Minnesota Steelheader

Lower Sucker River access update: The 2020 North Shore spring steelhead season is sure to be an interesting one.  As we post this update, some of the rivers have opened up though still too high to fish.  For those anglers who have enjoyed fishing the Sucker River over the years, we are happy to report another year of privileged access is available to us.  If you are not aware of the closure issue downstream-left at the scenic 61 access, please stop here and READ THIS .  After that, READ THIS .    For the 2020 spring season, the land owner is allowing angler access across his property from April 10 th – May 26 th .  This is always pending treatment of property by anglers. Signs are posted at the access point. Fishing before the 10 th is being monitored by conservation officers.  As you likely recall, access at this location was closed a few years ago due to the disrespect to property, property damage, and the level of annual litter....

Effective Immediately, Sucker River Access is   CLOSED. As of September 19th, 2018, access downstream of scenic highway 61 on both sides of the river is no longer open for public use.   Signs have been posted marking the closure areas and a notice containing additional details has been posted at the parking lot. As many of the North Shore angling pubic know, this same access was on the verge of closure back in April of 2017.   To learn more about the history – click here . For many years, these land owners have graciously allowed visitors to utilize paths on their property to access the shoreline of Lake Superior. Anglers have enjoyed the benefits of ready access to the various pools, runs and riffles as well as the mouth of the Sucker River.   In recent years however, problems that can unfortunately come with open access have grown progressively worse. There has been an increase in senseless littering, vandalism, criminal damage to property and the theft...

Sucker River Access is in Jeopardy! Are you aware that the access paths from the parking lot at Scenic Highway 61 to the downstream portion below the culvert to the mouth of the Sucker River lies within private property?    If not, you should be: The paths, the wooded area on both sides of the path, the stream bank and the water to the  center-line  of the river is private property; you read that right, private property on both sides to the center of the river bed. Though there is an angler easement on upper stretches of the Sucker River, there is no angler easement from scenic HWY 61 downstream to the lake. On April 19th, 2017, the Board of Directors of Minnesota Steelheader received a call from DNR Fisheries Area Supervisor Cory Goldsworthy informing us that the landowners along left-hand side of the Sucker River looking downstream had stopped by the Fisheries Office with a message: Access to all foot traffic will be legally closed.  Knowing that Min...

In May 2009 the Minnesota Legislature appropriated $2,050,000 to enable Minnesota Trout Unlimited to undertaken trout stream habitat improvement projects in 10 counties around the state.  In March 2009 the Lessard- Sams Outdoor Heritage Council had recommended full funding of MNTU’s proposal to improve coldwater habitat in eleven streams. By June 2011 over 14 miles of streams will be restored and enhanced by MNTU’s seven chapters with the assistance of the Minnesota DNR and other conservation groups. The projects will stabilize stream banks, improve water quality, and increase habitat for trout and non-game species. How does this impact steelhead on the North Shore? Well, it really doesn't directly, but it does help improve fish and fishing quality on a section of accessible trout water on a great North Shore watershed - The Sucker River.  The Sucker River project will restore and enhance year-round adult trout cover and habitat to provide a stable brook...

Good News- The money from the Clean Water portion of the Legacy act must be flowing (ugh, another bad pun...) I was attempting to clean up a program I wrote to extrapolate flows for the various NS tribs and it blew up on me yesterday. After I got done crying (I lost almost 10 years worth of grinding, dull work), I started recapturing data. I went to the MPCA/DNR archives for some Sucker River data and lo and behold, the sonde was once again transmitting real-time data. This will be yet another very useful tool for Minnesota Steelheaders. The new sonde displays discharge as well as rainfall amounts, just use your pointer. If you hover over the green spikes at the top it will tell you how much rain they got. So I guess it was one of those serendipitous things. I wouldn't have gone to the archives until early next year sometime and wouldn't have noticed the new live data until then. I already had some tools developed for the old Sucker station, so it won't take very long to de...