Passaic River Walleye 3/15

[Skunk City]

Got out today after work for a little river fishing. As usual, was targeting the toothy guys tossing lures and drowning shiners. After landing a few Pike, I hooked into something that when it came up, I knew it was no Pike. Got a quick glimpse of a WALLEYE before it spit the hook...ughh. I stayed in the same spot, hoping for some reason this guy was really hungry or was rolling with a few friends.....and I was right. After landing another Pike, I hooked up again with the elusive Walleye AGAIN about 20 minutes later. There was no way I was losing this fish lol. Got him to shore, snapped a few pictures, giggled like a little girl, then quickly released him. Fish was healthy, fought nice and yeah, came out of the PASSAIC! A few of my buddies have landed a couple over the years, but this was my first from the river.
http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h252/QuikSilverSRT4/20130315_172950_zps653e9c07.jpg

[FASTEDDIE29]

AH-HAAAAAAAAA, 3 THUMBS UP!!!! Big river up that way, let's stock it with the EYEBALLS and let nature take its toll. SWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET!!!!

[stevejordan]

Nice!!!

[NorthJerzyG]

:eek:

[basspilot]

Pretty cool I must say. I've heard a few reports over the years and have seen a few photos as well. I have to ask though was it above or below the dundee and did you wind up picking it up on live bait?

[AndyS]

again, nice HEALTHY looking fish ya got there !! I think FE is gonna blow a chip !!

[Skunk City]

Pretty cool I must say. I've heard a few reports over the years and have seen a few photos as well. I have to ask though was it above or below the dundee and did you wind up picking it up on live bait?

Above. Hit a shallow running jerkbait in 2ft. of water.

Hoping Mark B. chimes in a bit here. Are they known to successfully spawn in NJ?

[RJHooker]

Sounds like a great day out on the Passaic, gratz!

I'm not an expert, but I've read they will spawn in clean shallows, and feeder creeks attached to their north jersey homes.

[bulletbob]

AH-HAAAAAAAAA, 3 THUMBS UP!!!! Big river up that way, let's stock it with the EYEBALLS and let nature take its toll. SWEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET!!!!

Only problem is this.. walleyes are prolific... They can outcompete other fish.. They are active year round and feed day and night.. In a few years there would be a lot less pike , crappies ,and bass in the river. They usually do well in bigger systems like the Delaware or Susquehanna.. We have a lake up here called Whitney Point Reservoir.. It had some of the best crappie fishing around.. Walleyes had some good spawning years in the lake and feeder streams, and in a short time the good Crappie fishing was ended.. There are more Walleyes now, but at the expense of another species.
Perhaps thats why the state doesn't manage the Passaic for Walleyes.. They simply don't want them in there in any numbers.. There's no doubt they CAN survive, and probably would breed..
In big lakes, Pike and Walleyes can co exist because they utilize different areas of the lake.. Walleyes are usually on rocky substrates, and are generally more of an open water fish, and Pike are ambush feeders prone to weeds and cover in shallower water.
In the Passaic they would be in direct competition, and it would be interesting to see which one would win.. Here in NY state, rivers that have a lot of Walleyes don't have a lot of Pike,and vice versa . I see where you are coming from however.. Given the choice, I personally would rather have a river full of Walleyes than a river full of pike...bob

[MaCe1]

Very nice. The Passaic River continues to amaze me with the variety of fish, and you are catching all of them.

[AndyS]

Looking at the numbers of pike that get stocked in the Passaic each year I wouldn't worry ablout it.

[buzzbaiter]

Pike are considered a nuisance fish not only here in the US but other countries. Their voraciousness and fast growth rates can decimate any existing fisheries such as perch, trout, or bass. They don't reproduce well here in NJ(passaic is too fast and its flows fluctuate too much) which is why the state doesn't worry about stocking them. They need thick mats of submerged vegetation(preferably grasses) in shallow water for the duration of the spawning period. Not too many bodies of water have thick mats in the early spring(most plants die off in the fall). In fact, flooded grasslands along reservoirs/lakes/rivers were the areas that had the highest densities of pike eggs. Since these areas are often temporary, reproductive success varied widely from year to year.

Anyhow, back to nuisance subject. There are many cases of lakes having to be poisoned to kill pike. From California:

Northern pike are listed in the California Code of Regulations Title 14
Section 671 as a “detrimental animal” and it is unlawful to import, transport or possess northern pike alive except under permit.

On several occasion after finding just a few pike, they poisoned the lake(s) to eradicate them.

[bulletbob]

Looking at the numbers of pike that get stocked in the Passaic each year I wouldn't worry about it.

Most of the Walleye would get eaten before they grew up I guess is what you are saying... Correct if the habitat favors Pike, which is probably the case in the Passaic... walleyes need clean gravel to spawn, and generally do better in deeper clearer water.. Like I said,there are probably reasons the state doesn't manage the Passaic for Walleye.. It would be interesting to find out how the ones that are caught got in there.. Were they stocked at one time?

[Mark B.]

Yes, walleye can be quite predatory. The reason we don’t stock them everywhere.

We keep them out of Splitrock Reservoir, where the SMB population is thriving.

