Bemidji area fisheries staff perform management, habitat and oversight work for 113 fishing lakes and 220 miles of rivers and streams in Beltrami, Clearwater, northern Cass and northern Hubbard counties.
Popular area waters are Upper Red Lake, Cass Lake, Lake Bemidji and the lakes in Itasca State Park.
- News & notices
What can I catch?
Wondering what fish you can catch and when you can catch them? Seasons vary for different fish so use our fishing season listing to find out.
Get started fishing
We can help you get started fishing. Check out our tips and links to information on how to fish, filleting fish, frying fish and more.
- Fishing opportunities
Outlooks
Area lakes by county
Learn to fish
Fishing piers & boat ramps by county
- Resources
- Lake management planning
Lakes scheduled for 2024
People who want to discuss the individual fisheries listed below must call or email this area fisheries office during February. Your observations and comments will be considered as updates begin on these fisheries lake management plans.
Comments from people interested in the health and quality of Minnesota’s fisheries are a critical part of the DNR’s fisheries lake management planning process. These plans establish fisheries management goals and objectives for each lake and guide the work fisheries biologists do each year.
Clicking lake links below take you to LakeFinder, where you can find various lake specific information, including past fisheries surveys. To submit input or learn more about each lake’s management plan, please contact this area office.
Lake (nearest city) County Bemidji Beltrami Big Bass Beltrami Plantagenet Beltrami How you can help
Comments about preferred experiences, observations or general concerns about the fishery – rather than suggestions on how DNR might accomplish a specific goal or objective – are the most helpful kinds of input.
Some questions to consider when formulating input could include:
- What kind of fishing experience are you looking for?
- Are there fish habitat concerns you’d like to share?
- What species of fish are most important to you?
- Do you like catching fewer big fish or a lot of smaller fish?
Individuals as well as representatives of lake associations, outdoors groups, conservations organizations and local units of government are encouraged to comment.
- Talk with us
Bemidji staff
Slide text left for phones & emails
Name
Position
Phone
Email
Edie Evarts Area supervisor 218-308-2330 [email protected] Andy Thompson Assistant area supervisor 218-308-2339 [email protected] Andrew Wiering Fisheries specialist 218-308-2339 [email protected] Tony Kennedy Large lake specialist 218-308-2339 [email protected] Ethan Karppinen Fisheries specialist 218-308-2339 [email protected] Brian Herwig Research specialist 218-308-2339 [email protected] Kristen Patterson Research specialist 218-308-2334 [email protected] Robert Ekstrom Aquatic habitat specialist 218-308-2339 [email protected]