Minnesota
Dokken: Walleyes might be prized in Minnesota and North Dakota, but not in this Idaho lake
Now here’s something you’ll never see in Minnesota or North Dakota.
I came across a story from the Idaho Statesman newspaper the other day about a walleye “invasion” in Lake Lowell, a southwestern Idaho lake known for its largemouth bass fishing.
As a result of the unwanted influx, Idaho’s Fish and Game department is asking anglers to have at it with the walleyes, the Idaho Statesman reported. No limits; instead, anglers should “catch, kill and keep” every walleye they catch.
The fish apparently were illegally introduced by a fisherman in 2022, the Statesman reported, and may “be competing and taking food from largemouth bass.” The population has “advanced quickly” since 2022, fisheries biologist Art Butts told the newspaper.
“Idaho and walleye just aren’t a good match in most places,” the newspaper said, citing a news release from Idaho Fish and Game.
“Just because there’s places in the Midwest that do really good with walleye, and they haven’t impacted largemouth bass … that doesn’t mean that they’re not going to have an impact here,” Butts told the Statesman.
Given the mindset of many anglers in Minnesota and North Dakota, where “if it’s not a walleye, it’s not a fish” is a common perception, it might be hard to grasp the concept of walleyes being an undesirable species.
But just like any invasive species, walleyes can have a big-time impact on the ecology of lakes and rivers where they don’t belong. And once the genie’s out of the bottle, so to speak, reversing the impact is difficult, if not impossible.
That’s no different than any other invasive species, whether it’s zebra mussels or jumping carp.
As the Statesman reported, Idaho’s Fish and Game is encouraging anglers to target walleyes, even though it probably won’t fix the problem.
As the old saying goes: When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.
“We know that angling by itself is probably not going to do much for the population,” Butts says in the article. “Walleye are considered one of the best-eating fish in freshwater, and so while we’ve got this problem, let’s get the word out to folks that might be interested in fishing for them.
“Here’s a place where you … have a good opportunity to do that.”
This isn’t the first time fisheries managers have raised the alarm about walleyes, of course. The Columbia River has long had a population of unwanted walleyes, to the detriment of native salmon species, and now has a reputation as a trophy walleye fishery. As with Lake Lowell in Idaho, there’s no size or bag limit on walleyes in the Columbia River.
There have been other instances of unwanted game fish species, as well, and not just walleyes. According to the National Park Service, non-native lake trout were discovered in Wyoming’s Yellowstone Lake in 1994. Since then, millions of lake trout have been removed from Yellowstone Lake through gillnetting, in an effort to lower the population and lessen the negative impact on native cutthroat trout. Other techniques, such as spreading plant-based pellets over lake trout spawning sites to suffocate the eggs,
also are being explored, the NPS said.
Lake trout are probably my favorite fish to catch, and walleyes are right up there. Just goes to show, I guess – one angler’s prize is another angler’s problem.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll probably say it again:
There’s something about watching a bobber that just never gets old.
I thought about that again last weekend, when I got the chance to spend a few hours walleye fishing on Devils Lake.
My fishing partners had been over there a few days already and had done well dunking leeches below slip bobbers in about 15 feet of water, give or take, the previous two mornings. Eater-size fish, mostly, with their biggest stretching the tape at 19½ inches.
That fish went back in the lake to hopefully make more anglers’ bobbers sink sometime down the road.
Expecting a spot to produce walleyes three days in a row might be a stretch, especially in a location as small as this particular area, but we decided to give it a few hours anyway.
Boat traffic certainly wouldn’t be a problem. Even though it was a holiday weekend, I was struck by how quiet the lake was – at least in the area where we were fishing. We didn’t see more than a handful of boats the whole time.
Not that I’m complaining, mind you.
The action was considerably slower than what my fishing partners had experienced the previous two days – just my luck – but we still managed to put three eaters in the box during our short time on the water.
I had the pleasure of watching my bobber sink to a 17-inch walleye.
I’ll take fish like that any day of the week. And if getting to watch a bobber sink is part of the deal, all the better.
Jean Marie (Bee) Sumner died Friday, October 24, 2025 at her home in Rockport, Texas. After facing chronic lymphocytic leukemia for many years, her body is finally at peace.
Jean was born December 21, 1952 in Plum City, Wisconsin to Kenny and Pat Bee. She grew up in Embarrass, Minnesota and graduated from Virginia High School in 1971.
She married Steve Sumner on February 14, 1987 in Duluth. Jean received her B.Acc. from the University of Minnesota Duluth in 1981 and worked at Wells Fargo until her retirement in 2006 when she moved to The Villages, FL.
