March 31, 2025



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*Minnesota DNR News
*




*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
*

March 31, 2025




*For more information:* <[email protected]>

Contact the DNR Information Center
by email  <[email protected]>or call 888-646-6367.





In This Issue

* DNR Fish and Wildlife Almanac [ #link_1491411839600 ]
* DNR now taking reservations for state park summer tours [ #link_1 ]
* Ojibwe spring fishing season begins [ #link_1491411977526 ]
* DNR sets open water fishing regulations for Upper Red Lake [ #link_1491412003165 ]
* DNR seeks public comment on Lake Superior fisheries rule proposals [ #link_1491412051810 ]

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DNR Fish and Wildlife Almanac

"A weekly list of news briefs about fish, wildlife and habitat management."

Minnesota DNR hosts webinars on Get Out MORE projects, southeast trout fishing

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources invites people interested in wildlife and outdoor skills to check out the spring program schedule for the Minnesota Outdoor Skills and Stewardship webinar series.

On Wednesday, April 2, hear about the transformative Get Out MORE (Modernize Outdoor Recreation Experiences) investments that will help ensure Minnesotans of all abilities and interests enjoy a world-class recreation system, whatever outdoor experience they choose.

The historic, one-time Get Out MORE investments center on five key areas: enhancing fisheries and fishing infrastructure, enhancing access and welcoming new users to public lands and outdoor recreation facilities, modernizing boating access, restoring streams and modernizing water-related infrastructure to support outdoor recreation, and modernizing camping and related infrastructure.

In the webinar, hear about some specific aspects of these investments. Join Jim Levitt, shore fishing program coordinator, and Dion Turgeon, wildlife program coordinator, as they show how these investments are being put to work to make the outdoors more accessible for Minnesotans with disabilities They’ll also share upcoming projects funded by Get Out MORE.

Then, on Wednesday, April 9, join Vaughn Snook, DNR assistant area fisheries manager, as he talks about southeast Minnesota trout fishing, stream access, how to use water temperature as a consideration in fishing strategy, and of course, tips on how to catch some trout!

The Minnesota Outdoor Skills and Stewardship Series webinars are free and offered year-round, though registration is required. Visit the Outdoor Skills and Stewardship webpage of the Minnesota DNR website [ [link removed] ] (mndnr.gov/discover) for the registration portal, more information about upcoming webinars and recordings of past webinars.

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DNR now taking reservations for state park summer tours

Three Minnesota state parks offer guided tours, giving participants opportunities to learn about fascinating features of the parks and the history behind them. 


* Blue Mounds State Park offers tours of the 530-acre bison range and the prairie landscape that supports the herd.
* Forestville/Mystery Cave State Parks has four types of cave tours to explore parts of Minnesota’s longest cave.
* Lake Vermilion-Soudan Underground Mine State Park offers surface tours to learn about the mining industry and its impact on the state and beyond. Later in the summer, underground mine tours will resume.

*Blue Mounds State Park*

The 90-minute prairie tour on the 12-seat tour bus might include views of the bison herd at the park. Tours will be conducted May 22 to Oct. 19, 2025. Children must be at least four years old, and participants are encouraged to dress for windy prairie weather. The tour bus can accommodate one passenger in a wheelchair.

The 67-member herd is expected to grow this spring as cinnamon-colored calves are born, but park staff never guarantees a sighting. Binoculars are provided to spot bison in the distance. Even without a bison sighting, there’s plenty of flora and wildlife for visitors to feast their eyes on, like native grasses, wildflowers, cacti, songbirds, hawks, ground squirrels, snakes, pollinators, and a few white-tailed deer.

*Forestville/Mystery Cave State Park*

Mystery Cave covers over 13 miles of underground passages that were created as moving water dissolved the rock. Each tour takes participants underground through different parts of the cave, and will showcase features like stalactites, stalagmites, flowstone, fossils, and beautiful underground pools as a tour guide explains how the cave and these features were formed.

