Hanska Lake
Brown County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 08002600
DNR records show 7 stocking entries at Hanska Lake since 2016, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (898,000 fish).
- Hanska Lake has 7 DNR stocking records across 6 years (2016-2025): walleye (7).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 7,239,000 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 16 ft, mean depth 4 ft; surface area 1,795 acres, 1,773 littoral acres, 21.3 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 2.7 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: bigmouth buffalo, black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, channel catfish, common carp, freshwater drum, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, and 4 more.
- 4 public accesses on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (targeted survey).
- Brown County, nearest town Hanska; DNR lake number (DOW) 08002600.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 898,000 | 8.0 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fry | 897,500 | 6.9 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fry | 897,500 | 8.2 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 1,000,000 | 8.5 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fry | 1,700,000 | 16.2 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fry | 73,000 | 0.7 |
| 2016 | Walleye | fry | 1,773,000 | 17.2 |
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 | Double cement ramp on south side of southeast bay. |
| concrete ramp | Minnesota DNR | |
| CA | county | |
| concrete ramp | county |
DNR fish survey, 2025
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Channel catfish | Standard gill nets | 19.78 | 178 | 2.56 |
| Freshwater drum | Standard gill nets | 12.33 | 111 | 0.96 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 10.78 | 97 | 0.43 |
| Common carp | Standard gill nets | 2.89 | 26 | 6.64 |
| Bigmouth buffalo | Standard gill nets | 1.00 | 9 | 4.45 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 0.33 | 3 | 3.13 |
| Black bullhead | Standard gill nets | 0.33 | 3 | 0.84 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 0.11 | 1 | 0.27 |
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.
Hanska is a large-sized lake (1,794 acres) located west of the City of Hanska in Brown County. A large state-owned access with paved parking and a double cement boat ramp is present on the southeast shore. There are also two smaller boat ramps at the northwest end of the lake (Geiger Point and Godahl). There are fishing piers at the Hanska County Park, the Geiger Point access and the Godahl access. Hanska has approximately twenty-one miles of shoreline and a maximum depth of sixteen feet. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MNDNR) has divided Minnesota's lakes into 44 different classes based on physical and chemical characteristics. Hanska is a class 41 lake and other similar waterbodies in the Hutchinson Fisheries Management Area are Jennie and Washington Lakes in Meeker County. Hanska's 2022 lake management plan listed Walleye as the primary management species, while Black Crappie and Channel Catfish were secondary species. Two separate aeration systems are occasionally operated during ice-covered months to provide a refuge area for fish during harsh winters. The most recent partial winterkill at Hanska Lake was very light in nature and occurred in 2023. Fish populations can fluctuate widely depending on the severity of the latest winterkill event. Gill netting was completed in 2025 to monitor the fish population and to evaluate the Walleye stocking regime. High numbers of Walleye were netted in 2025, but size was small. Walleye averaged 11 inches in length. Maximum Walleye length was a respectable 25 inches. An unimpressive 4 percent of the catch was 13 inches or longer. The oldest Walleye was age-8. High numbers of Channel Catfish were netted, and the average length was impressive (19 inches). Maximum catfish length was an exciting 26 inches. Very low numbers (one) of Black Crappie were netted in 2025, but gill nets do not always do a good job of sampling this species at Hanska. So, crappie may be more abundant than the gill nets indicated. Yellow Perch were not gill netted in 2025. Very low numbers (three) of Northern Pike were gill netted this year with fish averaging 24 inches in length. Northern Pike regulations were revised at a statewide level beginning in 2018 to better accommodate regional differences in pike habitats, population abundances and size structures. Three management zones were established for Northern Pike, with their own bag limit and length limit restrictions. In the southern zone, where Hanska Lake is found, anglers can keep two Northern Pike. The minimum size limit is 24 inches. All fish less than 24 inches must…
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. Regulations, slot limits and special rules are on the DNR page linked above, not here.
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