Red Lake is Open for Walleye

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Northshore Bay Resort
65747 County Road 174 
Northome, MN  56661 
Toll Free: 1-888-219-5235 
Phone: 218-897-5907 


EMAIL US:
vacation@northshorebay.com

Stay at Northshore Bay Resort and Fish Red Lake - Just 40 minutes Away!

A decade after the Red Lake walleye fishery was closed to anglers it will once again offer the opportunity to fish its waters for Minnesota's state fish - the walleye.   Lake-wide assessment data continues to indicate very promising progress towards walleye recovery.  Walleye abundance has increased dramatically from the mid-1990's when the walleye population crashed.  Walleye fry stocked in 1999, 2001 and 2003 as part of the recovery plan have established a large population of young fish. Recent DNR test netting indicates the stocking of 41 million walleye fry in 1999 was a huge success.  So was the stocking of 32 million fry in 2001.  Fry stocking in 2003 contributed greatly as well.  Now these fish are mature and contributing to natural reproduction.

Red Lake is actually two shallow basins totaling 275,000 acres and had been a successful commercial, sport, and subsistence fishery for most of the 20th century.  Its walleye population, however, began to fluctuate widely by the 1970s due to overharvest.  This boom-and-bust cycle finally busted for good in the early 1990s.  To heal the ailing lake, state, federal, and tribal resource managers joined together in 1999 to develop the Red Lake Recovery Plan. They prescribed a total walleye harvest moratorium, stepped-up enforcement, and science-based fry stocking. And they let nature take its course.

In 2006 fisheries managers from the Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources determined that the lake was ready to resume limited harvest of its walleye population.  NOTE: Special walleye limits have been set again for 2012. While a person is on or fishing Upper Red Lake and it's associated tributaries, the daily and possession limit of walleye is four fish, of which not more than on walleye may be over 26 inches in length. The protected slot-size is: 17-26 inch protected slot from May 15-June 14; a 20-26 inch protected slot from June 15-November 30; and a 17-26 inch protected slot as of Dec 1. All walleye that are in the protected slot size must be immediately returned to the water.

Northshore Bay Resort is located just 40 minutes from Red Lake.  Stay with us and fish Red!

Guided Fishing Trips

We recommend
J&K Fishing Guide Service.
They provide summer and winter guiding on Upper Red Lake and other area lakes and offer both full-day or half-day trips.
Winter Ice House Rental of both day and sleeper ice fishing houses is available.

Contact Joe or Kathy Karp at
218-897-5794 or 218-244-3614
for rates and availability.
You can also email them at jkkarppl@paulbunyan.net.

IMPORTANT DATES

Walleye & Northern Opener - May 12, 2012

Lake Trout Opener - May 12, 2012

Bass Opener - May 26, 2012

Muskie Opener - June 2, 2012