Monthly Archives: January 2013

January 30th, 2013 9:30 a.m.

Yesterday fishing was pretty tough out there, not much action for either Walleyes or Perch.  But yesterday late afternoon  those that went into shallow reefs, 8-10 feet caught Walleyes, and overnight I heard mixed reports. Some did well, some didn’t.  It definitely is still worth the trip.   There are more Jumbo Perch showing up in the Tullibee Hole, but still not very active.  Hopefully a larvae hatch will get them going.  There is more and more small Perch in the shallow areas and where there is small Perch there will be Walleyes, probably only biting in the dusk hours and random thru the night, but they will be there.  I read in the paper last Mpls. Star-Tribune that the Bands will more than likely net  this spring during the spawning despite the worries of the  MN-DNR about male population drops.   Mille Lacs is the only lake I know of that Walleyes are netted during spawning time.  Why is it that in other parts of the country that doesn’t happen?  Why does the State of Minnesota itself protect spawning areas from anglers farther up north in the spring and they allow the bands to do this here?  In my opinion is the government officials in St. Paul have no guts to challenge anything. I’m not arguing “treaty rights” here, they have the right to harvest. But from everything I have read the State of Minnesota still has finally say over it’s resources.  We have some of the best fisheries guys in the nation here at Mille Lacs and they aren’t the problem, it’s the people at the top and their policies of doing nothing. Is it ever going to change?

Keep a tight Line!!          Eddy

 

 

January 29th, 2013 7:00 a.m.

Yesterday was a very slow day for fishermen. Not much for Walleye activity and also with Perch.  It was foggy, hazy and temps were nice to be out there.  The pressure ridge out 3 miles blew up overnight and when we checked it yesterday there was spots that it was 6-8 feet in the air and the ice had broke as far as 30 feet away from the ridge.  Sunday we had crossed it with our ramps to get some fishermen off and I was hoping at the time it had pushed as much as it was going to then, but I was definitely wrong on this one.   We are going to have to have snow cover before it’s going to settle down.

Yesterday we heard the news from the  our DNR meetings with the Bands about “safe harvest” levels.  This next year it is going to be cut in half.  250,000 lbs.  The bands declared half also @ 70,000 lbs.  But if you look at what they actually harvested last year (approximately 80,000lbs.)  when they declared 140,000lbs, things won’t change much for them.  It going to be the anglers that suffer.  There very well could be a catch and release only fishery for Walleye @ Mille lacs for the first time in history.  When is the State of Minnesota and our DNR stand up for it’s citizens??   What happened to Governor Dayton’s statement of everyone should be under the same rules??   For the State to even allow springtime gill netting during spawning time especially when the lake is in trouble is absurd .   You can’t tell me that pulling nets out over eggs and driving up and down the shores with outboard powered jet drives in shallow water spearing doesn’t disturb the Walleyes during spawning.   What the State of Minnesota has allowed to happen to its premier Walleye  lake is a disgrace.

January 28th, 2013 7:45 a.m

Saturday night those out there in shallower water did well with the Walleyes with the full moon.  We heard of lots of reports with 4-10 Walleyes per house, mostly in the slot.   Houses that had did well earlier in the weekend in the deeper water didn’t fair as well.  The daytime bite was slow for almost everyone Saturday and Sunday.  Most activity was at night for the majority of fishermen.  There  seems to be a lot more bait fish in the shallower water than what there has been lately and maybe the bite will continue in there because of that.  (?)  Still not much for Perch action, but out in our “Tullibee Hole”  there is more and more big Perch showing up according to the fishermen out there with cameras.  I would think sooner or later they will go as the mayfly larvae starts to hatch.  Finally last night we received some snow on the ice and maybe it will stick and stay this time.   More snow is forecasted tomorrow and if we don’t get any big winds afterwords the lake will look pretty nice and maybe, just maybe quit moving around.    Ice depth on the average is 22-24 inches so things are looking up in that dept.

Keep a Tight Line!!   Eddy