DNR TO DISCUSS POOL 4 FISHERY STATUS AT FEB 5TH WALLEYE SEARCHERS MEETING 7PM

Nick Schlesser from the Lake City Fisheries department is lined to speak again this year at the February meeting.

Nick said there will be some updates regarding fish populations, but not much has changed. The newer items would be with regard to discussions they are having with Wisconsin who last year finally put into motion some considerations for regulation changes on the boundary waters / Mississippi River. If you have input you would like to share or questions for Nick on this topic this will be a good chance to ask questions. This is a free event and open to the public, held at the Elk’s club in Rochester Minnesota. If you have a specific question you’d like answered, please send it to Nick in advance so that he has time to collect the information to answer your question accurately!

[email protected]

Thanks for the info!

Steve Gnotke wrote:

The newer items would be with regard to discussions they are having with Wisconsin who last year finally put into motion some considerations for regulation changes on the boundary waters / Mississippi River.

Can anyone link to the changes being considered by WI DNR?

I’m hoping a bag limit reduction on walleyes/sauger, and panfish is in the works.

3-4 eyes/saugers per person is more than enough. A lot of vulnerable fish are harvested from the system in the Spring.

15 panfish would be a whole lot better than 25 as well.

Don’t forget the WI catfish limit of 25 flatheads/channels!

I still haven’t heard any specific questions from folks to cover at the upcoming meeting. As was mentioned I plan to do the usual update on the status of the fishery on Lake Pepin/Pool 4, and then will talk for a bit about where we are at in the border waters regulation review process we have been trying to get off the ground for a number of years now.

You can post questions here, or better yet send them to me directly at the following e-mail: [email protected]

I will try to post a list of questions I will be covering if they come in in time for me to cover them at the meeting. Otherwise I will do my best to respond to those asking the questions directly with an answer.

Hope to see many of you next week.

Nick

Bump

Lets do a roll call as to who is going to the meeting.

I was planning on it but my dentist had other thoughts.

These can be answered at the meeting Nick.

What’s the status on closing the commercial fishing in the hot months?

The Pike, Bass and Panfish populations have been at an unbelievable high mostly from the flooding a few years back. Are they starting to show up in more “normal” levels?

We’re seeing a jump in the gizzard shad populations this year. What is the cause of this? I believe it was 2006 when I saw this type of shad populations(?)

Every year we hear people talking about killing fish by fishing in the scour hole. What is the opinion of the MN DNR? More importantly, why?

I would really like to see the scour hole be off limits to fishing not only Redwing but up and down the river during the early season when fishing pressure is the highest..

Agree on the scour holes. Not sure how it’s enforced but it’s an issue that should be addressed.

Could just start with more awareness. I don’t think some people even understand what happens when you pull fish up from those depths.

Enforcing isn’t really the issue after all, the area we can fish toward the dam is larger in the March/April months anyway. I’ve seen the DNR and Sheriff stop boats that were fishing past the signs.

I’m more interested in the reason BOTH DNR’s have to allow fishing there. I’m not trying to debate here, I’m hoping Nick can address it at the Walleye Searchers meeting.

More Questions for the meeting Nick.

One of the two options the COE’s is looking at for the Lake Pepin dredging project is to close off Catherine Pass AKA Katrina. I understand this is a WI DNR plan (as we all know they like to close off runs/cuts if they had their way). Would the MN DNR be in favor of this?

Brian Klawitter wrote:

Enforcing isn’t really the issue after all, the area we can fish toward the dam is larger in the March/April months anyway. I’ve seen the DNR and Sheriff stop boats that were fishing past the signs.

I’m more interested in the reason BOTH DNR’s have to allow fishing there. I’m not trying to debate here, I’m hoping Nick can address it at the Walleye Searchers meeting.

Why does there need to be ANY fishing within a half-mile below any dam at all? I’ll repeat myself until I’m blue in the face that 99% of the biggest eyes and saugers I catch aren’t within a half mile of the dams at any point of the year (including the prime Spring time). I’m not sure how much of an impact the scour hole fishing has on the walleye population…but the tiny saugers are absolutely decimated each Spring. Sure – I could have 60-70 fish days fishing closer to the dam. I’d kill 50+ saugers in an attempt to find something worth putting in my livewell though.

Well, there are other fish within 1/2 mile of the dam, like 50+ pound sturgeon, 25+ pound flatheads and even some 5 to 10 pound walleyes.

If I’m hearing you right, that would be like closing the walleye sauger season on the whole river to protect the flatheads while they’re sleeping Dec-March.

Closing the scour hole? Let’s see what the DNR’s take is on this.

Would love to hear the feedback at this meeting – anyone have a recap they can share?

Nick will be posting a link to his presentation on here once he gets it together…..

Any update on this??? I’d love to hear some of the talking points and data related to fish populations.

I have posted the first portion of the presentation at the following link: https://www.in-depthoutdoors.com/community/forums/topic/lake-pepin-pool-4-update-from-walleye-searchers-meeting/

Information on the border water regulation review process will hopefully be posted soon.

Thanks,

Nick