Outdoor notes:

*Do not release any fish caught from water 25 feet and deeper because their swim bladder likely won’t allow them to survive when coming up from deep water.

*Watchable Wildlife photo contest under way with Oct. 2 deadline. Contact N.D. Game & Fish Dept. conservation biologist, Patrick Isakson, pisakson@nd.gov for details.

*Remember to bring insect repellent when outdoors.

*Blue-green algae advisory listed for Coal Mine and Buffalo lakes. Please follow N.D. Dept. of Environmental Quality safety recommendations on lakes with advisories or warnings.

Tournaments

(check with tournament sponsors for scheduling updates relating to Covid-19):

*July 25: Devils Lake.

*Aug. 1: Devils Lake (3).

Fishing:

Devils Lake elevation, July 22: 1,449.86 feet above mean sea level (MSL).

Stump Lake elevation: 1,449.89 MSL.

*N.D. Game & Fish Dept. game wardens: Not much change in success throughout north-central area lakes. Improving white bass success on Devils Lake along with better walleye activity. No Missouri River System reports.

*Devils Lake, Ed’s Bait Shop, Devils Lake: No new reports.

*Devils Lake, Lakeview Lodge, Devils Lake: Continued good for walleye working at least 20 feet for good numbers of small fish. Try shallower along the weed edges for bigger fish.

*Devils Lake, West Bay Resort, Minnewaukan: Fair to good for walleye in a variety of sizes. Work deeper with warmer water and air temperatures using a variety of presentations along the west side.

*Devils Lake, Woodland Resort, Devils Lake: Continued good for walleye in 20 to 25 feet using spinners and bottom bouncers with nightcrawlers. Good numbers of small fish so sort through for the keepers. Also try jigging Raps around the humps for larger walleye.

*Lake Darling, Karma C-Store, Ruthville: Lake Darling improving for walleye with a few larger fish now showing up.

*Lake Darling, Upper Souris Nat’l. Wildlife Refuge, Foxholm: Walleye activity remains slow. Reminder that the refuge closes at 10 p.m. nightly for public use. Beaver Lodge Canoe Trail conditions good for kayaking and canoeing.

*Lake Metigoshe, Four Seasons, Bottineau: Continued good bluegill success in the shallows with occasional walleye mixed in and a few nice-sized pike.

*Lake Sakakawea/Lake Audubon, Cenex Bait & Tackle, Garrison: Fair to good for walleye in 6 to 20 feet on the east end of Lake Sakakawea using nightcrawlers or leeches. Also try Deepwater Bay. No Missouri River or Lake Audubon reports.

*Lake Sakakawea, Indian Hills Resort, Garrison: Inconsistent weather patterns creating inconsistent walleye success but better numbers of larger fish showing up when the bite is on.

*Lonetree WMA area lakes, Harvey: Area lakes remain fair to good for a mix of walleye and pike but success is hit-and-miss depending on weather fronts moving in and out.

*North-central/central N.D. lakes, Rugby Hdwe. Hank, Rugby: Antelope Lake OK at best for walleye. Devils Lake fair to good for walleye.

*North-central/central N.D. lakes, Towner Hdwe. Hank, Towner: Reports remain limited from the Souris River and area lakes.

*Turtle Mtn. area lakes, Coast-2-Coast, Rolla: Carpenter Lake producing some walleye and pike. Devils Lake fair to good for nice walleye. Hooker, Dion, Upsilon, and Gravel lakes remain slow.

Paddle craft river elevation & flows:

*Big Coulee, Churchs Ferry: Coulee stage, 50.44 feet.

*Deep River, Upham: river stage, 7.33 feet; streamflow, 16.2 CFS.

*Little Coulee, Leeds: Coulee stage, 67.83; streamflow, 116 CFS.

*Mauvais Coulee, Cando: Coulee stage, 5.43 feet; streamflow, 68.5 CFS.

*Morrison Lake, Webster: Lake elevation, 59.7 feet.

*Pembina River, Walhalla: River stage, 2.69 feet; streamflow, 265 CFS.

*Souris River, Bantry: River stage, 2.42 feet; streamflow, 64.4 CFS.

Numbers to know:

*N.D. Game and Fish Dept., main Bismarck office: (701) 328-6300, website: gf.nd.gov.

*N.D. Game and Fish Dept., Devils Lake office: (701) 662-3617.

*Report All Poachers: (800) 472-2121 or (701) 328-9921.