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Mille Lacs Lake Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 4, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Minnesota's walleye legend: 132,000 acres of reefs, mud flats and the state's most storied ice fishery.

4/5
Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.
Gauge
10.38 ft
Air / High
65 / 67 F
Wind
NNE 9 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 05284000, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Tap a marker for today's tip
Friday
4
September 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

4/5Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Mille Lacs Lake sits in the sweet spot of the season: active fish and workable weather. The gauge reads 10.38 ft, easing 0.07 over the week. Today brings a mixed sky, wind NNE around 9 mph, falling pressure near 1012 hPa and a high of 67. Water sits around 66 F for the season (estimated). With the last quarter, the solunar majors run 5:39 AM-7:39 AM and 5:39 PM-7:39 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

WalleyeExcellent

Jig and minnow on rock reefs and points; the evening bite on wind-blown shores is the one to plan around.

Smallmouth bassExcellent

Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Northern pikeExcellent

Weedline spinnerbaits, spoons and jerkbaits; bays with fresh green weed hold the active fish.

Yellow perchGood

Drifting flats and weed edges with small jigs tipped with bait.

Tomorrow: Similar at 69 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 5, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings from MILLE LACS LAKE NR GARRISON, MN.

Gauge height, last 30 days

USGS gauge 05284000.

10.3110.4710.6310.38 ft08/0508/1508/2509/04

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp65 F
High / Low67 / 59 F
WindNNE 9-9 mph
Pressure1011.6 hPa, falling
Sky / Rain49% cloud, 27%
Sunrise / Sunset06:39 / 19:47
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~66 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Showers, 67/59 F, wind 16 mph, rain 27%

Fair or better. A 16 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

The species that matter on Mille Lacs Lake: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Walleye illustration

Walleye

Best: May-Jun, Oct

The glass-eyed prize of northern lakes. Low light, wind-blown structure and live bait. Jig and minnow on rock reefs and points; the evening bite on wind-blown shores is the one to plan around.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: May-Oct

Current and rock. Finds gravel flats, boulders and drop-offs, and fights far above its weight. Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Northern pike illustration

Northern pike

Best: spring, early winter

The ambush predator of weedbeds and cabbage edges. Aggressive, big and always worth a wire leader. Weedline spinnerbaits, spoons and jerkbaits; bays with fresh green weed hold the active fish.

Yellow perch illustration

Yellow perch

Good most of the year

The great lakes and northern panfish staple. Schools tight to bottom; where you catch one there are fifty. Drifting flats and weed edges with small jigs tipped with bait.

When to come: the Mille Lacs Lake calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Walleye
Smallmouth bass
Northern pike
Yellow perch
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 66 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~66 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Mille Lacs Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Walleye led the card at good. High of 74 F, wind to 23 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Walleye led the card at excellent. High of 71 F, wind to 11 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Walleye led the card at excellent. High of 71 F, wind to 14 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used to send you this water's report each week. No spam, ever.

Before you go

License

Minnesota requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Walleye rules change annually under state-tribal management (often catch-and-release or narrow slots): always confirm current MDNR regs. Smallmouth: catch-and-release outside a short harvest window. Northern pike and perch under statewide rules.

Access

Public ramps ring the lake: Garrison, Wigwam Bay, Isle, Cove Bay. Launch boats out of Garrison and Isle; hundreds of ice-house rentals in winter.

About this water

132,516 acres, Mille Lacs/Aitkin/Crow Wing counties, MN. Natural lake, max depth 42 ft. Co-managed by Minnesota and the Mille Lacs Band under treaty rights.

Fishing Mille Lacs Lake: the full guide

The big pond

Mille Lacs is Minnesota's second-largest lake and its most famous walleye water: a nearly round 132,000-acre bowl with no islands to hide behind, structured instead by gravel reefs, sand breaks and the legendary offshore "mud flats" that hold summer walleye like magnets. It is also, discreetly, one of the best trophy smallmouth lakes in the world and a first-class ice fishery for everything that swims here.

Working the flats and reefs

Classic Mille Lacs: spring walleye on the shoreline breaks and gravel with jigs and shiners; summer fish out on the mud flats (Backer, Seguchie, the Alley) on leeches and crawlers behind bottom bouncers, or trolled cranks at night over the tops; fall stacking on the deep rock reefs. The evening bite rules: this lake made "walleye chop" a phrase. Smallmouth own the boulder fields: swimbaits and topwater around Indian Point and the north-end rock.

Rules that move

Mille Lacs walleye regulations change season to season under the state-tribal management system: some seasons are catch-and-release only, others allow a fish. Check the current MDNR rules before you keep anything. The launch-boat fleet (Garrison, Isle) is a great way to learn the flats, and the winter ice-house cities are an experience of their own.

Common questions

Can I keep a walleye on Mille Lacs?

Depends on the season: harvest rules are set annually (sometimes catch-and-release only, sometimes one fish in a slot). The rules on the day you fish are what count: check MDNR before the trip.

What are the "mud flats"?

Raised offshore plateaus of soft bottom, 18-28 ft on top, surrounded by deeper water: insect factories that concentrate summer walleye. There are dozens, all named, all mapped: fish the edges at dawn and the tops in the wind.

Is the smallmouth fishing really world-class?

Yes: catch-and-release management built a trophy population, and 20-inch fish are a daily possibility on the rock. Several national outlets now rank it among the best smallmouth waters anywhere.

Is fishing good at Mille Lacs Lake right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Nearby waters

Gull Lake36 miGrindstone Lake37 miLeech Lake50 miSaint Croix River75 miLake Winnibigoshish87 miCass Lake91 mi
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