WI Law

I talked to a couple of gentleman from Iowa this morning and they were telling me that they could buy a WI fishing license and stay in WI for the two days that they will be over to the river, and by doing that they could bring back a double limit of walleye or sauger. Is this correct? Maybe Warden Stone or someone else could help me.

its true… you can have two daily limits in your possession on a Wisconsin License… however you cant be a resident of Minnesota…. they have to have a Mn license…

sooooo typically out of state people in the know will get a Wisconsin License to double their (legal) take home…..

What if Im sleeping in MN for a few nights? If Im from Iowa and have a WI license and camping for instance in MN?

I believe thats the same question I asked Marty Stone before and the legal answer is no, you cannot stay in MN and have a WI license, BUT being it’s border waters they don’t enforce that. Correct me if i’m wrong anybody….Marty…….My understanding is that that is one of those grey areas. Sorry I couldn’t give you a more precise answer. Probably better left for a warden to answer.

Is Warden Stone a WI DNR officer? If so, you might want to be more concerned with what a MN DNR officer would say about this. If you’re camping in MN, you’re going to want to be fully aware of what the MN DNR expects of you, not WI.

If you are from MN and fish in WI and had a fishing license in South Dakota in 1949 and have lived in iowa for the last 2 years can you still fish in Canada. Does anybody feel like these border regs sound like this sometimes????LOL.

You said a mouthfull Steve, and how right you are!!

Sound like that???? HECK! I thought you went and memorized a paragraph! LOL!

Being from IA., here is what we were told last fall. While pulling out of Bay Harbor, a MN DNR officer checked our catch. All legal. Before we left, he asked if we were going to stay in Red Wing. It was a one day trip and we were heading back but asked why. Because we had a Wis. nonresident lic. he said that we could not stay in MN. He said that would be the same if we had a MN lic. and were going to stay in Wis.

I did some checking and here is what I found. He was wrong about having a MN. lic. and not being able to stay in Wis. You can. He was right about having a Wis. lic. and not being able to stay in MN. I even talked to his supervisor.

If you want to be legal, I was told that being from IA. I can get a nonresident MN. Lic. and catch a limit of fish and stay in Red Wing for the night. Then go back the next day and catch another limit of fish on a nonresident Wis.lic. and go home.

The reason that I have a Wis. lic. is because I have a trailer in a camp ground on a lake in Wis and fish there all summer. After checking with several states, I found that MN is the only state that has this law.

If I wanted, I could only have a nonresident lic from Wisconsin and still be able to keep fish at my house in Ia and not have an Ia. lic. as long as I am not over the legal limit set out in the Wis. law.

I also asked the MN DNR just where this is in the law book so that I can be aware of it and I was told that not everything can be in the book, it was just suppose to be common sense.

The MN DNR supervisor even addmitted that it was one of the laws that should be changed. I also have a friend who is a DNR officer here in IA. He said that for years, he was on a board to try and get bording states together so we can all play by the same rules. He said that this will never happen.

Solution…..buy two lic., don’t stay and spend your money in MN, or just catch and release until the day you are ready to go home.

Also, one should be aware of how walleye/sauger need to be cleaned. Wisconsin, you need the whole walleye to prove that it is legal length. MN. is just have to leave a patch of skin.

Good luck.

Good post smithkieth,

We hashed this out last year and came up with the same conclusion. If you intend to possess fish in Mn, get a Mn license! If you are simply transporting fish, you must be returing home via the most direct route. (and that means not stopping for an overnight stay)

J.

All this license mumbo jumbo sure seems to make a good case for Federal License for places like the Mississippi River.

You’d think the heads of the stateDNR agencies would want to get together and make things a little less confusing for us. After all, it is federal water.

Instead of reinventing the license, I think I’ll read the regulations book(s) and then have Steve Vick interprit the lingo for me! :O) J/K …………..loved that post Steve made!

You can find laws all over the country that from state to state change,look at gun laws. they may change from town to town,but as a retired officer ,I don,t know a judge In the country that would fine you for possesion as long as you have a license WHERE YOU CAUGHT THE FISH.

