Ember Lake
Wright County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 86017100
Ember Lake has no DNR stocking rows in LakeFinder; this page carries its DNR depth, access and survey data.
- Ember Lake shows no stocking records in Minnesota DNR LakeFinder as of .
- Maximum depth 45 ft, mean depth 11 ft; surface area 59 acres, 23 littoral acres, 1.3 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 11.0 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, yellow bullhead, yellow perch.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Wright County, nearest town Silver Creek (Wright); DNR lake number (DOW) 86017100.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey; depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
DNR fish survey, 2007
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Largemouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 287.52 | 121 | 0.81 |
| Bluegill | Survey seining | 92.00 | 184 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | Survey seining | 1.00 | 2 | 0.02 |
| Johnny darter | Survey seining | 1.00 | 2 | 0.00 |
| Pumpkinseed | Survey seining | 0.50 | 1 | 0.02 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 17.50 | 35 | 0.22 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard gill nets | 5.00 | 10 | 0.58 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard gill nets | 5.00 | 10 | 0.54 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard gill nets | 2.50 | 5 | 0.21 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 2.00 | 4 | 2.74 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 2.00 | 4 | 0.32 |
| Brown bullhead | Standard gill nets | 1.00 | 2 | 1.04 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 17.00 | 102 | 0.20 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 1.33 | 8 | 0.33 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 1.00 | 6 | 0.13 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 2 | 0.12 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 2 | 0.59 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 2 | 2.22 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 2 | 0.17 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 0.17 | 1 | 0.05 |
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.
Ember Lake is a small (55 acre) lake located two miles north of the City of Silver Creek in northern Wright County. There is no public access on this natural environment lake. There are 1.3 miles of shoreline. Most development has occurred along the south end of the lake. Because of good water clarity native aquatic plants were common. No stocking has been done and management has been limited to periodic netting. The last survey was in 1984. Curled pondweed was surveyed at peak abundance and found to be growing at or near the surface on 2.5 acres (4.5% of the total surface acres). Fourteen species of aquatic plants were noted. Illinois pondweed and northern milfoil were the most abundant species. Because of good water clarity, plants were found growing to a depth of 12 feet. At the time of the survey (July 2 3, 2007), oxygen levels were adequate for fish to 17 feet. One notable change that has occurred in the fishery between the 1984 and 2007 surveys is the significant decline of northern pike. Net catches of northern pike were below the normal range. If this is correct, it is somewhat unusual, as northern pike would be expected to thrive in this type of lake with clear water and abundant aquatic plants. Also, northern pike populations have been increasing over the past few decades and have become abundant in a majority of lakes in the area. Of the forage species only a few yellow perch were captured. A primary management species for Ember Lake is largemouth bass. Ember Lake has an excellent bass population with a wide range of sizes available. Anglers have reported fish up to 20 inches. Little is known about the former condition of the largemouth bass population, as 2007 was the first opportunity to sample with night electrofishing. The catch was just under 300 per hour, four times higher than the average catch for Wright County lakes. Ember Lake has a moderate population of bluegills but not black crappies. About a third of the bluegills taken with trap nets were larger than seven inches. The average size of the bluegills was 6.5 inches. The bluegills in Ember Lake grow slowly and take seven years to reach seven inches. Other species in the fish community include: brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, Johnny darter, pumpkinseed sunfish, and yellow bullhead. Maintaining the water quality in Ember Lake should be a high priority of the county and landowners around the lake. Some effort may be needed to identify any sources of phosphorus and plans developed to reduce these sources. Buffer strips along inlets and lakeshore property are encouraged to reduce…
Minnesota DNR survey narrative, .
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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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