Aspen Lake (Cook County)
Cook County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 16020400
DNR records show 5 stocking entries at Aspen Lake (Cook County) since 2016, most recently walleye fry in 2024 (150,000 fish).
- Aspen Lake (Cook County) has 5 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2016-2024): walleye (5).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 750,000 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 29 ft; surface area 141 acres, 90 littoral acres, 3.9 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 7.9 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, northern pike, smallmouth bass, walleye, yellow perch.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Cook County, nearest town Grand Marais; DNR lake number (DOW) 16020400.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 1/1/1937 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Walleye | fry | 150,000 | 1.3 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fry | 150,000 | 1.4 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fry | 150,000 | 1.4 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 150,000 | 1.5 |
| 2016 | Walleye | fry | 150,000 | 1.5 |
Field note · Minnesota stocks by year, not by truck day: walleye fry go in within weeks of ice-out, fingerlings and yearlings mostly in fall, and stream trout in spring and fall. A row here means the fish went in during that year; DNR adds the year's rows after the fact, so the current year can look empty until winter.
Public accesses
| Type | Owner | Where |
|---|---|---|
| concrete ramp | USF | Off County Road 66 on north side of lake. |
DNR fish survey, 2020
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 1.50 | 9 | 0.89 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 0.83 | 5 | 0.12 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 0.50 | 3 | 3.21 |
| Smallmouth bass | Standard gill nets | 0.17 | 1 | 0.15 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 1.17 | 14 | 1.91 |
| Walleye | Standard trap nets | 0.83 | 10 | 1.43 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trap nets | 0.58 | 7 | 0.27 |
| Smallmouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.58 | 7 | 1.65 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 4 | 0.97 |
Catch per net (CPUE) is the DNR survey's count per gill net or trap net set; higher means more of that species were sampled, not a fishing forecast. Top species per gear shown; where we have no verified common name for a DNR code, the code itself is shown.
Aspen Lake is part of a cluster of small-to-medium sized, easily accessed lakes about 30 road miles from Grand Marais. It supports a simple fish community; among the major species present, only northern pike, yellow perch, and white sucker were native. Walleye were introduced in the 1930s, while smallmouth bass and black crappie were first taken in survey nets in 1977. The latest (2014) lake management plan (LMP) for this lake established walleye and northern pike as primary and secondary management species, with black crappie providing a minor fishery. Management goals from the plan were to maintain a walleye population with a minimum gill net catch of 4.0 fish/net, with some fish over 20 inches, a self-sustained northern pike population with a minimum gill net catch of 1.2 fish/net, and a self-sustained black crappie population with a minimum catch of 0.70 fish/0.75-in trap net set, with those fish maintaining a mean weight of at least 0.75 lb/fish. This was to have been the second of three standard surveys scheduled to evaluate an increase in walleye stocking that began in 2015. The first, in 2016, could not be completed due to a lack of staff and funding. Increased walleye fry stocking (from 90,000/stocking to 150,000/stocking) began in 2015, and any results of that increase would probably not have been fully realized by 2020. Nevertheless, early results were not promising. The walleye gill net catch in this survey was the lowest ever seen in Aspen Lake, falling well short of the catch goal for this lake. Six year classes contributed to the catch, including two (2018 and 2017) that had been naturally produced. Year classes produced in years when stocking had been done (2012, 2015, 2016, and 2019) accounted for 79% of the total walleye catch; however, it was likely that some of those fish had also been produced naturally. Growth of young walleye had been about average for this area. Fish reached a mean length of 12.9 inches at the end of their fourth year. The 2020 northern pike gill net catch was also low for this lake historically (the second lowest seen in this lake), and was short of the 2014 goal. However, those results could have been misleading, since a fairly high number of northern pike were taken in trap nets in 2020. The trap net catch was the second highest ever seen in Aspen Lake. Northern pike were probably spending more time in the shallows at the time this survey was done, so were less likely to be taken in gill nets set off-shore, and more likely to turn up in shoreline trap nets. Although most of the northern pike caught were under…
Minnesota DNR survey narrative, .
All Minnesota stockings · every Minnesota lake with a page · state CSV · this lake on DNR LakeFinder
Stocking rows, depths, accesses and survey figures are Minnesota DNR LakeFinder data as of 2026-09-02; contours are the DNR bathymetric survey. Regulations, slot limits and special rules are on the DNR page linked above, not here.
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