Sand Lake (Stearns County)

Stearns County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data

Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 73019900

Sand Lake (Stearns County) has no DNR stocking rows in LakeFinder; this page carries its DNR depth, access and survey data.

• Sand Lake (Stearns County) shows no stocking records in Minnesota DNR LakeFinder as of September 2, 2026.
• Maximum depth 15 ft, mean depth 7 ft; surface area 209 acres, 209 littoral acres, 2.7 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
• Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 3.0 ft.
• 1 public access on the DNR list.
• Most recent DNR fish survey: June 4, 2012 (standard survey).
• Stearns County, nearest town Albany; DNR lake number (DOW) 73019900.

Depth map

Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 6/15/1961 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.

Public accesses

DNR fish survey, 2012

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.

Sand Lake is located in north central Stearns County, three miles southwest of Albany. It has a surface area of 202 acres and a maximum depth of about 15 feet. A public access is located along the west shore. Due to the shallowness of the lake and poor water quality, the lake periodically experiences partial winterkill. This occurred most recently during 2011. A population assessment was conducted in 2012 to assess fish populations, and included spring electrofishing and summer trap netting. Catch rates were compared to lakes with similar characteristics as a way to evaluate the fish populations. Sand Lake is managed for walleye and crappie, and these species can grow quickly following winterkill events. Walleye were stocked as fry in 2005, and survival was moderate (21.5 fingerlings/hour), based on night electrofishing in the fall of 2005. Gillnets, which sample walleye most effectively, were not used in the 2012 survey and only one 20 inch walleye was sampled by trap nets. Anglers have reported some success for walleyes in Sand Lake, but a more thorough assessment that includes gillnets would be necessary to accurately measure walleye abundance. The population of black crappie appeared to be very good both in terms of numbers and average size. Black crappies were sampled at a rate of 318/trap net, which is over 15 times greater than the range typically found in lakes similar to Sand. Most of the crappies were about 7.5 inches in length, but 13 percent of the crappies sampled were greater than nine inches. Without additional winterkill, these crappie should provide a good fishery for the next few years. Only three largemouth bass were captured in a half hour of electrofishing. The water clarity was very poor at the time of sampling and likely affected the catch. The bass ranged in size between 15 and 17 inches in length. Smallmouth bass have also been sampled in previous surveys. The catch rate of bluegill was within the range of expected values for similar lakes. Most bluegill were between 5-7 inches in length. Only one northern pike (25 inches) and one yellow perch (8.5 inches) were sampled in trap nets. Other species sampled during the survey included bigmouth buffalo, black bullhead, common carp, hybrid sunfish, and golden shiner. Large numbers of common carp were observed during the spring electrofishing and most were between 14 and 16 inches in length. Despite the fact that the watershed of Sand Lake is quite small, water quality is poor. Nutrients entering the lake from run-off, as well as those re-suspended from the lake bottom, create…

Minnesota DNR survey narrative, June 4, 2012.

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