Pike River Flowage
St. Louis County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 69058000
DNR records show 6 stocking entries at Pike River Flowage since 2017, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (252,000 fish).
- Pike River Flowage has 6 DNR stocking records across 6 years (2017-2025): walleye (6).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 1,537,000 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 23 ft; surface area 214 acres, 214 littoral acres, 4.6 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 3.3 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, bluegill, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, smallmouth bass, walleye, white sucker, yellow perch.
- 3 public accesses on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- St. Louis County, nearest town Tower; DNR lake number (DOW) 69058000.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 252,000 | 2.8 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fry | 252,000 | 2.3 |
| 2022 | Walleye | fry | 252,000 | 2.5 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 252,000 | 2.6 |
| 2018 | Walleye | fry | 252,000 | 2.9 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fry | 277,000 | 2.6 |
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 | DOT | - South and east side of bridge off Highway 1 (owned by MN DOT) |
| CA | city | - Access by foot trail above Pike River Dam off Co. Rd. 77. |
| CA | county | - Taconite recreation trail crosses river at headwaters of the flowage. (Also City of Tower ownership) |
DNR fish survey, 2023
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White sucker | Standard gill nets | 5.33 | 32 | 1.59 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 5.00 | 30 | 1.00 |
| Rock bass | Standard gill nets | 4.33 | 26 | 0.36 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 1.67 | 10 | 2.33 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 1.33 | 8 | 0.17 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 1.17 | 7 | 0.16 |
| Golden shiner | Standard gill nets | 0.67 | 4 | 0.10 |
| Smallmouth bass | Standard gill nets | 0.17 | 1 | 2.11 |
| White sucker | Standard trap nets | 1.89 | 17 | 2.51 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 1.67 | 15 | 0.50 |
| Rock bass | Standard trap nets | 1.22 | 11 | 0.44 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 1.11 | 10 | 1.19 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trap nets | 0.89 | 8 | 0.24 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 0.89 | 8 | 0.45 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 0.56 | 5 | 0.10 |
| Walleye | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 3 | 0.90 |
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 Pike River Flowage is located five miles west of Tower with its main access via a gravel ramp off State Highway 1 just upstream of the impounding dam. This 254-acre reservoir is fed by the Pike River from the West and exits over a dam into Pike Bay on Lake Vermilion. The reservoir has a maximum depth of 23 feet, Secchi disk reading of 3.5 feet, and brown-colored water. The deeper, channelized basin north of the HWY 1 bridge had a surface temperature of 69.8 F and contained dissolved oxygen sufficient for fish down to 9 feet where the temperature was 68.7 F. The shallow flooded basin south of the bridge was weakly stratified with a surface temperature of 68.4 F and a bottom temperature of 67.5 F. Dissolved oxygen levels were sufficient for fish to the bottom. This population assessment consisted of six gill net and nine trap net sets. The overall gillnet catch rate for all fish combined was above average at 20.0 fish/net. Gill net catches were dominated by walleye, white sucker, and northern pike. The overall trap net catch rate for all fish combined was below average at 8.9 fish/net. Trap net catches were primarily white sucker, northern pike and black crappie. Bluegill were sampled in low numbers. Walleye abundance (5.0/net) was the second highest in all surveys of the flowage. Lengths ranged from 7.5 to 24 inches with an average of almost 14 inches. Walleye ages ranged from 1 to 15 years, though most of the catch was age 5 or less. Recruitment of years 2 through 5 was consistent. Walleye growth was average for the Tower area. Northern Pike abundance (1.7/net) was below average. Lengths ranged from 12.0 to almost 30 inches with a mean of 20 inches. Most of the northern pike sampled appeared skinny and had pronounced neascus infestations. This parasite, also known as black spot, is not a health hazard. Fish should be thoroughly cooked. Black crappie abundance (1.7/net) was below average for the PRF but average for similar area lakes. Lengths ranged from 5 to 12.5 inches with an average of 9 inches. Black crappie growth was near average. Only 2018 stood out as a stronger year class, although natural reproduction was consistent. Bluegill abundance (0.9/net) was low, but the fish present were quality. Lengths ranged from 5.5 to 9.8 inches with a mean of 7.6 inches. Growth was notably fast for the area. Smallmouth bass were present in both gears. One 15 inch smallmouth was present in a gill net and trap nets captured two at 11.5 and 17.5 inches. Standard survey gear underrepresents smallmouth bass numbers, and anglers may find more bass than our nets…
Minnesota DNR survey narrative, .
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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.
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