Border waters

I was asked today by someone if, lets say, you are fishing Big Stone and you have both SD & MN license, are you aloud to keep a limit on both license? Interesting question. I didn’t know what to tell him.

The answer should be yes but 99% sure its no.

My guess is it applies to wherever you leave the water or clean the fish. If you got stopped in MN with 2 limits I don’t think the DNR cares you have an SD license.

You’re only one person so you’re only allowed one limit. If the limit differs between states, you’re allowed to keep a limit of the more liberal state.

I would say No, Only one Limit!

Border lakes are managed by both states. Not sure how this could even be a thought. It’s clearly written in the regulations what the lake limit is….

This is a guess ,but I am thinking if the limits differ,and your taking your boat out on the lesser of the two limits,and you have a over the limit bag for that state, your going to get a fine!

Limit of perch on Bigstone is 15 whether you come in on the So.Dak side or the Minnesota side.

You have to follow the state regulation wherever you launched your boat or if fishing from shore, whichever state you’re fishing from the shoreline.

Andrew Pansch wrote:

Border lakes are managed by both states. Not sure how this could even be a thought. It’s clearly written in the regulations what the lake limit is….

Some do differ. Specifically the MN/WI border. Not sure on the MN/SD border though.

Karry Kyllo wrote:

You have to follow the state regulation wherever you launched your boat

This is wrong. It never matters where you launch your boat. Your boat is considered a mode of transportation just like a car. If you catch your limit on the SD side, you can legally bring it to the MN side by any means of transportation you wish.

Sd/mn border waters have there own regulations, look into them.

biggill wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Andrew Pansch wrote:</div>
Border lakes are managed by both states. Not sure how this could even be a thought. It’s clearly written in the regulations what the lake limit is….

Some do differ. Specifically the MN/WI border. Not sure on the MN/SD border though.

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Karry Kyllo wrote:</div>
You have to follow the state regulation wherever you launched your boat

This is wrong. It never matters where you launch your boat. Your boat is considered a mode of transportation just like a car. If you catch your limit on the SD side, you can legally bring it to the MN side by any means of transportation you wish.

I’m with biggill on this one. Quite a few years ago while fishing out of Genoa, WI I asked a C.O. about that. It seems to me at that time the limits for WI/IA were higher than WI/MN(10 vs 6?). Anyways, he said you follow the regs for where you are fishing, not where you launched. He also warned to be careful about bouncing back and forth between borders. Say you have 7 fish while fishing WI/IA and motor up river to start another drift and cross into WI/MN you would be fishing illegally. He suggested if done fishing with say 8 fish from WI/IA to head straight to the launch with all rods stowed away and don’t even make it look like you MIGHT fish.

So I can fish the Minnesota side of the Croix or Mississippi and use 3 rods?

One can have only one resident license. If you have the MN license, you abide by the rules of that license if you come off the water on the MN side. You can possess, say, a WI non-res license and fish the Mississippi border water but the MN license is the one you have to abide by when it comes to daily/possession limits. The only way you can have limits from both states is to prove that you entered and fished both sides of the water at different times and having only one limit in your boat for that side of the water.

On a border water, your resident state’s license trumps the other state’s non-res license.

In MN, almost all the possession limits are equal to the daily limits so the only situation you could have over that limit is if your fish were packed and labeled by a licensed fish packer in the state of SD. Otherwise, it doesn’t matter where you caught the fish, over limit in your possession is over limit, period.

biggill wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Andrew Pansch wrote:</div>
Border lakes are managed by both states. Not sure how this could even be a thought. It’s clearly written in the regulations what the lake limit is….

Some do differ. Specifically the MN/WI border. Not sure on the MN/SD border though.

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Karry Kyllo wrote:</div>
You have to follow the state regulation wherever you launched your boat

This is wrong. It never matters where you launch your boat. Your boat is considered a mode of transportation just like a car. If you catch your limit on the SD side, you can legally bring it to the MN side by any means of transportation you wish.

Is that entirely true though? Don’t you need a fishing license for the state where the boat ramp is located? For example, are you legal if you have a MN license and use a WI boat ramp?
That’s always been somewhat of a gray area I’ve never found where that is spelled out in black and white in the regulations.

biggill wrote:

You’re only one person so you’re only allowed one limit. If the limit differs between states, you’re allowed to keep a limit of the more liberal state.

biggill wrote:

In MN, almost all the possession limits are equal to the daily limits so the only situation you could have over that limit is if your fish were packed and labeled by a licensed fish packer in the state of SD. Otherwise, it doesn’t matter where you caught the fish, over limit in your possession is over limit, period.

What? Was this a change that happened overnight?

Karry Kyllo wrote:

Don’t you need a fishing license for the state where the boat ramp is located?

No. A border water is a special body of water that allows you to fish the entire body of water regardless which side of the physical state border you are on using your resident state’s license.