So that would mean I would have to buy both a federal and a Minnesota fishing license? I don’t like the sound of that.

Whats the difference? I will have to buy a MN. lic. just so I can stay at a motel in Red Wing and have fish in my possession. If they have the Federal lic., you would still have to have a MN. lic. to stay in MN.

Also being a law enforcement officer, I know what would happen if I would arrest someone for a law that wasn’t were everone was aware of them and when I went to court told the judge, “It should be common sense.”

Guess I will spend another $28.00 for a MN lic. I thought about just rolling the dice and if caught, go to court and plead my case to the judge. I don’t want to waste a vacation day going to court when I could use the day for fishing. If I loose, the fine is $300.00. Thats a lot of bait.

What about someone who is returning home from Canada or another state and stay in MN? If they are checked, whats the law?

I guess it is up to the officers who enforce the laws. Could I write a speeding ticket to someone who is going 2 mph over the speed limit, sure. Could I look at myself in the mirror and sleep at night, no.

Some of the guys I fish with will no longer stay in MN. or even spend any money there. I think the law makers in MN. and the people who live off tourist should take another look at their laws. What will I do? Spend the money and forget about it. Whats another $28.00.

Been thinking about my earlier post about a federal license and I see arguements for and against it. A fed license should let you fish anywhere you want in the country. Dividing up the monies to the state DNRs would be a nightmare tho. I guess I’ll just keep buying the non-resident licenses from Mn., Wi., Missouri, Kent.,Oh., besides my expensive Ia. license. wow, I think I need a loan. Check out the classifieds, I think I’ll sell my first born.

The main difference is that I am from Minnesota. Why would I want to but 2 licenses. Are you saying that you have to buy a Wisconsin and a Minnesota license to fish the Miss.? I assume you are from Wisconsin? If not why not just buy the Minnesota license?

If you’re coming through MN on a trip home from Canada, you’ll be holding your Canadian fishing licenses to account for your legality, and the same would apply if you were traveling from Washington or Oregon to Michigan and decide to stay over in MN. Your catch and license allows this. MN and WI are a different story because of shared waters (the border). You can fish with either license, but you have to have compliance with the laws of that state’s license regulations to stay in compliance with the provisions agreed upon by the neighboring state and vice-versa. That’s why there are border regulations. Confusing? Always. But it’s not unfathomable to understand why it’s that way. The part I can’t fathom is why 2 states, with experts educated in the same fields, with the same credentials and knowledge, can’t agree on something more similarly to help eliminate some of these confusions! “Follow the state regulations of the state you purchase the license in but when fishing waters of the neighboring state, those laws must be followed.” For those unaware of any given area, this can be absolutely maddening!

Let me see now. Your saying I can have a fishing license from South Dakota, Ohio, Washington or any other state, and another country, and be in a possesion of that states or countrys limit of fish and its ok with the MN DNR to stay at one of the MN camp grounds or motels, but ahhh if I have a Wis license and a Wis limit, Its go straight home, do not stop and spend any of your money in our state just get the heck out of here? Am I missing something here? Did I miss read something? I know I’m confussed? Aint I?

I am from Iowa with a nonresident Wisconsin lic. In order to stay in Minn. and have fish in your possession from water which borders Minn. you have to have a Minn Lic.

The Minn. DNR supervisor told me that he has taken this complaint to the law makers and they said that they have never heard of any complaints. Guess it’s time they start visiting this site and listening to what the people who visit, fish and spend money have to say.

I have a question for the guides in the Red Wing area. When you take people out fishing, at the end of the day to you tell the people from Iowa and Wisconsin that when the day is over that they can’t stay in Minn. without a Minn. Lic.?

I’m still confused, if you live in Iowa, why would you buy both a Wisconsin and a Minnesota license? It seems to me that you would only need a Minnesota license.

It would be legal to live in IA, fish and stay at Red Wing with a MN lic. The problem is I have a nonresident Wis. lic. because I have a place in Wis. where I fish all summer. Because Red Wing is in Wis. / Minn waters why does Minn. make me have a Minn. lic. to have fish while staying over night in Minn.?

