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I am here to tell you it was a lot easier catching fish in red wing 10 years ago compared to now.
Use a hook, minnow and slip sinker, it’s just as good as 20 years ago many will say.
You sure you aren’t confused with your kitty fish? Those have been in abundance the last couple years. We have been slaying them. My buddy smokes them they taste awesome!!!!!! 
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I am here to tell you it was a lot easier catching fish in red wing 10 years ago compared to now.
Use a hook, minnow and slip sinker, it’s just as good as 20 years ago many will say.
These “many” must not have known how to fish 20 years ago.
There have been plenty of studies the last few years documenting the depletion of the walleye/sauger population on pool 4.
Thanks, 10-15 years ago I had no clue how to really catch fish other than go where the people are and bounce a big head with a minnow off the bottom and we could get our limits and catch big fish with them as well. Now, I feel I know a lot more, but it gets harder to put the fish in the boat and to get the size of fish we use to catch in Red Wing. Can you still put numbers of fish in the boat, yes. Can you still but big fish in the boat, yes. All I am saying is that it wasn’t as easy as it was years ago. Less fishing pressure also equals more places to fish without competition. Something has to be said for that as well.
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As much as I hate to say it, I honestly feel the walleye/saugers season needs to be shut down on pool 4 during the winter/spring.
Not sure about complete closure. But I think some change is probably needed. From Feb 28 to May 1st go to a Rainey River rule. 2 fish nothing over 20 inches. Protect the big girls.
Easy fix on the scour hole problem. During those same dates, move the “no fishing here to dam” signs down to the second wing dam.
Mr. Holst said it best. The biggest problem pool 4 faces is lost habitat due to sedimentation. If you believe what is predicted to happen, lake Pepin will be a swamp/mash within the next 100 years. There will basically be a dredge channel down the middle of the lake. Game over.
-J.
Still can’t believe pool 4 doesn’t have a slot. The Iowa pools sure improved when they added a slot.
That’s it. I’m starting a new group… Scourholers anomous. 
I love seeing the guys in the 50K skeeters, yarcrafts, rangers fishing the scour hole. You would think with someone with a boat like that could find fish other places on a BIG river….. To each there own, I guess money can’t catch fish! I will stay in 20′ of water and catch 20″ walleyes all day. It’s sad seeing people throw fish back in 70″ of water, they will die! I want my kids to be able to fish Pool 4 like I have. Hopefully it never gets fished out, but like everything else in life we will figure it out after the fact. Just my .02!
See you guys tomorrow! I will be one of the boats out of the HOLE 
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Pug, I don’t think people like clicking on links. 
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Pug, I don’t think people like clicking on links.
I think the first link, being nearly 30 years old, may be a bit outdated. many things have changed in this river system since 1984.
The second link is an interesting one. It basically says the numbers are significantly down and seem to still be dropping. It gives some opinions on why this may be. It also says that the DNR has no real clue for sure why it is. Most likely it is a combination of factors.
This link pretty much says that the river system is definitely on a downward trend and, much like they are saying on Mille Lacs, zebras causing clearer water has changed the system to be much better suited for other species and not so suited for sauger.
So, with these factors challenging the current populations, how could anyone say that this ecosystem is stable enough to be not effected by other factors (fishermen)killing many small saugers each day? Why on earth would we, as sportsmen, want to put undue pressure on an already struggling population?
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As much as I hate to say it, I honestly feel the walleye/saugers season needs to be shut down on pool 4 during the winter/spring.
Not sure about complete closure. But I think some change is probably needed. From Feb 28 to May 1st go to a Rainey River rule. 2 fish nothing over 20 inches. Protect the big girls.
Easy fix on the scour hole problem. During those same dates, move the “no fishing here to dam” signs down to the second wing dam.
Mr. Holst said it best. The biggest problem pool 4 faces is lost habitat due to sedimentation. If you believe what is predicted to happen, lake Pepin will be a swamp/mash within the next 100 years. There will basically be a dredge channel down the middle of the lake. Game over.
-J.
Still can’t believe pool 4 doesn’t have a slot. The Iowa pools sure improved when they added a slot.
Brian K. was telling me as far back as last August of a guide here on IDO pushing Wisconsin congress hard for a slot on pool 4. If I remember correctly the slot he is pushing for is 20-27 with one over 28.
