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one fish limit


theharvester

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Depending on the harvest estimates, they may go to a half fish limit. You have to have two anglers in your boat to keep one fish and there's a slot of 19-19 1/2". Just make it C&R already...

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The lack of reaction to these new limits on this forum is really telling. Is no one walleye fishing mille lacs anymore?

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Not much a person can say really. 15 years of mismanagement, and a continued declining walleye biomass. Everything has been said 25 times, sliced, diced, dissected, and the debate has pretty much played out.

The sad part overall is that they waited so long to state/admit the obvious.

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Yup, it's the same argument and everyone is sick of repeating themselves, all you have to do is copy and paste our comments from last year, and the year before, and the year before..................................

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I agree that it should just be shut down. The one fish limit looks like a meaningless token gesture or like they just can't face reality and admit things are as bad as they are. Just shut the entire thing down and get busy sorting it out once and for all.

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The one fish deal doesn't bother me as much as no fishing at night in the fall does. Somehow the musky guys can still fish at night. Good work Muskies Inc! If only the walleye guys could unite and lobby like they do. I would release them all at night if I could still fish at night.

I think the 1 fish plan will greatly reduce the pounds of fish taken since many people will not fish the lake any more this year. I still plan to get up there and fish smallmouth and walleyes even with the new regs.

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Dick Sternberg predicted it for one, he and many others. The DNR went into this having no idea, they learned as they went, but they didn't learn much. The "Blue Ribbon panel" came a bit late to the party. The average property owners on the lake will not suffer as much as the business owners. This will be the death knell for many.

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Who could have predicted THIS 15 plus years ago....

I say this tongue in cheek as, obviously, many predicted this using simple common sense--not needing a PHD. in fishery management to see the future obvious...

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I walked away from the computer and I realized the error of my ways. You are correct in every aspect. My apologies, and a tip of the hat to you. It has been nothing but a complete debacle every year since day one. You know we've hit bottom when the Fond Du Lac band pulls out of gill netting from Mille Lacs and declares for Vermillion. Perhaps all the bands will move up that way. It's a start.

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Not that many will notice the 1 fish limit who angle vs 2 fish. Was tough getting 2 in the 18-20 inch. It's still a great fishery. I'm glad the DNR is doing something to protect the small walleye that are abundant. Hind sight of drastic drops in young class eyes every year could have been intervened on earlier. Being from Mille Lacs band I don't feel that less poundage quota woulda raised problems. JMO. I think netting should be suspended with spearing/angling methods to continue for now. Until the DNR figures out this lakes changing Eco system. I'm kinda disturbed that FDL has moved on to Vermillion and read that their nets are not required to have size limitations on gap size in nets.

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Why hasn't the DNR started stocking Mille Lacs like they did with Leech and Upper Red? Wouldn't 100 million fry help the lake out?

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  • 'we have more fun' FishingMN Builders

Depending on the harvest estimates, they may go to a half fish limit. You have to have two anglers in your boat to keep one fish and there's a slot of 19-19 1/2".

I love that! You need to get a job with the DNR. They need creative thinkers! grin

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You do not want to stock this lake, it would ruin the genetics of the fishery, it needs-and can-come back on it's own.

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You do not want to stock this lake, it would ruin the genetics of the fishery, it needs-and can-come back on it's own.

And what "genetic" characteristics are or have been so special at Lake Mille Lacs? Leech Lake/Red Lake stocked fish are less quality than the historical Lake Mille Lacs fish? If so--In what way?

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Why hasn't the DNR started stocking Mille Lacs like they did with Leech and Upper Red? Wouldn't 100 million fry help the lake out?

Until the strong year classes of small northerns have been thinned, 100 million fry would be fish food. they'd be better off putting a million fry in 100 lakes that can handle them.

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Vermillion is the tribes next lake to ruin the fishing. Then the tribe will walk in buy out all the resorts and cabin owners. It will happen to Milles Lacs in the next two to three years. I will bet money on that, there you go guys keep spending your hard earned money in the casinos, giving the tribes money for court cases.

May be we should stop buying fishing licenses, maybe that would wake the Capital morons.... they dictate the DNR..

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And what "genetic" characteristics are or have been so special at Lake Mille Lacs? Leech Lake/Red Lake stocked fish are less quality than the historical Lake Mille Lacs fish? If so--In what way?

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Why hasn't the DNR started stocking Mille Lacs like they did with Leech and Upper Red? Wouldn't 100 million fry help the lake out?

The main reason: There is plenty of spawning size walleye, plenty of reproduction and recruitment or said differently... plenty of age 0 survival and even survival to age 1, the neck down is the following year. Stocking additional fish would have no impact and could diminish the genetic traits the native stock has for Mille Lacs. Stocking is not always an answer.... If you have natural reproduction, it's basically the last thing you want to do, especially on that large of a scale.

