CO Kittelson reminds anglers about need to measure fish taken from Rainy Lake Ontario waters

Two men were ticketed and fined a total of $1,475 last week for possessing walleye within the prohibited slot for Rainy Lake.

On June 20, Voyageurs National Park Ranger Karl Spilde and Ranger Brown contacted Ronald Lessard of Chippewa Falls, Wis., and Nathan Lessard of Eau Claire, Wis.

The rangers found that the men had caught and kept 11 walleye with lengths that were within the prohibited slot for Rainy Lake.

On Rainy Lake, state law requires that all walleye caught on Rainy Lake that are 17 to 28 inches in length must be immediately returned to the water. A possession limit may include one walleye over 28 inches.

The fish in the men’s possession went as high as 25 inches, according to the report. Only one fish was alive and able to be returned to the water. Seven of the fish had been cleaned and the remains were found near a fish cleaning board.

The men stated that they had caught the fish from the shore of their campsite on Rainy Lake, said the report.

Meanwhile, Conservation Officer Darrin Kittelson notes that he is seeing fish kept outside the possession limits more frequently.

He also reminds Rainy Lake anglers traveling from Ontario waters that officials must be able to measure fish caught in Canada and brought into the U.S.

The law requires that walleye legally taken from Ontario waters within the above length limits may be possessed with documented proof of fishing on Ontario waters of Rainy Lake. Proof of fishing may be documentation of a property or residence on Ontario waters of Rainy Lake or a dated receipt from an Ontario Rainy Lake resort.

Kittelson said the requirement stems from the Ontario Rainy Lake walleye length limit allowing an additional one-quarter inch.

Kittelson suggests one of the following: anglers keep fish the last day of their visit to Ontario and bring the fish back whole; gut and gill fish and keep them on ice; keep fish whole in a fish basket in the water.