Pickerel Lake (Otter Tail County)

Otter Tail County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data

Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 56047500

DNR records show 9 stocking entries at Pickerel Lake (Otter Tail County) since 2016, most recently walleye fingerlings in 2024 (19,180 fish).

• Pickerel Lake (Otter Tail County) has 9 DNR stocking records across 6 years (2016-2024): walleye (9).
• The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 62,582 fish on record.
• Maximum depth 78 ft, mean depth 28 ft; surface area 849 acres, 274 littoral acres, 6.3 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
• Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 12.8 ft.
• Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, common carp, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, smallmouth bass, tullibee (cisco), and 4 more.
• 1 public access on the DNR list.
• Most recent DNR fish survey: August 5, 2025 (targeted survey).
• Otter Tail County, nearest town Maine; DNR lake number (DOW) 56047500.

Depth map

Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 8/11/1960 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.

Stocking history

² fish purchased by the DNR for stocking.

Public accesses

DNR fish survey, 2025

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.

Pickerel Lake is an 829-acre mesotrophic (moderately fertile) lake located in central Otter Tail County one mile north of Maine, MN. Pickerel Lake is located within the Otter Tail River Watershed and there is an un-navigable, intermittent outlet located along the northeast shoreline. The immediate watershed is composed primarily of agricultural land interspersed with hardwood woodlots. Pickerel Lake has a maximum depth of 78 feet; however, 33% of the lake is 15 feet or less in depth. The secchi disk reading during the 2025 survey was 16.0 feet. Historical secchi disk readings have ranged from 11.0 to 16.8 feet. The entire shoreline of Pickerel Lake has been extensively developed with homes and cottages. A DNR owned concrete public access is located on the south shoreline of the lake. Shoal water substrates consist primarily of sand interspersed with areas of gravel and rubble. Emergent aquatic vegetation such as hardstem bulrush or common cattail is extremely limited; however, a wide variety of submerged aquatic plant species are prevalent throughout the lake. All of these aquatic plants are important to Pickerel Lake because they provide valuable fish and wildlife habitat and are critical for maintaining good water quality. A special gillnetting survey was conducted to analyze the Walleye and Smallmouth Bass populations. Data indicates that these species are abundant and have good size distributions as well. Walleye abundance has remained stable and at a high level over the recent series of surveys. Walleyes ranged in length from 6.5 to 23.2 inches with an average length and weight of 13.2 inches and 0.9 pounds. Age data indicates that the 2022 and 2024-year classes are very strong and should provide excellent Walleye angling for several years. MN DNR Fisheries maintains the Walleye population at a viable level by stocking Walleye fingerlings on an every-other-year basis. Walleye growth is fast as they reach an average length of 16.5 inches at four years of age. Survey data indicate that an excellent Smallmouth Bass population exists. Smallmouth Bass are abundant, and the size structure is very good. Age data indicate that Smallmouth Bass reproduction is consistently good. Smallmouth Bass ranged in length from 10.3 to 18.0 inches with an average length and weight of 14.6 inches and 1.9 pounds. Smallmouth Bass growth is also fast as they reach an average length of 13.6 inches at four years of age. The DNR has constructed and placed fifty Smallmouth Bass half-log spawning structures in Pickerel Lake. These spawning structures increased the amount of…

Minnesota DNR survey narrative, August 5, 2025.

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