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Why hasn't the DNR started stocking Mille Lacs like they did with Leech and Upper Red? Wouldn't 100 million fry help the lake out?

I know nothing about Mille Lacs other then what I have read. I did find these parts of 2 different articles interesting.

Part of article #1

Avoid walleye stocking. Natural reproduction in Mille Lacs is already very

high. Rather, the problem appears to be low survival from the first winter to

approximately the third fall. Stocked fish would suffer the same fate and could

exacerbate the problem by helping to sustain predator populations.

“The causes of the decline in survival are complex because of many direct,

indirect, and interacting factors. But I think that we succeeded at narrowing

the focus of the discussion,” Venturelli said.

According to Venturelli, the decline in the survival of young walleye started in

the late 1980s, well before the fishery began to decline around the year 2000.

“And yet the population has been reproducing at high levels throughout this

period and into the present,” Venturelli said. “The young just aren’t making it

through. This is likely the result of walleye predation, and to a lesser degree,

recent predation by pike and cormorants.”

Possible explanations for higher predation include fewer tullibee for larger

walleye to feed on, improved water clarity and quality since the Clean Water Act

of the 1970s and the possible effects of invasive species.

Part of article #2

Too Clear.

Mille Lacs has all of the physical attributes of a walleye factory. It has

diverse habitat that provides ideal cover for prey fish and clean, rocky

shorelines for walleye to spawn. The lake's vast open waters harbor tullibee—a

high-calorie fish and a staple for big walleye. Slightly murky water is another

characteristic of an ideal walleye lake.

But in the mid-1990s, the lake's water began to get clearer. This was likely the

result of improvements to septic systems around the lake, following passage of

the Clean Water Act in 1972. Walleye do well in low-light conditions, and better

clarity might give a competitive advantage to the lake's other predators such as

northern pike. Clearer water has also allowed invasive Eurasian watermilfoil to

grow in new places, providing more ambush cover for pike.

The change in clarity also points to a decrease in algae, or phytoplankton, a

fundamental ingredient for producing lots of walleye. These small one-celled

plants provide food for tiny critters known as zooplankton. Small fish, in turn,

eat zooplankton. "If you have enough algae, it can reproduce faster than the

zooplankton eat it," Jones explains. "And if enough zooplankton are produced,

they can reproduce faster than the little fish eat them. And when that happens,

you're going to have lots of little fish."

In 2005 Jones discovered invasive zebra mussels in Mille Lacs. Since then, he

has studied their spread and estimates the lake may now contain some 2.5 billion

pounds. Collectively, the tiny mussels filter large amounts of water, which

depletes phytoplankton and the nutrients it relies on. This means less food for

zooplankton.

More bad news for the backbone of Mille Lacs' food chain arrived in 2009 with

the discovery of spiny water fleas. This large invasive zooplankton eats native

zooplankton, leaving less to go around for the lake's larval fish including

yellow perch, the walleye's primary prey. According to Ahrenstorff's research,

yellow perch account for 50 percent of a walleye's diet in Mille Lacs.

Invasive species and warmer waters also threaten tullibees—the second most

important prey item for walleye. Like burbot, tullibees depend on cold water to

survive. During extended warm spells, large die-offs of tullibees occur on Mille

Lacs. Trends such as later ice-up and earlier ice-out suggest the climate is

warming, which could further stress the tullibee population, according to Jones.

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The lack of reaction to these new limits on this forum is really telling. Is no one walleye fishing mille lacs anymore?

I'll be fishing it *almost* as much as normal, but I might venture out more to surrounding lakes in search of other species. Or I'll focus more on the smallies. I C&R pretty much everything anyways, so the limit doesn't affect me much no matter what it is (though I'll keep one here and there to give to my neighbor, who snowblows my driveway).

As others have said, the year-long night-fishing ban is what really bums me out. I *love* trolling the Pond in the fall for big eyeballs, so it'll be a bummer this year when that doesn't happen.

I know the lake will go to complete C&R as soon as the non-Native quota is met. Does anyone know if that'll also mean the night-ban will be lifted, if only for fall trolling? The hooking mortality has to be very, very, very small for those fish...the water is colder and they're (mostly) caught shallow. Just curious...

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This is rather tongue in cheek. But I keep thinking another Crappie boom like URL.

Probably too many pike.

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I plan on going about the same as last year, maybe more depending how the bite is. The limit doesn't bother me at all, you can always go troll for slimers if you want to grab a few fish for the pan. Actually the new regulations are BETTER for me, with Musky fishing now allowed after dark right from the opener.

