Home › States › Minnesota › Crane Lake (Otter Tail County)

Crane Lake (Otter Tail County)

Otter Tail County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data

Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 56029300

DNR records show 1 stocking entry at Crane Lake (Otter Tail County) since 2025, most recently walleye fingerlings in 2025 (1,200 fish).

Crane Lake (Otter Tail County) has 1 DNR stocking record across 1 year (2025-2025): walleye (1).
The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 1,200 fish on record.
Maximum depth 43 ft; surface area 350 acres, 202 littoral acres, 4.5 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
1 public access on the DNR list.
Most recent DNR fish survey: July 25, 1989 (standard survey).
Otter Tail County, nearest town Clitherall; DNR lake number (DOW) 56029300.

Stocking history

Year	Species	Size	Number	Pounds
2025	Walleye¹	fingerlings	1,200	100.0

¹ fish purchased and stocked by private citizens and sporting groups.

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
O	UKN	- NONE

DNR fish survey, 1989

Species	Gear	Catch per net	Total catch	Avg lb
Bluegill	Standard trap nets	18.88	151	0.13
Yellow bullhead	Standard trap nets	7.25	58	0.39
Largemouth bass	Standard trap nets	1.75	14	0.28
Pumpkinseed	Standard trap nets	1.12	9	0.17
Bowfin (dogfish)	Standard trap nets	1.12	9	2.10
Black crappie	Standard trap nets	0.62	5	0.24
Rock bass	Standard trap nets	0.50	4	0.17
Yellow perch	Standard trap nets	0.38	3	0.13
Yellow bullhead	Standard gill nets	11.67	35	0.48
Northern pike	Standard gill nets	7.33	22	1.60
Black bullhead	Standard gill nets	5.67	17	0.68
Largemouth bass	Standard gill nets	4.33	13	0.55
Bluegill	Standard gill nets	3.33	10	0.23
Pumpkinseed	Standard gill nets	2.33	7	0.29
White sucker	Standard gill nets	2.00	6	2.25
Walleye	Standard gill nets	0.67	2	2.45

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.

Northern pike abundance was 5.5 per gill net lift. Average weight of northern pike was 1.5 lbs. Pike reproduction appears good, as the sample consisted of age-classes II+ through V+. Bluegill abundance was 18.9 per trap net lift, which is below the area median. Five percent of the bluegills were 7.0 inches or greater in length. Largemouth bass abundance was 4.3 per trap net lift. Age-classes I+ through III+ were represented in the sample. Shoreline seining provided further evidence of good largemouth bass reproduction, as bass were caught in each haul. Yellow perch abundance was 0.7 per gill net lift. Walleye abundance was low at 0.7 per gill net lift. All walleyes sampled were greater than 17.0 inches in length. The average weight was 2.4 lbs.

Minnesota DNR survey narrative, July 25, 1989.

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. Regulations, slot limits and special rules are on the DNR page linked above, not here.

Crane Lake (Otter Tail County)

Stocking history

Public accesses

DNR fish survey, 1989

Hear when the states we cover post stockings