One-hour scenic tours are offered multiple times daily from mid-May to mid-October, and are fully accessible. Reservations are recommended, but walk-ins will be accommodated based on availability. The 12:20 p.m. and 3:20 p.m. tours on weekends are for walk-ins only.

The lantern, geology and wild caving tours are offered weekends only, and reservations are required. Lantern and geology tours are available from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Wild caving tours take place on Saturdays from May 31 to Aug. 23.

Like the prairie tour, dress for the environment. The cave temperature is a steady 48 degrees year-round.

*Lake Vermilion-Soudan Underground Mine State Park*

Flooding in June 2024 kept tourists out of the underground mine for much of last season, and repairs are ongoing. The date for resuming underground mine tours isn’t set yet; check the visitor alerts on the park website [ [link removed] ] (mndnr.gov/lakevermilion) for updates about the return of underground tours.

Meanwhile, visitors can still get a good idea of mine operations from the hour and 15-minute surface tours, which start Memorial Day weekend. Participants will see buildings like the engineer house, crusher, drill shop and dry house visitor center. An interpretive naturalist will provide stories of the miners and their families, immigration throughout the area, and the critical importance of mining to Minnesota and to the United States.

Surface tours at Soudan Underground Mine do not require reservations.

Tours at Blue Mounds and Forestville/Mystery Cave state parks can be reserved starting April 1. Schedules, tour details and reservation information can be found on the state park tours website [ [link removed] ] (mndnr.gov/tours). Tour participants will also need a state park vehicle permit, which can be purchased at the same time the tour reservation is made, or at the ranger station upon arrival at the park.

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Ojibwe spring fishing season begins

Minnesota DNR reminds Minnesotans of Tribal rights to harvest fish

Each spring, Native American Tribal members in Minnesota preserve their cultural heritage while providing a vital food source for Tribal communities by harvesting fish through netting and spearing. This legally protected, regulated harvest of fish usually begins at ice-out.

With the Tribal spring harvest season underway, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources recognizes Tribal members’ rights to exercise their harvest rights within the 1837 Ceded Territory and within reservation boundaries. The 1837 Treaty reserves to Tribal members the right to hunt and fish in the ceded territory, free of state regulation.

The Tribal harvest within the 1837 Ceded Territory is regulated by the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission. Every season, both the state and Tribes agree on the quantity of fish that can be harvested, based on the long-term health of the resource. Then each Tribe declares to the DNR how many of each species of fish they intend to harvest from each lake in the ceded territory.

Harvest begins shortly after the ice melts, with fishing permits issued by the Tribes to their members. Each fish — whether harvested by spear or net — is counted individually and the data are used in fishery management, including lake-by-lake determinations of when the year’s declared harvest is reached and further harvest is closed for the year.

*On-reservation harvesting*

There are conservation codes the individual Tribal Nations establish for harvest within the reservation boundaries. Harvesting within the reservation boundaries is called an “on-reservation” harvest. Tribal members follow the conservation codes set forth by the governing bodies of their nations. A list of Tribal Nations and webpages for those seeking more information is available online [ [link removed] ] (mn.gov/portal/government/tribal/mn-indian-tribes).

*Interfering with Tribal rights*

It is illegal to interfere or attempt to interfere with Tribal members who are exercising treaty rights, including the spring harvest of walleye. Prohibited conduct against any Tribal member includes, but is not limited to, stalking, obstructing access to lakes, recklessly operating watercraft, creating hazardous wakes, threatening violence and committing acts of violence. 

*Reporting Tribal rights infringement*

Anyone who has witnessed or been subject to active infringement of Tribal rights to hunt, fish and gather, including harassment or a verbal threat of physical harm, is encouraged to report it to local law enforcement immediately by calling 911.

People can also contact their local DNR conservation officer by calling 651-296-6157 or 888-646-6367.

