Anglers looking for an above-average population of 18- to 20-inch hybrid walleyes need look no further than Fort Wayne, where the St. Mary’s and St. Joseph rivers form the Maumee River. The hottest spot for big marble-eyes is below Hosey Dam on the Maumee River. Indiana Department of Natural Resources biologists conducting electrofishing surveys on freshwater lakes consider a catch rate of seven fish per hour successful. “When we go to Hosey Dam, it’s almost one per minute,” says biologist Jed Pearson. “It’s nothing to come away with 20 to 30 walleyes in a short amount of time.” Pearson suspects that the walleye concentration is a remnant population that moved downstream via the St. Mary’s River to the Maumee after escaping from a hatchery in Ohio. Access to the Hosey Dam area is limited to the steep riverbanks near the Anthony Boulevard bridge or by boating upstream from the closest public ramp five miles down River Road. Contact: Indiana Department of Natural Resources (219-691-3181).
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