From Wyoming Game & Fish
Last year,, we mentioned the management focus at Goldeneye Reservoir had shifted from trout to walleye.
Carp have become abundant and were hurting the trout fishery by decreasing trout productivity in the reservoir. The estimated costs to remove the carp were high, while our chances of keeping the carp out of the reservoir over the long term were low. Walleye were stocked in 2001 to help control carp and provide a warm/coolwater fishery.
In May, we sampled the reservoir to determine if any of the walleye we stocked in 2001 had survived. We found walleye and subsequently stocked adult gizzard shad later that May. The gizzard shad were stocked to provide additional forage for the new walleye population.
In early October, we again sampled the reservoir to determine walleye growth and gizzard shad reproduction. Eleven walleye between 9.1 and 12.3 inches were sampled, all in good condition (mean Wr of 101). We also captured 62 young-of-year gizzard shad.
Table 1. Gill net information for Goldeneye Reservoir, October 2002. We plan to sample the reservoir in spring 2003 to find out if the gizzard survived the winter. If they didn’t, we will stock more adult gizzard shad to produce forage.
If walleye continue to survive and grow well, Goldeneye could be a good ice-fishing destination in the winter of 2003-4. Water levels will likely be too low to launch most boats, unless you can carry them, in 2003.