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New Regs?


Red Miller

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I heard some horror stories on the radio last night about some proposed new regs that were being discussed. Anyone hear anything on that?

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I heard some horror stories on the radio last night about some proposed new regs that were being discussed. Anyone hear anything on that?

Yes, they are closing all walleye fishing on the lake for two years. Even catch and release. They said they will enforce this by imposing a ban on live bait for any boats on ML waters. The DNR knows that 95% of walleye fisherman don't know how to obtain these bottom feeding wet socks without live bait.

Oh wait- that might actually do some good so scratch that idea.

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Its going to get really interesting - real quick.

The rules/regs that the DNR puts forth for the public to adhere to is going to be jaw dropping to say the least!......just watch ladies and gentlemen.

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Yes, they are closing all walleye fishing on the lake for two years. Even catch and release. They said they will enforce this by imposing a ban on live bait for any boats on ML waters. The DNR knows that 95% of walleye fisherman don't know how to obtain these bottom feeding wet socks without live bait.

Oh wait- that might actually do some good so scratch that idea.

I hear that nets work pretty good too! Two years...what a joke. What... are they going wait until all the resorters have their reservation deposits in the bank and then announce it??

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Wow that is pretty crazy if it goes through. I can't even imagine what the resorts are going to do. Can resorts file unemployment :-S

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Alagnak- Did you really hear this or are you just being sarcastic? Already have a trip planned for the first week of June. Need to start on plan B if true.

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Alagnak- Did you really hear this or are you just being sarcastic? Already have a trip planned for the first week of June. Need to start on plan B if true.

Yeah sorry guys. I snagged a few suckers without even casting LOL. I thought I was being sarcastic enough but apparently not.

"Oh wait- that might actually do some good so scratch that idea." My icon things don't work for me so couldn't give the 'wink'.

What's crazy is that there are still people out there that think that a few nets every spring kills more walleyes than fisherman do just throwing them back gut hooked with live bait in the middle of the summer heat.

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What’s crazy is there are still people out there that don’t put the anglers slot starting when the nets went back in the lake. What’s crazy is the same people using the nets can keep 10 Walleyes a day with no size restriction angling. We’ll all be better off when we treat everybody equally!

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Alagnak- I figured you were but just wanted to make sure. like I said, maybe needed to work on plan B if that was the case.

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Yeah sorry guys. I snagged a few suckers without even casting LOL. I thought I was being sarcastic enough but apparently not.

"Oh wait- that might actually do some good so scratch that idea." My icon things don't work for me so couldn't give the 'wink'.

What's crazy is that there are still people out there that think that a few nets every spring kills more walleyes than fisherman do just throwing them back gut hooked with live bait in the middle of the summer heat.

So where did the guys on the radio get this? This "no live bait" did not originate in your sarcastic rebuttal. It was discussed by the DNR. I was simply trying to get the truth. Sorry if you think I am a sucker. So do you have any real knowledge or are you just out here jerking peoples chains because you're bored? BTW, its more than just a few nets. Its essentially unlimited catch and kill by the natives no matter what the means. (LOL)

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  • 2 weeks later...

What's crazy is that there are still people out there that think that a few nets every spring kills more walleyes than fisherman do just throwing them back gut hooked with live bait in the middle of the summer heat.

A few nets every spring for what some 10yrs now

the catch and release does plenty of damage no doubt

but when did all that start ??? hmmmm bout some 10yrs ago

1+1 is still 2 Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

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Agreed! The worst part of the Mille Lacs debacle is the pressure that will be put on other lakes. This whole federal mess is such a shame! No need for this in these current times. Does a lot for harmony now doesn't it?

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This year, with the lowered "safe harvest" by the end of the season there will be just about 3X the "safe harvest" numbers in hooking mortality (the way the DNR figures them is still a mystery to me).

If they want to improve the Walleye population on the lake they will need to do something like they did on the Kenai River in Alaska for King Salmon.