Here is another good one for you. I also talked to someone in the DNR office in Rodchester. He told me that I did not need a Minn. lic. to stay in Red Wing. Like it says in all the books, you must obey the laws of the state in which your lic. is from.

I explained this to DNR officer Tyler who informed me that I need to talk to people to enforce the laws, not the ones who sit in the offices.

Lets face it. The reason that Minn. is upset and has this laws is because if you have a Wisconsin lic. you can catch 6 fish today and go back and catch 6 more tomorrow. In Minn. is you catch 6 fish, you are done until you eat them and they are gone. Because of this, when nonresident people from Iowa, IL, ect. buy a lic., they buy a Wis. lic.

I wouldn’t even care if Wis. went to the same limits as Minn., just lets all play by the same rules. If you would like the phone numbers of the Minn. officers that I talked to let me know.

LOL! Maddening, isn’t it!?!?!?!? Here’s the deal…………..

This thread is referring to fishing a “border water”. There are specific terms and conditions that apply to those people fishing that water. Plain and simple, if you’re in MN, with a possession of fish, you’d better have a MN license. If you’re in WI, with a possession of fish, you’d better have a WI license. The special regs apply on the water only and they do state that if you launch from the neighboring state, you have to take a direct route back to the state from which you’re licensed, after you come back off the water. If you’re anywhere near a border water, it’s best to plan accordingly.

To be anywhere in MN with a WI license and a limit of fish is pushing your luck simply because it’s a neighboring state and fully accessible within a days drive, so “why are you staying here?” is the mentality.

If you come from Rapid City, SD to fish the Mississippi, with a WI license, you’re residence is far enough away that it would seem logical to stay in MN for a spell……………..right? Nope. It’s another neighboring state, accessible within a days drive, so you should plan to stay in WI, drive through MN, and then stay somewhere in SD again, if you can’t make it all the way home.

The simplest way to prevent the confusion is if you plan to camp in MN, get a MN license. Camp in WI, get a WI license. Any other arrangement can and will put you at risk of the interpretation of the law, which in a courtroom, you’ll most likely lose. So save the headaches, and just plan safely and accordingly. A fishing trip is expensive enough, don’t you think?

geesh …that was simple !! lol

If it costs you an extra $28.00 to stay in Red wing (because of the MN license), wouldn’t it be cheaper to drive a few miles into WI and just use the license you already possess? $28.00 will get you a lot of fuel!

Well put stillakid. Except for one thing. MN is the only one who has this law. I checked with Wis. and Ia. You can stay in those states with another states lic. if the fish were caught in the state for which you have that lic.

In the Red Wing area, where is a good place to stay in Wis.? Will buy all the bait from Steve at Evertts. Maybe Steve will build a motel too. )

I’m not sure what all exists along the banks, if anything, on the WI side but Ellsworth isn’t too far from Red Wing, is it? I keep thinking around 10 miles, in which case, you’d be looking at a couple gallons of gas vs. a MN license. I’d look it up but I’m thinking someone from that area could answer faster than what I could dig it up. I’ll look just in case. :O)

Just for fun, Im gonna throw another wrench in here. Now im stayin In Lake City at a camp grounds and I still am from Iowa and still have my Wi license and my Wi limit of fish, only thing is, I’m still between the tracks on either side of the lake!!!

Oh, there you go, complicating things. nyuk nyuk nyuk

Just for fun, I’m gonna come out and “play”! :O) I’m gonna take a stab at this and you guys can let me know how right or wrong I am………….but for what I can determine, here it goes:

BUSTED.

I don’t think it’d fly because that’s a rule that determines “border water” vs. “inland water”. If you’re on shore, you’re no longer in the water, and are officially parked on solely, purely, 100% completely, belongs to no one elsely, MN regulated property. All the rules that apply once you leave the water should go into effect there as well.

There’s your wrench, I’ve turned the nut, now you guys tell me if it works! LOL!

I have my own wrench to throw in here………….can you fish from a MN shore with a WI license on border waters? If so, would it make any difference? I know WI allows MN licenses for WI/MN shores, but I’m curious if that introduces more “exceptions”.