UPDATE:  Boy River Egg-Take 2023

The trap operated from 4/26/2023 – 5/3/2023 and approximately 450 quarts of eggs were taken from the Boy River walleye. Unmarked walleye fry were distributed as follows: Child received 79,650, Girl received 137,700 and Woman received 978,750.

Woman Lake Gill Net Assessment and Electrofishing Results – 2023

The fall electrofishing survey conducted on the night of October 7, 2023 for young-of-the-year (yoy) walleye had a low capture rate of 9.1 per hour. The capture rate in 2022 was 105 per hour. The mean length in 2022 was 5.96 inches and this year was 6.5 inches (still good growth). Low numbers could have resulted from suppression (competition) by the strong 2022 year class or perhaps zebra mussels too. We will need to see what happens over the next few years.

The MNDNR Girl Lake Fish Passage project is still alive. The project location at the Boy River outlet is just inside the Chippewa National Forest boundary, and the US Forest Service has Resource Advisory Committee (RAC) funding available. This type of project qualifies for the funding. The DNR plan is to apply for RAC funds to cover the 10% Conservation Partner’s Legacy Grant (CPL) match, then apply for CPL to cover the rest. The RAC decision will determine if  a 10% cash match from other sources is also required or not, and the DNR will know the answer to that prior to the CPL application.