Crow Wing Lake
Crow Wing County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 18015500
DNR records show 11 stocking entries at Crow Wing Lake since 2017, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (200,000 fish).
- Crow Wing Lake has 11 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2017-2025): walleye (11).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 414,370 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 26 ft, mean depth 11 ft; surface area 379 acres, 210 littoral acres, 3.9 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 3.5 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, common carp, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, walleye, and 3 more.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (targeted survey).
- Crow Wing County, nearest town Fort Ripley; DNR lake number (DOW) 18015500.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 8/9/1972 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.8 |
| 2025 | Walleye | fingerlings | 630 | 70.0 |
| 2025 | Walleye | adults | 283 | 153.0 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fingerlings | 3,260 | 210.0 |
| 2021 | Walleye | adults | 175 | 109.0 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fingerlings | 3,838 | 101.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.7 |
| 2019 | Walleye2 | fingerlings | 5,250 | 210.0 |
| 2017 | Walleye | yearlings | 769 | 268.0 |
| 2017 | Walleye | adults | 5 | 8.0 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fingerlings | 160 | 4.0 |
2 fish purchased by the DNR for stocking.
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 | West side of point on the south shore, off of Co. Rd. 131. |
DNR fish survey, 2025
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | 50-ft beach seine | 306.62 | 2,453 | 0.00 |
| Brassy minnow | 50-ft beach seine | 29.88 | 239 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | 50-ft beach seine | 20.88 | 167 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | 50-ft beach seine | 12.62 | 101 | 0.00 |
| Pumpkinseed | 50-ft beach seine | 9.00 | 72 | 0.00 |
| Johnny darter | 50-ft beach seine | 7.38 | 59 | 0.00 |
| Northern pike | 50-ft beach seine | 3.00 | 24 | 0.00 |
| Iowa darter | 50-ft beach seine | 1.38 | 11 | 0.00 |
| Johnny darter | Backpack electrofishing | 29.65 | 35 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | Backpack electrofishing | 22.02 | 26 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | Backpack electrofishing | 21.18 | 25 | 0.00 |
| Brassy minnow | Backpack electrofishing | 17.79 | 21 | 0.00 |
| BKF | Backpack electrofishing | 5.93 | 7 | 0.00 |
| Iowa darter | Backpack electrofishing | 3.39 | 4 | 0.00 |
| Central mudminnow | Backpack electrofishing | 2.54 | 3 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | Backpack electrofishing | 2.54 | 3 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 19.67 | 177 | 0.12 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 6.11 | 55 | 0.14 |
| Walleye | Standard trap nets | 1.89 | 17 | 2.08 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 1.67 | 15 | 1.42 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 1.00 | 9 | 1.83 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 0.67 | 6 | 0.72 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.67 | 6 | 2.47 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trap nets | 0.56 | 5 | 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.
A targeted survey of nearshore fish species in Crow Wing Lake was conducted on September 2-3, 2025, by Lake Biological Monitoring and Assessment (LBMA) program staff. Sampling sites were evenly spaced around the lake, and each was sampled by backpack electrofishing and seining with a 50-foot or 15-foot seine, where possible. Backpack electrofishing was completed at ten sampling stations. Similarly, a 50-foot seine was used to sample eight stations. Two stations were not sampled due to soft substrate and dense vegetation. Nearshore sampling captured seventeen species of fish, including three species that are intolerant of disturbance (i.e., Banded Killifish, Iowa Darter, and Rock Bass) and none that are tolerant of disturbance. A concurrent summer trap net survey was also conducted by LBMA program staff. Nine trap nets were set along the shoreline in locations that encompassed multiple habitat types. Trap net sampling captured twelve species of fish, including one species that is intolerant of disturbance (i.e., Rock Bass) and none that were tolerant of disturbance. Bluegill and Pumpkinseed comprised a majority of the catch by number, whereas Walleye, Yellow Bullhead, and Bluegill comprised a majority by biomass. The nearshore and trap net data were combined with gill net data from an August 2022 survey to describe the fish community and provide a fish-based index of biological integrity (FIBI) score. The FIBI uses fish community data to measure a lake's health, and the types of fish species present can help identify any stressors that may be negatively affecting the lake environment. In Minnesota lakes, certain fish species cannot survive without clean water and a healthy habitat (e.g., Blackchin Shiner, Iowa Darter, and Rock Bass), while other species are tolerant of degraded conditions (e.g., Green Sunfish and Common Carp). The FIBI score, composed of several fish community diversity and composition metrics, indicates the overall health of a lake by comparing it to what is expected for a healthy lake. For additional information on the FIBI, search for "lake index of biological integrity" on the mndnr.gov website. The survey results will be considered when the biological health of the lake is assessed during the Mississippi River - Brainerd Watershed assessment process, which will be completed in coordination with MN Pollution Control Agency. You can help protect the fish community in Crow Wing Lake by reducing runoff, maintaining natural shorelines, and preventing the spread of invasive species.
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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