Reeds Lake
Waseca County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 81005500
DNR records show 6 stocking entries at Reeds Lake since 2017, most recently northern pike fry in 2025 (29,605 fish).
- Reeds Lake has 6 DNR stocking records across 6 years (2017-2025): northern pike (6).
- The most-stocked species by count is northern pike: 190,674 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 58 ft; surface area 195 acres, 110 littoral acres, 2.8 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 6.8 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, common carp, green sunfish, hybrid crappie, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, walleye, white crappie, and 3 more.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Waseca County, nearest town Elysian; DNR lake number (DOW) 81005500.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 7/17/1951 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Northern Pike | fry | 29,605 | 0.5 |
| 2023 | Northern Pike | fry | 49,149 | 1.6 |
| 2022 | Northern Pike | fry | 32,895 | 1.1 |
| 2019 | Northern Pike | fry | 25,000 | 0.9 |
| 2018 | Northern Pike | fry | 29,025 | 0.9 |
| 2017 | Northern Pike | fry | 25,000 | 0.7 |
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 | county | Access on southern shore of lake - Access is in good condition with double ramps and a dock. Parking is limited. |
DNR fish survey, 2022
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 122.36 | 1,346 | 0.04 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 4.27 | 47 | 0.20 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 2.45 | 27 | 0.27 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 1.64 | 18 | 0.86 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 1.00 | 11 | 0.28 |
| Green sunfish | Standard trap nets | 0.64 | 7 | 0.31 |
| Northern pike | Standard trap nets | 0.27 | 3 | 2.50 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.27 | 3 | 0.83 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 68.93 | 79 | 1.44 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 16.50 | 66 | 0.19 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 10.25 | 41 | 0.19 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 9.50 | 38 | 2.90 |
| White crappie | Standard gill nets | 2.00 | 8 | 0.26 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard gill nets | 1.00 | 4 | 1.45 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard gill nets | 0.75 | 3 | 0.91 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard gill nets | 0.25 | 1 | 0.26 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 0.25 | 1 | 0.12 |
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.
Reeds Lake is a 193-acre lake located in Waseca County 2 miles east of the city of Elysian. Reeds Lake has a maximum depth of 58 feet. A county-maintained public access is located on the southwest side of the lake. Reeds Lake has a small watershed with minimal agricultural run-off and is one of the clearest lakes in the Waterville Fisheries Management Area. Residential development surrounds much of the lake, but most of the riparian zone remains intact and aquatic vegetation is abundant, which provides valuable fish habitat. Reeds Lake is managed primarily for Northern Pike and Largemouth Bass and secondarily for Bluegill and crappie species. The base stocking plan for Reeds Lake includes stocking Northern Pike fry annually into a nearby pond, which are removed each fall for stocking into Reeds Lake as fingerlings. All other fish species are the result of natural reproduction. Reeds Lake is designated as an infested water due to the presence of Eurasian water-milfoil, which was first documented in the lake in 2014. Eurasian water-milfoil limits recreational activities by forming dense mats on the water surface and disrupts aquatic ecosystems by competing with and displacing native plants. Eurasian water-milfoil is spread primarily by the introduction of plant fragments, which can easily be transported by boaters. Always be sure to clean all aquatic plant material and drain all water from boats, trailers, and equipment before leaving the lake access. Reeds Lake was surveyed the week of June 13, 2022, by the MN DNR as part of a regularly scheduled monitoring program. A standard survey is used for sampling a wide range of fish species during the summer months using standard methods (i.e., standard time of year, set sampling stations, taking water clarity readings and oxygen/temperature profiles, etc.) and gears (i.e., lake survey gillnets, trap nets, and spring electrofishing for Largemouth Bass). This survey included deploying 4 gill nets and 12 trap nets, as well as recording water quality parameters. Since Largemouth Bass are not effectively sampled in nets, electrofishing was conducted on May 18, 2022, to assess the Largemouth Bass population. Reeds Lake is scheduled to be surveyed again in 2028. The 2022 gill net catch rate for Northern Pike was 9.5 fish/net, which was below the long-term average for Reeds Lake (12.1 fish/net) and far below the catch rate of the previous survey in 2016 (25.5 fish/net). The size structure was moderate to small, with an average of 23.6 inches and a range of 18.8 to 38.2 inches. About 30% of the sample were of legal…
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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