Nets or something on Mille Lacs

We were out on Mille Lacs last night by Agate/Hunter’s and there was something close to the reef floating in the water. 2 buoy’s about 10′ apart with what looked to be a net in between. What are they and who put them there? It sure would be nice if they were lit up as we got tangled in them last night about 10:00PM. Isn’t there a law against leaving things out in the middle of the lake after dark? What if I left a log out in the middle of the lake some night? Not cool.

DNR or GLIFWC net I’m sure. They show up every fall in the shallows.

Here’s a thread from last year on the same subject. Nets on the pond

Thanks for the link…If they were placed by the Natives I would be upset; if they were placed by our DNR I would be REALLY upset! Why can they leave a hazard out over night and I can’t? With all the fancy expensive stuff that they have in their arsenal, would a couple solar powered LED lights be that tough? Could have been very dangerous! It was in 12′ and about 3/4 mile from shore. We could have hit that thing going 40mph. Still not cool.

I always carry a sharp knife or side cutters “Just In Case” I accidentally get caught in a “Non Visible Object” while out “Safely” fishing!! This way I can cut away the “Obstruction” and untangle my motor so that I can “Safely” continue on my way!
If the Natives are doing this without properly marking them, well, we should kindly pull their nets to shore so that we don’t accidentally damage them by getting them caught in our motors.
If our “DNR” is to blame….. well, someone needs an kickin’!
I think they are a safety hazard to the fishermen when they are not properly “Lighted or marked with reflective tape” and they surely must be moved ashore as to not put any other fishermen’s life in a possibly dangerous situation!!!

Those are DNR nets. They could be there any one of a number of studies they are doing.

Complain all you want about them if you want, but you’d be complaining a lot more if they closed the lake for night fishing while they do their surveys!!

So the DNR creating a safety hazard is justified?? I’d like to see them close that lake down. They would all be looking for new jobs. We are the voters who control the state jobs. I’d even like to hear them threaten it. It’s public waters, we are the public.

The DNR sets those nets out at times of the least amount of lake traffic. They understand the risks, and try to minimalize them as much as possible, but honestly, if someone is going so fast in the dark that they can not avoid the nets, they are the saftey hazard, not the nets!

As for closing the lake…..they have the authority to do so if they decide it is needed, or if it is mandated by the terms of the Treaty. Remember that Mille Lacs is subject to a totally different set of laws than “public” waters in other parts of the state because of the Supreme Court decision. Thats why standard state fishing regulations do not apply on this lake.

I understand people’s anger to some degree, but there is nothing anyone can do about it. So…….. people need to learn to accept and adapt. Until the Treaty gets overturned, thats the way it is going to be, and the DNR has little to say about it.

I guess I completely disagree on this one Jack. The nets are there to help us, I know that. However I if I spin a prop hub seal cuz I’m tangled in the net that wasn’t marked would really tick me off. Thank god I got a kicker to come in on. Just pray it’s not too rough to have safe boat control with the little guy.

Also, If the DNR can close the lake, then then we utimately control whether the lake is open. The treaty has little relevance at this point in my mind. These are state jobs.

Either way, the nets are there and we all need to be aware of them. The dangers they create can be argued, but the improper management by state or natives is shame on them. I don’t care who the nets belong to.

The nets have to be tagged regardless of the entity putting them there. Otherwise, throw them in your boat, and wait for them to come looking. Or better yet, call the DNR, and tell them that you removed what appeared to be a safety hazzard on the lake.

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They understand the risks, and try to minimalize them as much as possible,

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They need to have them visible at night. And make them known that they’re out there. There was a time I didn’t know there were nets set out. Just putting along at 10 mph, its dificult to see a couple of small jugs on the surface.

Tuck is correct. All the DNR nets are tagged.

Its dark, you should be running a light to see whats ahead. If you are using a light and still dont see the buoys, your driving too fast to begin with. Its dark out their, be no different than if you hit a rock because you didnt see the buoy (if it has one) and there are no lights on those either. Just my humble opinion. I havent seen one so maybe I shouldn’t comment either

I rarely run a spotlight at night. It screws up my night vision so badly I feel it’s more dangerous running one. The only times I use one is in shallow when going into the landings if they are not well lit.

Lots of clear nights when the moon is full, it’s darn near light daylight out there.

When talking to a DNR District Manager last fall she stated that the bouys should be at least marked with reflective tape. But the DNR often contracts the service out and that the contractors may not be following protocol. We caught one last fall in the same area. Luckily with our fishihng lines and not our motor as it was a nasty windy night. Definitely complain to the DNR about it. I’ve usually got a pretty prompt response. The content of the response is often not to my liking however.