Lake Superior is not a border water therefore the physical border is in play and once you cross it, you need the bordering states license to fish there.

Again, it never matters where you launch.

From page 55 of the MN reg book:

What license do I need to fish border waters?
• Minnesota residents must have a Minnesota license.
• Residents of a bordering state must have their state’s resident license. • Other nonresidents may purchase a Minnesota or the bordering state’s
nonresident license.
Can I fish anywhere on the border waters with a Minnesota license?
• In Canadian border waters, Minnesota residents or nonresidents fishing with a Minnesota nonresident license, may only fish the Minnesota portion of the Canadian border waters. To fish the Canadian portion, you must have a Canadian license.
• In other border waters, Minnesota residents or nonresidents fishing with a Minnesota nonresident license, may fish throughout the defined waters bordering the two states.
What if I don’t see a particular regulation listed in this section?
Unless otherwise noted, all general regulations relating to angling methods, licensing, season, limits, fish possession and transportation apply to border waters (see pages 30-37). Also, all fish must be within length limits regardless of where caught (see
page 34). Please check the Experimental and Special Regulations section (pages 38-54) for different regulations that may apply.
If fishing regulations differ between the border states, what regulations
do I follow?
You must obey the regulations of the state in which you are fishing. More permissive regulations are limited to that state’s waters. Using number of lines as an example:
In Wisconsin waters anglers may use three lines, but in Minnesota waters anglers may only use two lines.
Can I launch my boat or transport my catch back home from the adjacent state’s boat launch?
Yes, you can both launch your boat and transport your catch by the most direct route back to the state that you are licensed.
Do bowfishing regulations allowed for inland waters apply to border waters?
The bow fishing regulations covered on page 66 are only allowed on Minnesota’s portion of the border waters. If the bordering state’s bowfishing regulations are the same, bowfishers may take legal fish shore to shore under a Minnesota license.

c_w wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>biggill wrote:</div>
You’re only one person so you’re only allowed one limit. If the limit differs between states, you’re allowed to keep a limit of the more liberal state.

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>biggill wrote:</div>
In MN, almost all the possession limits are equal to the daily limits so the only situation you could have over that limit is if your fish were packed and labeled by a licensed fish packer in the state of SD. Otherwise, it doesn’t matter where you caught the fish, over limit in your possession is over limit, period.

What? Was this a change that happened overnight?

I sort of misspoke I’m on the first part. I should have included the second part in that comment.

Listen, if you have more walleyes in your possession that the state possession limit allows, you are over limit, period. Unless you can provide proof in the form of a packers receipt that you caught and processed them in SD. You can’t possess more than the possession limit, it’s that simple.

So Biggill you’re saying if I go to the Missouri River and bring my 8 walleys, with my SD license, home to Minnesota that I’m over my possession limit of 6. Or are you talking strickly boarder waters and having them packaged.

Some people live and die by the print. I get it. But if I’m going to Erie, South Dakota, Missouri, etc and buying another license and catching my legal limit and bringing it back home I ain’t going to no licensed fish packer. I’ll have my receipts and I’m sure some pics to prove where I was and in the rare off chance that you are actually pulled over and checked and want to ticket me I’ll see em in court.

I do believe transport provides a temporary loophole to this. Keep in mind that if you were ever ticketed for this and tried to fight it in court, they would have to somehow prove the fish were taken from MN. Receipts, pictures, licenses is likely enough proof to get it thrown out but the CO is well within his rights to ticket you for being over limit if he believes you took them from MN waters. You’re going to lose more fighting it than the ticket would’ve cost. You decide. It’s a highly unlikely event anyway you look at it.

The OP asked if it was ok to take 2 limits from a border water if you have a license from both states. We’re veering off topic when you’re talking about traveling across states. I don’t think it would be right to say you can be over limit just because you say you caught them in another state.

I stand by the fact if you have 8 walleyes in your freezer and no proof where they came from, you’re over limit.

biggill wrote:

I stand by the fact if you have 8 walleyes in your freezer and no proof where they came from, you’re over limit.

I believe you are 100% correct on this. Have to wonder how may times it’s violated though? Anyone forget or lose count on fillets they may have in the back of their freezer?

You’d be okay if you had 50 store bought walleyes as long as they were still in the original packaging.

Deuces wrote:

Some people live and die by the print. I get it. But if I’m going to Erie, South Dakota, Missouri, etc and buying another license and catching my legal limit and bringing it back home I ain’t going to no licensed fish packer.

It used to be…and maybe still is that larger resorts, guide services/charters in certain areas are already licensed fish packers.

You’ll see listed as part of their service that they’ll clean and package your fish for transport home and they then include their license # on the packaging as well as other required information. I think the many resorts in Canada, LOTW, and Erie charters do this.

Of course if you’re not fishing through one of those outfits, yea I suppose you’re on your own. I agree, many I’m sure do it with little concern of getting pinched.

Carry on…