Canandaigua Walleyes

[chuck527]

So….. I’ve been guiding on Canandaigua for many years. I hear the occasional story of a Bourbot coming on a jig. Tonight was definitely a different night. Rainbow bite has been incredible so I picked up my speed and went to all spoons. We get a release on a sliding cheater over deep water and long story short it’s a 5-6 lb walleye. Total shock for me as I have fished this lake my entire life and never have I ever seen a walleye. Great night overall with some big lakers and bows but this was definitely a first.

[Sk8man]

VERY cool Paul! Both Walleyes and Whitefish were in here in times past and I think they were getting a few still in the fifties and sixties. You do have to wonder though if it is one that someone planted in here from say Honeoye. What a surprise though (and great eating)

[Trouthunter]

ABOUT HOW DEEP OF WATER WERE YOU IN WHEN THE WALLEYE HIT 

[chuck527]

We were in about 180 fow. 

[salmoseine]

Very interesting! There was a population of walleyes in Canandaigua Lake from at least the 1940s (remember my uncle talking of catching "yellow bellies") through the early 1970s. Many Louis A Wehle/Genessee Beer fishing contest winners came from Canandaigua (brother inlaw caught a 13.5 lbs monthly winner). The DEC attributed the decline of the population to: 1- Loss of spawning habitat in the lake and the West River  2- Polution, West River  3- The introduction of alwives to the lake in the 1950s (feed on walleye fry). Walleyes were most often incidental catches while trout fishing. I caught my last Canandaigua walleye in 1971, 9.5 lbs... suspended mid-lake off Menteth Pt, early August. Walleyes would suspend over deep water mid-July through August feeding on alwives, much the same as smallmouth bass do in Canandaigua/other Finger Lakes. Up to this catch, the last walleye I remember hearing caught was June 1973 (weighed in at Clarke's). Sk8man may be on to something... perhaps a wallye(s) illegally introduced to the lake. The DEC is currently "fighting" a reproducing population of wallyes illegally introduced to Skaneateles Lake perhaps 10 yrs ago (based on year classes found by gill netting surveys). Walleye are known to prey heavily on young trout when available.

Edited July 29, 2023 by salmoseine

[Trouthunter]

SURE HOPE THEY DONOT HURT THE BEST RAINBOW FISHERY IN THE NORTHEAST

[bulletbob]

dec  is ""fighting"" the walleyes  in Skaneateles?.. I hope the Walleyes win.

[salmoseine]

36 minutes ago, bulletbob said:

dec  is ""fighting"" the walleyes  in Skaneateles?.. I hope the Walleyes win.

So you would prefer the rainbow fishery in Skaneateles be destroyed in favor of illegally introduced walleyes... I seem to recall many comments by you on LOU regarding how the Finger Lakes have changed for the worse, fish/fishing that used to be available in numbers no longer present. So, I guess you feel it would be fine if Skaneateles joined that status.  https://www.syracuse.com/outdoors/2021/04/its-been-four-years-and-dec-still-does-not-have-a-plan-to-get-walleye-out-of-skaneateles-lake.html

[Trouthunter]

HOW WAS YOUR RAINBOW BITE & ON AVERAGE WHAT WERE YOUR SIZES IF I MAY ASK THANKS

[chuck527]

I have been catching a ton of 16-20” rainbows this year with a couple in the 5-8lb range almost every trip. I believe we have been catching about 3-4 bows for every laker we catch. Much different than years past. 

[troutman10]

Same for me chuck. Seems to be favorable conditions for bows recently. My son loves catching them.

 

As for walleyes...I believe keuka has had some walleye catches lately as well. Sounds like someone probably making their way around the fingers doing some stocking. 

[steelydan]

On 7/29/2023 at 10:34 AM, salmoseine said:

Very interesting! There was a population of walleyes in Canandaigua Lake from at least the 1940s (remember my uncle talking of catching "yellow bellies") through the early 1970s. Many Louis A Wehle/Genessee Beer fishing contest winners came from Canandaigua (brother inlaw caught a 13.5 lbs monthly winner). The DEC attributed the decline of the population to: 1- Loss of spawning habitat in the lake and the West River  2- Polution, West River  3- The introduction of alwives to the lake in the 1950s (feed on walleye fry). Walleyes were most often incidental catches while trout fishing. I caught my last Canandaigua walleye in 1971, 9.5 lbs... suspended mid-lake off Menteth Pt, early August. Walleyes would suspend over deep water mid-July through August feeding on alwives, much the same as smallmouth bass do in Canandaigua/other Finger Lakes. Up to this catch, the last walleye I remember hearing caught was June 1973 (weighed in at Clarke's). Sk8man may be on to something... perhaps a wallye(s) illegally introduced to the lake. The DEC is currently "fighting" a reproducing population of wallyes illegally introduced to Skaneateles Lake perhaps 10 yrs ago (based on year classes found by gill netting surveys). Walleye are known to prey heavily on young trout when available.