BTW,

I worry more about those running across the lake with a floodlight on than those who don’t use them. The floodlight makes you totally blind to anything not in it’s beam. Unless you putting along at 5-10 mph by the time you see it there it’s too late. Boat don’t have brakes. Just my humble feeling on the subject.

Jack, last fall the DNR had a 200 footer strung across big point on the night of the OCT full moon. So to say they avoid busy times is not true at all.

All of the DNR nets I have seen are marked and have reflective tape. I believe if they are going to leave them out at night they should have a blinking light on them at the very least.

From what I have seen, every “Net” is sunk to the bottom. So, as far as getting hung on one with a motor is going to be rare. (In other words, you run little risk of hitting anything when you cross between buoys.) Your real risk is tagging a buoy running the lake at night. Still a dangerous proposition.

-J.

The nets are only a few inches to a foot below the surface, I found this out the hard way last fall. I personally don’t care if the DNR or the Natives are netting, they just need to follow the common sense policy and properly mark the bouys. I don’t think they need them set during the full moon periods when the boat traffic is alot heavier than most other nights, but that is my opinion and I’m sure alot of others would agree!

I don’t believe that the DNR is doing any of the netting with nets that are not properly marked, and if they are they should be made aware of it!! So Jack Dunn, since you are pretty knowledgable on the lake, see if you can pass along a word of “Safety” to the local DNR if it is they who are setting the nets.

I’ll contact Rick Bruesewitz at the DNR and pass on everyone’s concern.

Talk about an uproar. The DNR closes fall night fishing, because they do not want to be safe and mark their nets. I think it would be a massacre.

big g

These were 2 buoys about 10′ apart with a piece of tubing connecting them. This is different than avoiding a rock pile…the rock pile has been there forever and I know where they are. These things pop up randomly. I use a spotlight at night occasionally, but it’s not practical or the safest when traveling a few miles. All of this could be solved very cheaply. Why would we “just accept this” if we could “solve it” easily?

I agree with having the DNR put lights on their sets. I dont think they would be opposed to doing so I would hope. My concern is for the others who likely would not follow and mark their sets. I agree that running a light is not so practical when the moon is making it like daylght out there. My experience on Mille Lacs, up to this point anyway, has been pouring down rain and pitch black. So needless to say running a light and going slow was my only option.

Just a reminder guys (myself included) we have fast boats and they just keep getting faster, dont absolutely rely on the gps, memory of the lake, or gut instinct, running at night regardless of light conditions is inherently dangerous. Slow down lets get their safely and continue to enjoy the outdoors. I have been involved in rescue operations involving both injury and death, accidents happen, needless to say nothing ruins an outdoor excursion faster. Be safe, good luck, and set the hook!!

jwfilm1 good topic to post on

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I’ll contact Rick Bruesewitz at the DNR and pass on everyone’s concern.

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I got this response from Rick today, and am posting it here for everyone.

Jack,

Sorry its taken so long to get back to you. I’ve been in transition
with a new job. I’m now the Area Supervisor in Aitkin.

Regarding the nets, I did raise the issue with the bands at last
winter’s Fisheries Committee meeting. The Mille Lacs band netters are
generally pretty good about using staff buoys to mark nets (they are the
ones that fish in the fall). They also made us aware that they were
having greater incidence of net tampering too. It is illegal to
purposefully tamper with a net. The DNR also sets nets in the fall. We
use staff buoys too. Although we haven’t had too many problems in the
past, we will try to be sure that our buoys all have reflectorized tape.
We used this tape for our hooking study pens with pretty good success.
The reflectors show up with minimal light. These do not, however, take
the responsibiltiy off the boater. Whether it be net buoys, other
boats, hazard markers, or any other floating objects, the boat operator
needs to beware. Our DNR sampling will pretty much be finished up by
the end of next week, and for the most part, any nets that are set by
the Mille Lacs band are usually in the vicinity of their reservation,
albeit they can fish wherever they wish. I will pass this concern on to
the Mille Lacs Band, I know they too want to avoid any problems such as
this. My recommendations to night time trollers or anyone else boating
at night is to take it easy when enroute, use forward looking spot
lights to watch for hazards, and to beware that they may in fact find a
net set in the same areas they may be fishing, go around the buoys (NOT
between!) I have included below the link to the DNRs boating guide. It
has many other tips for safe boat operation.

http://files.dnr.state.mn.us/rlp/regulations/boatwater/boatingguide.pdf