Potato Lake
Hubbard County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 29024300
DNR records show 5 stocking entries at Potato Lake since 2017, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (432,150 fish).
- Potato Lake has 5 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2017-2025): walleye (5).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 2,197,595 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 87 ft; surface area 2,096 acres, 426 littoral acres, 14.8 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 8.4 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, shorthead redhorse, smallmouth bass, tullibee (cisco), walleye, and 3 more.
- 2 public accesses on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Hubbard County, nearest town Park Rapids; DNR lake number (DOW) 29024300.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 10/16/1973 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 432,150 | 3.7 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fry | 430,650 | 3.5 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fry | 473,025 | 3.9 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 431,120 | 3.5 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fry | 430,650 | 3.5 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| concrete ramp | Minnesota DNR | State-owned access located on the north shore. |
| concrete ramp | county | County-owned access located on the west bay. |
DNR fish survey, 2025
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walleye | Fall electrofishing | 31.25 | 52 | 0.00 |
| Rock bass | Standard gill nets | 23.13 | 347 | 0.33 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 12.13 | 182 | 2.21 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 8.80 | 132 | 0.12 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard gill nets | 7.67 | 115 | 0.08 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 6.40 | 96 | 0.10 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 3.80 | 57 | 1.77 |
| Smallmouth bass | Standard gill nets | 2.27 | 34 | 1.85 |
| White sucker | Standard gill nets | 1.47 | 22 | 2.91 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 22.24 | 53 | 1.52 |
| Smallmouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 17.20 | 41 | 1.60 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 17.71 | 248 | 0.20 |
| Rock bass | Standard trap nets | 2.00 | 28 | 0.21 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trap nets | 0.86 | 12 | 0.12 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.64 | 9 | 1.07 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.57 | 8 | 0.64 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 0.50 | 7 | 0.19 |
| Walleye | Standard trap nets | 0.36 | 5 | 4.26 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.21 | 3 | 2.02 |
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.
Potato Lake (DOW # 29-0243-00) is located seven miles north of Park Rapids in Hubbard County. Potato Lake has a surface area of 2,096 acres and a maximum depth of 87 feet. There is a state-owned public access located on the north shore and a county-owned access located on the west "arm" of the lake. Boating access with small craft is also available from the inlet river connecting to Eagle Lake. There is a fixed crest dam at the outlet that prevents boat travel downstream but allows for fish passage. Potato Lake is a very popular fishing lake in the Park Rapids area known for its Walleye population, but also provides angling opportunities for Northern Pike, Smallmouth Bass, Largemouth Bass and Panfish. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different types based on physical, chemical, and other characteristics. Potato Lake is in Lake Class 22. Lake Class 22 lakes generally are deep, with hard water and small littoral zones (lake area less than 15 feet in depth). Other Lake Class 22 lakes in the Park Rapids management area include: Big Sand, Kabekona, Long and Lower Bottle. Walleye abundance was down from the previous survey and below the current management goal. Walleye abundance has been below management goal 3 of the past 4 surveys, but gill net catch rates have fluctuated within the range for similar type lakes. Sampled Walleyes had an average length of 17.1 inches, with fish measured up to 24.9 inches. Abundance of Yellow Perch, an important forage species for Walleye, was up from recent surveys and near the current management goal. Yellow Perch are small in size and generally not a size anglers typically prefer to keep, but a few fish up to 10 inches were measured. Northern Pike abundance captured in the most recent survey matched the highest recorded of the fifteen surveys dating back to 1950. Northern Pike numbers have been high since the 2013 survey, while abundance in earlier surveys fluctuated at moderate levels for this Lake Class. Sampled Northern Pike had an average length and weight of 21.1 inches and 2.21 pounds, with fish measured up to 35.4 inches. Both Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass were found in moderate abundance. While the average size of Largemouth was smaller, both species included fish sampled up to 19 inches. Bluegill abundance was up from recent surveys with about half of the fish sampled in the 6-to-8-inch range, with fish measured up to 9 inches. Currently zebra mussels are the only aquatic invasive species (AIS) that has been identified in Potato Lake. To avoid spreading…
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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