That Passaic R. walleye either swam out of one of the impoundments that we stock them in that drainage, or an angler illegally stocked it (one year the annual fall gillnetting for lakers @ RVR yielded a walleye).

The walleye in the Raritan R. swam from the Del. R., via the D & R Canal.

As there is probably limited natural reproduction in NJ,….we augment it with stocking.

[bulletbob]

Yes, walleye can be quite predatory. The reason we don’t stock them everywhere.

We keep them out of Splitrock Reservoir, where the SMB population is thriving.

That Passaic R. walleye either swam out of one of the impoundments that we stock them in that drainage, or an angler illegally stocked it (one year the annual fall gillnetting for lakers @ RVR yielded a walleye).

The walleye in the Raritan R. swam from the Del. R., via the D & R Canal.

As there is probably limited natural reproduction in NJ,….we augment it with stocking.

Living in NY state, I probably catch more Walleyes than my brethren in NJ, but I must say, the Delaware River in NJ , is a MUCH cleaner and better looking river than the susquehanna here in NY.. Deeper, more diverse, much "fishier" looking.. The Susquehanna is a shallow, stinky mud puddle up here.. Always turbid, runs green/brown all year, and still has storm sewers emptying into it everywhere... However in many spots its loaded with Walleyes... Looks more like a carp river, yet every year we catch little "spikes' by the millions it seems, along with nice keepers, so reproduction is very good... There are many locals that limit out every single time they fish.. I don't, but i do ok.. I mean, even shore fishing without moving 3 feet in either direction its not big deal taking 2 or 3 nice keepers in less than an hour. I know the big D has Walleyes, and I know they grow pretty big, but I don't understand why it doesn't see the numbers of fish we see in the muddy susky...bob

[SkillfulAngler908]

Nice catch skunk, thats why I love river fishing. You never know what might be on the end of your line!

[Rickhem]

NICE!!!

That river has lots of surprises.

Good job Rob.

[FASTEDDIE29]

Living in NY state, I probably catch more Walleyes than my brethren in NJ, but I must say, the Delaware River in NJ , is a MUCH cleaner and better looking river than the susquehanna here in NY.. Deeper, more diverse, much "fishier" looking.. The Susquehanna is a shallow, stinky mud puddle up here.. Always turbid, runs green/brown all year, and still has storm sewers emptying into it everywhere... However in many spots its loaded with Walleyes... Looks more like a carp river, yet every year we catch little "spikes' by the millions it seems, along with nice keepers, so reproduction is very good... There are many locals that limit out every single time they fish.. I don't, but i do ok.. I mean, even shore fishing without moving 3 feet in either direction its not big deal taking 2 or 3 nice keepers in less than an hour. I know the big D has Walleyes, and I know they grow pretty big, but I don't understand why it doesn't see the numbers of fish we see in the muddy susky...bob
My best days of ice fishing came from the SUSKY in PA. I'm talkin bout 25-50 EYES a day. Average size was 12- 16 inches but a lot of fun. PM me. If you want the spot.

[Skunk City]

Thanks guys. Knowing that they could be spawning here is pretty crazy. Wonder what the population numbers actually are. Also, pretty crazy to think of the distance, obstacles, dams and water falls these fish live through before they get caught as 20"+ fish. Could it be their instincts are to swim downstream no matter what?

[antgogz]

F*ckin Awesome!

[ScowardNJ]

Nice catch Skunk! Very cool!

[flyboy1]

Very nice catch because it gives my story when fishing in Passaic/Dundee lake area last year credibility.....:D

Mid-summer last year me and 2 of my buddies were fishing out the boat in the stretch of river just before the bridges to dundee lake where it gets quite deep..... we were casting toward shore line when like skunk I got a hit which looked like to be a nice sized smallie but as I got it closer to the boat I noticed that it appeared to be too long and slender than the football shaped smallies are like in that area... Anyway I managed to get it about 2 ft from the boat and the water was dark but i could swear it was a walleye but my buddies looked at me like I was crazy... Well, guess Im not so crazy now... :cool:

again very nice catch skunk

[Skunk City]

Very nice catch because it gives my story when fishing in Passaic/Dundee lake area last year credibility.....:D

Mid-summer last year me and 2 of my buddies were fishing out the boat in the stretch of river just before the bridges to dundee lake where it gets quite deep..... we were casting toward shore line when like skunk I got a hit which looked like to be a nice sized smallie but as I got it closer to the boat I noticed that it appeared to be too long and slender than the football shaped smallies are like in that area... Anyway I managed to get it about 2 ft from the boat and the water was dark but i could swear it was a walleye but my buddies looked at me like I was crazy... Well, guess Im not so crazy now... :cool:

again very nice catch skunk


It's awesome how stories like these are starting to slowly come out now. I've gotten a couple PM's from guys saying the same, mostly from above or below Little Falls, Great Falls or Dundee Dam. Let's hope there's an increasing population that doesn't have too much effect on the Pike and Smallies.

Pike, Walleye, Smallmouth, Largemouth, Striped Bass, Yellow Perch, Crappie and Carp all from the same river? I think we are pretty lucky guys :D . Who's going to post up the first Passaic River Muskie photo?

[Jigman13]

TOAD... nice fish!!!

[RichS]

Old post, I know. I'm guess those eyes came down from the Wanaque- Pompton arms.