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DNR sets open water fishing regulations for Upper Red Lake

Anglers fishing on Upper Red Lake during the 2025 open-water season that starts Saturday, May 10, will have a five-walleye possession limit, with only one walleye over 17 inches allowed.

“Upper Red Lake female spawning walleye have been managed at a level that has resulted in a number of strong year classes recently,” said Edie Evarts, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources area fisheries supervisor for Bemidji. “The summer regulation is an opportunity for anglers to keep abundant young walleye while also maintaining the breeding fish at a level that continues to produce successful year classes.”

To continue producing the most successful year classes, enough female spawning walleye need to be present to produce lots of newly hatched walleye (known as fry). But if there are too many spawning walleye present, they produce too many fry. When fry are overabundant, the young fish don’t survive well because they are competing for a limited amount of food.

The regulation that begins May 10 aims to keep the lake’s stock of female spawning walleye in an ideal range by focusing angler harvest on the abundant immature fish under 17 inches, so future numbers of spawning walleye are not higher than desired. The regulation also aims to make sure overall harvest does not exceed agreed upon levels.

“We now have 20 years of data from managing the lake since the walleye fishery reopened in 2006 and a good idea of the impact of fishing regulations from our annual angler creel surveys,” Evarts said.

Walleye management on Red Lake is a collaborative effort between the Red Lake Nation and the Minnesota DNR, governed by a joint harvest plan revised by the Red Lakes Fisheries Technical Committee in 2015. Winter harvest regulations for 2025-2026 will be determined after the summer fishing season and completion of fall assessment netting.

The Upper Red Lake Citizen Advisory Committee reviews walleye harvest totals and regulation options and provides recommendations for the state waters of Upper Red Lake. Upper Red Lake fishing regulations are available on the Minnesota DNR website [ [link removed] ] (mndnr.gov/fishing/upper-red-lake-regulations.html).

Anglers are reminded to protect Upper Red Lake and all Minnesota waters from aquatic invasive species by cleaning and draining watercraft and equipment and disposing of unwanted bait in the trash. A decontamination station is available at the Tamarac River Big Bog Public Water Access, referred to locally as Homestead Park.

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DNR seeks public comment on Lake Superior fisheries rule proposals

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is taking public comment on a proposal that would adjust the trout season dates for Lake Superior anglers and allow more harvest of Atlantic salmon.

The proposed rule revisions would change the start and end dates for the open season of trout fishing in stream tributaries above and below posted barriers. For brook trout, splake, rainbow trout, and brown trout above barriers and splake and brook trout below barriers, the change would move the opener date from the Saturday nearest April 15 to the second Saturday in April. The season close date would move from Labor Day to Sept. 30 annually. These proposed dates would provide more consistency in trout fishing regulations in streams across northern Minnesota.

The rulemaking proposal would also eliminate a current provision limiting anglers to one Atlantic salmon. The DNR no longer seeks to protect Atlantic salmon as the stocking program has discontinued. Under the revised rule, anglers would continue to be limited to five salmon, but the salmon could be of any species mix. Finally, proposed language clarifies inland rules apply for all other species not listed in the rule, except in the St. Louis River downstream of the Minnesota Highway 23 bridge, where Minnesota-Wisconsin boundary water rules apply.

Comments may be submitted through Thursday, May 8. If adopted, these rule changes would take effect March 1, 2026. Submit comments:


* Via email to [email protected]. Please mention Lake Superior Rules in the email subject line.
* Via mail to Bethany Bethke, Fisheries Rules and Regulations Coordinator, Fish and Wildlife Division, Minnesota DNR, 500 Lafayette Road, St. Paul, MN 55155.

More information, including the proposed rule language and contact information for comments, is available on the fisheries rulemaking page of the DNR website [ [link removed] ] (mndnr.gov/input/rules/fisheries/index.html).

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minnesota department of natural resources [ [link removed] ]

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