Little Sugar Bush Lake
Becker County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 03031300
DNR records show 6 stocking entries at Little Sugar Bush Lake since 2016, most recently walleye fingerlings in 2024 (560 fish).
- Little Sugar Bush Lake has 6 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2016-2024): walleye (6).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 10,865 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 29 ft; surface area 221 acres, 99 littoral acres, 3.6 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 10.4 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, walleye, white sucker, yellow bullhead, and 1 more.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Becker County, nearest town Richwood; DNR lake number (DOW) 03031300.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 7/10/1963 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Walleye | fingerlings | 560 | 70.0 |
| 2024 | Walleye | yearlings | 460 | 55.0 |
| 2022 | Walleye | fingerlings | 3,135 | 99.0 |
| 2020 | Walleye | yearlings | 1,488 | 99.0 |
| 2018 | Walleye | fingerlings | 2,673 | 99.0 |
| 2016 | Walleye | fingerlings | 2,549 | 200.0 |
Public accesses
| Type | Owner | Where |
|---|---|---|
| asphalt ramp | Minnesota DNR | Located on SW shore- 0.3 miles north of CSAH 34. |
DNR fish survey, 2023
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 80.22 | 722 | 0.22 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 6.22 | 56 | 0.40 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 2.00 | 18 | 0.42 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 1.78 | 16 | 0.09 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 1.33 | 12 | 1.33 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.78 | 7 | 1.35 |
| Brown bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 3 | 1.79 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trap nets | 0.22 | 2 | 0.14 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 40.83 | 245 | 0.14 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 27.50 | 165 | 2.26 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 12.17 | 73 | 0.42 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard gill nets | 5.50 | 33 | 0.06 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 4.00 | 24 | 2.85 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 1.67 | 10 | 0.47 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard gill nets | 0.83 | 5 | 1.88 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard gill nets | 0.67 | 4 | 0.46 |
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 Sugar Bush Lake is a 221-acre lake located in central Becker County near the community of Richwood. The lake is located within the White Earth Indian Reservation. The lake is moderately developed and surrounded by hardwood forest, marsh, and agricultural land. Submerged vegetation is common throughout near shore areas. There are several stands of bulrush, water lilies, and cattail located in various areas around the lake. There is an intermittent inlet and outlet located on the 3.6 miles of moderately developed shoreline. Little Sugar Bush Lake has a special regulation for sunfish limiting anglers to keeping five fish per day. A standard fisheries survey was conducted in June 2023 to evaluate the fish population in Little Sugar Bush Lake. Anglers will find a high number of Northern Pike in Little Sugar Bush Lake, however, most of these fish will be on the small side. The average size of the pike sampled was 21.5 inches, but one 38-inch fish was measured. Walleye numbers were slightly below average for the lake, but size was good. Every Walleye sampled in 2023 was over 15 inches and 38% were over 20 inches. Anglers can expect to find good numbers of Bluegills over eight inches. About 32% of the Bluegills sampled in 2023 were over eight inches long and Bluegills over ten inches were measured. Black Crappie and Largemouth Bass were captured in low numbers in the nets, which is often the case with this sampling gear. Black Crappie were measured up to 11 inches long and Largemouth Bass were up to 16.5 inches long. Other fish species observed were Brown Bullhead, Yellow Bullhead, Green Sunfish, Hybrid Sunfish, Pumpkinseed, White Sucker, and Yellow Perch.
Minnesota DNR survey narrative, .
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