Mustinka River Flowage
Grant County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 26023500
DNR records show 7 stocking entries at Mustinka River Flowage since 2016, most recently walleye fry in 2024 (91,000 fish).
- Mustinka River Flowage has 7 DNR stocking records across 6 years (2016-2024): walleye (7).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 458,500 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 10 ft, mean depth 4 ft; surface area 91 acres, 91 littoral acres, 3.0 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 1.1 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, common carp, northern pike, walleye, white sucker, yellow bullhead.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Grant County, nearest town Norcross; DNR lake number (DOW) 26023500.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Walleye | fry | 91,000 | 0.8 |
| 2022 | Walleye | fry | 91,000 | 0.8 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fry | 91,000 | 0.8 |
| 2018 | Walleye | fry | 91,000 | 0.8 |
| 2017 | Walleye1 | fingerlings | 2,500 | 125.0 |
| 2016 | Walleye1 | fingerlings | 1,000 | 50.0 |
| 2016 | Walleye | fry | 91,000 | 0.8 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| gravel ramp | city | - Located on northwest side within Pine Ridge Park. Park entrance is off of Grant County Road 34. |
DNR fish survey, 2018
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black bullhead | Standard gill nets | 62.50 | 125 | 0.15 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 36.50 | 73 | 0.92 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 7.50 | 15 | 4.32 |
| Common carp | Standard gill nets | 5.00 | 10 | 3.75 |
| White sucker | Standard gill nets | 4.50 | 9 | 1.03 |
| Common carp | Standard trap nets | 9.78 | 88 | 2.58 |
| Black bullhead | Standard trap nets | 6.56 | 59 | 0.28 |
| White sucker | Standard trap nets | 3.67 | 33 | 1.41 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 1.89 | 17 | 3.59 |
| Walleye | Standard trap nets | 1.67 | 15 | 1.49 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 0.67 | 6 | 0.32 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 0.22 | 2 | 0.29 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.11 | 1 | 0.81 |
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.
The Mustinka River Flowage is a 91-acre, man-made impoundment of the Mustinka River. The dam was constructed in the late 1930s. With age of the reservoir and sediment deposits, maximum depth has decreased from 18.0 feet to approximately 10.0 feet. Average depth is 4.0 feet. This shallow, productive reservoir is located four miles north of Herman in Grant County. The inlet of upper Mustinka River is on the east shoreline. A gravel boat launch is located on the northwest side of the reservoir within the Pine Ridge Park. Park amenities include the boat launch, primitive camping, picnic facilities, and a swimming beach. The park entrance is located off of Grant County Road 34. Water quality is poor during summer months due to excessive nutrient loading and suspension of bottom sediments. A standard lake survey was completed in 2018 to assess the fish community of the Mustinka River Flowage and assess success of Walleye stockings. Walleyes proved to be abundant. Gill net catches averaged 36.5 fish/net. Capture lengths ranged from 7.1 to 21.6 inches and averaged 13.7 inches. Most of the Walleye catch was comprised of two- and three-year old fish. Age distribution of the catch extended only to age 5. Approximately 20% of the Walleye catch measured 15.0 inches or larger. The largest Walleye captured measured 21.6 inches. Five year classes were present but majority of the fish were from the 2016 year class, suggesting fry stocking worked well. Age distribution of the catch also included good numbers of three-year-old Walleyes. No stocking occurred in 2015, thus these fish are likely natural recruits. Northern Pike were moderately abundant. Size distribution of pike catch was exceptional. Approximately 80% of Northern Pike captures exceeded 21.0 inches in length. Average length was 26.5 inches. The largest pike capture was a memorable-size fish measuring 36.0 inches. Catches of other gamefishes were very limited. No Largemouth Bass and Yellow Perch were caught. Only two Bluegills were captured. The largest measured 8.5 inches. Black Crappie were modest in comparison to high catch rates recorded during the 2008 survey. At least two age groups of crappie were reflected in length-frequency distribution of the catch, but annual recruitment appeared to be very limited in recent years. This is typical of Black Crappie populations which can undergo boom and bust fisheries as a strong year class moves through the system. Bluegill catch rates have typically been low, likely due to lack of aquatic vegetation. Other fishes sampled in this survey included Black Bullheads…
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. 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.