Jean and Steve loved to travel and spent many weeks in Mexico and the Caribbean. Most recently she spent her winters in Yuma, AZ and last winter bought a home in Rockport, TX. In the summer, she would return to Embarrass.
She is survived by her daughters Leslie (Brad) Brunfelt, Duluth, MN; Kristen (John) Peek, Orlando, FL; Amy (Dennis) Christopherson, Arkansaw, WI; stepson Jason Sumner; bonus daughter Julie Sumner. Grandchildren Emily and Sydney Hanna, Ben and Aaron Fulford, Tabitha (Cody) Strzyzykowski, Matthew Sumner, Miranda, Robert, and Alice Christopherson. Great Grandchildren, Elizabeth and Mackenzie Strzyzykowski. Siblings Linda (Duane) Henry, Lacey, WA; Ann Lamppa, Virginia, MN; Jodi (Perry) Kronenbush, Rochester, MN; Chuck (Patty) Bee, Tower, MN. Many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends who loved her dearly. Partner, Bob Schroeder and dog, Sassy.
She is preceded in death by her parents and parents in-law, her husband of 34 years, Steve Sumner; son Travis Nevala, and brother-in-law, Lon Lamppa.
A celebration of life will be held at Timber Hall in Embarrass, MN on Wednesday, November 19, 2025 at 11:00 a.m. Please share online condolences and photos at charliemarshallfuneralhomes.com.
Security changes at the Minnesota State Capitol are underway, but it will still be a couple of months before an advisory committee’s comprehensive recommendations are forwarded to the legislature.
The most notable change in the short term will be more uniform security personnel on the job, following the recent hiring of 20 new security officers.
RELATED: State Capitol security changes now in effect with more to come
“Mid to late November is when they will start their training and then be put into their own classification and be out there in the field, so to speak, and functioning as Capitol security officers and our eyes and ears that are out there,” says Lt. Col. Jeremy Geiger of the Minnesota State Patrol.
Geiger says more state troopers will also be assigned to the Capitol complex, along with a new captain to help oversee security, as well as an existing captain.
RELATED: State Patrol finalizing third-party Capitol security review after ‘naked man’ incident
Additionally, a trooper will be assigned to work with the BCA investigating threats involving the Capitol complex. There have been 50 threats investigated so far in 2025 — compared to 19 in all of 2024. 13 cases this year have been referred for prosecution.
The Advisory Committee on Capitol Security also learned more about the consulting firm hired to study Capitol complex security and to make recommendations for improvements. The Axtell Group is headed by former St. Paul Police Chief Todd Axtell. He addressed the committee to outline the work that will be done, but says it’s too soon to report any findings.
One lawmaker was concerned that the contract with the consulting firm only calls for studying four of 14 buildings that make up the Capitol complex, including the Capitol itself, the Senate Office Building, the Centennial Office Building (where House members are temporarily officing) and the Judicial Building.
“There are other buildings on the campus that obviously the public interacts with,” said Rep. Jim Nash, R-Waconia. “People who actually perhaps serve in these buildings will walk over to for a number of different reasons, and I’m wondering why have those buildings been excluded from the comprehensive, I believe it was called a comprehensive security assessment, because without those buildings in my estimation it is not comprehensive.”
Axtell said his firm’s contract only calls for a review of those four buildings, and Minnesota Public Safety Commissioner Bob Jacobson explained why. He says they are the most heavily visited buildings, and all that could be budgeted for at this point.
“This assessment, once it’s completed, does not preclude us from coming back to the legislature and asking for more funds to complete the rest of the Capitol area completely,” he said. “I think that actually would be a wise idea.”
The committee, chaired by DFL Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan, includes House and Senate members, law enforcement, and sergeant-at-arms staff from the House and Senate. They will continue meeting until they come up with recommendations for the legislature when it reconvenes in February.
RELATED: State committee discusses Capitol security in wake of attack on lawmakers
The Indiana Pacers, who are missing a whopping seven guards in their ongoing Sunday tilt against the Minnesota Timberwolves, got a bit of injury luck when Minnesota’s best player was ruled out for good in the first quarter of the action.
More news: Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton Provides New Injury Update on Himself
Per Chris Haynes of Amazon Prime and NBA TV, All-Star shooting guard Anthony Edwards has been ruled out for the rest of the contest with right hamstring tightness.
Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards is out for remainder of the game against Indiana Pacers due to right hamstring tightness.
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) October 26, 2025
At the end of the first frame, the game is knotted up at 28-28.
More news: Pacers Cut Ties with Key Guard Despite Major Injury Issues at the Position
This story will be updated…
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For more news and notes on the Indiana Pacers, visit Indiana Pacers on SI.
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