The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission recently released results from multiple studies that again show that the best place to catch legal-sized walleye in the three rivers is in the Allegheny River close to Pittsburgh.
“The Three Rivers have a reputation for producing trophy-sized walleye, with the lower Allegheny probably is the most well-known spot for anglers tangling with these giants,” said Mike Depew, a fisheries biologist for the commission. Last year, the largest walleye in the state was caught in Lake Erie, measuring 32 inches and weighing 12 pounds, 10 ounces, according to the commission.
The commission conducted boat electro-fishing surveys from 2018 to 2021 right below the Allegheny River’s Lock and Dam No. 8 at Templeton, Lock 7 at Kittanning, Lock 3 at Harmar and Lock 2 at Highland Park.
“Below Lock and Dams 8 and 7, we got a lot of walleye, but hardly any were of a legal size — greater than 15 inches,” said Gary Smith, fisheries biologist with the commission. “Toward Pittsburgh, below Lock and Dams 3 and 2, we picked up a good number of walleye, though not as much as much as Kittanning and Templeton, but we found a lot more legal-sized fish.”
Searching the Allegheny from Pittsburgh to Kittanning to catch the biggest walleye is a time-honored tradition of area anglers.
“These guys live to go, sometimes trying to catch walleye every day,” said Matt DeMichele, owner of the Allegheny Angler bait and tackle shop in Tarentum.
While the fish and boat surveys documented the most legal-sized walleyes close to Pittsburgh, anglers find them throughout the river.
“The ones that are catching the big ones aren’t giving up their secret spots,” DeMichele added.
In his report, Depew said the smaller walleyes found in the Kittanning and Templeton pools might be caused by an extremely poor growth rate of walleye in that section of the Allegheny River.
Growth rates improved on the lower Allegheny with fish reaching legal size by 3 or 4 years old in most cases, the report said.
The water quality of the Allegheny River, from Templeton to Pittsburgh will continue to improve with future acid mine drainage treatment projects, Smith noted.
Abandoned coal mines that produce acid mine drainage are Pennsylvania’s most extensive water pollution problem, impacting more than 3,000 miles of streams in the state, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Smith pointed out that upcoming treatment projects on Blacklick Creek in Indiana and Cambria counties will greatly boost the water quality of the Conemaugh, Kiski and Allegheny rivers.
“It will make a great difference,” he said. “The water quality will continue to improve and so will the fish populations.”