By Dick Herfndahl, Water & Woods

As of July 9 Mille Lacs Lake has a new slot limit in place for the remainder of the open water walleye season. This was due to a higher walleye kill than was anticipated by the DNR. It has installed a 14- to 16-inch slot limit with one fish over 28 inches allowed. The four-fish bag limit will still be in effect under the new regulations.

This is probably not good news for Mille Lacs walleye fishermen but reports indicate that most of the fish being caught in what has been considered a &8220;banner year&8221; for walleyes on the lake are in the 16-17 inch class. The good bite has kept a higher number of fishermen coming to the lake than at the same time in other years. The higher water temperatures have been attributed to the higher walleye hooking mortality rate.

It&8217;s becoming harder and harder to keep track of all the different regulations that are in place for the many lakes we have in our state. One year your lake may be just fine and the next year you may arrive at the lake to find it deemed &8220;Experimental&8221; and the rules have changed. This is why you should always read the signs that are posted at all public accesses in our state.

There are regulations to increase the walleye population on some lakes and there are regulations to increase the average size of pike on other lakes. There are also a few lakes that don&8217;t allow you to keep any bass. Then there are some lakes that do not allow spearing because of the muskie population and the fear of killing one of them by mistake. On Spider Lake spearing has been banned and a slot limit for northern pike has also been put in place. I have seen signs (graffiti) of at least one disgruntled spearing advocate and pike fisherman at the access that wasn&8217;t very fond of either rule.

If these regulations can increase the fish population and bring back the average size of the fish then it will be worth it. I don&8217;t know how many of these smaller lakes that have what are called &8220;experimental slot limits&8221; on pike have ever relaxed them and gone back to the original regulations. It seems that once they are in place they seem to stay there.

Locally there have been quite a few walleye being caught in the channel below the dam on Fountain Lake. The fishermen have been lining the bank early in the morning seeking out the walleyes. When they are feeding the catching is good and when they turn off you can usually pack it in and head for home. Walleye are a school fish, like the crappie and if you are there when they are feeding &8220;life is good.&8221;

The city is doing a little &8220;cosmetic surgery&8221; on Fountain Lake this week. Treating the algae on the lake has been going on for many years and in case you haven&8217;t noticed, it does nothing to improve the water quality. I would hope that our extra tax dollars which are designated for cleaning up our watershed would be spent for that and not on temporary cosmetic &8220;quick fixes.&8221;

When we installed the aerators on Fountain Lake years ago it was a big step in making sure that game fish would survive in the lake. The Fountain Lake Sportsman&8217;s Club was instrumental in not only the aerators but also the stocking of walleye in the lake. We have &8220;come a long ways baby&8221; from the days when thousands of dead fish lined the shores of the lake almost every spring. I can still remember the stench that came from the lake almost every year after ice-out.

The District Watershed Board has no easy task and it will take some time before there are visible results. Everyone can do their part to help with our water cleanup. If you live on one of our lakes be careful when using chemicals on your lawn and don&8216;t mow clippings into the lake. For those that don&8217;t live on a lake a task as simple as using a little caution when mowing your lawn can be a help to our water quality. Mow so that the clippings are blown toward the lawn instead of into the street and don&8216;t dump chemicals, used motor oil, anti-freeze or solvents into the storm sewers. These are just a few common sense things that you can do to help our water clarity.

Until next time, good fishin&8217;, play safe and enjoy the outdoors.

Remember to keep the troops that are serving our country today in your thoughts and prayers.

Here are a few fishing reports from around the state:

SAINT PETER &8212; The cats are biting on the Minnesota River on cut bait and big suckers. We had some nice ones caught out here in the past few days, a 40# and a 36#. The sunnies are biting on German Lake; they are about 3 to the pound. On East Jefferson, the northerns are biting on spoons and plugs. The walleyes are biting on Washington Lake on the 2nd point casting stick baits early in the morning or late at night.

SOUTH CENTRAL MINNESOTA &8212; Lake Tetonka has been doing well, crappies near the beach, northerns in the bay near the DNR and walleye near the rock pile close to the buoys. German and Jefferson are doing well at giving up sunnies and let&8217;s not forget the good old bullhead. Clear Lake in Waseca is doing well with crappies and sunnies.

ELY &8212; The hot weather has done little to slow the fishing action here. Actually the opposite is true. We&8217;re experiencing the hottest action since spring. Walleyes seem to be cooperating for those who are putting the effort out.

The big walleyes seem to be showing up everywhere.