Tamarac River Closure- Open for season

DNR NEWS – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 14, 2010
For additional information, contact the Area Fisheries Office in Bemidji, MN at (218) 308-2339.

Bemidji Area streams closed to fishing during peak walleye spawning periods.

The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is announcing a temporary fishing closure on six streams in Beltrami and Clearwater Counties to protect concentrations of spawning walleye and their eggs.

Blackduck River County Rd 32 north to Red Lake Reservation boundary

Clearwater River Below Clearwater Lake Dam for 900 feet
Mississippi River Below Ottertail Power Dam to Co Rd 12

Shotley Brook State Highway 72 to Upper Red Lake

Tamarac River Upper Red Lake to Beltrami-Koochiching county line

Turtle River Between Three Island Lake and Turtle River Lake

These streams will be closed to all angling and rough fish spearing beginning Friday, April 9, and will remain closed through Friday, May 14, 2010. Due to early spawning conditions this year and a later fishing opener spawning none of these closures will need to be extended beyond the fishing opener.

Good luck with that. I saw guys catching and keeping walleye out of the Tamarac when walleye season was closed year round up there. We’ll see how compliant people are this spring.

They are very strick about it now. No fishing period, this mean no crappie fishing, no perch fishing, no sucker fishing, you may boat the river but a line connot be in the water, period.

I’m sure there will probly be some fine netting going on there… Let’s rebuild a lakes fishery then let it get netted dry again. JP, I’m not sure how you all stand it. Were pretty irritated with the WI tribes coming to Mille Lacs to pillage the lake.

This needs to be put to an end. -Mark

Wasnt it two years ago the river was open to fishing and still full of fish on opener? A real slaughter fest on opening day. Pretty much over by second day. We didn’t fish there.

The pre season river is a sore spot with many; even as I type some clown is sitting at the mouth of the river just outside the “Closed/Spawning Area” sign fishing crappies with a 1/4 oz jig and a plastic body drug on the bottom. Oblivious the fact locals are driving down in anger to check this guy out and some are even taking his picture as he flips spawning walleye after spawning walleye back over the side of the boat.

The best was about two years ago when I pulled up to the gas pumps and two rigs with boats were upset about the walleye eggs that got stuck to the boat from landing fish and how bad of a deal that was for the boat. When I asked they both admitted to fishing right next to the closed for spawning signs and how the bite was so intense other fish swam alongside and trying to take the bait form the fish being caught.

I about blew my top when I tried to explain walleye season is not open for two weeks for good reason, the river is closed for even better reasons and the bait stealing fish where not bait stealing fish but fish trying to spawn with the struggling fish being caught. What a couple of butt clowns.

Sadly we see little respect for the fisheries when it comes to guys and fishing for spawning walleye, they figure they can do it on Rainy and the Mississippi so why not here also; they tend to forget they are on a lake on the path to recovery and in a community that will never forget that fact.

I have been away from the websites for awhile but this post angers and frustrates me. Why can’t people respect a fishery??? Walleye season is two weeks away for God’s sake! I have a few years on me and have witnessed the meat hog days but this is disgusting! Enough said!