What's happened to Oscoda's pier walleye?

[ausable_steelhead]

Anybody know what's happened to the great walleye fishing Oscoda used to have? I mean, the spring is the only really decent fishing, and even that's iffy anymore. Oscoda used to have hot spring fishing for eyes, as soon as the ice went, often when there were still bergs floating around. Summer used to be great, 3-5 a night was pretty common, and they were always nice fish, 5-8lbs were the normal weights. And come fall, numbers were good, and size was, wow. Now, your lucky to hit one during summer, and the weights are way down, alot of 3-4lb fish, not bad, but not the same either. It's been like this the last few years, the last time I did good off the north pier during summer was July 02' or 03'.

[MSUICEMAN]

i think they are still there, just with the lower lake levels, warmer water, and change of forage fish, they are a bit deeper. might need the boat now unfortunately.

[motcityman]

the son and I where there over Easter weekend and not a walleye..lakes and browns...

[dajumboman]

its called having 50-60 guys out there on the pier per night catching 3-5 fish eventually the fish will begin to decline. I seen how its been declining as well on the west side piers

[Capt Hook]

There are still alot of fish that spawn in the AuSable as well as up the Pine River. These fish trickle down starting in early April most years. In the past this coinsided with the smelt runs which kept the spring fish around for weeks. Shortly after that they use to put stealhead plants in. {now held in pens till smolt} Then the alwives came in, plus there use to be a bunch of shiners out there. Now there is squat out there and those fish have nothing to keep them there for a while to feed. Also nothing to run back in at night to feed on. You now have one shot on the night they past through from spawning. They MUST go out in the big lake to find food. Even in the fall we use to have a huge Shad run that the eyes use to fallow in to feed on.

The only shot at a bunch of fish at once is those fish that go up the pine. They filter down into Van Etten Lake and stay there and feed for a bit.{tons of feed} Those fish stay there till about mid to late May. They have the dam shut down to bring the lake up to summer level. After the first BIG rain once the lake is full, they open the gates and a huge rush of fish come down.

[ausable_steelhead]

There are still tons of shad and shiners. Last fall, during the meager pier salmon fishing, there were an *****-load of shad heading up the Au Sable, they were shooting out ahead of boat wakes, and skittering when a lure was ran through them. Also, a bit later, around the end of Sept.-early Oct. Van Ettan dam had a bunch piled up in the spill. And everybody seen all the shiners this spring, there were clouds of them. I think the fact that the alewives don't hit the piers from June through July anymore has a lot to do with it, as well as a lack of smelt runs. But there doesn't seem to be no shortage of shad or shiners.

[Capt Hook]

Sure there still is some bait, but not the amount needed to feed 100s if not 1000s of fish. Ten years ago when the shad came in they would fill the river from top to bottom. Every cut was jammed with them. They stayed in the lower part of the river for 6 weeks. As for the shinner, most hogs would pefer bigger bait, not saying they don't eat them but they are not going to chase them to far. Also not the high fat cotent they pefer.