Fountain Lake (Freeborn County)
Freeborn County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 24001800
DNR records show 15 stocking entries at Fountain Lake (Freeborn County) since 2016, most recently northern pike fry in 2025 (119,049 fish).
- Fountain Lake (Freeborn County) has 15 DNR stocking records across 9 years (2016-2025): walleye (11), northern pike (4).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 2,639,865 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 14 ft; surface area 522 acres, 521 littoral acres, 14.5 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 1.7 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: bigmouth buffalo, black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, channel catfish, common carp, goldfish, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, orangespotted sunfish, and 5 more.
- 3 public accesses on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Freeborn County, nearest town Albert Lea; DNR lake number (DOW) 24001800.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Northern Pike | fry | 119,049 | 2.0 |
| 2024 | Walleye | fry | 521,000 | 4.0 |
| 2023 | Northern Pike | fry | 130,500 | 4.0 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fingerlings | 6,290 | 613.4 |
| 2022 | Walleye | fry | 521,000 | 4.3 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fry | 521,000 | 4.7 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fingerlings | 5,285 | 530.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye | yearlings | 625 | 25.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye | adults | 350 | 115.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 521,000 | 4.2 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fingerlings | 9,720 | 586.5 |
| 2018 | Northern Pike | fry | 146,055 | 4.1 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fry | 526,170 | 4.8 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fingerlings | 7,425 | 495.0 |
| 2016 | Northern Pike | fry | 199,983 | 3.1 |
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 | city | Edgewater Park in NW end of Edgewater Bay. - Features double ramp - dock - toilets and ample parking. |
| concrete ramp | city | Brookside park in lake narrows north of main basin. - Features double ramp with docking pier. Ample parking. |
| O | - | Ample shorefishing access via city streets and parks. |
DNR fish survey, 2024
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black bullhead | Standard gill nets | 131.62 | 1,053 | 0.06 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 19.62 | 157 | 0.11 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 8.50 | 68 | 0.18 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 6.50 | 52 | 3.07 |
| White sucker | Standard gill nets | 6.12 | 49 | 2.16 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 4.75 | 38 | 4.94 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard gill nets | 4.25 | 34 | 0.67 |
| Common carp | Standard gill nets | 3.50 | 28 | 2.39 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 26.33 | 39 | 0.61 |
| Black bullhead | Standard trap nets | 25.33 | 304 | 0.12 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 18.17 | 218 | 0.18 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 7.17 | 86 | 0.14 |
| Common carp | Standard trap nets | 3.50 | 42 | 4.22 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 2.00 | 24 | 0.64 |
| White crappie | Standard trap nets | 1.92 | 23 | 0.23 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trap nets | 1.75 | 21 | 0.11 |
| White sucker | Standard trap nets | 0.92 | 11 | 2.63 |
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.
Fountain Lake is a 521-acre lake located within the town of Albert Lea in Freeborn County. Two city-owned public accesses are located on the northwest side of Edgewater Bay off State Hwy 13 and in the narrows off State Hwy 20 in Brookside Park. The maximum depth is 14 feet. Fountain Lake is considered eutrophic with generally poor water clarity and frequent algae blooms caused by elevated nutrient levels. Fountain Lake is managed primarily for Channel Catfish, Northern Pike, and Walleye and secondarily for Black Crappie, Bluegill, and Largemouth Bass. The management plan calls for stocking 521,000 Walleye fry in even years and 521 pounds of Walleye fingerlings in odd years. The management plan also calls for stocking Northern Pike fry in odd years into the upper watershed. Recent stocking events include Walleye fry in 2021, 2022 and 2024; Walleye fingerlings in 2019 and 2021; and Northern Pike fry in 2023. In recent years, a dredge has been operated throughout Fountain Lake with the goal of increasing depth and removing sediment. The resulting changes in the fish community should be tracked closely. Fountain Lake is designated as a Tier-1 Lake and will be surveyed as part of a regularly scheduled monitoring program at a frequency of every 3 years. The 2024 survey was completed the week of 12 August 2024 using 8 gill nets, 12 trap nets, and 89 minutes of boat electrofishing. Water quality parameters were also measured. Just 3 Channel Catfish or 0.4/net were sampled with gill nets in 2024. This continued a downward trend that began in 2006 with 17.0/net. Subsequent Channel Catfish catch rates were 8.3/net in 2011, 4.3/net in 2015, 4.0/net in 2018, and 1.3/net in 2021. Channel Catfish ranged from 21.1 to 29.5 inches with an average of 26.0 inches. Two additional Channel Catfish were sampled with trap nets and ranged from 18.9 to 21.5 inches. Although sampled in low numbers, the size structure of the Channel Catfish population in Fountain Lake offers great opportunity for those that wish to target them. A total of 38 Northern Pike were sampled with gill nets for a catch rate of 4.8/net. Northern Pike catch rates have fallen in the last 3 surveys with a long-term mean of 6.3/net. Northern Pike ranged from 18.1 to 39.3 inches with an average of 27.1 inches. Approximately 76% of the Northern Pike sampled exceeded the legal minimum length limit of 24 inches. Walleyes were abundant in the 2024 survey with a total gill net catch of 52 fish or 6.5/net. The historic average for Fountain Lake is 8.1/net. Walleyes ranged from 10.8 to 25.8 inches with an average of…
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. Regulations, slot limits and special rules are on the DNR page linked above, not here.
Hear when the states we cover post stockings
One email a week in season: which waters in the states we cover were stocked, straight from the state agencies' own postings. No spam, no fishing-gear ads in the mail.
Free · double opt-in · unsubscribe anytime · we store only your email.