Minnesota Governor's Fishing Opener postponed to 2021

Walleye catch and release (Erik Osberg)

The 2020 Minnesota governor's fishing opener has been postponed to next year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Governor Tim Walz made the announcement during his daily briefing on Wednesday. The event was originally set to take place in Otter Tail County from May 7-10, but will instead now be taking place from May 6-9 in 2021.

"I want to give a special thank you to everybody up in Otter Tail County, community leaders, who have been planning this for well over a year," said Walz. "This is a time-honored Minnesota tradition."

Walz says while the opener event will not be happening this year, the fishing season is still on. May 9 marks the fishing opener for walleye, sauger and northern pike.

"We encourage people to get out there, stay a safe distance, watch the DNR's website," said Walz. "We've got 11,842 lakes and as I remind Wisconsin, they try to measure every mudhole as a lake, we still have more. So, there's opportunities to get out, get some dips and enjoy the great outdoors."

For more information from the DNR on the fishing seasons, click here.