West Metro Area Fisheries

7050 Highway 101 East, Suite 100
Shakopee 55379
952-496-4141
[email protected]

Anglers who fish in Carver, Hennepin and Scott counties benefit from the management, habitat and oversight work of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources' West Metro area fisheries staff.

License Dollars At Work logo and link to pageArea Fisheries Supervisor Daryl Ellison and a staff of five full-time and one part-time employee manage 101 fishing lakes and 108 miles of rivers and streams. These waters include popular fishing destinations such as Lake Minnetonka, the Minneapolis Chain of Lakes and two large rivers – the Minnesota and Mississippi.

What We Do
West Metro fisheries staff strip eggs from a female muskellunge for the statewide muskie stocking program.

West Metro fisheries staff strip eggs from a female muskellunge for the statewide muskie stocking program.

  • Produce up to 1.3 million muskellunge and tiger muskellunge eggs per year for statewide stocking needs.
  • Stock walleye, muskellunge and trout in 35 lakes in the western metropolitan area.
  • Manage the Fishing in the Neighborhood Program (FiN) to introduce more city and suburban residents to fishing by providing close-to-home angling on 26 small lakes and ponds by stocking more than 20,000 catchable-sized fish each year.
  • FiN staff participated in over 50 aquatic education events in 2016, teaching more than 5,000 youth, seniors and disabled citizens about angling and local aquatic resources. Also worked with local units of government and fishing groups in 2015-16 to construct two fishing piers and one shore-fishing structure.
  • Acquire display fish and assist maintaining the aquatic displays at the Minnesota State Fair.
  • Conduct research studies on muskellunge survival, walleye abundance trends and walleye stocking strategies.
Area Notes & Updates

Updated: 10/12/2018

Trout stocked for last of 2018 open-water season (lakes)

Courthouse Lake (Chaska) and Quarry Lake (Shakopee) received their planned rainbow trout quotas for the fall portion of the open-water fishing season-- 200 trout for Courthouse and 2,000 trout for Quarry.  Average size was 0.62 lb each, and stocking took place October 9, slightly earlier than the usual date range.  The season remains open until 11 pm October 31.

Any surviving trout will be available for the Winter Season Opener on January 12, 2019.  The planned winter-quota stockings of Courthouse Lake, Quarry Lake, and Little Long Lake will take place before the Winter Opener.  Christmas Lake was last stocked with yearling rainbow trout in 2016, so opportunites since 2018 are limited to what fish might still be surviving.

See our Trout waters page for more details about local trout-fishing management and opportunities.

Local seasonal fish kills

Reports of dead fish have occurred during throughout 2018 because of a long winter, rapid water warm-ups and persistently warm summer and fall temperatures. During open-water season 2018, the timings, numbers, fish species affected, and lake conditions are consistent with seasonal, bacterial-related causes limited to fish and sometimes amphibians.  Water conditions related to high temperatures and lower oxygen were also present, creating conditions that can prompt fish illnesses and deaths. Lakes with such observations or reports received were:

  • Carver County: Burandt, Eagle, Hydes, Minnewashta, Reitz, Riley, Waconia
  • Hennepin County: Eagle-Pike, Gleason, Minnetonka, Nokomis, Parkers, Weaver
  • Scott County: Cedar, Fish (Aeromanas bacterial cause confirmed in May 2018), Prior, Spring (columnaris bacterial disease confirmed in September 2018), Thole

Lake Minnetonka muskie study: Please report tagged, 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 (MN DNR West Metro Fisheries Office main web page).  Study Details (includes Lake Minnetonka summary through August 2018)

West Metro Fisheries office location

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 sales or registration/titling services are available, and we have no hatchery or live fish displays for tours.If you'd like to visit us in person, we recommend you contact us beforehand to ensure staff will be here. Because we're a small, field-oriented office, drop-in visitors could find no available help.

Fisheries info for the west metro area

Related contacts

  • Aquatic Plant Management: Questions and Permits 651-259-5831 (ask for Aquatic Plant Mgt. staff)
  • Fish and Wildlife Kills: Minnesota Duty Officer 651-649-5451 / 1-800-422-0798
Area Staff

Contact our West Metro staff

Slide text left for phones & emails

Name
Position
Phone
Email
Daryl EllisonArea Supervisor952-496-4141, Ext. 222[email protected]
Taylor PolomisAssistant Area Supervisor952-496-4141, Ext. 223[email protected]
Matt PetersenFishing in the Neighborhood952-496-4141, Ext. 226[email protected]
Mario TravalineFishing in the Neighborhood952-496-4141, Ext. 225[email protected]
Kristan MaccaroniFisheries Specialist952-496-4141, Ext. 224[email protected]
Jason HarrisFisheries Specialist952-496-4141, Ext. 227[email protected]
Lori SniderOffice Administrative Specialist952-496-4141, Ext. 221[email protected]
Keegan LundAquatic Invasive Species Specialist651-259-5828[email protected]