Pepin Lake (Goodhue County)
Goodhue County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 25000100
Pepin Lake (Goodhue County) has no DNR stocking rows in LakeFinder; this page carries its DNR depth, access and survey data.
- Pepin Lake (Goodhue County) shows no stocking records in Minnesota DNR LakeFinder as of .
- Maximum depth 60 ft, mean depth 21 ft; surface area 12,299 acres, 8,060 littoral acres, 54.9 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Fish species DNR lists here: American eel, bigmouth buffalo, black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), burbot, carpsucker, channel catfish, common carp, flathead catfish, freshwater drum, and 35 more.
- 4 public accesses on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Goodhue County, nearest town Lake City; DNR lake number (DOW) 25000100.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 9/1/1959 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Public accesses
| Type | Owner | Where |
|---|---|---|
| concrete ramp | city | 2 lane concrete ramp in Baypoint Park in Red Wing with river access to Lake Pepin |
| concrete ramp | city | 1 lane concrete ramp at the entrance to Colvill Park in Red Wing. Ramp is located in Bill's Bay with river access to Lake Pepin - Limited parking for trailers |
| concrete ramp | TOW | - GOODHUE CTY; T112N; R13W S1 |
| concrete ramp | TOW |
DNR fish survey, 2024
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GIS | Survey seining | 1104.05 | 20,977 | 0.00 |
| Bluegill | Survey seining | 20.00 | 380 | 0.00 |
| Emerald shiner | Survey seining | 17.79 | 338 | 0.00 |
| Spottail shiner | Survey seining | 7.84 | 149 | 0.00 |
| SHI | Survey seining | 3.21 | 61 | 0.00 |
| Spotfin shiner | Survey seining | 1.95 | 37 | 0.00 |
| Black crappie | Survey seining | 1.89 | 36 | 0.00 |
| Brook stickleback | Survey seining | 1.74 | 33 | 0.00 |
| Sauger | Fall electrofishing | 84.16 | 271 | 0.05 |
| Walleye | Fall electrofishing | 13.66 | 44 | 0.01 |
| Bluegill | Fall electrofishing | 1.55 | 5 | 0.49 |
| Yellow perch | Fall electrofishing | 0.62 | 2 | 0.89 |
| Smallmouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 67.46 | 349 | 0.81 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 18.36 | 95 | 1.16 |
| Walleye | Standard electrofishing | 11.79 | 61 | 2.79 |
| Flathead catfish | Standard electrofishing | 0.39 | 2 | 0.00 |
| Longnose gar | Standard electrofishing | 0.19 | 1 | 0.71 |
| Chestnut lamprey | Standard electrofishing | 0.19 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Freshwater drum | Standard trawling | 62.50 | 2,500 | 0.40 |
| Bluegill | Standard trawling | 8.43 | 337 | 0.12 |
| Trout-perch | Standard trawling | 6.65 | 266 | 0.00 |
| Sauger | Standard trawling | 4.28 | 171 | 0.38 |
| GIS | Standard trawling | 4.05 | 162 | 0.02 |
| Walleye | Standard trawling | 3.88 | 155 | 0.64 |
| Spottail shiner | Standard trawling | 2.45 | 98 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trawling | 2.15 | 86 | 0.30 |
| GIS | Standard gill nets | 23.96 | 575 | 0.42 |
| Sauger | Standard gill nets | 19.58 | 470 | 0.78 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 15.33 | 368 | 0.34 |
| Freshwater drum | Standard gill nets | 11.62 | 279 | 0.39 |
| Channel catfish | Standard gill nets | 4.08 | 98 | 1.94 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 4.00 | 96 | 1.75 |
| White bass | Standard gill nets | 3.62 | 87 | 0.83 |
| Shorthead redhorse | Standard gill nets | 3.12 | 75 | 1.48 |
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.
Angling Forecast Anglers in 2021-2023 experienced "low" summer and fall water levels not seen since the late 1980s. These levels presented challenges to anglers whose experience on Pool 4 only took place during the last decade or so when "high water" has been the norm, but strong populations of multiple gamefish species particularly Walleye, Sauger, Yellow Perch, and Black Crappie were enjoyed by many. In 2024 higher summer water levels returned and catches remained good for most gamefish species. Yellow Perch catches from the Lake Pepin portion of Pool 4 seemed to decrease a bit and a resurgent Northern Pike population offered excellent opportunities for anglers at times throughout the summer. The 2025 outlook for Walleye and Sauger anglers is still good despite a sharp drop off in Walleye numbers in the gill nets in 2024. Four year classes from age-6 through age-11 contributed Sauger >20-inches in the 2024 gill nets. During the 2025 angling season these fish and fast-growing individuals from the large 2020 year class should provide opportunities for Sauger >20-inches. Strong reproduction of Walleye from 2018-2021 will provide large Walleyes for anglers while the 2021 year class will also provide fish just under 20 inches for those interested in harvest. Strong Sauger production in 2018 and 2020 will provide ample fish for anglers in 2025. Smallmouth Bass, Largemouth Bass, Yellow Perch, Black Crappie, and Bluegill should continue to provide good angling opportunities during 2025 based on the numbers of adult and juvenile fish sampled. The consistent Bluegill and Yellow Perch reproduction observed for the last several decades should continue to provide good angling opportunities with quality sized fish available in 2025. Though recent year classes of crappie have not been exceptionally strong, consistent observation of 10-13 inch Black Crappie indicate that in 2025 anglers should find plenty of harvestable fish, but smaller sizes will also be present and as always sorting will likely be required. Northern Pike seem to have taken advantage of the high survival of YOY Gizzard Shad over the winter of 2023-2024. While other species struggled with the lack of YOY shad in the spring of 2024 Northern Pike, with their larger mouths, were able to capitalize on the 5-7 inch age-1 Gizzard Shad that survived the winter. Anglers should have ample opportunities to target Northern Pike throughout Pool 4 in 2025 as this abundant source of large prey can rapidly grow pike to preferred and even trophy size when favorable conditions occur. The start of the 2015 angling…
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.
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