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bwcadreamer

03/30/2007 06:35PM

Does anyone know if there have been any studies in recent years involving fish populations in The BWCA?Seems like some go back as far as The 60's.

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Trygve

03/30/2007 07:01PM

I suppose they could look at all the DNR survey as a whole and figure it out.

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The Great Outdoors

03/30/2007 10:18PM

What lakes & species of fish are you interested in??

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bwcadreamer

03/30/2007 10:26PM

Overall walleye populations.

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The Great Outdoors

03/30/2007 10:36PM

Give me the names of some lakes, and what end of the BWCA you're entering from (Grand Marais or Ely) I may be able to help you off the top of my head tonight, or later tomorrow, if I need to consult someone:)

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The Great Outdoors

03/30/2007 10:38PM

PS-Or if taking a trip, let me know the route and I can give you a list of species.

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bwcadreamer

03/30/2007 11:07PM

Kawishiwi,Polly,Koma,and Malberg interest me off hand

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EPFD217

03/30/2007 11:36PM

I caught walleyes in all of the above during mid july last year. All were caught by trolling crankbaits and the fish were on the outside of the weededge of the curly pondweed.

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guest

Guest Paddler

03/31/2007 11:31PM

buddy caught a 32" walley on Malberg in June 2006.

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Singingloon

04/01/2007 01:06PM

Malberg is a great lake to fish, we had luck with walleyes, NP and smallies. Malberg has a good deal of shoreline, lots of little bays, and the rapids of the Kawishiwi were fruitful as well.

"We need to witness our own limits transgressed" -THOREAU

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marmsey

04/16/2007 04:59PM

The best online source I've found is the MN Lake Finder. Some of the studies are dated, not all of the smaller lakes are list but still better than going in blind.

http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/lakefind/index.html

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crookedpaddler

04/18/2007 04:30PM

As a former outfitter/guide in the bwca, I believe that I have looked at almost everyone of the DNR's fish studies and data on the lakes in the BWCA. I have noticed that a majority of the surveys were done in the 1960's. I have been given a couple of reasons for this by fisheries employees. The main reason is that the traps that are utilized are large and dangerous to use in a canoe. The dates pretty while well correspond with ban on motors and flights into the BWCA. A second reason given is that it is much more costly in man hours to complete the surveys, as fisheries biologist may have to paddle multiple days to a specific lake hauling the equipment necessary to do the survey. In addition the surveys take several days to complete to get accurate data.

If you look at the data, though you will find a lake classification. One of the things that I did was look for lakes outside of the BWCA that had the same classification. This would allow me to look at the trends that were occurring on similar lakes that have been surveyed much more recently.

I do believe that there is a long term solution to this issue and it has to do with creating a BWCA stamp for fishing within the BWCA. If a stamp closed $7-$10 dollars and was required of all anglers fishing within the BWCA, it would not be unreasonable to expect in the neighborhood of $500,000 to be available for the more costly surveys to be done on interior lakes and thus have better management of those fisheries. As an angler who fishes almost exclusively within the wilderness I sure would not mind paying an extra $10/year to have better fishing.

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bwcadreamer

04/18/2007 08:31PM

I second the stamp Idea.

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Jay

04/13/2008 08:02PM

I have a hard time trusting the politicians to do what is promised with the money. I figure any extra fees will end up funding a cultural sensitivity training center in Duluth.

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arctic

04/13/2008 08:54PM

Actually, DNR fisheries folks access BWCA lakes by float plane to do their surveys. Some of the more popular lakes are surveyed every few years, but many more haven't been surveyed in decades.

On the more remote lakes, where angling pressure is of little consequence, it is amazing to see how similar the survey results are over time. The physical and biological factors influencing the fishery are usually pretty stable.

I would also like to see a BWCA fishing stamp, as well as reduced bag limits and the focus on trophy fisheries on some waters.

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