Leo Lake
Cook County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 16019800
DNR records show 10 stocking entries at Leo Lake since 2016, most recently rainbow trout yearlings in 2025 (2,880 fish).
- Leo Lake has 10 DNR stocking records across 10 years (2016-2025): rainbow trout (10).
- The most-stocked species by count is rainbow trout: 45,129 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 28 ft, mean depth 17 ft; surface area 102 acres, 38 littoral acres, 2.1 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 13.2 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: green sunfish, rainbow trout, smallmouth bass.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Cook County, nearest town Grand Marais; DNR lake number (DOW) 16019800.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Rainbow Trout | yearlings | 2,880 | 1,180.3 |
| 2024 | Rainbow Trout | yearlings | 3,023 | 1,014.4 |
| 2023 | Rainbow Trout | yearlings | 4,099 | 997.3 |
| 2022 | Rainbow Trout | yearlings | 5,002 | 1,506.6 |
| 2021 | Rainbow Trout | yearlings | 5,052 | 1,935.6 |
| 2020 | Rainbow Trout | yearlings | 5,016 | 2,434.9 |
| 2019 | Rainbow Trout | yearlings | 5,004 | 2,271.6 |
| 2018 | Rainbow Trout | yearlings | 5,001 | 1,730.5 |
| 2017 | Rainbow Trout | yearlings | 5,013 | 1,972.3 |
| 2016 | Rainbow Trout | yearlings | 5,039 | 2,526.1 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| CA | county |
DNR fish survey, 2025
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Green sunfish | Standard trap nets | 13.67 | 82 | 0.04 |
| Smallmouth bass | Standard trap nets | 1.50 | 9 | 0.40 |
| Rainbow trout | Standard trap nets | 0.67 | 4 | 1.07 |
| Green sunfish | Standard gill nets | 12.50 | 25 | 0.09 |
| Rainbow trout | Standard gill nets | 12.00 | 24 | 0.96 |
| Smallmouth bass | Standard gill nets | 3.00 | 6 | 1.77 |
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.
Leo Lake is a 102-acre lake with a maximum depth of 28.0 ft and located approximately 30 miles north of Grand Marais in Cook County, Minnesota. Access to the lake requires a steep, short carry-down off the Hungry Jack Lake Road. Leo Lake has been managed for stream trout since the 1930's, with rainbow trout stocked exclusively since 2007. The current stocking plan calls for 3,000 yearlings (Kamloops-strain) to be stocked in the spring annually. The 2025 survey was the first of three surveys scheduled in the 2022 lake management plan to determine whether the Kamloops-strain yearlings would be more successful at attaining better size and age structure within Leo Lake. In 2025, a standard survey was conducted using standard gillnets and trap nets to assess the current rainbow trout population in Leo Lake. Rainbow trout catch rates substantially increased from the 2015 survey to 12.0 fish/net in 2025 and were above the long-term average for the lake. Rainbow trout lengths ranged from 11.9 and 17.1 inches with an average size of 13.4 inches. Most of the rainbow trout captured were one-year-old fish (81%) and averaged 13.0 inches in size. A few two-year-old fish were also captured during the survey, averaging 15.8 inches in size, and were from the 2024 stocking event. Based on the two age classes present during the survey, growth rates appeared to be average for the lake. These results suggest Kamloops-strain rainbow trout may have grown better than the Arlee-strain, but survey data still does not show many older fish within the population. Temperature and dissolved oxygen profiles in August 2025 indicated poor habitat conditions for trout, with only depths between 15.0 and 19.0 feet supporting cold and oxygenated water for stream trout during the summer time. Habitat conditions improved in September with suitable water temperatures and oxygen levels present from the surface down to depths of 22.0 feet. Although habitat is marginal for stream trout in Leo Lake during the summertime, rainbow trout are still able to persist despite these conditions. Smallmouth bass abundance increased in 2025, with above average catch rates of 3.0 fish/net and 1.5 fish/net from gillnets and trap nets, respectively. Effects of smallmouth bass on the rainbow trout fishery likely occurs from competing for the same food resources such as minnows rather than preying directing on rainbow trout. Green sunfish abundance was also high during the survey with a gillnet and trap net catches of 12.5 fish/net and 13.7 fish/net, respectively. Walleye and white sucker, which were historically…
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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