Agree about them liking trout. The walleye stack up at the mouths of erie and ontario tribs and feast on the 4 to 6" steelhead fingerlings every spring

[Sk8man]

One of the reasons I suggested that that fish may have put in there is because during the late seventies through the eighties I used to night fish for trout at the south end of the lake where salmoseine is talking about along with dozens of other folks some of whom became charter captains on Lake O around that time and I never caught one,  either saw a walleye caught, nor did I hear of any being caught despite that area especially around the diagonal bar where the drop is being the historic "hotspot" for walleyes and whitefish. The oldtimers caught both species in the late 1800's and early nineteen hundreds when Sutton and Hinckley were developing their trout spoons.

Edited July 31, 2023 by Sk8man

[chuck527]

I did forward the info on this fish to the DEC. they got back to me this morning and their take was probably illegal stocking as this was the only one they have heard of. They said they have extensive sampling scheduled for 2024.

[Crestliner]

yummy best tastin fish you'll ever cacth out of that lake

[salmoseine]

15 hours ago, Crestliner said:

yummy best tastin fish you'll ever cacth out of that lake

 

Walleyes that have a significant alewife component to their diet have a much different flavor profile than walleyes feeding on a more traditional diet of yellow perch, etc.... 

 

Edited August 4, 2023 by salmoseine

[Gill-T]

I don’t see a conflict. Walleyes are essentially a big perch that will probably feed mostly on gobies and sculpin. 

[salmoseine]

2 hours ago, Gill-T said:

I don’t see a conflict. Walleyes are essentially a big perch that will probably feed mostly on gobies and sculpin. 

 

In the most recent DEC assessment of Canandaigua Lake forage that I've seen (2019), alewives made up 93% of the catch. To the best of my knowledge, gobies are currently not present in Canandaigua.  https://www.dec.ny.gov/docs/fish_marine_pdf/tb8canandaigualk18f.pdf   

[Gill-T]

Thanks for the read. To help shape the conversation about rainbows and browns in the finger lakes, they were stocked, not native. Some of the anger directed towards walleye in favor of trout is curious. 

[Sk8man]

Ditto on thanks for the info.

[Crestliner]

ya no gobies in Canandaigua hope they never come . But like anything else. I might be mistaken. just never saw one. That lake is mud bottom after weed line . The gobies like the rocks. As for my experience fishin small mouth at the cut threw in Henderson. But we do have damn Quamerants now. Don't know if I spelled that right. But there eating all the perch minnows. Ruined the pike fishin In St. Lawrence.

[Sk8man]

There is no path for Gobies in Canandaigua Lake.  They have apparently migrated from Lake Ontario up through the Seneca River to Cayuga to Seneca Lake but unless someone actually purposely introduces them Canandaigusa and Keuka should be spared as they aren't connected to the canal system.

[Trouthunter]

IF THEY EVER CATCH THAT PERSON WHO PUT THAT WALLEYE IN THERE HE SHOULD GO TO JAIL FOR A LONG TIME DO NOT SCREW UP AGREAT RAINBOW FISHERY WE SHOULD BE BLESSED WITH THAT FISHERY

[salmoseine]

On 7/30/2023 at 6:33 PM, troutman10 said:

I believe keuka has had some walleye catches lately as well. Sounds like someone probably making their way around the fingers doing some stocking

Just saw a FB post by a member of the FLTA (Finger Lakes Troller Assoc) that he caught an 8lb10oz walleye in Keuka a couple weeks back. As Sk8man outlined, for gobies to be present in Canandaigua it would require their "introduction" to the lake similar to the "introduction" of alewives to Conesus Lake. And we all know how that affected the fishery. It's always aggravating to know there are fishing "sportsmen" who believe they are wiser than the DEC fisheries management professionals. 

 

[Crestliner]

Keep gobies out of Canandaigua Please!!!!! To us that know what that would do. I love my rainbows