Hand Lake
Cass County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 11024200
DNR records show 3 stocking entries at Hand Lake since 2018, most recently walleye fingerlings in 2023 (1,050 fish).
- Hand Lake has 3 DNR stocking records across 3 years (2018-2023): walleye (3).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 3,300 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 57 ft; surface area 289 acres, 140 littoral acres, 5.8 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 12.3 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, tullibee (cisco), and 3 more.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (targeted survey).
- Cass County, nearest town Backus; DNR lake number (DOW) 11024200.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 7/5/1961 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Walleye1 | fingerlings | 1,050 | 50.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye1 | fingerlings | 1,500 | 50.0 |
| 2018 | Walleye1 | fingerlings | 750 | 50.0 |
1 fish purchased and stocked by private citizens and sporting groups.
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 | SOUTH END OF LAKE. SECTION 15 OFF OF COUNTY ROAD 49. |
DNR fish survey, 2022
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | 50-ft beach seine | 100.67 | 604 | 0.00 |
| Brassy minnow | 50-ft beach seine | 34.00 | 204 | 0.00 |
| Blacknose shiner | 50-ft beach seine | 11.67 | 70 | 0.00 |
| Golden shiner | 50-ft beach seine | 10.83 | 65 | 0.00 |
| BCS | 50-ft beach seine | 7.00 | 42 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | 50-ft beach seine | 4.67 | 28 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | 50-ft beach seine | 4.33 | 26 | 0.00 |
| Iowa darter | 50-ft beach seine | 4.33 | 26 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | Backpack electrofishing | 68.87 | 88 | 0.00 |
| Brassy minnow | Backpack electrofishing | 18.78 | 24 | 0.00 |
| Central mudminnow | Backpack electrofishing | 13.30 | 17 | 0.00 |
| Iowa darter | Backpack electrofishing | 7.04 | 9 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | Backpack electrofishing | 7.04 | 9 | 0.00 |
| Johnny darter | Backpack electrofishing | 5.48 | 7 | 0.00 |
| Rock bass | Backpack electrofishing | 3.13 | 4 | 0.00 |
| Yellow bullhead | Backpack electrofishing | 2.35 | 3 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 7.00 | 63 | 0.23 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 2.11 | 19 | 0.60 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 1.67 | 15 | 0.27 |
| Bowfin (dogfish) | Standard trap nets | 1.44 | 13 | 2.74 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 0.67 | 6 | 0.24 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.67 | 6 | 1.67 |
| Brown bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.44 | 4 | 0.94 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.44 | 4 | 1.88 |
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 Hand Lake was conducted on August 22, 2022, by DNR Index of Biological Integrity (IBI) 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 eight sampling stations, but two stations were sampled from the boat due to site conditions. Similarly, a 50-foot seine was used to sample six stations, a 15-foot seine was used at one station, and site conditions prevented the use of seines at three stations. Nearshore sampling captured 22 species of fish including seven species that are intolerant of disturbance (i.e., Banded Killifish, Blackchin Shiner, Blacknose Shiner, Iowa Darter, Mottled Sculpin, Pugnose Shiner, and Rock Bass) and one that is tolerant of disturbance (i.e., Green Sunfish). A summer trap net survey was also conducted by IBI Program staff on August 22-24, 2022. Nine trap nets were set along the shoreline in locations that encompassed multiple habitat types. Trap net sampling captured 10 species of fish, including one that is tolerant of disturbance (i.e., Black Bullhead). Bluegill comprised a majority of the catch by number, whereas Bowfin, Bluegill, and Largemouth Bass comprised a majority by biomass. The nearshore and trap net were combined with gill net data from a 2019 survey to describe the fish community and provide a Fish-based IBI (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., Blacknose Shiner, Blackchin Shiner, Iowa Darter), while other species are tolerant of degraded conditions (e.g., Green Sunfish). 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. A temperature-dissolved oxygen profile was collected in the deepest basin on Hand Lake on August 22nd, 2022, to evaluate the amount of cold, oxygenated water (i.e., oxythermal habitat) available to Cisco, also known as Tullibee. Based on the profile, the top of the thermocline (i.e., the location in the water column with the sharpest transition from warm to cold water) occurred at…
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.
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.