It's located just downstream from where the Pine River meets Whitefish. There, a makeshift wall of sorts forms a subtle "V" where all fish heading from Whitefish downstream on the Pine are funneled to a live trap/net. All fish moving from the lake to the river to spawn ultimately end up here.

For onlookers - the public is welcome to watch - that's the main attraction. What has wandered into the live trap in the last 20 or so hours? On Wednesday morning, there were a lot of suckers and a dogfish and a decent-sized northern pike in the net, all of which are released. And dozens of walleye of all sizes - including a few trophy fish.

The fisheries specialists sort through the live net, stripping ripe females of their eggs before releasing them into another net where they'll be tagged then released back into the river. Females who aren't yet ripe are placed in another holding net until ripe and males in yet another holding net. Then, ripe females are placed in a large trough on one side of the actual stripping station, with males in a trough on the other side. Eggs and milt are taken from each, combined, then prepped before being sent to a holding facility in Brainerd. After about three weeks they hatch and, immediately after, the fry are stocked in lakes throughout the area.

The eggs are the key at the stripping station, but the fish are the draw. Although sunny, chilly temps greeted DNR fisheries specialists Wednesday morning. Still, about a dozen people showed up in the first hour to get a look at the process and the fish. A pickup with grandma, grandpa and two young girls was parked, running, outside the DNR property until the fisheries specialists appeared from the small DNR cabin, signaling the start of the day at the station. Once on the river platform, the two girls clung tightly to their grandparents, squealing in delight after getting a shower from a nearby trough overflowing with zealous walleyes.

"It's the No. 1 attraction around here," Brastrup said. "On Saturdays you'll get 100 to 200 people."

But with narrow planks and platforms and about a half-dozen DNR fisheries specialists running about doing their thing, it can quickly get crowded and chaotic on the river.

"They (the public) don't always understand what we're doing there," Brastrup said. "We have to control the herds there. It's good to show people this, but you have to be careful."

Because of the early ice-out on Whitefish, the station was raised much earlier than normal - on March 29. According to Brastrup, the station will continue until it meets its quota of 668 quarts of eggs - which adds up to about 62 million fry. As of Tuesday, the station had taken 44 quarts, Brastrup said. But he said the going is typically slow early in the process and expects the pace to pick up shortly.

"This is very important business," Brastrup said.

And, for onlookers, a major thrill.


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[Woody]

I've been out to this hatchery station and it's very jaw dropping what with the sheer numbers of big walleye.  It's a good way to spend a few hours in an afternoon to visit if you can!  Keep your fishing equiptment at home-the Co's are pretty much camped out there the whole time.