Sauk Lake
Todd County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 77015000
DNR records show 8 stocking entries at Sauk Lake since 2016, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (1,400,000 fish).
- Sauk Lake has 8 DNR stocking records across 8 years (2016-2025): walleye (8).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 14,000,000 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 61 ft, mean depth 17 ft; surface area 2,126 acres, 1,380 littoral acres, 22.3 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 4.6 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, common carp, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, shorthead redhorse, and 6 more.
- 5 public accesses on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (targeted survey).
- Todd County, nearest town Sauk Centre; DNR lake number (DOW) 77015000.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 1,400,000 | 12.9 |
| 2024 | Walleye | fry | 1,400,000 | 12.5 |
| 2022 | Walleye | fry | 1,400,000 | 12.8 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fry | 1,400,000 | 12.6 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 2,100,000 | 17.5 |
| 2018 | Walleye | fry | 2,100,000 | 18.7 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fry | 2,100,000 | 18.9 |
| 2016 | Walleye | fry | 2,100,000 | 18.6 |
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 | North end of lake |
| PU | city | Located in park in Sauk Centre |
| gravel ramp | DOT | SW of Hwy 71 bridge |
| concrete ramp | Minnesota DNR | East side of Hwy 71 |
| concrete ramp | city | South end of lake in city park |
DNR fish survey, 2025
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walleye | Fall electrofishing | 16.95 | 17 | 0.17 |
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.
Sauk (Big Sauk) Lake (DOW# 77-0150-00; Lake Class 25) is a 2,126-acre lake that extends north of the Sauk Centre Dam. The lake has a maximum depth of 61 feet, an average depth of 17 feet, and water visibility around 6 feet. Sauk Lake has a variety of submerged, emergent, and floating-leaf vegetation around its perimeter. The lake is primarily managed for Walleye and Bluegill, and secondarily for Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, and Black Crappie. Walleye fry are stocked to maintain the population within or above management goals. A targeted electrofishing survey for young-of-year Walleye was completed on September 9, 2025. Fall electrofishing surveys are used to evaluate fry stocking success or natural reproduction. A total of 1.4 million fry were stocked in the spring of 2025. Fall night electrofishing has been conducted annually on Sauk Lake since 2009 to assess the relative abundance of young-of-year Walleye. This sampling is used to evaluate fry stocking success or natural reproduction during years without stocking. Over the years, electrofishing surveys have been useful predictors of future gill net catches. The catch rate young-of-year Walleye during 2025 was 7.0 fish/hour, which is the lowest on record for Sauk Lake. Catch rates prior to 2025 have ranged from 10.9 fish/hour (2010) to 127.5 fish/hour (2011. Young-of-year Walleye captured during 2025 ranged in size from 5.1-6.3 inches (average = 5.7 inches). This was slightly smaller than the average length (6.6 inches) from all previous surveys. Age analysis has shown that fish reach 13.6 inches by age-2, 16.7 inches by age-3, 17.7 inches by age-4, and 20.3 inches by age-5. Natural reproduction has been documented during fall electrofishing surveys and from aging fish captured in gill nets. Prior to 2000, there was little to no evidence of natural reproduction in Sauk Lake. Notable natural year classes were eventually documented in 2000 and 2007 during summer surveys. More recently, year classes of natural fish have been reported for 2020 and 2023. Therefore, it is important to consider that fall electrofishing catches may be comprised of both stocked and natural fish during stocking years. Several other species were observed during the 2025 fall electrofishing survey. Yellow Perch and Bluegill were notably abundant throughout the sites. Shiners and minnows were also abundant. White Sucker and Shorthead Redhorse were present in low abundance. Smallmouth Bass, Largemouth Bass, and Northern Pike were all observed.
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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