As others have said, the year-long night-fishing ban is what really bums me out. I *love* trolling the Pond in the fall for big eyeballs, so it'll be a bummer this year when that doesn't happen.

Any of your fall go-to trolling baits 8 inches or longer? smile

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We've used those monster Original Floaters before...I think they're F-18's. If I remember correctly, they're *just* short of 8'', but I could be wrong.

If I add a bunch of beads to a spinner rig, and maybe add about six inches of line between hooks, does that count? smile

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  • 'we have more fun' FishingMN Builders

It does not matter to me if the walleyes are there or not. I fish the lake for perch, crappies, and bluegills. Only thing is with fewer walleyes more people are turning to the fish I target.

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To you guys who like trolling for big eyes, throw a few small-medium musky cranks on. That'll probably be a tourney staple in a few years. Don't be shy about 8 inches.

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Just some 411 I heard from my bud. His bro speared some on ML the other day. Fon du lac member. They got some but not many. He said that his bro believed that gill net harvest is suspended this year. My bud said he didn't wanna harvest due to the state of the lake. Just throwing some info into the subject.

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • leech~~
      Nope not me.  May want to go nextdoor and ask around?  
    • smurfy
      Looks to me like Leech brought his chair home!!😅😆
    • Brianf.
      I'm not there, so I can't tell exactly what's going on but it looks like a large area of open water developed in the last day with all of the heavy snow on the east side of wake em up Narrows. These two photos are from my Ring Camera facing north towards Niles Point.  You can see what happened with all of snow that fell in the last three days, though the open water could have been wind driven. Hard to say. .  
    • SkunkedAgain
      Black Bay had great ice before but a few spots near rockpiles where there were spots of open water. It looks like the weight of the snow has created a little lake in the middle of the bay.  
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the south end...   Thanks to some cold spring weather, ice fishing continues strong for those still ice fishing.  The bite remains very good.  Most resorts have pulled their fish houses off for the year, however, some still have fish houses out and others are allowing ATV and side by sides.  Check social media or call ahead to your favorite resort for specifics. Reports this week for walleyes and saugers remain excellent.   A nice mix of jumbo perch, pike, eelpout, and an occasional crappie, tullibee or sturgeon being reported by anglers. Jigging one line and using a live minnow on the second line is the way to go.  Green, glow red, pink and gold were good colors this week.     Monster pike are on a tear!  Good number of pike, some reaching over 45 inches long, being caught using tip ups with live suckers or dead bait such as smelt and herring in 8 - 14' of water.   As always, work through a resort or outfitter for ice road conditions.  Safety first always. Fish houses are allowed on the ice through March 31st, the walleye / sauger season goes through April 14th and the pike season never ends. On the Rainy River...  The river is opened up along the Nelson Park boat ramp in Birchdale, the Frontier boat ramp and Vidas boat ramp.  This past week, much of the open water skimmed over with the single digit overnight temps.   Areas of the river have popped open again and with temps getting warmer, things are shaping up for the last stretch through the rest of the spring season, which continues through April 14th.   Very good numbers of walleyes are in the river.  Reports this week, even with fewer anglers, have been good.  When temps warm up and the sun shines, things will fire up again.   Jigs with brightly colored plastics or jigs with a frozen emerald shiner have been the desired bait on the river.  Don't overlook slow trolling crankbaits upstream as well.   Good reports of sturgeon being caught on the river as well.  Sturgeon put the feed bag on in the spring.  The bite has been very good.  Most are using a sturgeon rig with a circle hook loaded with crawlers or crawlers / frozen emerald shiners. Up at the NW Angle...  Ice fishing is winding down up at the Angle.  Walleyes, saugers, and a number of various species in the mix again this week.  The bite is still very good with good numbers of fish.  The one two punch of jigging one line and deadsticking the second line is working well.   Check with Angle resorts on transport options from Young's Bay.  Call ahead for ice road guidelines.  
    • CigarGuy
      With the drifting, kind of hard to tell for sure, but I'm guessing about a foot and still lightly snowing. Cook end!
    • PSU
      How much snow did you get on Vermilion? 
    • Mike89
      lake here refroze too...  started opening again yesterday with the wet snow and wind...  very little ice left today...
    • Hookmaster
      A friend who has a cabin between Alex and Fergus said the lake he's on refroze. He texted me a pic from March 12th when it was open and one from 23rd when it wasn't. 🤯
    • SkunkedAgain
      I don't think that there has been any ice melt in the past few weeks on Vermilion. Things looked like a record and then Mother Nature swept in again.   I'll give my revised guess of April 21st
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