Maumee River Report- 30 March 2017 -River is full of Walleye and they are biting!

LEVEL-581.0 and slowly rising

TEMP- 49  degrees

Barometer: 30.03  inHg and falling

Wading to Bluegrass Island is possible

Clarity-6 inches

Sunrise : 7:21 AM (First cast)

Sunset: 7:57 PM (Last cast)

Yesterday we saw limits by 9am again! The bite was on early and lasted til early afternoon when things slowed down a bit . With the water level up a few more inches we will continue to see waves of fresh walleye come out of the lake so fishing and the weather is only going to get better. We saw fish caught at all access areas including Orleans park. The hot spots were Bluegrass island, Buttonwood park and Ford street Access.

I often ask anglers how there day went and occasionally get the answer” I have been fishing the walleye run several years and have never caught a walleye” The first thing my crew and I ask is what type of rod they are using and the most common answer is either an cheap older medium heavy that been in the garage for 10 years or some sort of heavier ugly stik. While the Ugly stiks are well known for their durability( I own 2 myself and love em ) they do not have the sensitivity that helps feel the bottom and often lite bite of these spawning river walleye. Often with a heavier rod the walleye will bite the bait and spit it out with the angler never feeling that at all. I understand that budget is a concern when it comes to a past time like fihing, but for $35-$50 you can upgrade significantly , there is a difference between “cheap” and “inexpensive” .
One of the fastest growing segments of the fishing industry is fishing rods. The major labels are all turning out new lines, and startup manufacturers are popping up every season. This is good news for anglers, as the abundance of competition has made purchasing a high quality rod a much less expensive proposition than it was just a few years ago. It can be confusing to try and decide on which rod to purchase. Each manufacturer’s nomenclature is different, and although many rods are ‘technique specific’, a good spinnerbait rod to one angler may be better served as a worm rod to another.

For that reason, it’s important to understand exactly what differs between rods, so you can select what you like.

Here’s a breakdown of the 3 major specifics of a fishing rod:

1. Length
Certainly the most obvious metric, length is the distance the rod covers from tip to butt. A rod’s length affects casting distance, accuracy, and hook set leverage. Longer rods (over 7 feet) will cast farther than shorter rods of the same power and action, and shorter (