Red (Upper Red)

Upper Red Lake is a 120,000 acre lake, 60% (72,000 acres) of which is under the jurisdiction of the Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians (Red Lake Band). The remaining 40% (48,000 acres) falls under the jurisdiction of the State of Minnesota. Walleye, the primary species sought by anglers, is managed under a cooperative plan with the Red Lake Band that establishes target harvest levels that vary according to the mature female population. As a result, fishing regulations are frequently adjusted to achieve harvest levels within these targets. The 2025 Walleye gill net catch rate was 50.9 per gill net. The population is now dominated by young fish, mostly notably the 2022 year class. These young fish are ages 2 to 5 and range from 8 to 17 inches. The "one over 17 inches" size regulation will again be in place for the 2026 open water season and there will be plenty of fish right around that size (so measure carefully!). The bag limit will be five fish for the open-water season. Upper Red Lake has one of the highest Walleye catch rates in the state, particularly in May and June and an average spring weather-wise should result in a good bite. Getting away from the river mouths will help you get away from the crowds and will often result in better catch rates. Northern Pike density in Upper Red Lake is low, which is actually a desirable condition for lakes that are being managed for trophy pike. Recent ice-out trap net assessments have captured Northern Pike up to 44 inches in length with tremendous numbers of fish over 36 inches in length. The 30- to 40-inch protected slot limit (only one fish allowed over 40 inches) provides a balance of harvest opportunity for eater-sized fish as well as the chance to put a trophy on the wall. MNDNR has tagged Northern Pike during recent years. Anglers should be on the lookout for these yellow tags that are inserted at the base of the dorsal fin on the left side of the fish. Anglers who catch a tagged fish should note the tag number and are encouraged to report the catch on the DNR website. Simply do a search for "MNDNR fish tag reporting" and follow the links. Note: these tags are sometimes coated with algae that makes seeing the numbers difficult but this can be easily rubbed off to reveal the six-digit number. Yellow Perch gill net catch rate in 2025 was 7.4 fish/net. Many fish caught while Walleye fishing will be big enough to keep and there are good numbers of 10- to 11-inch fish in the population. Growth rates of Yellow Perch in Upper Red Lake are excellent; 59% of the 2025 Yellow Perch gill net catch was greater than 9 inches in length. This has resulted in some anglers putting together decent catches of nice-sized fish. Black Crappie are showing up in angler catches in greater numbers over the past few years. These fish are nearly all from the 2018 year class and average around 13 inches. There are also a few fish from some older year classes still out there that provide an opportunity to catch an impressive 14 or 15 incher that may invoke memories of the "crappie boom" that occurred in the early 2000s. However, the current bump in crappie fishing success should not be misinterpreted as a new crappie boom, but rather increased opportunity for a few bonus fish as the 2018 year class is not nearly as large as the historic 1995 year class. Anglers targeting Black Crappie will be most successful in late May and early June looking for fish in and adjacent to likely spawning areas.

Upper Red Lake is a 120,000 acre lake, 60% (72,000 acres) of which is under the jurisdiction of the Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians (Red Lake Band). The remaining 40% (48,000 acres) falls under the jurisdiction of the State of Minnesota. Walleye, the primary species sought by anglers, is managed under a cooperative plan with the Red Lake Band that establishes target harvest levels that vary according the mature female population. As a result, fishing regulations are frequently adjusted to achieve harvest levels within these targets. The 2024 Walleye gill net catch rate was 43.8 per gill net. The population is now dominated by young fish, mostly notably the 2019 and 2022 year classes. These young fish are ages 2 to 5 and range from 8 to 17 inches. The "one over 17 inches" size regulation will again be in place for the 2025 open water season and there will be plenty of fish right around that size (so measure carefully!). The bag limit will be five fish for the open-water season. Upper Red Lake has one of the highest Walleye catch rates in the state, particularly in May and June and an average spring weather-wise should result in a good bite. Getting away from the river mouths will help you get away from the crowds and will often result in better catch rates. Northern Pike density in Upper Red Lake is low, which is actually a desirable condition for lakes that are being managed for trophy pike. Recent ice-out trap net assessments have captured Northern Pike up to 44 inches in length with tremendous numbers of fish over 36 inches in length. The 30- to 40-inch protected slot limit (only one fish allowed over 40 inches) provides a balance of harvest opportunity for eater-sized fish as well as the chance to put a trophy on the wall. MNDNR has tagged Northern Pike during recent years. Anglers should be on the lookout for these yellow tags that are inserted at the base of the dorsal fin on the left side of the fish. Anglers who catch a tagged fish should note the tag number and are encouraged to report the catch on the DNR website. Simply do a search for "MNDNR fish tag reporting" and follow the links. Note: these tags are sometimes coated with algae that makes seeing the numbers difficult but this can be easily rubbed off to reveal the six-digit number. Yellow Perch gill net catch rate in 2024 was 11.5 fish/net. Many fish caught while Walleye fishing will be big enough to keep and there are good numbers of 10- to 11-inch fish in the population. Growth rates of Yellow Perch in Upper Red Lake are excellent; 47% of the 2024 Yellow Perch gill net catch was greater than 9 inches in length. This has resulted in some anglers putting together decent catches of nice-sized fish. Black Crappie are showing up in angler catches in greater numbers than they have in several years. These fish are nearly all from the 2018 year class and average around 12.5 inches. However, there are a few fish from some older year classes still out there that provide an opportunity to catch an impressive 14 or 15 incher that may invoke memories of the "crappie boom" that occurred in the early 2000s. However, the current bump in crappie fishing success should not be misinterpreted as a new crappie boom, but rather increased opportunity for a few bonus fish as the 2018 year class is not nearly as large as the historic 1995 year class. Anglers targeting Black Crappie will be most successful in late May and early June looking for fish in and adjacent to likely spawning areas.

