Has anyone else heard anything about the regulations for Pool #12,13,14 changing. A old boy who said he was at the meeting in Dav. said the closed season is going to be opened back up but the slot is going to stay, there was also talk of a 15″ sauger size limit. Anyone else heard anything?
They way I read it was the dams will be opening again , but it might not be this winter. The slot is staying, which is a GOOD THING. I did not read anything on a sauger length limit. Let the slaughter of the 10 inch saugers begin. I’m just glad the slot was left alone. The big fish we are getting right now is hard to match anywhere. It is all because of the slot.I just hope they hold there ground on the slot , if they revoked it. The thought of all those big girls being filleted would make me sick. 
Iam very glad thier leavin the slot… but i dont understand why they wanna open the dams back up . I cant see where this benifits anyone.I mean why fix what isint broke?I know theres guys who enjoy goin up there in the winter but i think that the majority would rather see it closed.
Todd, the benefit comes from early in the year license sales. I’m willing to bet there are a lot of folks who would normally buy a license at the beginning of the year to be able to fish the dam areas, and they now postpone till they open back up in mid march.
As with any Gov. agency, money is tight, but money rules.
Me thinks the DNR is willing to sacrifice a percentage of the sauger population for that early in the year dough, using the reason that people have fished the dam areas for many years in the past and never had that much of an impact.
I know some of you might think it’s a bit of a reach, but is it?
I would think most early in the year dam fishermen still would have a valid license from the year before. On this side of the river, licenses run March 31 to March 31.
On the other hand, the guys who pound the deep water below the dam for those 10 inch saugers – the ones who catch a limit, disappear for a while, then come back for more – and the yahoos you see keeping slot walleyes, do they even bother buying a license?
Anyways, I would vote to keep the slot, keep those dam areas closed Dec. – March and put a 14-inch minimum on saugers.
Oh, yeah, an occasional appearance on the water or at the ramp by a warden would be nice, too.
I wish that I could find the report, but I can’t. I did read a report on the dam closing and slot limit that said after the initial 5 year test – there was virtually no difference in sauger population NOW than compared to when the dams were not closed. HOWEVER, there was a very distinct advantage to the slot limit for walleye. Population and size both increased for walleye. I believe that the changes being talked about – meaning open the dams up BUT make a slot for sauger is the outcome of the study. The DNR is looking at the success of the slot for walleye and are trying to emulate that with the sauger slot.
I am not professionally involved in any way with this stuff. This is simply what I have read/heard.
By the improvement in the walleye fishery on pool 12, it is believable.
Theres no doubt the slot and closing those 3 dams have improved the quantity and quality of the walleyes dramatically over the last five years.
But I dont see how they can say closing the dams is not helping the sauger populations.
I think more guys are walleye/sauger fishing, especially when the fish are stacked below the dams, and a lot of these “new-to-the-sport” fishermen get caught up in the “limit” mentality.
I wonder what percentage of a sauger year class gets taken out by guys keeping 10-inchers – 25%? 33%? 50%?
Closing the dams has got to be helping to counterbalance this.
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Closing the dams has got to be helping to counterbalance this.
I would tend to agree with you, but the report that I read said that the dam closing made virtually no difference in the population of sauger. The report was very specific about the success of the slot and the failure of the dam closing.
It doesn’t make a heck of alot of sense to me either. Why WOULDN’T closing down the dams improve the sauger population? But according to the folks running the show, it didn’t.
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I wish that I could find the report, but I can’t. I did read a report on the dam closing and slot limit that said after the initial 5 year test – there was virtually no difference in sauger population NOW than compared to when the dams were not closed. HOWEVER, there was a very distinct advantage to the slot limit for walleye.
That is exactly what I read as well. Also from what I remember they will stay open starting this year.
From questions I have asked at a couple previous DNR meetings the DNR did not see any significant improvement in sauger population or size due to the winter closings. The closings were supposed to be for 5 years but will end up 6.5 or 7 after this winter. The DNR also is clear that the winter closing was only about sauger and had no impact on walleye. If there is a problem with sauger it is environmental not from fishing. Most winter fishermen like myself think a size limit on sauger would be a good thing and agree more enforcement would be warrented. The problem with winter closure is that sauger aren’t a significant part of the catch other times of the year and you have a large loss to natural causes each year so many of these fish are a wasted resource if not harvested in the winter. Also, the whole sauger population is not in the tail water areas all winter. Many of these fish are down stream under the ice and unaccesible except for pool 4 to some extent. Most of those who have been in favor of the winter closing are those who don’t winter fish and think it means more fish for them the rest of the year but DNR research says that it doesn’t work out that way. By far, most anglers have been in favor of the slot limit and it looks like that will stay in place. My opinion is that now that there are a lot of fish over 20″ in the system they could allow you to keep one over 20 but under 22 or 23 as part of the limit otherwise a lot of these fish will be lost to natural causes instead of being harvested. You see this type of modified slot many other places.
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My opinion is that now that there are a lot of fish over 20″ in the system they could allow you to keep one over 20 but under 22 or 23 as part of the limit otherwise a lot of these fish will be lost to natural causes instead of being harvested. You see this type of modified slot many other places.