You catch your fish. Your done for the day.

If the limit is going to be two fish, then no slot, you catch two, you keep two, your done. Go fish Smallies or Northerns the rest of your day.

No more hooking mortality except for incidental catches.

When hooking mortality numbers are 3X the safe harvest numbers it is nothing short of ludicrous to continue to allow Catch and Release 24/7.

"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." -Albert Einstein

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.

When hooking mortality numbers are 3X the safe harvest numbers it is nothing short of ludicrous to continue to allow Catch and Release 24/7.

Oh but the nets do so much more damage crazy

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If they want to improve the Walleye population on the lake they will need to do something like they did on the Kenai River in Alaska for King Salmon.

You catch your fish. Your done for the day.

If the limit is going to be two fish, then no slot, you catch two, you keep two, your done. Go fish Smallies or Northerns the rest of your day.

If they want to improve walleye they need to thin out the bass and northern. You must keep all bass and northerns caught!

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If they want to improve walleye they need to thin out the bass and northern. You must keep all bass and northerns caught!

Another armchair biologist thanks for the great advice

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I do believe some extra bass harvesting would be beneficial. Not necessarily for walleye, but to help maintain trophy smallies.

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I do think Bandersnatch is on to something. You catch your 2 fish, you are done...........no slot no hooking mortality.......cept wouldn't this then be a 100% hooking mortality because 100% of these fish are going to die? smile

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Mille Lacs walleye regulation to stay the same

(Released March 25, 2014)

DNR extends night ban; increases smallmouth bass, pike opportunities

As part of a plan to increase angling opportunity, improve walleye numbers and stay within the state’s 1837 Treaty safe harvest allocation, the Department of Natural Resources will modify fishing regulations at Mille Lacs Lake for the 2014 season.

The walleye daily and possession limit remain unchanged. The limit will be two walleye from 18- to 20-inches, except one longer than 28 inches may be taken. The night fishing ban, enforced from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., will begin Monday, May 12, and will be extended through Monday, Dec. 1, rather than ending in mid-June.

The 2014 walleye safe harvest level is 60,000 pounds. Of this amount, 42,900 pounds is allocated to the state and 17,100 pounds is allocated to the eight Chippewa bands with 1837 Treaty harvest rights.

“The new regulations reflect our commitment to improving the walleye fishery as quickly as possible with as little harm to the local economy as possible,” said Don Pereira, DNR fisheries chief.

When new regulations go into effect on Saturday, May 10, anglers will be able to keep 10 northern pike, of which only one may be longer than 30 inches. This increases the limit by seven. Anglers also will be able to fish for northern pike for a longer period of time. The close of the season will be extended from mid-February to the last Sunday in March. The northern pike spearing ban on Mille Lacs also will be removed.

Similarly, the smallmouth bass harvest season will be extended and limits relaxed. The smallmouth bass season on Mille Lacs will start May 10 and be exempted from the statewide catch-and-release regulation that begins in mid-September. This means anglers may harvest smallmouth bass from the opener until the last Sunday in February. Anglers may keep six fish, only one of which may be longer than 18 inches. The previous regulation allowed anglers to keep six fish 17- to 20-inches, only one of which could be longer than 20 inches.

“More liberal northern pike and smallmouth bass regulations speak to the fact these species can withstand additional pressure because their populations are at or near record highs,” Pereira said. “The current walleye regulation and the extended night fishing ban will protect upcoming year classes of young walleye, adult spawning stock and help ensure the harvest stays within the safe harvest level.”

Pereira said the suite of regulations reflects significant fish population changes at Mille Lacs. Walleye numbers are at a 40-year low. Northern pike numbers are at record highs. The smallmouth bass population has been increasing since the 1990s. Tullibee and perch populations, both important forage species, are relatively low.

Fish populations likely are being influenced by many factors, including clearer water, climate change, zebra mussels, spiny water fleas, Eurasian watermilfoil and a treaty management approach that focused too much walleye harvest on too narrow a size range of fish.

