Minnetonka Hammer Handle Pike Problem

[Mille Lacs Guy]

When is the DNR going to wake up and put some special regs on Tonka to take care of the small northern pike that are eating all of the stocked walleye that are put in?

I talked to someone high up in the DNR last week and they said Minnetonka is stocked every other year with walleye and the majority are eaten by stunted northern pike. This person is not in the Metro Region so they don't have a say in the management of Minnetonka but they did say that Minnetonka gets more walleyes stocked then some of the entire fisheries areas in other parts of the state. This is an expense way to feed small pike.

A regulation should be put on the lake is a 24-36 inch protected slot. From what I understand a slot like this will help balance the northern pike population. I think this has been done with success in central and norhtern Minnesota on some lakes. I am by no means a fisheries biologist but it seems like it is a waste of money to keep feeding this small pike with stocked walleyes.

[Guest]

You would complain a lot more if they quit stocking the walleyes to catch in the future.

It doesnt matter what they do with the regs for pike on Tonka... you can put the limit up to 10 and its not going to make anyone want to keep a lvewell full of 2 pound northerns.

Tonka is what it is... Its obviously not a walleye factory like Millacs for example... but it is a pretty good multi species lake if you can handle the traffic it gets.

[jerkin'm]

I rarely see the hammer handle size pike on Tonka anyway...Tip up fished one time last winter got a 5 and 7 pounder...Do a lot of bass fishing as well and see plenty of pike in the 10 pound range...Tonka has just become a lot more popular walleye fishery than it was 10 years ago...

[icehousebob]

I think Tonka is a good multi-species lake like That Guy says. Managing just for Walleyes would screw it up. If you took out the smaller northerns you would soon be overrun by tons of stunted Sunfish. When I want to fish walleyes, I just go fish a known walleye lake.

[markkstanley]

Minnetonka doesn't have a hammer handle problem. Lots of big pike and musky to eat those little guys. You will catch smaller pike if you fish the weeds in summer. The smaller pike are forced to hang out there to avoid being lunch. But these are just smaller pike who will grow to be bigger pike. The pike population is not stunted at all. There are also plenty of walleyes in the lake but you have to fish them differently than say Mille Lacs because of all the milfoil. Several guys on this site do very well targeting walleyes. I only target large walleyes and do well. Minnetonka is kind of a dumping site for the DNR. When they have excess walleyes or muskies they tend to dump them into Tonka. And I am not complaining.

[Mille Lacs Guy]

I am one of those guys who does fish Tonka a lot and I catch a lot of walleyes there and I placed 2nd in the MWT tournament held there this summer. I think the walleye fishing is great but it could be better then it is.

Like I said I talked to people in the DNR that think there is a problem with the way the lake is being stocked and they are professional fisheries biologists. A lot of the stocked walleye are being eaten by northerns because there is not a lot of forage such as perch in Minnetonka. I think the goal of stocking is to allow anglers to catch the fish not have other fish eating them. Maybe the DNR should be stocking some forage fish so the walleyes aren't eaten by the other predator fish.

[Maximum12]

I've never fished Tonka but I'd like a livewell full of 2lb. northern - love the taste of pike!

[jbell1981]

Quote:

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I've never fished Tonka but I'd like a livewell full of 2lb. northern - love the taste of pike!

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and 2-3pounders taste the best

[Carp-fisher]

I think any fisheries biologist who knows 'Tonka would tell us that its just not a natural walleye lake. It does not have the vast expanses of walleye spawning habitat like Leech and Mille Lacs and other lakes of that sort. It does, however, have excellent northern pike spawing habitat--hence we have a good pike fishery and a fair put and take walleye fishery.

[markkstanley]

There are plenty of forage fish already. Tons of panfish. I've dropped my Aqua View down lots of times ice fishing and have seen scads of perch hugging the bottom. The problem is Tonka has no natural walleye reproduction and depends totally on stocking. Walleye are not native to the lake. Pike and bass are. I'll bet the bass population eats as many if not more small walleyes than the pike do. And when the DNR stocks walleye fry the panfish are probably the prime predator. The DNR people you are talking to would probably favor using those walleyes to stock lakes with natural reproduction other than Minnetonka and maybe get more bang for the buck. That's another issue entirely. My point is northerns are not a "problem" on Minnetonka. With a little effort Minnetonka could be a trophy pike fishery but it never will be a prime walleye numbers lake like Mille Lacs. Now the stunted perch population is a problem. Although I have caught hundreds of the little buggers on Minnetonka I've never seen one over 8".

[TBone1]

There is no lack of walleye in tonka as you might make it sound, they are there and in good numbers,and I have had walleye outings on tonka that would easily rival mille lacs or winni. I would find it hard to believe that hammer handle pike would have much effect on their population either.

[Ice9]

In my opinion the pike in Tonka are pretty good sized. I'd say average fish I catch is 4 pounds or maybe more, with a nice number of bigger fish. From last fall I've caught some very nice northerns to 10 pounds, and unless you fish shallow or Gray's Bay for example--the shallower bays--you won't find many hammerhandles at all. I'm sure 2 pounders taste great but I still can't filet them to save my life so I generally give them a good talking to and put them back.

ice

[Mille Lacs Guy]

I'm not saying there is a lack of walleye in Minnetonka, I realize the population is good. I am saying a lot of what is stocked is not reaching it's full potential.

[Tonka Boy]

I'm kind of surprised anyone is saying Tonka has a hammer handle problem. Over the last 4-5 years I have seen the Pike population drop off the map for the most part. Prior I'd agree they were a pain, but since the avg Pike I've pulled are typically 30-40".

This past year Tonka had a bumper crop of sunfish. 2 years ago there was a bumper crop of perch. Believe me the forage base is there and walleyes too of course. I just don't think Minnetonka is, or ever will be a walleye factory. I've had 50-60 fish days out there, but that is rare (even one day to the next). The lake is ever so changing.