West Metro Area Fisheries Office

Notices:

Courthouse & Christmas Lakes Trout Stocked For 2013 Open-Water Season

For the 2013 open-water trout season in local lakes (May 11-October 31), Courthouse Lake (Chaska) received its yearling rainbow trout quota of 3,000 fish and Christmas Lake (Greenwood-Shorewood) got its 1,000-fish yearling rainbow trout quota.  Expecected average sizes are 0.39 lb (Courthouse) and 0.51 lb (Christmas). Fish remaining from previous stockings in these two lakes, as well as in Little Long Lake (Minnetrista), will also be be available once the season opens.

See our Local Trout Fishing Page for more details on our trout-fishing management. Note: those fishing Christmas Lake could face limited parking spots, craft inspections, and/or overnight access closure. Contact City of Shorewood for details/answers about Christmas Lake access operations.

2013 Walleye Stockings-- Springtime Fry, Fall Fingerlings

Lakes stocked by DNR Fisheries with walleye fry in spring 2013, by county: Carver-- Eagle, Waconia; Scott-- Cedar.

Lakes planned for DNR (or DNR-contracted private vendor) walleye fingerling stockings in fall 2013:  Carver-- Lotus; Hennepin-- Calhoun, Cedar, Eagle, Harriet, Independence, Long, Medicine, Nokomis; Scott-- Fish, Prior (Upper and Lower basins), Spring.

2012-13 Low Oxygen ("Winterkill") Evidence From Shallow Lakes, Bays, Ponds, and Streams

Staff checking lake oxygen levels in mid-March 2013 found some low readings in several shallow, fertile lakes. They were-- Carver County: Swede; Hennepin County: Duck, Snelling, and Staring (Starring). Post-ice-out corroborating evidence has come in the form of fish carcass sightings from Hennepin County stormwater ponds, Minnehaha Creek, Jeffers Pond (Scott County), and a bay of Fish Lake- Scott Co. (April 28-30 reports).

Such conditions, brought on by persistent ice cover during the 2012-13 winter, has induced fish mortality in some lakes, bays, or stream sections lacking depth and conditions allowing re-oxygenation.  There will likely be winterkill evidence where these die-offs have occurred before.

For more information on the winterkill phenomenon, check our Winterkills page.

Lake Minnetonka Muskie Study-- Please Report Tagged and Fin-Clipped Fish

MN-DNR, Muskies, Inc. Twin Cities Chapter, and Hugh C. Becker Foundation began a project on Lake Minnetonka to evaluate muskellunge (muskie) stocking effectiveness. Since 2009, muskie have been stocked with an individually numbered yellow tag near the dorsal fin. If you catch a tagged muskie that you plan to release, please leave the tag in the fish but record the 6-digit tag number, date caught, lake name, fish species, and fish length via the internet tag-report form or to our office's phone, email, or address (above).  Fall 2012 update:  1,200 fingerlings and 215 yearlings were stocked in November.   Muskie Study Details

West Metro Fisheries Office Now In Shakopee

Our office is in the Blue Lake Business Center on Scott Co. Hwy. 101 (between US Hwy 169 and Valleyfair amusement park). We share space with two other MN DNR disciplines (Parks & Trails, Wildlife) and Conservation Corps Minnesota-Iowa . No license or registration services are available.  If you plan to visit in person, we recommend you contact us beforehand to ensure staff are available. Because we're a small field-oriented office with a part-time receptionist, drop-in visitors could find their contact person gone or a locked building.