Upper Red Lake is a 120,000 acre lake, 60% (72,000 acres) of which is under the jurisdiction of the Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians (Red Lake Band). The remaining 40% (48,000 acres) falls under the jurisdiction of the State of Minnesota. Walleye, the primary species sought by anglers, is managed under a cooperative plan with the Red Lake Band that establishes target harvest levels that vary according the mature female population. As a result, fishing regulations are frequently adjusted to achieve harvest levels within these targets. The 2023 Walleye gill net catch rate was 48.9 per gill net. The population is now dominated by young fish, mostly notably the 2019 and 2022 year classes. These young fish are ages 2 to 5 and range from 8 to 17 inches. The "one over 17 inches" size regulation will again be in place for the 2024 open water season and there will be plenty of fish right around that size (so measure carefully!). The bag limit will be three fish from Fishing Opener through June 14 and four fish starting June 15th. Walleye harvest last winter (the first half of our harvest year) was record high which necessitated the lower bag limit to start the open-water season to ensure we finish the harvest year below the harvest cap. Upper Red Lake has one of the highest Walleye catch rates in the state, particularly in May and June, though early ice-out may slow the fish down a bit. Getting away from the river mouths will help you get away from the crowds and that may be even more important this year if the fish are further post-spawn on Opener. Northern Pike density in Upper Red Lake is low, which is actually a desirable condition for lakes that are being managed for trophy pike. Recent ice-out trap net assessments have captured Northern Pike up to 44 inches in length with tremendous numbers of fish over 36 inches in length. The 30- to 40-inch protected slot limit (only one fish allowed over 40 inches) provides a balance of harvest opportunity for eater-sized fish as well as the chance to put a trophy on the wall. MNDNR has been tagging Northern Pike during the past three years. Anglers should be on the lookout for these yellow tags that are inserted at the base of the dorsal fin on the left side of the fish. Anglers who catch a tagged fish should note the tag number and are encouraged to report the catch on the DNR website. Simply do a search for "MNDNR fish tag reporting" and follow the links. Note: these tags are sometimes coated with algae that makes seeing the numbers difficult but this can be easily rubbed off to reveal the six-digit number. Yellow Perch gill net catch rate in 2023 was 29.7 fish/net, the highest in two decades. Many fish caught while Walleye fishing will be big enough to keep and there are good numbers of 10- to 11-inch fish in the population. Growth rates of Yellow Perch in Upper Red Lake are excellent; 46% of the 2023 Yellow Perch gill net catch was greater than 9 inches in length. This has resulted in some anglers putting together decent catches of nice-sized fish. Black Crappie are showing up in angler catches in greater numbers than they have in several years. These fish are nearly all from the 2018 year class and average around 12 inches. However, there are a few fish from some older year classes still out there that provide an opportunity to catch an impressive 14 or 15 incher that may invoke memories of the "crappie boom" that occurred in the early 2000s. However, the current bump in crappie fishing success should not be misinterpreted as a new crappie boom, but rather increased opportunity for a few bonus fish as the 2018 year class is not nearly as large as the historic 1995 year class. Anglers targeting Black Crappie will be most successful in late May and early June looking for fish in and adjacent to likely spawning areas.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Walleye, Black Crappie, Northern Pike, Yellow Perch, and Largemouth Bass in Red (Upper Red). See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

Minnesota DNR records list public access for Red (Upper Red). Check the DNR LakeFinder page for the launch type and directions before you go.

Red (Upper Red) has a maximum depth of 15 feet and a mean depth of 12 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Red (Upper Red) is from 2025.

Yes — Red (Upper Red) has confirmed zebra mussel. Clean, drain, and dry your equipment to avoid spreading invasives to other waters.