News - Fishing opportunities abound in metro

[Rick]

While heading north for the big fishing opener may be a Minnesota tradition, people living in the Twin Cities need not worry about missing out on quality angling if circumstances keep them at home. As far as major urban areas go, the Twin Cities metro region probably has no equal when it comes to combining big city amenities with top-notch fishing opportunities. 

“If you love angling and want to live in a big city, you couldn’t do any better than the Twin Cities metro,” said Daryl Ellison, west metro area fisheries supervisor for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. “Bright lights, big fish – we’ve got it all.”

That status is largely the result of the region’s quantity and quality of water, encompassing a wide variety of angling opportunities. For starters, three of the state’s major rivers converge in the metro region: the Minnesota, Mississippi and the St. Croix. Flowing through the heart of the region, the Mississippi’s northern reaches are well-known as a top-notch bass fishery.

Then there’s Pool 2, the area between the dams at St. Paul and Hastings. A few decades ago, it was so polluted that bullheads could barely survive. Now it’s recognized as a world-class year-round catch-and-release fishery for walleye and sauger – thanks in large part to the federal Clean Water Act and state and local efforts to clean up the river.

The St. Croix offers anglers the chance to hook Minnesota’s largest and longest lived fish, the lake sturgeon: both a catch-and-release season and a fall season for harvesting one of these monsters with an appropriate tag (consult the regulations for details). All three rivers provide excellent opportunities for catfish, with the record channel cat having been pulled from the Mississippi in Hennepin County, and the record flathead harvested from the St. Croix in Washington County.

“If you’re looking to just drift a ways, you never know what you might pick up on the St. Croix,” said east metro fisheries supervisor T.J. DeBates. “A one-pound redhorse or a 30-pound catfish – or even a sturgeon.”

Numerous smaller rivers and streams also flow through the region, including the Rum, the Crow and the Vermillion, a designated trout stream with a reputation for harboring lunker brown trout.

The Twin Cities region also features a number of consistently productive large lakes. Waconia, Minnetonka, Prior, Independence and Medicine in the west metro area, along with White Bear, Bald Eagle, Forest, Marine and Coon Lakes in the east metro area – all are reliable for yielding up bass, panfish, pike and walleye. Production of bass, panfish and pike occurs through natural reproduction, while the walleye and muskies found there are the result of stocking. Those large lakes can also generally be counted on if you’re looking for something for the frying pan, although anglers are advised to consult fish consumption advisories and stick to smaller fish for eating.

Smaller lakes also abound. Clear Lake in Washington County, for instance, holds walleye in above average numbers and weights, as well as northern pike and hybrid muskies. West of the Mississippi, the Minneapolis Chain of Lakes provides good walleye fishing, especially on Cedar and Harriet, both of which are regularly stocked. Both lakes lend themselves to shore fishing.

While catching fish is pleasing, watching kids do it can be even more rewarding. The Twin Cities is rich in opportunities there, too. The DNR Fishing in the Neighborhood Program (FiN) stocks catchable size fish in more than 60 smaller bodies of water around the metro region. Those small lakes are an excellent choice for getting some big grins and squeals of excitement from young anglers.

One of FiN Program Specialist Matt Petersen’s favorites is Wolfe Lake in St. Louis Park.

“Everybody catches fish there,” Petersen said. “They’re mostly small to medium size bluegills, but everybody catches fish.”

Centennial Lake in Edina, Smith Lake in Bloomington, Powderhorn in south Minneapolis – all offer good shorefishing for kids. Nearly any lake with a fishing pier is likely to be “filled with hungry little bluegills,” according to west metro’s Ellison.

“This region just offers an abundance of angling potential,” Ellison said. “No matter where you live in the Twin Cities, there’s good fishing nearby. All you need is a license and some fishing tackle.”

If you’re under 16, you don’t even need a license, and if you go to one of the growing number of area parks that offer free loaner tackle, all you need is some bait – and a desire to enjoy some of the best fun in town.

For more information on where to fish in the Twin Cities metro region, visit the Fishing in the Neighborhood page.

Discuss below - to view set the hook here.