Red Lake River Reservoir
Pennington County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 57005100
DNR records show 1 stocking entry at Red Lake River Reservoir since 2025, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (100,000 fish).
- Red Lake River Reservoir has 1 DNR stocking record across 1 year (2025-2025): walleye (1).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 100,000 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 18 ft; surface area 97 acres, 75 littoral acres, 6.5 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 2.9 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, channel catfish, common carp, freshwater drum, golden redhorse, greater redhorse, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, quillback, and 7 more.
- 2 public accesses on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Pennington County, nearest town Thief River Falls; DNR lake number (DOW) 57005100.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey; depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye1 | fry | 100,000 | 1.0 |
1 fish purchased and stocked by private citizens and sporting groups.
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 | city | Located at the Thief River Falls city park north of the red lake river arm of reservoir near the confluence with thief river. |
| concrete ramp | city | Located in the Boy Scout Park in Thief River Falls. |
DNR fish survey, 2024
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Common carp | Standard trap nets | 50.67 | 456 | 0.44 |
| Rock bass | Standard trap nets | 2.22 | 20 | 0.30 |
| Walleye | Standard trap nets | 1.22 | 11 | 3.06 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 1.00 | 9 | 2.21 |
| White sucker | Standard trap nets | 0.56 | 5 | 2.10 |
| Shorthead redhorse | Standard trap nets | 0.33 | 3 | 2.20 |
| Black bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.22 | 2 | 1.34 |
| Freshwater drum | Standard trap nets | 0.22 | 2 | 2.03 |
| Emerald shiner | Survey seining | 11.50 | 23 | 0.00 |
| Spottail shiner | Survey seining | 3.00 | 6 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | Survey seining | 1.00 | 2 | 0.00 |
| BCS | Survey seining | 0.50 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Pumpkinseed | Survey seining | 0.50 | 1 | 0.04 |
| White sucker | Survey seining | 0.50 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Johnny darter | Survey seining | 0.50 | 1 | 0.00 |
| Common carp | Standard gill nets | 9.78 | 88 | 1.42 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 3.67 | 33 | 2.45 |
| Rock bass | Standard gill nets | 2.56 | 23 | 0.27 |
| Shorthead redhorse | Standard gill nets | 1.44 | 13 | 0.64 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 1.33 | 12 | 0.46 |
| Channel catfish | Standard gill nets | 0.89 | 8 | 1.62 |
| White sucker | Standard gill nets | 0.44 | 4 | 0.54 |
| Greater redhorse | Standard gill nets | 0.33 | 3 | 2.43 |
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.
STATUS OF THE FISHERY Red Lake River Reservoir is a unique fishing opportunity in northwestern Minnesota that lies within the city of Thief River Falls. The reservoir was created with the construction of a hydroelectric dam located downstream of the confluence of the Thief River and Red Lake River. The reservoir has a surface area of 139-acres and a maximum depth of 18 feet. The reservoir has abundant vegetation in portions of the reservoir. A fisheries survey was conducted in the summer of 2024 and indicated the presence of a variety of species within the reservoir. Walleye catch rates were near the historical average for the reservoir at just over one Walleye per gill net. Walleye averaged 10 inches in length and the largest Walleye observed was just over 27 inches long. Northern Pike catch rates increased to its highest observed catch rate since 1998 at roughly 3.5 fish per net. Average length also increased to its highest observed historically at 21.6 inches. The largest observed Northern Pike in the 2024 survey was just over 30 inches in length. However, anglers have reported catching up to 40-inch pike in the past. Panfish species including Black Crappie, Bluegill, Rock Bass, Pumpkinseed, and Yellow Perch were all observed in the reservoir in 2024. However, poor habitat quality resulting in a lack of natural reproduction keeps these species in low abundance in the reservoir. Anglers can occasionally catch these species but should expect low catches. Yellow Perch averaged six inches in length in the 2024 survey with the largest observed perch measuring just over six inches. In 2014, Channel Catfish were observed in the reservoir above the hydroelectric dam. Up until 2014 there had not been any Channel Catfish caught above the dam. Another Channel Catfish was caught in the 2019 survey and eight were captured in the 2024 survey. In 2024 the average length of Channel Catfish was just over 16 inches with the largest Channel Catfish measuring just over 20 inches. While the Channel Catfish abundance above the dam remains low, it appears the population is increasing and fishing opportunities will likely increase if conditions for catfish within the reservoir and rivers above the reservoir continue to be suitable. Two public water access points are located on the reservoir in the city of Thief River Falls. Additionally, there are two public fishing piers available in the city parks adjacent to the reservoir. There are also fishing opportunities below the reservoir dam on Red Lake River for Walleye, Northern Pike, Channel Catfish, and Smallmouth Bass.
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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