Red (Upper Red) Lake
Beltrami County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 04003501
DNR records show 7 stocking entries at Red (Upper Red) Lake since 2016, most recently lake sturgeon fingerlings in 2025 (21,907 fish).
- Red (Upper Red) Lake has 7 DNR stocking records across 7 years (2016-2025): lake sturgeon (7).
- The most-stocked species by count is lake sturgeon: 121,991 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 15 ft, mean depth 12 ft; surface area 119,294 acres, 47,681 littoral acres, 59.2 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black crappie, bluegill, burbot, freshwater drum, goldeye, lake sturgeon, lake whitefish, northern pike, quillback, redhorse, rock bass, shorthead redhorse, and 3 more.
- 2 public accesses on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Beltrami County, nearest town Waskish; DNR lake number (DOW) 04003501.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Lake Sturgeon8 | fingerlings | 21,907 | 523.0 |
| 2024 | Lake Sturgeon8 | fingerlings | 24,262 | 852.4 |
| 2023 | Lake Sturgeon1 | fingerlings | 11,032 | 511.0 |
| 2019 | Lake Sturgeon8 | fingerlings | 14,013 | 564.0 |
| 2018 | Lake Sturgeon8 | fingerlings | 10,150 | 435.6 |
| 2017 | Lake Sturgeon8 | fingerlings | 9,600 | 398.3 |
| 2016 | Lake Sturgeon8 | fingerlings | 31,027 | 527.9 |
1 fish purchased and stocked by private citizens and sporting groups. 8 fish cooperatively purchased, raised, and/or stocked by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
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 OWNS THREE ACCESSES ON THE TAMARAC RIVER |
| concrete ramp | Minnesota DNR | - SOUTH SHORE |
DNR fish survey, 2025
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RVS | Survey seining | 315.19 | 5,043 | 0.00 |
| Yellow perch | Survey seining | 313.19 | 5,011 | 0.00 |
| Spottail shiner | Survey seining | 157.19 | 2,515 | 0.00 |
| Walleye | Survey seining | 99.81 | 1,597 | 0.00 |
| Emerald shiner | Survey seining | 64.81 | 1,037 | 0.00 |
| White sucker | Survey seining | 63.00 | 1,008 | 0.00 |
| Trout-perch | Survey seining | 36.44 | 583 | 0.00 |
| Golden shiner | Survey seining | 3.88 | 62 | 0.00 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 50.85 | 1,017 | 0.99 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 7.40 | 148 | 0.36 |
| GOE | Standard gill nets | 4.85 | 97 | 0.99 |
| Freshwater drum | Standard gill nets | 1.40 | 28 | 1.46 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 1.00 | 20 | 3.09 |
| White sucker | Standard gill nets | 0.70 | 14 | 1.35 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 0.20 | 4 | 1.31 |
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.
Upper Red Lake is a 120,000 acre lake, 60% (72,000 acres) of which is under the jurisdiction of the Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians (Red Lake Band). The remaining 40% (48,000 acres) falls under the jurisdiction of the State of Minnesota. Walleye, the primary species sought by anglers, is managed under a cooperative plan with the Red Lake Band that establishes target harvest levels that vary according to the mature female population. As a result, fishing regulations are frequently adjusted to achieve harvest levels within these targets. The 2025 Walleye gill net catch rate was 50.9 per gill net. The population is now dominated by young fish, mostly notably the 2022 year class. These young fish are ages 2 to 5 and range from 8 to 17 inches. The "one over 17 inches" size regulation will again be in place for the 2026 open water season and there will be plenty of fish right around that size (so measure carefully!). The bag limit will be five fish for the open-water season. Upper Red Lake has one of the highest Walleye catch rates in the state, particularly in May and June and an average spring weather-wise should result in a good bite. Getting away from the river mouths will help you get away from the crowds and will often result in better catch rates. Northern Pike density in Upper Red Lake is low, which is actually a desirable condition for lakes that are being managed for trophy pike. Recent ice-out trap net assessments have captured Northern Pike up to 44 inches in length with tremendous numbers of fish over 36 inches in length. The 30- to 40-inch protected slot limit (only one fish allowed over 40 inches) provides a balance of harvest opportunity for eater-sized fish as well as the chance to put a trophy on the wall. MNDNR has tagged Northern Pike during recent years. Anglers should be on the lookout for these yellow tags that are inserted at the base of the dorsal fin on the left side of the fish. Anglers who catch a tagged fish should note the tag number and are encouraged to report the catch on the DNR website. Simply do a search for "MNDNR fish tag reporting" and follow the links. Note: these tags are sometimes coated with algae that makes seeing the numbers difficult but this can be easily rubbed off to reveal the six-digit number. Yellow Perch gill net catch rate in 2025 was 7.4 fish/net. Many fish caught while Walleye fishing will be big enough to keep and there are good numbers of 10- to 11-inch fish in the population. Growth rates of Yellow Perch in Upper Red Lake are excellent; 59% of the 2025 Yellow Perch gill net catch was greater than 9…
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. Regulations, slot limits and special rules are on the DNR page linked above, not here.
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