Mille Lac’s Slot and alternative lakes rant

I had some friends from Arkansas fishing their way thru Minnesota, as our 90 degree temps were a lot better than their 106 degree temps. I’m now calling them summerbirds instead of snowbirds.

Anyway, this weekend we met at Mille Lac’s for some fishing. We went out on a launch Friday night, and wound up putting up with 9 drunken idiots on our launch. I guess we should have been the ones getting drunk, as they were the ones who caught all the fish, all 8 of them that is. 8 fish in 4 hours pretty much sucks. Keeping it short, fishing on Mille Lac’s is abysmal, even when the fish were biting. I was up there at the beginning on June. We boated over 70 fish in 2 days. Guess how many we were able to keep? 3 each day for a total of 6.

The slot on that lake is ridiculous. I can’t believe that they can say their are concerned with a straight face. We are so worried because of the lack of small fish???? WHAT THE HECK DO THEY THINK? If we aren’t allowed to keep any bigger fish from within in their slot range, of COURSE all the small fish are going to be taken, you can’t keep anything else?!?!?! It make sense that all the little fish are disappearing.

Want to know how to solve the problem? Create a slot limit that MAKES SENSE for crying out loud. Let people have some of the bigger fish, they wont’ keep the smaller ones then. Let people keep one or two fish within the slot range. Maybe something like, up to 4 fish below 17″. 2 fish from 17-24″, 1 fish from 24 to 28, 1 fish over 28. They would still be controlling the population of the fish, but still promoting fishing.

This weekend was even worse. In four hours of fishing, we got about 10 fish on Saturday morning. We were able to keep a 12 inch perch, and a 11 1/2″ walleye. (Don’t yell at me about keeping a fish that small, my friend caught it and wanted to at least be able to keep one fish, it was his call.) At 1pm, we said to heck with this, we got the boat out of the water and went to a smaller lake called Farm Island Lake.

It turned out that this was the best choice we could have made. Saturday evening, we caught 5 northern, 2 walleye, 3 big fat sunnies. Sunday afternoon we went back to this lake, and we caught 3 more northern, 2 more walleye, 3 more sunnies, and a nice big fat bass.

There are SO MANY LAKES near Mille Lac’s that have good fishing, I’m going to start vising them more often. My trips to Mille Lac’s will still be enjoyable, but it wont’t involve me fishing on the big lake. Mille Lac’s is currently off of my roster of lakes to fish, unless I can manage to find some jumbo perch, maybe I will go on mille lac’s if I can locate some of them, but not for walleye, no way am I going to head to that lake just for walleye again.

Don’t get met wrong, I had a great time fishing this weekend, and I enjoy staying at the resorts on Mille Lac’s. The people are friendly and fun. However, fishing that lake is NOT as fun as other smaller lakes without the insane restrictions.

Do I understand the need for controls? Of course I do, but the DNR need to get theirs heads unstuck. What are they trying to do, drive people off one of the largest tourist fishing lakes in the state???? It sure seems that way.

Ok, I’m done. I still had a great weekend fishing, but the slot and lack of small fish really frustrated me.

Dragon ‘Em In

Farm Island has a slot limit as well.

Personally I don’t go to Mille Lacs to catch eaters. It’s a nice bonus if you get a couple but the chances are slim with that tight of slot. What makes the lake awesome is catching multiple trophy fish in an outing.

The one thing I don’t like is seeing all the floaters that are out there. If you catch one and you can’t get it to swim, it just sucks to see it floating. I don’t know how you could regulate and allow people to keep those that float because there would be many who lie about that.

Your rant is a good reminder to me of just how practically impossible the job of the DNR fisheries managers is…and how thankless. Its a reminder to me that I should thank them for the hard work they do and for making our state one of the best fishing states in the nation.

Jason

I’m doing my part to help…I don’t go there at all.

I actually like to take a few fish home once in a awhile, so I fish elsewhere.

More for the indians too I guess.

But yes, Ontario has a decent slot limit last I heard, three under appox 19″ and one over.
And according to their DVR it seems to work just fine for them.

Al

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Want to know how to solve the problem? Create a slot limit that MAKES SENSE for crying out loud. Let people have some of the bigger fish, they wont’ keep the smaller ones then. Let people keep one or two fish within the slot range. Maybe something like, up to 4 fish below 17″. 2 fish from 17-24″, 1 fish from 24 to 28, 1 fish over 28. They would still be controlling the population of the fish, but still promoting fishing.

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If they did this, we would hit our harvest limit mid June and a court mandated lake closure would occur. Remeber, the slot is not there to protect the lake or the fish. It’s there to limit harvest.

Support CASSTODAY for real change.

-J.

Arkansas… is there even fish down there ??? and have they not heard of BEER

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Farm Island has a slot limit as well.

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I know, their slot is no fish 16-19″. I caught several under and several over, I can deal with that slot, plus I can easily get big panfish, northern and bass on that lake that is NOT slot controlled.

