East Toqua Lake
Big Stone County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 06013800
DNR records show 23 stocking entries at East Toqua Lake since 2016, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (200,000 fish).
- East Toqua Lake has 23 DNR stocking records across 8 years (2016-2025): walleye (16), northern pike (4), yellow perch (2), black crappie (1).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 1,732,031 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 9 ft, mean depth 6 ft; surface area 437 acres, 437 littoral acres, 3.1 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 1.9 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: bigmouth buffalo, black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, common carp, crappie, freshwater drum, northern pike, orangespotted sunfish, quillback, suckers, walleye, and 4 more.
- 2 public accesses on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (targeted survey).
- Big Stone County, nearest town Graceville; DNR lake number (DOW) 06013800.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 7/8/1985 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.9 |
| 2024 | Black Crappie | adults | 97 | 54.0 |
| 2024 | Northern Pike | adults | 230 | 450.0 |
| 2024 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.9 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fingerlings | 1,163 | 93.0 |
| 2023 | Walleye | adults | 3,464 | 2,382.0 |
| 2023 | Walleye | yearlings | 174 | 15.0 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.6 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fingerlings | 4,976 | 337.0 |
| 2023 | Yellow Perch | adults | 850 | 137.0 |
| 2022 | Northern Pike | fingerlings | 362 | 201.0 |
| 2022 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.8 |
| 2021 | Northern Pike | fingerlings | 150 | 105.6 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.7 |
| 2019 | Walleye | adults | 29 | 32.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye | yearlings | 1,023 | 40.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 200,000 | 1.6 |
| 2018 | Northern Pike | adults | 360 | 580.6 |
| 2018 | Walleye | fry | 300,000 | 2.5 |
| 2016 | Walleye | fry | 220,909 | 2.2 |
| 2016 | Walleye | adults | 69 | 23.0 |
| 2016 | Walleye | yearlings | 224 | 28.0 |
| 2016 | Yellow Perch | adults | 6,600 | 550.0 |
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 | Located in Toqua Lakes Park on the south side of the lake. |
| gravel ramp | UKN | Located on northeast corner of lake off County Rd 18. |
DNR fish survey, 2023
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fathead minnow | 1/4-in trap nets | 4415.67 | 26,494 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | 1/4-in trap nets | 324.83 | 1,949 | 0.00 |
| Common carp | 1/4-in trap nets | 180.17 | 1,081 | 0.00 |
| Black bullhead | 1/4-in trap nets | 13.50 | 81 | 0.00 |
| Walleye | 1/4-in trap nets | 7.50 | 45 | 0.00 |
| White sucker | 1/4-in trap nets | 3.17 | 19 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | Special seining | 87.00 | 261 | 0.00 |
| Fathead minnow | Special seining | 63.33 | 190 | 0.00 |
| Common carp | Special seining | 48.33 | 145 | 0.00 |
| Black bullhead | Special seining | 6.33 | 19 | 0.00 |
| Walleye | Special seining | 5.00 | 15 | 0.00 |
| White sucker | Special seining | 1.33 | 4 | 0.00 |
| Black bullhead | Standard trap nets | 26.86 | 188 | 0.09 |
| Walleye | Standard trap nets | 9.43 | 66 | 1.59 |
| Common carp | Standard trap nets | 4.71 | 33 | 1.75 |
| Bigmouth buffalo | Standard trap nets | 2.00 | 14 | 10.54 |
| White sucker | Standard trap nets | 1.00 | 7 | 2.48 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trap nets | 0.86 | 6 | 0.40 |
| QBS | Standard trap nets | 0.43 | 3 | 2.81 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.14 | 1 | 0.98 |
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.
East Toqua Lake borders Graceville in west-central Minnesota. It is 428 acres and has a maximum depth of nine feet. The lake is highly productive and water clarity is often low. Toqua County Park is located along the south shoreline and it provides a boat launch, fishing pier, shore angling, picnicking and camping. Toqua Lake is managed primarily for walleyes, with secondary emphasis on black crappies, northern pike and yellow perch. An extensive winterkill occurred during 2022-2023 which eliminated gamefish from the lake. Adult walleyes, walleye fry and adult yellow perch were stocked in spring of 2023. Black crappies will be stocked when they become available. This Targeted Survey used trap nets and seining to evaluate the stockings. Results indicated good survival of stocked walleye fry and adults. High numbers of naturally reproduced young-of-year yellow perch were also found. Fish typically grow fast in East Toqua Lake and a good fishery is expected to result within two years. Adequate numbers of adult walleyes were stocked to provide an immediate limited fishery. Other fish caught included bigmouth buffalo, black bullheads, common carp, fathead minnows, northern pike, quillback and white suckers.
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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