Crawford Lake
Wright County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 86004600
DNR records show 20 stocking entries at Crawford Lake since 2016, most recently black crappie fingerlings in 2025 (590 fish).
- Crawford Lake has 20 DNR stocking records across 7 years (2016-2025): walleye (9), black crappie (3), largemouth bass (3), bluegill sunfish (3), and 2 more species.
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 151,205 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 19 ft, mean depth 4 ft; surface area 110 acres, 107 littoral acres, 1.9 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 8.5 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, walleye, yellow perch.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Wright County, nearest town Montrose; DNR lake number (DOW) 86004600.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 6/2/1971 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Black Crappie1 | fingerlings | 590 | 50.0 |
| 2025 | Largemouth Bass1 | fingerlings | 900 | 50.0 |
| 2025 | Walleye | yearlings | 38 | 30.0 |
| 2025 | Walleye | fingerlings | 903 | 129.0 |
| 2025 | Walleye | adults | 75 | 106.0 |
| 2023 | Black Crappie | adults | 115 | 11.5 |
| 2023 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 125 | 12.5 |
| 2023 | Largemouth Bass | adults | 66 | 34.0 |
| 2023 | Northern Pike | adults | 7 | 20.0 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fry | 47,890 | 0.4 |
| 2022 | Black Crappie | adults | 67 | 33.5 |
| 2022 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 100 | 21.2 |
| 2022 | Largemouth Bass | adults | 29 | 32.2 |
| 2022 | Walleye | fry | 100,000 | 0.8 |
| 2021 | Walleye | adults | 460 | 184.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fingerlings | 1,668 | 139.0 |
| 2017 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 638 | 116.0 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fingerlings | 72 | 18.0 |
| 2017 | Walleye | adults | 99 | 173.0 |
| 2016 | Channel Catfish | adults | 200 | 360.4 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| concrete ramp | county |
DNR fish survey, 2021
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Largemouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 87.50 | 83 | 0.59 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 76.00 | 456 | 0.06 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 15.67 | 94 | 0.26 |
| Black bullhead | Standard trap nets | 3.50 | 21 | 0.49 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 0.83 | 5 | 0.18 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.17 | 1 | 0.10 |
| Brown bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.17 | 1 | 0.56 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.17 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Walleye | Standard trap nets | 0.17 | 1 | 0.41 |
| Black bullhead | Standard gill nets | 21.50 | 43 | 0.37 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 15.00 | 30 | 2.59 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 3.00 | 6 | 0.07 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 2.00 | 4 | 1.20 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 1.50 | 3 | 0.19 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard gill nets | 1.00 | 2 | 0.66 |
| Brown bullhead | Standard gill nets | 0.50 | 1 | 0.71 |
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.
Crawford Lake is a 109 acre lake located five miles south of the city of Buffalo in Wright County. The lake is shallow (max. depth of 19 feet) with a history of winterkill. The lake was reclaimed using rotenone in 1998, but not all bullheads were killed. An aeration system was purchased and has been used since 2001 to prevent winterkill, but the system failed in 2014 and a partial winterkill occurred. Black Crappie, Bluegill, Channel Catfish (to control bullheads), Largemouth Bass, Walleye, and Yellow Perch have been stocked since then. In 2021, a standard lake survey was completed to track the recovery of the fishery. The Walleye catch rate was identical to that of 2009, and within the range of expected values for similar lakes. Walleye fingerling and adult stocking occurred in 2017, 2019 and 2021. The average length of Walleye was 16 inches. Northern Pike were sampled for the first time since the reclamation at a rate well above the expected range of values for similar lakes. Northern Pike were not stocked by the DNR after the lake was reclaimed in 1998 and it is not known how they were introduced into the lake. Pike ranged in length from 15 to 33 inches with an average length and weight of 22 inches and 2.6 pounds. The Largemouth Bass population is still recovering from the partial winterkill of 2014. Fifty-six minutes of day-time electrofishing on June 4, 2021 produced a catch of 83 bass. Largemouth ranged in length from 6 to 14 inches with an average length of 10 inches. Nine percent of bass were greater than 12 inches in length. Bluegill were abundant as the catch was above the range of expected values and more than that of 2009. Only one of the Bluegill sampled in 2021 was larger than seven inches in length which was similar to conditions prior to the winterkill. Despite the special regulations a memorable sunfish fishery has not developed. The gill net catch rate of Black Crappie was above the first quartile for the lake class, however no crappie were sampled in trap nets and only three in gill nets. This was similar to 2009 when the catch was also low. The crappie fishery has never developed since the reclamation perhaps because of the mesotrophic nature of Crawford Lake. The Black Bullhead catch has increased since 2009. Of the 43 bullheads sampled in gill nets the average length was 9 inches. Adult Channel Catfish were stocked in 2014 and 2016 (100 and 200, respectively) to help control the bullhead population however, none were sampled in either gill nets or trap nets in 2021. The fishery is still recovering from the 2014 winterkill but no…
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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