Dragon ‘Em In

About a month ago I started fishing on 4 mile gravel bar. I had some luck with bobber/leech in the evening, but no keepers to be had. As the water temp. warmed I became concerned for hooking mortality. With surface temps in the high 70’s bringing protected slot fish up from 30′ will result in some dead fish. Saturday evening I took the granddaughter to Father Henepen to pull her around on the tow tube. I did see 4 or 5 dead walleyes floating outside of Isle Bay. I know that is not a huge number in the overall scheme of things. I do not enjoy releasing a 26″ bleeding walleye. Enough is enough. I am not going back until the fish move shallow or the water cools down.

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Arkansas… is there even fish down there ??? and have they not heard of BEER

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Yes, there is definitely fish! Check out the pic. Striped bass, these were all in the 20 lb. range, but they get up to 50-60lbs.

Dragon ‘Em In

20 or 2 lb ??? They would have to be made of lead to weigh 20….

I’m not exactly sure how you expected your outcome to be different… Not every trip will end up with a livewell full of fish. I’m sure you’d blame Mille Lacs and the DNR for the 90 degree weather and the drunken ppl on the launch as well

Enjoy it for what it is which is an amazing walleye factory within a short distance of a major city

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20 or 2 lb ??? They would have to be made of lead to weigh 20….

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No, they were all in the 15-20lb range. This was in May, but smallest was about 15lbs, largest was 23. Those fish fight better than any other fish I’ve caught. It took 15-20min to get some of them in the boat.

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Your rant is a good reminder to me of just how practically impossible the job of the DNR fisheries managers is…and how thankless. Its a reminder to me that I should thank them for the hard work they do and for making our state one of the best fishing states in the nation.

Jason

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Mark

No, I’m not blaming DNR for anything, other than a slot that basically precludes catching fish to eat. And I don’t expect a livewell full of keeper fish everytime, but at least a few keepers is nice to have.

And yes, I agree it’s a walleye factory. It’s an amazing lake. But if you are going out to get fish to eat, it’s not the lake to go on. Don’t get me wrong, we had a lot of fun catching the fish, but not being able to keep any just irked me. That’s what my rant was about.

Dragon ‘Em In

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I’m not exactly sure how you expected your outcome to be different… Not every trip will end up with a livewell full of fish. I’m sure you’d blame Mille Lacs and the DNR for the 90 degree weather and the drunken ppl on the launch as well

Enjoy it for what it is which is an amazing walleye factory within a short distance of a major city

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Thats a mighty big arm and hand next to a 20# fish. And that must be a new numbering system on that ruler below the fish.
Or they do know what beer is down there or something a bit stronger.

Just ribbing ya.
Ive heard those bass get big and they fight awfully hard. Some say as strong as a King salmon.

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Thats a mighty big arm and hand next to a 20# fish. And that must be a new numbering system on that ruler below the fish.
Or they do know what beer is down there or something a bit stronger.

Just ribbing ya.
Ive heard those bass get big and they fight awfully hard. Some say as strong as a King salmon.

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I know your ribbing, but here’s a better pic of us with the fish, gives a bit more size perspective. I think the beer my friends down there like is something ultra light. I prefer southern comfort myself.

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And yes, I agree it’s a walleye factory. It’s an amazing lake. But if you are going out to get fish to eat, it’s not the lake to go on. Don’t get me wrong, we had a lot of fun catching the fish, but not being able to keep any just irked me.

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I think you knew it was like that going in. Like I said, I don’t go there looking for eaters. Catching them is a plus. But I’m more than happy catching trophies. Plenty of lakes around with eaters in them.

At first I was surprised that there wasn’t more agreement to your posting. I fished ML on Friday and I have fished the St. Croix many times this year. Out of several fish caught on Friday my boat’s smallest (about 22″) was larger than any fish I’ve caught on the Croix this year. My bro in law is a bass guy so I was bummed that I couldn’t get him on a few fish to bring home.

Then I thought more about it. I don’t think anyone disagrees with you that management is currently messed up and that it’s frustrating to not be able to bring home a fish or two for the family. I think the disagreement is that the DNR is to blame.

I don’t know much about the history but my understanding is that before the tribes won their court case the DNR had in fact reached a settlement that had much more reasonable quotas in place, ones that don’t give such a huge proportion of the harvest to such a small number of persons. The legislature rejected this, it went to court, and we now have the mess we are currently in.

I think your post should be redirected from the DNR, who have taken only an administrative role in this mess, to our legislative and judicial branches who have created this mess.

That said, it sure is fun to catch one big fish after another, and it’s nice to have the option of driving another 20 minutes away (Farm Island) to get a few for the fry pan too.

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Support CASSTODAY for real change.

-J.

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X2

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Thats a mighty big arm and hand next to a 20# fish. And that must be a new numbering system on that ruler below the fish.
Or they do know what beer is down there or something a bit stronger.

Just ribbing ya.
Ive heard those bass get big and they fight awfully hard. Some say as strong as a King salmon.

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I know your ribbing, but here’s a better pic of us with the fish, gives a bit more size perspective. I think the beer my friends down there like is something ultra light. I prefer southern comfort myself.

