Mille Lacs Lake conditions

[Lee Borgersen]

                   :fishing2: Mille Lacs Lake


There hasn’t been much fishing pressure at all on Mille Lacs Lake so far this winter because of lagging ice conditions. That will change as ice depths improve, but there are signs that the walleye bite could be difficult this season.
Mille Lacs is loaded with small perch, tullibees and young-of-the-year walleyes. All three will provide an ample supply of food for bigger walleyes, those that anglers can keep, and all that forage might not make an offering dangled by fishermen that enticing.
“We have a forage boom going on and that dictates what goes on as far as a bite during the winter season up here,” said Steve Johnson, of Johnson’s Portside on the east of Mille Lacs. “Basically, if you’re fishing walleyes here this winter and you’re in a swarm of baitfish, you better move.”
Johnson added that anglers willing to work, meaning those that are mobile and stay on the move would catch walleyes. As it was during the open-water season, two walleyes between 18 and 20 inches can be kept on Mille Lacs this winter.
There seems to be good numbers of those fish in the lake. Walleyes between 20 and 26 inches need to be released, but also remain abundant, and small walleyes are present as well — they should bite despite the abundance of forage.
“Even with the two-fish, 2-inch slot we saw a lot of walleyes being kept this summer and fall,” Johnson said. “So they’re out there, you’re just going to have to work to find them this winter.”