Crystal Lake (Cass County)
Cass County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 11050200
DNR records show 6 stocking entries at Crystal Lake (Cass County) since 2016, most recently walleye fingerlings in 2024 (873 fish).
- Crystal Lake (Cass County) has 6 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2016-2024): walleye (6).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 15,158 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 40 ft; surface area 190 acres, 163 littoral acres, 3.5 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 14.8 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, bluegill, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, walleye, white sucker, yellow bullhead, yellow perch.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Cass County, nearest town Akeley; DNR lake number (DOW) 11050200.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 7/29/1971 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Walleye | fingerlings | 873 | 120.0 |
| 2024 | Walleye | yearlings | 147 | 45.0 |
| 2022 | Walleye | fingerlings | 3,277 | 165.0 |
| 2020 | Walleye2 | fingerlings | 2,495 | 165.0 |
| 2018 | Walleye2 | fingerlings | 5,066 | 163.4 |
| 2016 | Walleye2 | fingerlings | 3,300 | 165.0 |
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 | State-owned access located on the south shore. |
DNR fish survey, 2025
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Largemouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 108.00 | 108 | 0.73 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 13.57 | 95 | 0.26 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 4.43 | 31 | 0.36 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 2.00 | 14 | 0.40 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.71 | 5 | 0.59 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.43 | 3 | 3.01 |
| Walleye | Standard trap nets | 0.43 | 3 | 0.87 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 0.29 | 2 | 0.23 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 11.00 | 66 | 2.45 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard gill nets | 9.33 | 56 | 0.57 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard gill nets | 5.17 | 31 | 0.84 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 4.83 | 29 | 0.36 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 3.83 | 23 | 0.15 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard gill nets | 2.83 | 17 | 0.17 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 1.00 | 6 | 1.16 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 0.50 | 3 | 0.54 |
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.
Crystal Lake (DOW #11-0502-00) is located five miles southeast of Akeley on the border of Hubbard and Cass Counties. Crystal Lake has a surface area of 190 acres and a maximum depth of 40 feet. There is a state-owned public access located on the southeast shore of the lake off Hiram Twp 5 Road. Crystal Lake has excellent water quality, and the southeast shore is undeveloped and in state ownership. Crystal Lake provides fishing opportunities for Walleye, Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, and panfish. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different types based on physical, chemical, and other characteristics. Crystal Lake is in Lake Class 35. Lake Class 35 lakes generally have a very high percentage of littoral area (depths less than 15 feet), with very irregular shaped shoreline. Other Lake Class 35 lakes in the Park Raids management area include: Frontenac, Middle Crooked, Pickerel, and Waboose. Walleye were sampled in low numbers for this Lake Class and lower than previous surveys. Anglers will find most Walleye in the 14-to-18-inch size range. Sampled Walleye had an average length and weight of 15.4 inches and 1.2 pounds. Yellow perch, an important forage for Walleye were sampled in low numbers for this Lake Class. Sampled Yellow Perch had an average length of 7.1 inches with fish measured up to 10.3 inches in the sample. Anglers will find an abundant Largemouth Bass population in Crystal Lake, dominated by smaller bass in the 10-to-14-inch size range. The number of larger bass (>15 inches) sampled in past surveys has been low when compared to other area lakes. Present and past surveys have shown the panfish population in Crystal Lake to fluctuate from moderate to abundant numbers. Two thirds of the sunfish sampled were in the 6-to-8-inch size range along with two thirds of the Black Crappie sampled in the 8-to-10-inch size range. Northern Pike numbers were up compared to past surveys. Sampled Northern Pike ranged in length from 12.8 to 37.6 inches. Currently no aquatic invasive species (AIS) have been identified in Crystal Lake. To avoid spreading AIS, lake users are required to remove all aquatic plants or animals from their watercraft and drain all water from their boat before leaving the access.
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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