Mille Lacs night fishing ban to be lifted July 21

The Mille Lacs night fishing ban is being lifted effective July 21, the Department of Natural Resources said Monday.

So few anglers have fished the big lake that the 42,900-pound harvest quota imposed this year on sport anglers isn't likely to be reached, according to DNR Deputy Commissioner Dave Schad.

"We've done some [computer] modeling and it looks like the risk of reaching the quota is very, very low,'' Schad said.

Imposed since just after the May walleye and northern pike opener, the ban has been effective from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., during which no boats could be on Mille Lacs with fishing equipment.

The night ban — which also affected muskie anglers and bowfishermen, among others — was needed, the DNR said, so the walleye harvest quota wouldn't be exceeded on the big lake.

But the lake's tight harvest slot limit of two walleyes between 18 and 20 inches (one trophy over 28 inches is allowed in the limit) has kept anglers away, resort owners have said. And those who have fished Mille Lacs have found walleye action slow, due to what the DNR says are plentiful forage fish in the lake.

As a result, the June walleye harvest was a record low for Mille Lacs, as was the amount of fishing pressure recorded on the lake.

At least some of those anglers are likely to return to the lake when the night ban is lifted.

"Visitors to the lake will definitely appreciate the ban being lifted,'' said Tina Chapman of Chapman's Mille Lacs Resort and Guide Service. "And I don't think the lake's walleyes will be hurt by it.''

Mille Lacs commercial fishing launches, which cater to groups of anglers, also have suffered this summer. Typically, anglers on the launches have the best luck on trips that last until about midnight.

But this summer, due to the night ban, the big boats had to head to port by about 9:30 p.m. — just when Mille Lacs walleyes typically begin to bite. Nor could they travel as often to mid-lake "flats,'' as they historically have, and still be docked by 10 p.m.

"We had a launch out Saturday night with 25 people on it,'' said George Nitti of Nitti's Hunters Point Resort. "They caught 10 fish, one of which they could keep.''

Other businesses in the area also have suffered this summer, because so few anglers have fished the lake. Nitti's Resort has eight cabins and two motel rooms, and each is vacant this week, Nitti said.

"The big problem is that the DNR has pretty much driven everyone away from this lake,'' Nitti said. "They stock Upper Red Lake and Leech Lake, yet they let the tribes and the anglers take from Mille Lacs, without putting anything back.''

DNR fisheries managers say they are unsure why the Mille Lacs walleye population is at or near a record low. Many locals blame springtime walleye netting by eight Chippewa bands. But the DNR says a combination of the lake's zebra mussel infestation, along with other aquatic invasive species such as spiny water fleas, together with historically high populations of northern pike and smallmouth bass, among other factors, might play a role.

The total walleye "safe harvest'' for the lake this year is only 60,000 pounds, a fraction of what it was only a few years ago. Of that amount, the Chippewa were given 17,100 pounds — a quota the bands didn't reach this spring, either, due to the lake's late ice-out.

In an attempt to draw anglers to Mille Lacs, while perhaps also denting the lake's northern pike and smallmouth bass numbers, the DNR this year boosted the lake's northern pike limit to 10, with one over 30 inches in the bag. Similarly, the smallmouth limit was amended to six daily, one of which could be longer than 18 inches.

Meanwhile, muskie anglers are pleased the night ban is being lifted.

"There's been a lot of frustration about it,'' said Josh Stevenson, owner of Blue Ribbon Bait in Oakdale and a muskie guide. "With the night ban gone, it means we can freely fish the major and minor moon phases again, and can get out on the lake at 4:30 in the morning if we want to.''

Schad said the night ban will lift at 10 p.m. July 21.