Horseshoe Lake (Stearns County)

Stearns County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data

Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 73015700

DNR records show 7 stocking entries at Horseshoe Lake (Stearns County) since 2017, most recently muskellunge fingerlings in 2025 (515 fish).

• Horseshoe Lake (Stearns County) has 7 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2017-2025): muskellunge (6), walleye (1).
• The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 275,000 fish on record.
• Maximum depth 57 ft, mean depth 14 ft; surface area 629 acres, 275 littoral acres, 13.4 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
• Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 3.9 ft.
• Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, channel catfish, common carp, golden redhorse, greater redhorse, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, and 13 more.
• 1 public access on the DNR list.
• Most recent DNR fish survey: October 13, 2025 (targeted survey).
• Stearns County, nearest town Richmond; DNR lake number (DOW) 73015700.

Depth map

Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 8/14/1963 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.

Stocking history

Public accesses

DNR fish survey, 2025

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.

Horseshoe Lake is located near Richmond in south-central Stearns County. A public access is located on the Sauk River one-half mile upstream from the lake; however, navigable channels connect Horseshoe with Cedar Island Lake and the other downstream lakes within the Sauk River Chain of Lakes (SRCL). Horseshoe Lake has a surface area of 550 acres with a maximum depth of 57 feet. Prior to 2001, the Walleye fishery was supported through fingerling stocking during odd-numbered years. In 2001, the stocking strategy switched from fingerling stocking to fry stocking during odd-numbered years and was often supplemented by natural reproduction and fry stocking by the lake association. Fall electrofishing for young of year (YOY) Walleye was only conducted during stocked years until 2015 when annual sampling was initiated due to the documentation of naturally reproduced year classes. Results from fall YOY electrofishing surveys indicated that natural reproduction was strong, and Walleye stocking was discontinued in 2018. Fall electrofishing for YOY Walleye was conducted on October 13, 2025. Since the discontinuance of fry stocking in 2018, fall YOY Walleye catch rates have ranged 0.0 to 203/hr with a long-term average of 68.4/hr. No YOY Walleye were caught in 2025; however, 50 age-1+ Walleye were caught for a catch rate of 62.6/hr. These Walleye ranged in length from 9.5 to 22.1 inches with an average of 14.0 inches. Annual fall YOY electrofishing will continue. However, due to YOY Walleye catches remaining below 25/hr for two consecutive years (2024 and 2025), Walleye fry will be stocked in spring 2026 in accordance with the Lake Management Plan.

Minnesota DNR survey narrative, October 13, 2025.

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