Hmmm…food for thought, but I personally wouldn’t consider a 21 or 22″ breeder that wasn’t harvested for food “a loss”. Them girls make lots of little fish for several years. 
The more breeders the more diverse and healthy the overall population will be. I don’t think we have seen the “peak” population that the river can easily handle – yet.
The Ia. license runs out Jan. 10th.
And we’ve all seen the double dippers, but the main concern of fishermen who are ‘For’ the dam area closure is not about those seeking to take home a limit every time out.
It’s the fact that they have to catch 30 to 60 fish just scrape together a limit with any size to it.
Plus the fact these fish are coming out of the deep holes at the dam and most will have the swim bladder sticking out of their mouth.
How many of those fish will rip open their own bladder on their teeth when they close their mouth after they are turned loose.
Does anyone have any stats on the survival rate of these fish?
Hi Herb!! Long time not talk. I know there was something on the survival rate on fish caught deep. It was touched on years ago. I think over 40′ it something like 80-90% kill rate in cold water. Yes I do see the increase of saugers on 13-14 in the past couple of years. But also remember, most fish stay down river in deeper holes as long as there is food there. If you want to stop the double dippers, drop a dime on them!!! After a few get caught the word will spread and it will stop pretty quick. My vote on the slot is leave it where it is, infact I wish they would put it in place up and down the entire river for 10 years. Could you imagine the fishery then?? Most of my clients dont want to keep fish, they want to learn how to fish them.
Carnivore, is the closing lifted from here on or another year yet?
I called the DNR fisheries office in Bellevue to get an update on that this morning. They told me that they have made the recommendation based on their bioligists research and public opinion to open up the winter fishing. This has to be voted on by their Board of Directors. If it passes the Board of Directors, which they think it will, then it could take effect as early as November or as late as January 1, 2011. That is the best they can say at this time.
Thank you Carnivore that is exactly what I was looking for, a timeline.
My opinion is that they should lift the tailwater ban of Dec 1 – March 15 because a lot of smaller towns like Bellevue who’s hotels and resturant’s depended on these fisherman in the cold water months for their income and livelyhood. The past years they have had a lot tougher times. I remember days in Dec,Jan,Feb when there would be 30 boats on the water. That’s a lot of minnows,gas and hotel rooms. As far as affecting me it really doesn’t matter I fish the winter, but most of the time I fish 2-5 miles down river on flats and rock structures at the top sides of sloughs. Most of my fish are walleye and only 2-3 go home with me a day, fresh walleye are the only way to eat them. The sad thing is the saugers aren’t all in the really deep holes I’ve done very good in Jan, Feb on sauger on the sand flats in 15′ 18′ of water on the IL side of Pool #13 right above the first stretch of dams. People need to understand fish don’t feed in the deep 40′- 50′ holes there is not a lot of shad and minnows down there.
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My vote on the slot is leave it where it is, infact I wish they would put it in place up and down the entire river for 10 years. Could you imagine the fishery then??
X2
Catching a fish is going to earn ya one of four rewards or combinations thereof ~ 1) Self gratification 2)Bragging rights 3)Food 4) Money.
People from all walks of life partake in the sport of fishing for variety of reasons ~ some of which have nothing to do with actually catching a fish. The fact is ~ no matter what’s on your agenda ~ you will remember catching that fish-of-a-life-time long after the money you won is spent or the fillets are washed down with a beverage. Slot limits increase YOUR chance of catching more & bigger fish in the future. Even if the rule book doesn’t spell out a slot limit for the body of water you’re on ~ adopt your own slot limit and adhear to it.
You can not control what somebody else does but you can control what you do. Here’s an In-Depth article with some Walleye numbers anybody who puts a hook in the water should READ 
Really? If fish don’t feed in those deeper holes, what would they be doing in there and why would they be taking guy’s baited hooks?
I agree the better fish will be located away from the deep water. So in that context why don’t you help those hotel and eatery owners by showing the deepwater fishermen where they should be fishing, and let those smaller saugers alone to grow?
My memory is not exact, but the Pool 4 deep water mortality studies showed a huge difference from the fish caught in the 30 ft range to the 40 plus depths. I believe the death loss went from approx 30% at the 30 ft range to well over 60% at depths of 40 ft plus.A significant number of these fish did not expire untill the following day or later as I recall.
The message I have tried to communicate is ,if fishing that deep of water is, to keep what you catch and well over half of what you throw back is going to die.Fortunately,most anglers are not proud of wasting & killing the resource.Many folks claim to be unaware of the mortality issues,so it is up to us to spread the word when we can.
This is on the agenda for the August 12 Natural Resources Commission meeting. The meeting starts at 9 am at the Henry Wallace Building – 4th Floor Conference Room
Des Moines, Iowa 50319
the agenda item is at: http://www.iowadnr.gov/nrc/10aug/16.pdf
Contact info for the commissioners who will be making the final decision
Gregory Drees, Commission Chairperson [email protected]
Tammi Kircher, Commission Vice-Chairperson [email protected]
Richard (Kim) Francisco, Secretary [email protected]
Elizabeth Garst [email protected]
Janelle Rettig [email protected]
Dennis Schemmel [email protected]
Margo Underwood [email protected]
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