The DNR finally got around to updating the 2026 Ice Out webpage and dumped a bunch of them. Most of the lakes in the Twin Cities are now open. Looks like we are going into a cold stretch with snow. The shorelines in the Platte/Sullivan area were just starting to pull away. Platte and Long Lake have been looking pretty dark. I think Platte will go out after the April 10th, but it wouldn't shock me if it is ice-free by the weekend as well.
I was happy to see this press release from the DNR until I got to the bottom. Two years to get this implemented, really. Democrtic Party graft on display. I wonder if the system will work this time. MN Sure and the DMV overhauls were boondoggles, if my memory is correct, probably intentionally so.
Here is the DNR Press Release for this season's walleye regulations on Mille Lacs Lake. It would have been nice if they included last year's harvest numbers. I'm pretty sure both sides were under the quota, with MN anglers being significantly under. The lake is full of bait, leading to a slow bite for the eyeballs.
Update: in 2022, the harvest numbers were 15k of the 80k allowed.
2021 53k of 87K allowed
2020 66k of 87K allowed
State-licensed anglers will have the opportunity to harvest a walleye 21-23 inches in length or greater than 28 inches throughout the 2023 open water season on Mille Lacs Lake. A lower walleye harvest this winter and an improving walleye population are combining to allow this year’s more liberal regulations.
“We are pleased to see improvements in both the growth of adult walleye and survival of young walleye in Mille Lacs,” said Brad Parsons, fisheries section manager for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. “Those factors create the opportunity for anglers to have a continuous harvest season in 2023.”
Walleye regulations will apply from the walleye opener on Saturday, May 13, until the end of the open-water season on Thursday, Nov. 30. Unlike recent years, there is no planned closure to walleye fishing or ban on using live bait during the first two weeks in July.
On opening weekend, fishing will be allowed 24 hours a day. Beginning Monday, May 15, the night fishing closure takes effect, and fishing hours on Mille Lacs Lake will be6 a.m. to 10 p.m. for all species. From Saturday, June 3, through Thursday, Nov. 30, muskellunge and northern pike anglers using artificial lures or sucker minnows longer than 8 inches are exempt from the night fishing closure. Starting Friday, Sept. 1, the night fishing closure is relaxed, with angling hours being 6 a.m. to midnight.
“As always, we will monitor the factors that determine the state’s walleye take throughout the open water season,” Parsons said. “If conditions warrant, we will adjust regulations, either to allow additional opportunity if harvest is especially low like it was in 2022 or tighten regulations if harvest exceeds our projections.”
The DNR and the eight Ojibwe bands that have treaty fishing rights under the 1837 treaty agreed Mille Lacs could sustain a state harvest of up to 100,300 pounds of walleye this year, an increase of 20,000 pounds from 2022. Adult walleye grew well in 2022, and year classes of younger walleye in the lake have the potential to contribute to the fishery in the future. Harvest levels are set annually, and may be lower or higher in subsequent years.
“The lake has been in a state of change since the 1990s. As the water started to clear, we began seeing warmer water temperatures. Change continues with the introduction of invasive species such as zebra mussel and spiny water flea,” Parsons said. “We will continue to monitor the lake to see how ongoing changes will influence the fishery.”
This year’s winter walleye harvest was 4,300 pounds. Lower catch rates for anglers due to abundant forage in the lake combined with poor ice conditions in the early season were responsible for this winter’s lower harvest. That drop in walleye take gave the DNR more flexibility to implement open water harvest opportunities this coming season.
The northern pike population in Mille Lacs is healthy, and harvest of fish under 30 inches is encouraged for anglers looking for another option to bring home a meal of fish. Mille Lacs is also home to a smallmouth bass population that opens to catch and release angling on May 13, with harvest of fish less than 17 inches allowed starting on Saturday, May 27.
“Our goal with regulations for all species is to offer fishing opportunities while also keeping in mind the long-term sustainability of the lake,” Parsons said.
More information about fishing regulations on Mille Lacs Lake, ongoing DNR management and research, citizen engagement and Mille Lacs area recreation opportunities is available on the DNR website (mndnr.gov/millelacslake).
The DNR's latest email alerted me to their trout finder tool, where I discovered a lake stocked with rainbow trout less than an hour from me. I just may have to give it a shot if the DNR confirms it was stocked this Fall. Trout fishing is a blast, and they are tasty.
Early-season walleye anglers on Mille Lacs Lake will be able to keep one walleye 21-23 inches long or one longer than 28 inches. Summer will bring catch-and-release walleye fishing, with a mid-season closure, before the potential for a one-fish limit returns in the fall.
“Lower walleye harvest this winter is allowing us to offer some open-water walleye harvest this year,” said Brad Parsons, fisheries section manager for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. “We’re glad Mille Lacs anglers will have the chance to keep a walleye on opening weekend and Memorial Day weekend — two of the most popular times to fish during the year. We also hope to be able to allow some harvest this fall.”
The one-fish walleye limit will be in place from Saturday, May 15, through Monday, May 31. Walleye fishing will be catch-and-release from Tuesday, June 1, through Wednesday, June 30. A two-week closure — implemented to reduce hooking mortality — will be in place from Thursday, July 1, through Thursday, July 15. Catch-and-release walleye fishing will resume on Friday, July 16, and continue through Wednesday, Sept. 15.
After opening weekend, fishing hours on Mille Lacs Lake will be 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. for all species. Beginning Saturday, June 5, muskellunge and northern pike anglers using artificial lures or sucker minnows longer than 8 inches can fish after 10 p.m.
The one-fish walleye limit is scheduled to resume Thursday, Sept. 16, through Tuesday, Nov. 30. During the late season, the DNR also will allow anglers to fish from 6 a.m. to midnight.
“Our projections strongly suggest that fall harvest can occur,” Parsons said. “However, predicting fishing pressure, catch rates and weather involves some uncertainty so we want people to recognize that the fall harvest will depend on how much of the state’s 2021 walleye allocation remains as we approach September. As always, we will monitor the factors that determine the state’s walleye take throughout the open water season.”
The state and the eight Chippewa bands that have treaty fishing rights agreed Mille Lacs could sustain a state harvest of up to 87,800 pounds of walleye this year, unchanged from 2020. During the 2020 season, state-licensed anglers took 66,748 pounds and tribal fishing took 33,113 pounds.
This year’s winter walleye harvest was about 16,000 pounds, about half of what it was in 2020. Lower catch rates for anglers, combined with fewer people fishing, caused the harvest to return to normal levels after a big spike last year. That drop in walleye take gave the DNR more flexibility to implement a one-fish limit during the early season and plan one for the late season.
Even with the drop in winter harvest, a two-week closure during what’s normally one of the hottest times of the summer remains necessary to protect walleye. As water temperature increases, so does hooking mortality — the tendency for fish to die after being caught and released. Protecting walleye during this vulnerable period can allow for many weeks of harvest during cooler times of the year.
To help avoid incidental catch of walleye during the two-week closure, fishing for any species with certain kinds of bait will be restricted. Anglers targeting northern pike and muskellunge can use sucker minnows longer than 8 inches. But anglers targeting other fish may not use live, dead, preserved, or parts of minnows, nightcrawlers, worms, leeches, or crayfish.
“Our goal with these regulations is to meet the state’s treaty obligations while also providing the best possible experience for anglers, recognizing that fishing and the anglers it brings are economically important to the Mille Lacs Lake area,” Parsons said.
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| Looks the same as a couple days ago |
"You may not intentionally fish for any species
during it's closed season."