Am I remembering that correctly Brian?
Those were the only studies I found online.
I don’t think the age of a study discounts it. They used 20+ years of data I believe.
Question #1: What is the “Wanton Waste” law in the State of Wisconsin?
Answer: As it states in the Wisconsin regulation book- “23.095(1g) General prohibition. No person may damage or attempt to damage any natural resource within the state”. Describing the word Damage. – “Damage” means to commit a physical act that unreasonably destroys, molests, defaces, removes or wastes. This could mean damaging and/or wasting everything from a tree to a black bear as this law is written.
Hmmm, I wonder if dragging small sauger out of the depths knowing that you are killing many of them and just throwing them back over the side of the boat fits?
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Brian K. was telling me as far back as last August of a guide here on IDO pushing Wisconsin congress hard for a slot on pool 4. If I remember correctly the slot he is pushing for is 20-27 with one over 28.
Am I remembering that correctly Brian?
You would need to talk to Hutch. I don’t recall the specifics.
1. Slots aren’t the answer to everything. >Mille Lacs<
But I’ll let the DNR explain that statement because it was way too complicated of an answer when they were talking about it.
2. Just because someone brings a suggestion to the Congress doesn’t mean it’s a good thing. Case in point…WI 25 catfish limit.
20 years of data is a pretty good chunk of data.
In looking at the second report, the graph does show the population declining…but look at the population!
It’s still a very healthy fishery. Saying it’s not is like saying the city of Mpls lost a few thousand people.
I agree. Implementing a slot system is not a good idea. It encourages the harvest of fish right up to the slot limit, which is the breeding stock.
Your right, I think a 30 year old study that uses 20 years of information that is credible, but outdated and contradicts what you are saying should be sufficient enough evidence to prove what is going on in an ecological system that has been changing and evolving over the years. Like I said, you can still go out and put fish in the boat and big fish in your hands for a short time before letting them go, but it is more difficult to do than it was before. Not every day, but on the average it is more difficult. To say that the fishing pressure hasn’t played a role in this is negligent.
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Brian K. was telling me as far back as last August of a guide here on IDO pushing Wisconsin congress hard for a slot on pool 4. If I remember correctly the slot he is pushing for is 20-27 with one over 28.
Am I remembering that correctly Brian?
You would need to talk to Hutch. I don’t recall the specifics.
1. Slots aren’t the answer to everything. >Mille Lacs<
But I’ll let the DNR explain that statement because it was way too complicated of an answer when they were talking about it.
2. Just because someone brings a suggestion to the Congress doesn’t mean it’s a good thing. Case in point…WI 25 catfish limit.
20 years of data is a pretty good chunk of data.
In looking at the second report, the graph does show the population declining…but look at the population!
It’s still a very healthy fishery. Saying it’s not is like saying the city of Mpls lost a few thousand people.
Very healthy fishery yes, but is it on the decline? Yes, is the fishing pressure part of this decline. I think that it is. Is it the most major part of the decline? Most likely not, but it plays a role and that is what I have been saying.
Exactly where in the study does it contradict what I say?
To say fishing pressure has less affect in a big river is not negligent, it is an opinion.
But you guys have convinced me to push for slot limits and fish tags for pool 4. And by fish tags I mean, it’s time to limit the fishermen going out there by awarding tags via lottery system.
Maybe I missed it, but isn’t there a no fishing zone 300 feet from the damn from March to April. I believe the scour hole is within that area. I think the DNR should make a trip to the damn area.
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Many big rivers are so healthy and ecologically sound, even over fishing has little to no affect.
Even changing this statement from your “poor choice of words” to heavy fishing pressure for over fishing in this large mississippi river states that no amount of fishing pressure by anyone would affect or have very little effect to the population of any species of fish on the river. In that case who cares who fishes the scour hole because it isn’t going to have any impact according to you! 
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In that case who cares who fishes the scour hole because it isn’t going to have any impact according to you!
Pretty simple when you think about it. There is a difference between knowingly wasting fish and people not wasting fish. That’s why I care.
I don’t like the fact of wasting fish either. I have a hard time even throwing back a walleye that was hooked deep in the throat trolling that wasn’t 15 inches knowing that he was going to die anyways. I am just saying that according to your theory it should have little to no impact on the walleye sauger population.
