Anglers who like to fish some of the big, popular lakes in northeastern Minnesota should pay attention to possible rule changes, and now is the chance to give your input on those regulations.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources recently announced the possible rule changes with public meetings set for September and written comments accepted until Oct. 7.

For Saganaga and Sea Gull lakes off the Gunflint Trail — and the Seagull River and Gull Lake between them — the DNR is re-evaluating the 10-year-old experimental regulation for walleyes. The current rule allows three fish daily with a 17-inch minimum size and only one fish over 20 inches.

Edmund Isaac, DNR fisheries supervisor in Grand Marais, said he wants to hear public input before deciding whether to keep all, some or none of the current experimental regulations.

“It’s not an all-or-nothing thing; we can take parts of it people like and maybe change others,” Isaac told the News Tribune. “We want to hear what our stakeholders have to say before we put something out there.”

The Saganaga Lake system is known for producing some of the largest walleyes in the state, including the all-time state record at 17 pounds, 8 ounces, caught by LeRoy Chiovitte, of Hermantown, in 1979.

LeRoy Chiovitte holds the state-record walleye he caught May 13, 1979, and weighed on a scale that DNR staff inspected. The DNR is considering changes to the current (2024) special walleye regulations that cover Sea Gull, Saganaga and Gull lakes and the Seagull River, where Chiovitte caught the big fish. (Charles Curtis / Forum News Service)

The new regulations likely will be in effect for the 2025 open-water fishing season starting in May.

In other DNR proposals:

— Basswood Lake’s sunfish limit would become five fish daily, down from the current statewide limit of 20 daily.

— Basswood Lake’s northern pike regulations would change from the current three-fish limit with a 24- to 36-inch release slot and one fish allowed over 36 inches to the proposed two-fish limit with a 30- to 40-inch release slot and one fish over 40 inches allowed.

— Birch, Farm, South Farm, Garden and White Iron lakes would see lake-specific special regulations for northern pike eliminated (currently three-fish limit with a 24- to 36-inch release slot and one fish over 36 inches) and move to current Minnesota northeast regional northern pike limit (currently two fish daily, with a 30- to 40-inch release slot and one fish allowed over 40 inches. Spearers can take two pike daily but only one may be larger than 26 inches.)

“Our goal is to make the Basswood northern pike regulation simpler while also protecting the trophy northern pike fishery on Basswood Lake,” said Keith Reeves, DNR area fisheries supervisor in Tower.

The DNR is holding public input sessions on the regulations Sept. 20 from 6-8 p.m. in the Sea Gull Community Center and Sep. 24 from 6-8 p.m. at Minnesota North College, Vermilion campus in Ely.

The DNR is also taking input on these proposals via a survey at mndnr.gov/fishregs through Oct. 7. For more details or to comment directly by email, U.S. mail or phone about individual proposals, contact the area fisheries office (find them at mndnr.gov/areas/fisheries) for the proposals on which you wish to comment.

General input may also be submitted to Jon Hansen at jon.hansen@state.mn.us or 651-259-5239 or via U.S. mail to Fishing Regulations/Jon Hansen, Box 20, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, 500 Lafayette Road, St. Paul, MN 55155.

The regulation proposals also have been posted at the accesses to each lake included in the proposal.

Other lakes in Todd, Stearns and Olmsted counties could also see regulation changes for next year.

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