PERRYSBURG – Mother Nature has not been cooperating with the annual walleye run on the Maumee River.
Colder temperatures have resulted in fewer bites for anglers, many traveling from surrounding states or
even across the nation to Wood County and the Maumee River for one of the country’s most sought after
fishing experiences.
"With the exception of a few days, it’s been pretty slow," Wood County Ohio Division of
Wildlife officer Marty Baer said on Tuesday. "It was nothing like it should have been, but because
of the on-and-off of the cold and warm, and more predominantly cold, I think it was keeping a lot of
folks away."
Last year at this time the walleye run was at its peak. The walleye are most abundant and easiest to
catch when it is warm and the water level is high. Anglers can line up just a few feet from each other
on either side of the river and catch the fish with relative ease.
This season, many anglers have spent hours in the cold water and were lucky to catch even one fish per
day. But that could change with warmer temperatures expected starting later this week and into the
weekend.
"With the time of year it is now and with the expected warm-up for this week, I think things should
pick up pretty well," Baer said. "Traditionally, the end of March and the first couple weeks
of April is peak here, and March was more or less a bust. There were a couple of good days when we had
warm weather. But we need to have the higher water and the warm temperatures."
Toledo resident Bill Ishler has been coming to the walleye run since 1996, and has been fishing the river
nearly every day for the past month.
So far all he has to show for it is a total of two walleye caught since early March.
"It’s been slow. The water’s not warm enough yet," said Ishler as he returned from wading in
the Maumee off of Orleans Park in Perrysburg. "We had warmer weather and they were biting pretty
good. I caught two of them during that time, but since then they won’t bite."
Many times when the run is at its peak anglers have no problem reaching their limit of four walleye per
day in just a couple hours.
This year that has not been the case.
"Well I hope to get four every day. It hasn’t happened so far. They’re just not biting very
well," Ishler said. "This weekend it’s supposed to warm up. There’s going to be a lot of
people coming out of here with their limits."
At Schroeder Farm, a family-owned campground located along the river that is open during the run, anglers
are still camping and fishing every day, despite forecasts of poor fishing.
"They still keep coming," said Heather Schramko, a Bowling Green resident who works as a camp
manager at Schroeder Farm. "There’s reports that it’s not good fishing and they still come and try.
It amazes me. The weather has definitely slowed things down, fishing- and camping-wise."
Schramko stated that one of the campers, a man from Illinois who had been fishing for several weeks, is
heading back home nearly empty-handed.
"Usually they have coolers full, so he’s a little bummed," she said. "The fish just don’t
bite when it’s cold."
The run can continue through the early weeks of May, when the coveted white bass also makes its way
through the river.
And though the run has been slow to start, the fishing should pick up quite a bit in the next few days
and weeks.
"It’s a lot of fun. It’s exercise. The water is always trying to knock you over," Ishler said.
"People from all over the country come down here to fish in the river with the walleye coming up.
You get a 30-inch walleye on there and you’re having a lot of fun.
"I had one on yesterday and got it up to me and then somebody pulled a line over it and started
pulling it away from me. He broke his line and released (the fish). That’s the fortunes of
fishing."
For more information on the walleye run, such as current water level and rules and regulations, visit
www.walleyerun.com.