Portage Lake (Cass County, DOW 11049000)
Cass County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 11049000
DNR records show 2 stocking entries at Portage Lake (Cass County, DOW 11049000) since 2017, most recently walleye fingerlings in 2019 (6,815 fish).
- Portage Lake (Cass County, DOW 11049000) has 2 DNR stocking records across 2 years (2017-2019): walleye (2).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 8,415 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 65 ft; surface area 361 acres, 168 littoral acres, 3.6 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, smallmouth bass, tullibee (cisco), walleye, white sucker, and 1 more.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Cass County, nearest town Cass Lake; DNR lake number (DOW) 11049000.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 9/14/1956 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Walleye3 | fingerlings | 6,815 | 235.0 |
| 2017 | Walleye3 | yearlings | 1,600 | 200.0 |
3 fish cooperatively purchased, raised, and/or stocked by Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.
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.
DNR fish survey, 1998
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow perch | Survey seining | 90.33 | 271 | 0.01 |
| Johnny darter | Survey seining | 1.67 | 5 | 0.00 |
| BKF | Survey seining | 1.00 | 3 | 0.00 |
| Spottail shiner | Survey seining | 0.67 | 2 | 0.00 |
| Largemouth bass | Survey seining | 0.67 | 2 | 0.01 |
| Pumpkinseed | Survey seining | 0.33 | 1 | 0.13 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 30.11 | 271 | 0.12 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 15.89 | 143 | 1.85 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 3.89 | 35 | 1.29 |
| White sucker | Standard gill nets | 2.00 | 18 | 2.40 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 1.78 | 16 | 0.32 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard gill nets | 1.22 | 11 | 0.21 |
| Rock bass | Standard gill nets | 1.11 | 10 | 0.36 |
| Tullibee (cisco) | Standard gill nets | 1.11 | 10 | 1.20 |
| Walleye | Standard electrofishing | 7.00 | 14 | 0.96 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 3.50 | 7 | 2.27 |
| Smallmouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 1.00 | 2 | 1.78 |
| Black crappie | Standard electrofishing | 0.50 | 1 | 0.82 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 2.67 | 24 | 0.10 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trap nets | 2.33 | 21 | 0.11 |
| Rock bass | Standard trap nets | 1.67 | 15 | 0.26 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 1.67 | 15 | 0.10 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.56 | 5 | 0.28 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 3 | 1.47 |
| Bowfin (dogfish) | Standard trap nets | 0.22 | 2 | 2.94 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 0.22 | 2 | 0.08 |
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.
Portage Lake is a 356-acre lake with a maximum depth of 65 feet. The lake is located six miles south of Cass Lake in northern Cass County. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different lake classes based on physical and chemical characteristics. Portage Lake is in lake class 27. Other area lakes in the same lake class include Lower Sucker, Thirteen, and Crooked Lakes. Approximately 47% of the lake is 15 feet or less in depth. There is no public access on the lake. Portage Lake provides fishing for northern pike, walleye, bluegill, black crappie, and largemouth bass. The lake is managed primarily for northern pike, largemouth bass, and walleye.Anglers will find plenty of northern pike to catch. Their abundance is higher than what was found in previous surveys and of other lake class 27 lakes. They are generally small in size. Most fish are between 17 and 22 inches long but there a few over 30 inches. Growth was comparable to other area lake class 27 lakes for the first three years and better by the fourth year. There is evidence that both stocking and natural reproduction are producing walleye in Portage Lake. Walleye abundance is down from what was found in 1993, but is typical of other lakes in lake class 27. Walleye ranged in length from nine to 25 inches with an average length and weight of 15 inches and 1.3 pounds. The quality of walleye improved over what was found in 1993. Bluegill abundance has varied from survey to survey. Abundance in 1998 was below what you would typically find in a lake class 27 lake. The quality of bluegill has not decreased since 1976. To maintain such good quality, anglers need to practice selective harvest by releasing the larger bluegill and keeping only the smaller ones for eating. Quality size bluegill have disappeared from many lakes due to excessive harvest by anglers. Small numbers of black crappie and largemouth bass were sampled. These fish do not sample well in nets. These low catch rates are probably not representative of actual population sizes. Anglers have success catching these species of fish. Largemouth bass up to 18.9 inches in length were sampled. Portage Lake has stands of bulrush, cattail, and wild rice around the entire lake that offer good cover for largemouth bass and black crappie and ensure their continued successful natural reproduction. Two smallmouth bass were sampled for the first time on Portage Lake.Yellow perch are used as food by predator fish such as northern pike and walleye. Because of the increase in northern pike, yellow perch…
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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