Quinte Fishing

Hypothetically (for me anyway, I'm not real succesful) at what point would you keep a fish for eating vs. throw them back? Do you keep them all? Or is there a certain size where either taste or breeding stock considerations would cause you to release a walleye?

Not looking to politicize this, I'm actually curious as to what factors I might consider, i.e am I going to have a nasty tasting fish if I bring home a 10lb'er, etc.

Ya I think WW has it right 6lbs would be a good rule of thumb. This is for great lakes of course a 6lber on a back lake would be ancient and in most areas over the slot anyway. There is always lots of discussion about what size are the best breeders, is it the really big ones or are they already past their prime etc etc. My personal rule for any species is the really big ones and the small ones go back, then of the medium size ones I keep what I can eat. I may keep enough pannies for a couple meals but for game fish I rarely keep a limit, but thats me. I am the only one who eats fish in my house so I dont need a bunch. Plus why stock up the freezer, when the fish are gone it just gives me an excuse to go fishing again!
Not to Hijack the thread but for me the bigger concern or issue facing fish stocks isnt the size but the numbers. If everyone followed the reg and understood that in most cases your daily catch and possession limits are the same we wouldnt have to worry about over harvesting. So if your limit is 4 thats it, its not 4 a day until your freezer is so stuffed it won't shut.

I like the 4 walleye limit ( possession too ) and only one over 24.8 " ( 63 cm ) rule for BOQ.
( Conservation license is 2 and only one over )
It basically guides us as to what are eaters and fish over 24.8" should be released
unless they are injured and can not be revived. Also it may be an idea to look
at the consumption guide lines, the walleye are surprising pretty clean.

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Weedlefish,Snagglefish..Oh Fish -On !

I personally feel that the best eaters are 1.5- 3 pounds. I caught a 2.5 pounder on Rice Lake last November that I kept and had eggs in it. I was kinda surprised. I don't keep anything over 3 pounds unless it's wounded and won't survive. As mentioned above, I'm the only one in my house that eats fish, so I only keep the small ones for a treat. I caught a 6 pounder on Quinte last year and kept it so I could give my parents a little snack back at the cottage, but I found it tasted like an old work boot.
I like the Zone 17 slot size where you can only keep between 14-20 inchers (roughly) Any female over 20 inches I'm sure will have eggs in the fall/winter.

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There's something wrong with that rod.
It has a bend in it!!!

i agree 1.5-3lbs are nice eating.

while the slot size in zone 17 sucks, it can be a productive area.

I agree and in favour of a slot size in zone 20

When the slot was first introduced in Zone 17, I didn't really like it either. It's hard enough to catch fish sometimes, and when you have to throw 80% back, it can be a heartbreaker sometimes. Although, after a few years of the slot being in effect, I noticed an increase of numbers, and size (Rice, Scugog) and fishing these lakes are a lot of fun again.
I don't think you can compare Quinte to the Kawarthas though. Not sure if the same slot in Zone 17 would have an impact on Quinte or not, but it definitely wouldn't hurt.

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There's something wrong with that rod.
It has a bend in it!!!

Zone 18 has an even tougher slot but if it helps like it has in zone 17 then iam all for it. Not sure a slot would work on Lake O it's a trophy fishery, a slot takes that away unless you do something like you can keep 15-23in and 30+. Otherwise it would kill the charters and tourism.

:edit:
Or another option that would allow for a 15-23 or similar slot without a 30+ on Lake O would be the MNR can update the regs to get rid of the ridiculous immediate release standard and clearly identify that C.P.R is acceptable for fish outside of the slot.

You have to take notice. Zone 20 isn't just the BOQ.

I personally wont keep anything over 5lbs for the table.
I agree 100% that the Bay needs a slot limit to preserve it for our kids and grandkids.
I personally love the slot limit in zone 17. The Walleye fishing on Rice is getting better and better each year because of it. Best I've seen in a while there.

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Stoty

5lbs biggest....

I personally prefer 2 pounders... But they are few and far between during summer months...

And I feel everyone is entitled to a wall hanger... Just 1 per person ever tho... I've heard of guys having 4-5-6 walleye over 10lbs on they're wall... Or keeping everything they catch to eat no matter how big...

I prefer walleye for the table in the 15 to 20 inch range but this fall I fished Melville shoal a lot. As they say, big water big fish and fish under 24 inches were hard to come by so in order to get a meal I’ve eaten 2 or 3 24 inchers this fall. the one's that are 26 inch plis go back in the waTER. I find the 24 inchers taste as good as the little guys.
A USEFUL TIP for the big ones (the 24 inchers). ( I think I saw this on Bill Saiff’s Rod & Reel tv show talking about salmon about a decade ago). After you skin the filet on a large fish, shave off the brown meat that’s (mostly) under the lateral line. This involves slicing off only about a thickness of 2 or 3 mm and amounts to only a couple of tablespoons of flesh. This removes the strong fishy taste, and (so I’ve heard) this is the fatty tissue that tends to accumulate the nasty organic contaminants like PCBs, mirex and other lovely chemicals
I wouldn’t mind seeing a Zone 17 type slot limit on the B of Q. with one fish allowed over 50 cm. (19.7 inches). It wouldn’t affect what I keep at all.
Note if you don’t know: Zone 17: must be 35 - 50 cm (13.8 - 19.7 in.).; Zone 18 : Must be 40-50 cm - (15.7– 19.7 in) .
As for the zone 18 slot. Isn’t that a bit much? A shame to not eat a 15 inch walleye. Perfect pan size and way more tasty flesh per filet than any jumbo perch I’ve ever caught and kept. Does tightening the range on the low end by 5 cm really conserve the resource that much more?
Tight LInes, pdubya

I read an article about the slot in Zone 17, and it said that by keeping the 3-5 pound walleye (over slot) in the water, it helps reduce the panfish/goby population, which in turn increases the survival rate of walleye and bass eggs. So I'm sure a lot of the bass guys wouldn't mind seeing a walleye slot on Quinte either....lol
I haven't fished Quinte in the spring/summer in the last couple of years, but I remember while trolling around with worms, you couldn't keep the perch off your line. Nothing but a pain in the butt.
Let them walleye go...it will save you a ton of money on worms in the end!!!

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There's something wrong with that rod.
It has a bend in it!!!

My personal opinion and practice is anything under the 4.5 # mark is good for the table. Anything over goes back. The perfect limit in my opinion is 4 fish rite at the 2.5# mark. Pperfect size fillets for a fish fry.