Mille Lacs Lake

Mille Lacs lake

A central Minnesota gem

This 132,516 acre-lake covers 207 square miles and is Minnesota's second-largest inland lake. Located just an 1½ to 2 hours from the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area, Mille Lacs provides a quick opening for a fun weekend getaway.

Mille Lacs Lake is best known for its phenomenal walleye catch rates but also offers several other trophy fishing opportunities. During the winter, venture out on the lake for a fast-paced walleye bite, catch a few tullibee or fish for some trophy northern pike. During the summer, you may hook into a trophy smallmouth bass, muskellunge or northern pike.

A slide from one of the featured webinars

Fisheries 101 for Mille Lacs Lake

A series of four webinars that explore, explain and discuss the importance of productivity, treaties, tribal rights, surveys, assessments and angler surveys on Mille Lacs Lake.

Watch the webinars »

A creel clerk collecting information on an angler's catch

Angler fishing reports

Take a look at the type of fish, the number caught by anglers and season-to-date cumulative totals on Mille Lacs Lake. You'll also find information on why this survey is needed.

See the numbers »

People splashing in the water on a beach at Mille Lacs Lake

Final management plan adopted

Find out how this five-year plan synthesizes ecological, economic, political and sociocultural information to manage Minnesota's second-largest lake.

View the plan »

Close-up of Mille Lacs Lake area on a road map

Citizen advisory committee

Follow the activities of the Mille Lacs Lake fisheries advisory committee, a group of citizens that advises the DNR on issues that are relevant to lake management.

Committee activity »

Angler with a walleye

Fishing regulations

Mille Lacs Lake has special fishing regulations that change for the winter season, which begins Dec. 1, and the open water season, which begins each May.

Current & upcoming regulations »

Tags sticking out of near the top fin of a fish

Report a tagged fish

You might catch a fish with one or more tags sticking out near the fin on its back. If you do, help us keep track of the fish we've tagged.

Report your fish »

Explore Minnesota Mille Lacs Lake tourism logo

#Do The Lake

Mille Lacs Lake and its surrounding communities offer visitors great fishing and a whole lot more.

Plan your trip »

Meeting room table

Fisheries technical committee

Agendas and minutes from recent meetings of the 1837 ceded territory's fisheries technical committee, which consists of managers and scientists from the state and Ojibwe bands.

View committee documents »

Tags sticking out of near the top fin of a fish

Court decisions & legal information

A list of official court documents that stipulate the exercise of Ojibwe treaty rights in the 1837 ceeded territory of Minnesota.

View court documents »

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