Big Carnelian Lake
Washington County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 82004900
DNR records show 5 stocking entries at Big Carnelian Lake since 2016, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (33,000 fish).
- Big Carnelian Lake has 5 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2016-2025): walleye (5).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 69,877 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 66 ft, mean depth 26 ft; surface area 457 acres, 130 littoral acres, 5.1 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 18.3 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, walleye, white sucker, yellow bullhead, yellow perch.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Washington County, nearest town Stillwater; DNR lake number (DOW) 82004900.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 9/1/1952 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 33,000 | 0.3 |
| 2024 | Walleye | fry | 33,000 | 0.3 |
| 2021 | Walleye | yearlings | 413 | 275.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fingerlings | 2,900 | 145.0 |
| 2016 | Walleye | fingerlings | 564 | 188.0 |
Public accesses
| Type | Owner | Where |
|---|---|---|
| concrete ramp | Minnesota DNR |
DNR fish survey, 2025
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow bullhead | Standard gill nets | 7.25 | 58 | 0.76 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 6.50 | 52 | 1.17 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 6.38 | 51 | 0.24 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard gill nets | 2.62 | 21 | 0.19 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard gill nets | 2.38 | 19 | 0.53 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard gill nets | 1.25 | 10 | 0.23 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 1.25 | 10 | 3.04 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 1.12 | 9 | 0.22 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 5.33 | 48 | 0.08 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 2.33 | 21 | 0.17 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 0.56 | 5 | 0.16 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trap nets | 0.44 | 4 | 0.09 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 3 | 0.57 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 3 | 0.99 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 3 | 0.31 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.22 | 2 | 1.85 |
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.
Big Carnelian Lake is a 457-acre, class 24 lake located in northern Washington County. Northern Pike is the primary management species in Big Carnelian Lake while Walleye and Largemouth Bass are secondary management species. A previously instituted 24-36 inch protected slot length for Northern Pike was dropped in 2020 in favor of the new state-wide Northern Pike limits (inland north-central zone regulations). Walleye stocking success has been evaluated several times over the years. Fry stocking was replaced with fingerling stocking in 2007 due to limited success and currently only surplus Walleye fingerlings are stocked due to limited supply and historically low recruitment in the lake. The fish population was surveyed with both gill nets and trap nets in August 2025. Trap nets were utilized to help inform a concurrent index of biotic integrity (IBI) survey which catalogues fish species in near-shore habitats that are not targeted by standard fish sampling. The previous lake survey was conducted in 2015. Northern Pike were sampled at a rate of 6.5 fish per gill net. This is similar to the previous survey and typical relative to both the lake class and the lakes historical surveys. Fish size was small for the lake class with a mean length of 19.7 inches and a maximum of 32.6 inches although only one fish was sampled over 26 inches.
Minnesota DNR survey narrative, .
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