Little Rice Lake (Beltrami County)
Beltrami County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 04001500
DNR records show 5 stocking entries at Little Rice Lake (Beltrami County) since 2017, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (118,000 fish).
- Little Rice Lake (Beltrami County) has 5 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2017-2025): walleye (5).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 761,392 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 26 ft; surface area 123 acres, 83 littoral acres, 1.9 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, brown bullhead, northern pike, walleye, white sucker, yellow bullhead, yellow perch.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (targeted survey).
- Beltrami County, nearest town Pennington; DNR lake number (DOW) 04001500.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye3 | fry | 118,000 | 1.0 |
| 2023 | Walleye3 | fry | 121,592 | 1.0 |
| 2021 | Walleye3 | fry | 133,000 | 1.1 |
| 2019 | Walleye3 | fry | 220,800 | 1.8 |
| 2017 | Walleye3 | fry | 168,000 | 1.3 |
3 fish cooperatively purchased, raised, and/or stocked by Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.
Public accesses
| Type | Owner | Where |
|---|---|---|
| O | UKN | - RESORT ON BIG RICE LAKE UPSTREAM. ALSO FROM KITCHI AND CASS LAKE DOWNSTREAM ON TURTLE RIVER. |
DNR fish survey, 2019
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 26.50 | 53 | 0.20 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 9.00 | 18 | 1.15 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard gill nets | 3.00 | 6 | 0.80 |
| Brown bullhead | Standard gill nets | 2.50 | 5 | 1.10 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 2.50 | 5 | 1.25 |
| White sucker | Standard gill nets | 2.00 | 4 | 1.70 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 0.50 | 1 | 0.78 |
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.
Little Rice Lake is a small 123 acre widening of the Turtle River in between Big Rice and Kitchi Lakes. With a maximum depth of 26 feet, Little Rice can offer a unique and secluded fishing experience for anglers willing to navigate the river channel from Kitchi since there is no direct public access. A total of 5 Walleye were captured during the assessment which is typical for a lake of this size. They ranged in size from 15 to 20 inches with an average length of 17 inches. Northern Pike are the most abundant predatory fish found in Little Rice. A total of 18 were captured and measured during the 2019 survey with lengths from 11 to 23 inches and an average size of 18 inches. Yellow Perch are a very important prey species and were found in healthy numbers. Perch were measured up to 10 inches in length and averaged just over 7 inches.
Minnesota DNR survey narrative, .
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