Big Lake (Beltrami County)
Beltrami County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 04004900
DNR records show 22 stocking entries at Big Lake (Beltrami County) since 2016, most recently muskellunge yearlings in 2025 (198 fish).
- Big Lake (Beltrami County) has 22 DNR stocking records across 9 years (2016-2025): muskellunge (11), walleye (11).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 17,864,000 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 35 ft, mean depth 14 ft; surface area 3,598 acres, 2,106 littoral acres, 16.6 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 8.1 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, muskellunge, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, smallmouth bass, and 5 more.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Beltrami County, nearest town Bemidji; DNR lake number (DOW) 04004900.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Muskellunge | yearlings | 198 | 123.0 |
| 2025 | Muskellunge | fingerlings | 23 | 5.7 |
| 2025 | Muskellunge | fingerlings | 47 | 13.4 |
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 1,033,000 | 9.0 |
| 2024 | Muskellunge | fingerlings | 1,050 | 223.8 |
| 2024 | Walleye | fry | 1,050,000 | 9.2 |
| 2024 | Walleye3 | fry | 1,215,000 | 10.7 |
| 2023 | Muskellunge | fingerlings | 100 | 21.3 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fry | 1,056,000 | 8.6 |
| 2022 | Muskellunge | fingerlings | 1,128 | 219.4 |
| 2022 | Walleye | fry | 500,000 | 4.3 |
| 2022 | Walleye3 | fry | 1,108,800 | 9.5 |
| 2021 | Muskellunge | fingerlings | 564 | 100.7 |
| 2021 | Muskellunge | fingerlings | 540 | 165.3 |
| 2021 | Walleye3 | fry | 2,136,000 | 18.2 |
| 2019 | Muskellunge | fingerlings | 1,062 | 141.6 |
| 2019 | Walleye3 | fry | 2,208,000 | 17.6 |
| 2018 | Muskellunge | fingerlings | 999 | 212.6 |
| 2018 | Walleye3 | fry | 2,350,000 | 21.0 |
| 2017 | Muskellunge | fingerlings | 1,050 | 306.0 |
| 2017 | Walleye3 | fry | 2,380,000 | 19.0 |
| 2016 | Walleye3 | fry | 2,827,200 | 24.4 |
3 fish cooperatively purchased, raised, and/or stocked by Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.
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 | USFS Access on east shore in T.147;R.31;S.34. Concrete log ramp. Approximately 8 unit parking. |
DNR fish survey, 2025
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 17.47 | 262 | 0.28 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 6.67 | 100 | 0.28 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 5.07 | 76 | 0.54 |
| Rock bass | Standard trap nets | 2.00 | 30 | 0.43 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 1.60 | 24 | 0.41 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 1.20 | 18 | 0.75 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.87 | 13 | 1.76 |
| Brown bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.67 | 10 | 0.83 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 13.07 | 196 | 0.13 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 4.40 | 66 | 1.86 |
| Rock bass | Standard gill nets | 3.73 | 56 | 0.47 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 3.53 | 53 | 1.94 |
| Tullibee (cisco) | Standard gill nets | 3.53 | 53 | 0.47 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard gill nets | 3.20 | 48 | 0.73 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 3.20 | 48 | 0.48 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard gill nets | 2.60 | 39 | 0.12 |
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 Lake is a 3,596 acre lake with a maximum depth of 35 feet located 13 miles east of Bemidji in Beltrami County. The Big Lake boat launch is located on the east shore and can be accessed from Mission Road. A total of 53 Walleye were captured in the 2025 survey, and they ranged in length from 10.5 inches to 22 inches with an average length of 18 inches. Walleye greater than 15 inches made up 90% of the catch. Big Lake is stocked annually with approximately 1 million Walleye fry. Northern Pike abundance remains low. The pike population did show some improvement in size structure since the 2022 survey, as 15% of the fish exceeded 24 inches in 2025 compared to 1% in 2022. Pike ranged in length from 11 to 31 inches. The 2025 Bluegill catch rate of 17.5 fish per trap net was within the average range typically found in similar lakes. Bluegill captured ranged in length from 3 to 9 inches with an average size of 7 inches. Bluegill greater than 7 inches made up 49% of the sample. Black Crappie were present in good numbers. Crappie lengths ranged from 4 to 13 inches and 52% of the catch was over 10 inches. Largemouth Bass captured during the survey ranged in length from 5 to 17 inches with an average length of 10 inches. Angler reports for Smallmouth Bass have been increasing in recent years. Only two Smallmouth were captured during the survey and the largest was 17.5 inches. A total of 53 Tullibee (Cisco) were captured in gillnets and lengths ranged from 7 to 15 inches with an average size of just over 10 inches. Other fish species captured during the survey include Brown Bullhead, Bowfin, Hybrid Sunfish, Pumpkinseed, Rock Bass, White Sucker and Yellow Bullhead.
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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