“Mille Lacs is a system under change and portions of that change began even prior to the treaty management that began in the late 1990s,” said Pereira. “The good news is that we have more than enough spawning walleye and a history of solid egg and fry production. What we need is for the walleye that hatch to grow into strong year classes for anglers to catch. That hasn’t happened since 2008. That’s why we are focused on protecting small walleye and our ample but declining walleye spawning stock.”

Pereira added that the agency is also committed to the long-term protection of the lake’s trophy smallmouth and trophy northern pike fisheries.

The DNR’s approach to managing Mille Lacs is currently under review by a panel of national fish management experts. The agency convened the panel earlier this year as part of a broad approach to involve outside experts and citizens in agency decision making.

Information about panel experts and Mille Lacs management can be found on the Mille Lacs web page.

http://news.dnr.state.mn.us/2014/03/25/mille-lacs-walleye-regulation-to-stay-the-same/

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This has to be about the dumbest thing I have ever heard. Close all night fishing all year. So muskie guys can go fly a kite. Liberalize pike fishing to take 10 pike daily from the lake. Great, but who wants a bunch of 2lb pike to eat. Open up smallies more so we can decimate a true trophy class lake. But lets leave the walleye slot and limit unchanged. How the he-ll does that make sense?

What needs to happen is walleye anglers need to take a close look in the mirror and realize that until we as a group learn that in order to sustain a valuable resource, we need to practice selective harvest. The mentality amongst the vast majority of walleye fishermen is between x and y length (or in the keeper slot) it goes in the bucket. Until that is changed, nothing you can do will help bring the lake back.

We want it good for walleye, but who gives a shat about the rest of them.

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I am in complete shock with these new regs. I mean awesome for the early opener for smallies but still can keep 6 is crazy to me. But no night time fishing!!! I don't fishing Mille Lacs at night but I knew tons and tons of people live for night fishing eyes and skis on the big pond. No changes for walleye. Unreal!

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Yeah I guess. But I meant more of a slot and limit change. I know the no night fishing is huge.

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No night fishing ...there goes the Musky Industry. Who is going to hire a guide and miss the night bite? As the DNR preaches to the resorts to change and take advantage of the other trophy species. What a joke.

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They (DNR) are going to do what they think is best for the lake, and most will not be happy with the rules. You can't please everyone and you will never get everyone one to agree on what is the correct way to go about trying to fix the lake.

The joke will be listening to all the complaints of the new rules.

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Yeah, the slot is pretty bogus. It still targets fish of one or two year classes. I don't think that is healthy. I have said to many people, just let us keep one or two fish of any size over 18 inches, for one or two years. Or maybe a boat limit of 4 fish, no matter how many people are in the boat.

I wonder what the no night fishing ban means? I figure, with numbers completely made up: 50 boats a night, 2 guys per boat, 4 harvested fish per boat, that's 200 fish per night that don't get harvested. Times 4 months or 120 nights = that's 24,000 fish. Now cut those numbers in half, or double them, whatever. That's a lot of fish. I know the place I fish from usually has 5 or 6 boats out at night, plus public accesses where I see several rigs parked at night. I wonder what the nighttime harvest actually is, compared to daytime? This will be an interesting summer.

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I would think with the limited harvest that it is already the Night Bite would have been over 50% of the alloted fish. Probably closer to 65% considering what I was hearing last year of people during the night bite actually catching and keeping some fish versus the daytime folks who had a rough go of it.....This is just me talking and thinking out loud.

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I would think with the limited harvest that it is already the Night Bite would have been over 50% of the alloted fish. Probably closer to 65% considering what I was hearing last year of people during the night bite actually catching and keeping some fish versus the daytime folks who had a rough go of it.....This is just me talking and thinking out loud.

For last year you are on the right track and your guess of 65% I bet is pretty close.

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