Circle Lake
Rice County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 66002700
DNR records show 11 stocking entries at Circle Lake since 2016, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (209,500 fish).
- Circle Lake has 11 DNR stocking records across 8 years (2016-2025): walleye (8), black crappie (1), bluegill sunfish (1), largemouth bass (1).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 3,255,820 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 14 ft; surface area 838 acres, 838 littoral acres, 9.5 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 5.5 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: bigmouth buffalo, black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), common carp, freshwater drum, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, and 6 more.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Rice County, nearest town Lonsdale; DNR lake number (DOW) 66002700.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey; depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 209,500 | 1.7 |
| 2024 | Walleye | fry | 326,992 | 2.5 |
| 2023 | Black Crappie | adults | 300 | 75.0 |
| 2023 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 758 | 141.0 |
| 2023 | Largemouth Bass | adults | 20 | 40.0 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fry | 209,500 | 1.6 |
| 2022 | Walleye | fry | 419,000 | 3.5 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fry | 419,000 | 3.8 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 419,224 | 3.4 |
| 2018 | Walleye | fry | 624,000 | 6.0 |
| 2016 | Walleye | fry | 628,604 | 5.8 |
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 | Minnesota DNR | - NORTH SHORE ON WEST BAY; STATE OWNED. CONCRETE PLANK RAMP. |
DNR fish survey, 2023
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black bullhead | Standard gill nets | 373.50 | 1,494 | 0.08 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 13.00 | 52 | 0.10 |
| Freshwater drum | Standard gill nets | 2.25 | 9 | 1.48 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 2.00 | 8 | 0.18 |
| Golden shiner | Standard gill nets | 2.00 | 8 | 0.09 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 1.25 | 5 | 2.63 |
| Bigmouth buffalo | Standard gill nets | 1.00 | 4 | 0.39 |
| Common carp | Standard gill nets | 0.25 | 1 | 5.88 |
| Black bullhead | Standard trap nets | 43.55 | 479 | 0.11 |
| Golden shiner | Standard trap nets | 6.64 | 73 | 0.08 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 3.91 | 43 | 0.05 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trap nets | 0.82 | 9 | 0.10 |
| Green sunfish | Standard trap nets | 0.45 | 5 | 0.04 |
| Common carp | Standard trap nets | 0.45 | 5 | 2.07 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 0.36 | 4 | 0.19 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 0.18 | 2 | 0.15 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 1.98 | 1 | 0.22 |
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.
Circle Lake is an 838-acre lake located in Rice County northeast of Shieldsville. The lake has a maximum depth of 14 feet. There are three islands on Circle Lake, one of which is designated as an Aquatic Management Area by the MN DNR. A DNR-maintained public access is located on the northwest end of the lake. A public fishing pier is located just east of the public access. The shoreline of Circle Lake is developed on about half of the lake, primarily on the east shoreline. Aquatic vegetation and woody debris, like fallen trees, near the shore are abundant in Circle Lake and provide valuable fish habitat. Circle Lake is managed primarily for Walleye, Northern Pike, and Largemouth Bass and secondarily for Black Crappie, Bluegill, and Yellow Perch. Circle lake experienced a significant winterkill during the winter of 2022/2023. In the event of a winterkill, managed fish species will be stocked at adult stages. Circle Lake has been designated as a Tier-II lake in the Waterville area and future surveys will be conducted every six years. Circle Lake is designated as an infested water due to the presence of Eurasian water-milfoil. First discovered in Circle Lake in 2011, Eurasian water-milfoil limits recreational activities by forming dense mats on the water surface and disrupts aquatic ecosystems by competing with and displacing native plants. Eurasian water-milfoil is spread primarily by the introduction of plant fragments, which can easily be transported by boaters. Always be sure to clean all aquatic plant material and drain all water from boats, trailers, and equipment before leaving the lake access. Circle Lake was surveyed the week of 12 June 2023 by the MN DNR as part of a regularly scheduled monitoring program. This survey included deploying four gill nets and eleven trap nets. During the past two decades Bluegill have occurred at relatively low abundance as catch rates rarely exceeded 10.0/trap net. In 2023, due to the winterkill, approximately 750 adult pre-spawn Bluegill were stocked into Circle Lake to rebuild the population. In 2023, the Bluegill relative abundance was 3.9/trap net, which was half of the historical average for Circle Lake, and equal to the median for class 43 lakes. In 2023, 300 Black crappies were stocked in Circle Lake after the winterkill. Black Crappies were not sampled in trap nets and were sampled in gill nets at a rate of 2.0/net. Past Black Crappie catch rates have been highly variable with trap net catch rates ranging from 0.0/trap net in 2001 to 57.2/trap net in 1988, and gill net catch rates ranging from 0.0/gill net…
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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