Mille Lacs fish rules are relaxed

Effective Saturday, Aug. 1, anglers can fish for walleye on Mille Lacs Lake and use live bait.

The walleye fishing closure and live bait restrictions during the month of July were the result of record ice fishing pressure this past winter that resulted in a harvest of almost 30,000 pounds of walleye. July was selected for the closure because it’s generally the period when warm water temperatures cause the highest rates of hooking mortality.

The planned closure reduces, but does not eliminate, the likelihood of an unplanned closure later in the season. An unplanned closure would be triggered if the state reaches its share of the safe harvest amount agreed upon by the state and eight Ojibwe nations.