Arguably Minnesota’s most popular and dynamic fishery, Lake Mille Lacs has grabbed more than a few headlines the past few years. Which is far from unusual; in fact, that’s more tradition than trend. Go back in time to the roots of modern walleye angling, and Mille Lacs ranks at the forefront of fishing tackle and techniques. Proceed back even further, to a time when native Ojibwa plied its shallows long before the first jig, Lindy Rig or Little Joe Spinner found its way down into its crystal depths.

In the initial glory days—as well as today—Mille Lacs launch services plied the lake’s vast open waters from large craft capable of safely taking 20 or more anglers fishing atop the lake’s turbulent surface. On a calm day, they might even tow a succession of rowboats out to established fishing grounds.

Back in the heyday, Mille Lacs anglers likely fished bucktail jigs, or trolled heavy-hardware Prescott Spinners dressed with minnows, typically on black braided Dacron line. But a revolution was in the making.

In the late ‘50s, ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s, Mille Lacs angling experienced a moonshot succession of groundbreaking, earthshaking, water-quaking developments: Larger outboards and more seaworthy boats. Depth finders, paper graphs, loran C and GPS navigation, onscreen lake maps and more. Technological innovations combined to make the big lake’s mysterious, mid-lake mud flats not only accessible, but easily fishable by the general public.

So too did the parade of new fishing tactics honed here: slip bobbers, spinner fishing, finesse livebait rigging, casting crankbaits and more. Mille Lacs walleyes by the thousands were caught by a new wave of high-tech anglers.So much so, that many other species remained comparatively ignored.

Truth be told, Mille Lacs has always contained an outstanding population of big northern pike; today, it still ranks among the best fisheries anywhere for a 20-pound giant.

In the last 20 years, its burgeoning muskie fishery has claimed a national audience. Today, Mille Lacs remains one of the top places on earth to put a 50-pound-plus behemoth in the boat. Several state record class muskies have been caught here the past few seasons, with more undoubtedly on the way.

Does a new world record lurk here? Don’t bet against it!

For years, the Mille Lacs trophy smallmouth fishery lingered in the wings, not quite secret, yet little pursued. But in recent years, an explosion of top-end fish pushing past 5 and 6 pounds, in numbers nearly beyond belief, has grabbed center stage, as well as a growing degree of national attention.

Time, as they say, never stands still. Nor do fisheries. And Mille Lacs is a classic case.

Back in the glory days of walleye innovation, Mille Lacs walleyes were considered numerous and good-sized, but paled in comparison to the trophy potential seen in modern times. Today, there are still a lot of big walleyes out there, but no one can deny that the fishery has faced recent challenges.

The appearance and spread of zebra mussels has cleared the water and created a new norm. For several years, the number of young walleyes ebbed, likely due to a complex interaction of environmental factors. As they did, populations of pike, smallmouths and muskies skyrocketed. The good news is, recent year classes show good numbers of walleyes again coming up through the ranks, promising great walleye fishing in the years ahead. The major challenge will come in sharing forage and space with all of the other eating machines swimming throughout its waters. And for fisheries managers seeking to interpret a Rubik’s Cube puzzle of multi-species dynamics.

All of those hungry mouths, in fact, include additional species like abundant yellow perch—a popular midwinter ice fishing quarry. Mille Lacs’ bays host good populations of big crappies and bluegills, seldom pursued or appreciated other than when they move shallow in spring. And a little-known shallow slop fishery for bruiser largemouth bass, which most anglers drive blissfully by on their way out to the walleye grounds.

Yes, today’s Mille Lacs offers something for everyone who fishes. In fact, small communities rimming the lake boast an array of resorts, restaurants, services and festivals that would do any vacation destination proud. So even if you don’t wet a line, there’s plenty to see and do for those opting to remain onshore.

As famed Minnesota folk singer Bob Dylan aptly said, “The times, they are a-changing.” That was as true back in the day as it is today. Time stands still for no one. Lakes and fisheries experience cycles of change. The good news is, the good old days weren’t necessarily better than today’s good old days. Especially since any day is a good old day to visit to Mille Lacs. Way back then, or next weekend.