Jessie Lake (Douglas County)
Douglas County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 21005500
DNR records show 3 stocking entries at Jessie Lake (Douglas County) since 2016, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (69,000 fish).
- Jessie Lake (Douglas County) has 3 DNR stocking records across 3 years (2016-2025): walleye (3).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 141,450 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 26 ft, mean depth 11 ft; surface area 110 acres, 69 littoral acres, 3.3 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 4.5 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, common carp, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, walleye, and 3 more.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (targeted survey).
- Douglas County, nearest town Nelson; DNR lake number (DOW) 21005500.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey; depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 69,000 | 0.6 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fry | 69,000 | 0.6 |
| 2016 | Walleye1 | yearlings | 3,450 | 115.0 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| C | - |
DNR fish survey, 2021
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brook stickleback | 50-ft beach seine | 1513.50 | 3,027 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | 50-ft beach seine | 36.50 | 73 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | 50-ft beach seine | 18.50 | 37 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | 50-ft beach seine | 9.00 | 18 | 0.00 |
| Brassy minnow | 50-ft beach seine | 4.50 | 9 | 0.00 |
| Iowa darter | 50-ft beach seine | 3.00 | 6 | 0.00 |
| Johnny darter | 50-ft beach seine | 1.50 | 3 | 0.00 |
| Black crappie | 50-ft beach seine | 1.00 | 2 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | Backpack electrofishing | 31.79 | 34 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | Backpack electrofishing | 25.25 | 27 | 0.00 |
| Johnny darter | Backpack electrofishing | 25.25 | 27 | 0.00 |
| Iowa darter | Backpack electrofishing | 11.22 | 12 | 0.00 |
| Central mudminnow | Backpack electrofishing | 6.55 | 7 | 0.00 |
| Brook stickleback | Backpack electrofishing | 4.68 | 5 | 0.00 |
| Brassy minnow | Backpack electrofishing | 4.68 | 5 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | Backpack electrofishing | 3.74 | 4 | 0.00 |
| Black crappie | 15-ft beach seine | 14.20 | 71 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | 15-ft beach seine | 6.40 | 32 | 0.00 |
| Iowa darter | 15-ft beach seine | 2.40 | 12 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | 15-ft beach seine | 2.40 | 12 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | 15-ft beach seine | 1.60 | 8 | 0.00 |
| Brassy minnow | 15-ft beach seine | 1.00 | 5 | 0.00 |
| Johnny darter | 15-ft beach seine | 1.00 | 5 | 0.00 |
| Tadpole madtom | 15-ft beach seine | 0.60 | 3 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 11.22 | 101 | 0.15 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 4.22 | 38 | 0.19 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 1.67 | 15 | 0.74 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 3 | 0.16 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 0.22 | 2 | 0.47 |
| Walleye | Standard trap nets | 0.22 | 2 | 5.43 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.22 | 2 | 1.11 |
| White sucker | Standard trap nets | 0.11 | 1 | 2.56 |
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 the nearshore fish community in Jessie Lake was conducted by Fisheries Index of Biological Integrity (IBI) Program Staff from 16-18 August 2021. Ten sampling sites were evenly spaced around the lake and each was sampled by backpack electrofishing and seining with a 15-foot or 50-foot seine, where possible. Backpack electrofishing was completed at all 10 sites with two sites sampled from the boat. A 50-foot seine was used to sample two sites, a 15-foot seine was used at five sites, and soft sediments with abundant vegetation and deep water prevented the use of seines at three sampling sites. Nearshore sampling captured 15 native species of fish including one species that is intolerant of disturbance (Iowa Darter) and no species that are tolerant of disturbance. A concurrent summer trap net survey was conducted on 16-18 August 2021 by IBI Program Staff. Nine trap nets were set along the shoreline that encompassed multiple habitat types. Bluegill and Pumpkinseed comprised a majority of the trap net catch by number and Bluegill, Walleye, and Yellow Bullhead comprised a majority of the catch by biomass. The number of Bluegill sampled per net was below the 50% quartile for similar Lake Class 34 lakes and the average length was 5.7 inches, with 24% over 7 inches. The nearshore and trap net data were combined with gill net data from a July 2020 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., Blackchin Shiner, Iowa Darter, and Rock Bass), while other species are tolerant of degraded conditions (e.g., Black Bullhead, Fathead Minnow, and 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. Data from this survey indicates Jessie Lake is in good health as indicated by an FIBI score above the impairment threshold for aquatic life use determined for similar lakes. Data from this survey will contribute biological information about the health of the fish community to the Long Prairie River Watershed assessment process in coordination with MN Pollution Control Agency.
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.