FISHING GUIDE · MINNESOTA

Mille Lacs Lake Fishing Guide

Mille Lacs is famous for walleye, with very high catch rates. It is also a trophy lake for smallmouth bass, muskie and northern pike. In winter it is one of Minnesota's busiest ice fishing lakes.

📍 Central Minnesota, about 1.5 to 2 hours north of Minneapolis-St. Paul. Towns: Garrison, Isle, Onamia, Wahkon.

Map: spots, ramps and marinas

★ Fishing hot spot · ● Boat ramp · ● Marina · ▭ Protected area (solid red = no fishing, dashed = fishing with rules)

Open the full Upper Midwest Lakes map →

Quick facts

About 132,516 acres (207 square miles).
Minnesota's second-largest inland lake.
Walleye harvest is shared with Ojibwe tribes under treaty rights. The 2026 state share is 105,300 pounds.
Rules change for the winter season (starts Dec. 1) and the open water season (starts in May).

What you can catch

walleye
High catch rates. Strict size and bag rules that change often.
smallmouth bass
Trophy fish in summer around rocks and boulders.
muskellunge
Trophy muskie fishing in summer.
northern pike
Trophy pike in winter and summer.
yellow perch
Popular through the ice. Look where sand turns to mud.
tullibee (cisco)
Caught through the ice in winter.

Month by month

January	Ice fishing. Walleye on the edges of the main-basin mud flats. Use small spoons tipped with a minnow head.
February	Ice walleye on mud flat edges all day, on rock reefs at dawn and dusk. Perch and tullibee too. Check season end dates.
March	Late ice. Check DNR rules: walleye and bass seasons are closed after winter until the May opener.
April	Ice-out month. Walleye and bass seasons are closed. Get ready for the May opener.
May	Walleye opener. Fish are shallow; pitch jigs with shiners on rocky shores, points and humps. Bass open with catch-and-release first.
June	Walleye move to main-lake mud flats and gravel bars. Troll live-bait rigs, bottom bouncers and crawler harnesses.
July	Walleye sit in the basin by day and on structure in the evening. Troll stickbaits or spinner rigs on lead-core.
August	Walleye on shallow rock piles as crayfish molt. Smallmouth on isolated boulders. Muskie season in full swing.
September	Walleye on secondary breaks and weedlines. Smallmouth on rocks.
October	Walleye move to shallow rock piles. Use jigs with minnows and go slow.
November	Late fall walleye on shallow rocks. Open water season ends Nov. 30.
December	Winter season starts Dec. 1. Early ice walleye on points, humps and drop-offs in 10 to 12 feet.

Tips

Check the DNR Mille Lacs page before every trip. Walleye rules change each season.
The state can switch to catch-and-release for part of the year if harvest runs high.
On the ice, hole-hop along mud flat edges ("ice trolling") to find moving walleye.
Glow and UV colors often work well in Mille Lacs' clear water.
Report tagged fish to the DNR (fish.tags@state.mn.us).

Rules and license

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · Official rules page ↗

Mille Lacs walleye rules change every year and every season. Always check the DNR page.
2026 open water: 3 walleye per day. All kept walleye must be 17 inches or longer, with only one over 20 inches. In place from the May 9 opener through Nov. 30, 2026.
The DNR may go to catch-and-release for part of the season if harvest threatens to go well over the state share.
Winter season rules start Dec. 1 and are set separately (winter 2025-26 limit was also 3 walleye).
Bass, northern pike, perch and night-fishing rules on Mille Lacs are special and differ from statewide rules.

Rules change. Always check the official page before you fish.

Boat ramps and marinas

The map above shows 7 boat ramps and 0 marinas from OpenStreetMap. Tap any dot for directions.

Sources

Checked October 2026. BigJoe does not invent facts: every number on this page comes from the sources listed above.