I dont get it, there has to be some logical explanation to this, the more I look the madder I get. Mr Pawlenty, I hope for the sake of this fishery you get to see these picture, and see the greed and waste that is present because the rights that are extended and abussed, to some of our Native Americans, from our great state and from our brothers across the border. This has realy gotten out of hand and must come to an end for the good of all sports persons that use this public resource.
tight-lines21 here--I did a little research this morning {wednesday 14} on the netting situation on Mille Lacs Lake. I visited a little bit with a dnr agent out of the aitkin fisheries dept who had a good take on the netting situation on the big lake.
I told him for the frustration us anglers have every year at about this time during the netting of fish out of Mille lacs Lake. Waiting until the allocation has been met by the 8 bands in the area, and then to seemingly ad more fuel to the fire seeing the photos posted on the internet of those fish heads and guts laying in piles on a private property somewhere by the lake.For as sad as this is and as it all seems the agent I spoke with gave me a better understanding of everything and I would like to share the conversation I had with him with you all. He told me that there had been calls about the piles of fish found on the property and said they were looking into the situation. I asked him about the allocations of 132,000lbs. As of this past sunday night there had been 108,000lbs towards the allocation. 87,000 pounds of northern and 21,000lbs of walleyes. For as much as we all hate to see this happen each year to a big lake that we all love and respect there was a little bit of a bright side to the conversation we had. That being the majority of the fish taken so far are northerns and the walleyes that have been taken are a majority of male walleyes.The agent saying that the bands were falling short of the bigger females, so that is a real plus. So the netting being over is an absolute rumor at this point. I asked the agent if he had any idea when he thought it might be over--he said that nets will probably be out this weekend . I asked him about the allocation rules and he replied if bands fall short of their numbers that other bands are able to pick up the rest until the allocation has been met. The agent was very concerned about the situation. Its nice to know that we have good people in our department of natural resources. He told me the netting is really like taking a census and that each group that goes out is accompanied by a conservation officer at the landing an d when they go out the next morning to bring in the nets that a conservation officer is waiting at the landing for them to return with the fish. The fish are counted and weighed and after everything is done at that meeting on the lake the bands leave with the fish that they have taken out of the lake. I thanked him for his time and that I appreciated him sharing his information with me about the numbers that had been filled towards the allocation as of this past sunday night.
So what do we take with us after all has been said: Hopefully someone will have to answer for that awful display of dead fish heads and fish guts laying out in the open on someones land. Also, they are netting fewer walleyes and fewer larger female walleyes that are making up the total numbers in the end of this netting season. These are the positive numbers that we anglers can be happy about-- the fact that they didn't get as many walleyes as they wanted and not as many females-- and the bigger females that can now have a chance to have a healthy spawn in the big lake--the bigger ones they didn't take. Thanks again to the agent at the aitkin dnr office.
My observation this spring has been that most all band members netting out front of our home on the eastside have been releasing any northerns caught in their nets. These fish never made it to shore! So for them to tell me that they are getting that many northerns really does not make any sence..
Thanks for making the call and reporting your findings...........
Thanks for the report, and thanks to the conservation officer for giving his time when he could have just blew you off. This is a touchy deal. I do have a problem with him saying that all netting operation are checked, I am not doubting it ....BUT....that would take many officers at many public access's, on Mille Lacs, are there really that many officers staffed to do this job 24 hours a day, 7 days a week during the netting season, especially this year with such an early ice out?? I do not doubt that they do, but it is highly unlikely especially with the budgets that are given to the DNR officers. Let’s hope they really do find the truth to the gut piles and hope some reasonable common ground is gained on this netting thing.
Tight lines, you say that the walleye numbers are down for this year, and thats good. But think about the upcoming years......This netting needs to be BANNED!!!Give them a rod and reel and a a regulation book to FOLLOW and fish like the rest...Why the he** do they get the easy pickins of fish in the shallows. Wait until opening day and find the fish AFTER THEY HAVE SPAWNED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