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Thats some healthy weight sittin there Thanks for sharing.

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At first I was surprised that there wasn’t more agreement to your posting. I fished ML on Friday and I have fished the St. Croix many times this year. Out of several fish caught on Friday my boat’s smallest (about 22″) was larger than any fish I’ve caught on the Croix this year. My bro in law is a bass guy so I was bummed that I couldn’t get him on a few fish to bring home.

Then I thought more about it. I don’t think anyone disagrees with you that management is currently messed up and that it’s frustrating to not be able to bring home a fish or two for the family. I think the disagreement is that the DNR is to blame.

I don’t know much about the history but my understanding is that before the tribes won their court case the DNR had in fact reached a settlement that had much more reasonable quotas in place, ones that don’t give such a huge proportion of the harvest to such a small number of persons. The legislature rejected this, it went to court, and we now have the mess we are currently in.

I think your post should be redirected from the DNR, who have taken only an administrative role in this mess, to our legislative and judicial branches who have created this mess.

That said, it sure is fun to catch one big fish after another, and it’s nice to have the option of driving another 20 minutes away (Farm Island) to get a few for the fry pan too.

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I will jump in here, only to set the record straight on one point made above.

The “settlement” that is spoken to here, that was “rejected” by the legislature was NOT, I repeat NOT a lesser fish taking scenario by the Tribal Regime than you have now. That “settlement” was ONLY with the Mille Lacs Band–NOT with any of the other parties(bands) signed onto the 1837 Treaty. That “settlement”, in fact, would have had to be multiplied by at least 7-8 times by the time all parties were “settled” with. That “settlement”, with ONE band would have set a precedent for the other 7-8 bands lurking for their turn at the same treaty rights. In other words, in the end, the harvest would have been as big or bigger than you have now. That is a fact and thus not a mistake, as is always said by many, by the PERM group/Mn.legislature.

Now, included in that “settlement” and also rejected, was giving a portion of Lake Mille Lacs (similar in concept to the Red Lake scene) to the Tribal Regime. In fact, a large portion of the west side would have been off limits to ALL!! Even cabin owners would have not been allowed to fish in a large portion of the west side water–period!

And also, some hunting rights on PRIVATE land was part of the “settlement” by Tribal Regime members within the ceded territory used in the 1837 treaty.

So–thank the lawmakers and the likes of PERM for making sure that mess was NOT approved and accepted as it was in reality.

Questions? Call me…’nuff said by me here.

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I think your post should be redirected from the DNR, who have taken only an administrative role in this mess, to our legislative and judicial branches who have created this mess.

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You are right, I didn’t think about the legislative/judicial branches being as involved. It is entirely too easy to blame the DNR for it all. They do have a play in it, but so do other factors. The owner of the resort I stayed at this weekend even mentioned that the slots were more political than DNR based. I will revise my statement to “Whomever is involved in setting the slot needs to get their heads unstuck.”

http://www.messagemedia.co/millelacs/opinion/blogs/article_0d70f3d0-d29e-11e1-8613-0019bb30f31a.html

Quote “Meetings of the 1837 Ceded Territory Fishery Committee are for Band and State government officials to exchange biological information and analyses related to the ceded territory fisheries. They are not public meetings.”

How can something being represented by STATE GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS not be public ??? Who the he77 are they representing in these meetings ??? What is the BIG secret ???

FYI–these two Mn. lawmakers, McNamara and Ingebrigtsen,
are attending the DNR/Tribal negotiations and will play a role in how the whole mess shakes out in the future. One best keep these two guys on notice. (they have been involved in the past–ending up with what we have now)

http://www.startribune.com/sports/outdoors/164523126.html

I asked for the minutes to the July 26th meeting between the Mn. DNR and the Tribal regime. Here is the answer I got back…amazing! My answer to her was not pretty –to say the least. You need to let your state reps know how the DNR is so lax on our behalf!

Mr. Fellegy,

In response to your Minnesota Government Data Practices Act request, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has no data to provide.

For this particular meeting, it was the responsibility of GLIFWC to take notes and produce minutes. At this point in time, DNR has not been provided a copy of the minutes. As far as video or audio taping of the meeting, DNR is unaware of any recordings and therefore, has no data or recordings to provide.

If you have any questions regarding our legal responsibilities under the data practices, please let me know.

My Best,

Sheila Deyo
MN DNR Data Practices Compliance Officer

I would suggest that the hen take the notes, rather than the fox….

The problem is all the bleeding hearts out there that think because people screwed up 150 years ago we should still be paying for it. Which is why I refuse to pay for the walleye stamp. If the Native Americans want to spear and net lakes clean of walleyes let them. But I don’t see why the Mn DNR should be responsible to re stock the lake. When certain groups of people are hauling walleyes out of a lake in 5 gallon buckets full is anybody shocked that there is so many restrictions for a licensed angler? Maybe I’m way off the mark on this and have been misinformed but somebody needs to step up and be the bad guy and represent the TAX payers of the state and those of us that have to pay to fish here