Long live the scour whore!!!!!
Either all the people do not read this stuff-or just do not give a rats a$$.
I agree, Evert’s is not in any way responsible for this, and certainly are not the gatekeepers to people’s fishing ethics. ALL people know smoking will kill you–yet, they keep lighting up. go figure…. When people know they are doing something wrong, it is no longer a procedural issue, but a behavioral issue–and people’s ethics and behaviors can change by the minute depending on a given situation (or, if no one is looking!). What is bad about this is this; it has been going on for SOOOOO MANNNY years and ignored for SOOOOO MANNNNY years that these idiots will go do it in broad daylight, in a very large group, giggle and laugh the whole time, cheer each other on and be dementedly delighted with the whole ordeal of wanton waste and slaughter—behavior problems are deep seeded messes….those folks will read all this great information and still act like the zombie apocalypse. Folks, the scour whore is nothing more than the Carnie Circus; totally inmates running the asylum.
Proactively, EVERYBODY call your local DNR fisheries guy and get a guy out there during the “hot” times (could be an intern)to “watch” the activity and “he” go up and educate he people about how “they” are just killing a large number of fish by tossing them back. Only by having someone there of “authority” will “they–the lazy bums of the carnie circus” get the point of “big brother” watching over them–cause, right now, they do not give a rats a$$ and will tell it to you in your face……..that is how bad the behavioral problem has become and humiliation by “dad” sometimes works wonders on changing behavior. People always have and always will resent new laws (even break them), but a good “talking to” by “dad (DNR)” in front of their buddys makes the tail go between the legs pretty darn quick.
There, that is how I truly feel…..
Pug, if you think that killing fish from deep water is a bad thing why would you bother making the point that it doesn’t harm the fishery? What is your objective?
My opinion is that the whole “doesn’t harm the fishery” argument is complete [censored]. Responsible harvest generally doesn’t harm a fishery. One individual’s harvest generally doesn’t harm the fishery. But enough people killing enough fish will harm any fishery. Period!
Education and peer pressure will help keep people out of the scour hole just as it has resulted in a lot of big fish being released. 
You mean a law can’t fix everything? 
jk of course.
However, and I quote from mplspug thinks laws will fix this solution.
“But you guys have convinced me to push for slot limits and fish tags for pool 4. And by fish tags I mean, it’s time to limit the fishermen going out there by awarding tags via lottery system.”
More laws people!!!! Pretty soon we will be paying for the time our boat is actually on the river/hour if mplspug has his way!
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However, and I quote from mplspug thinks laws will fix this solution.
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Pug, if you think that killing fish from deep water is a bad thing why would you bother making the point that it doesn’t harm the fishery? What is your objective?
I don’t have an objective. Maybe that’s the problem, people think I have one or that I am some how apathetic towards, or worse, endorsing fishing the scour hole. I believe I made my first remark after someone else mentioned fishing pressure.
I was out yesterday, and there had to be 50-75 boats on the hole everytime I looked, yet I didn’t see a single dead floating, or dying fish during the 9 hours I was there. Why would you suppose that is? I understand the physics of it, but I also think this conversation may be overblown a bit.
When you made the statement that over fishing does little or no harm to the fishery, you then corrected yourself on “bad choice of words” and stated heavy fishing pressure has little or no effect on the fish population, that is an opinion/objective/reason. When you say “heavy fishing pressure” does not have an impact on the fishery, it can be implied from your statement that fishing the scour hole will not affect the population of walleye/sauger in the pool 4, or any pool for that matter.
Great points John, glad to see that someone thinks that way as well!
Just because you see 200 boats at the dam does not, in itself, mean that pool 4 has heavy fishing pressure. If you look at the river and Pepin, that is a ton of water.
The dam receives heavy fishing pressure for two months, but the other 10 months and other 99.5% of the river really dont…..especially when you consider the reproductive rate and fast growth rates.
You need to get out fishing more then. I fish this area year round and there is more than enough fishing pressure at all times of the year. Way more now than when I was younger. Like I stated before can you still go out and put fish in the boat? Yes you can. Can you still catch the big fish? Yes you can, but it isn’t as easy or as often as it was when I was younger and had no clue how to do it.
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