Pike Bay

Cass County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data

Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 11041500

DNR records show 14 stocking entries at Pike Bay since 2016, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (2,131,000 fish).

• Pike Bay has 14 DNR stocking records across 9 years (2016-2025): walleye (14).
• The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 20,745,269 fish on record.
• Maximum depth 95 ft, mean depth 25 ft; surface area 4,756 acres, 2,238 littoral acres, 11.0 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
• Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 11.8 ft.
• Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, burbot, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, lake whitefish, largemouth bass, muskellunge, northern pike, and 8 more.
• 2 public accesses on the DNR list.
• Most recent DNR fish survey: August 25, 2025 (targeted survey).
• Cass County, nearest town Cass Lake; DNR lake number (DOW) 11041500.

Depth map

Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 1/1/1937 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.

Stocking history

³ fish cooperatively purchased, raised, and/or stocked by Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.

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.

A targeted gill net survey for Walleye on Pike Bay was conducted during the week of 8/25/2025. This survey was the second conducted on an expedited 3-year rotation since Pike Bay was selected for inclusion in a statewide study of zebra mussel effects on Walleye populations (2021). Pike Bay was listed as infested with zebra mussels in 2014 and with the exception of 2020, Pike Bay has been stocked annually with Walleye fry. A total of 39 Walleye were captured resulting in a catch rate of 2.3 fish/net which was down considerably from 5.2 fish/net in the previous survey (2022). Walleye captured ranged from 16 to 27 inches in length with a mean length of just over 20 inches and a mean weight of 3 lbs/fish. The two most abundant year classes were age-6 (2019) and age-8 (2017). The 2019 year class was the most abundant cohort identified, comprising 36% of the catch. The 2025 targeted gill net survey also provided an opportunity to evaluate the Northern Pike population. A total of 47 pike were captured resulting in a catch rate of 3.1 fish/net which was a slight increase from 2.3 fish/net in 2022. Pike captured ranged from 16 to 33 inches in length with a mean length of 25 inches and mean weight of nearly 4 pounds. Approximately 38% of pike were 26 inches in length or larger. Yellow Perch are also a popular species for anglers on Pike Bay. Perch catch rates increased from 76.6 fish/net in 2022 to 86.6 fish/net in this survey. Some perch captured during the 2025 survey exceeded 12 inches and they averaged just over 7 inches. Other species of fish captured in this survey were Black Crappie, Bluegill, Brown Bullhead, Lake Whitefish, Pumpkinseed, Rock Bass, Tullibee, White Sucker and Yellow Bullhead.

Minnesota DNR survey narrative, August 25, 2025.

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