Pleasant Lake, Ramsey County

[fisherman-andy]

I was on the MN NDR website checking lake reports in the Ramsey area and stumbled upon Pleasant Lake in North Oaks, MN. Typical good size about 500acres or so.

Upon looking at the report the Lake seemed like it may have excellent numbers of game fish. Then I read that the lake is now closed to fishing. Not sure when. Bummer.

Seems like it is now managed by the St. Paul Water Utility and is now off limits to anyone. Wow... I can't help but wonder how big the fish are in this lake. I would liked to see an updated survey done on this lake by the DNR.

[WallyGator12000]

I live and grew up in that area, and when I was in high school many guys I knew would go fish that lake illegally from shore and just kill the smallies, pike, walleyes and white bass. It always ticked me off a bit, I would spend a whole day out on a lake like White Bear and catch 2 walleyes under 15" and then at school on Monday they would tell me about the 28" they caught at Pleasant. The issue with it being closed as far as I know is three-fold...First, the St. Paul water commission uses it along with lakes like Sucker and Vadnais for drinking water and other uses, so they want to keep it clean. Second, the DNR uses it as a holding pond and a rearing pond for Tiger Muskies. Three, the residents of North Oaks are a part of a private community, you have to have permission to even just drive in there. (I have some friends that live in there and yes, residents will call the cops on you if you don't have a little sticker on the back of your car by your license plate). Being a private community, they wish to keep the lake private. If they were to open the lake to public fishing, then they would have to allow people to come into their community to access the lake, and I am not sure but I think would have to put in a boat launch or dock. Regardless, they do not want this, so the lake remains private, no fishing allowed. It's too bad when people get that obsessed or stuck up about something that they won't even let other people enjoy a resource just so they can stay "private."

[fins&feathers]

fisherman andy

pleasant lake along with the other lakes in norht oaks has been closed to fishing for as far back as i can remember.

i had a friend (no passed away) who lived in norht oaks, we would go down to pleasant in the spring,and if remember right it was the north side of the lake a creek came in and we would shine flash lights into the creek and see 10 pound plus walleyes. we also talked to a dnr guy netting muskies on pleasant one day, and he told us that, if the state ever reopened the lake to fishing, that most every state record could possibly be broken!

i know this doesnt help you much,but something to ponder about.

good luck to ya

[fisherman-andy]

Wow... what an incredible lake! What tempted me the most is its in the metro area. Im so curious to the point of wanting to break the law just to get a chance of a life time to fish it. Then again.. naw. Not worth the trouble.

But those are incredible stories and I don't doubt it one bit. Who know's what Pleasant could be holding... state record bass? State record pike? State record muskie? Huge crappie slabs? I guess we'll never know will we...