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Sunset Lake (St. Louis County)

St. Louis County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data

Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 69062000

DNR records show 1 stocking entry at Sunset Lake (St. Louis County) since 2017, most recently walleye fingerlings in 2017 (671 fish).

Stocking history

YearSpeciesSizeNumberPounds
2017Walleye1fingerlings67161.0

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

TypeOwnerWhere
CAcounty - Carry down access off County Road 872 right-of-way.

DNR fish survey, 2001

SpeciesGearCatch per netTotal catchAvg lb
BluegillSurvey seining23.33700.00
PumpkinseedSurvey seining3.0090.00
Largemouth bassSurvey seining2.3370.00
Yellow perchSurvey seining2.3370.00
Northern pikeSurvey seining0.3310.00
Johnny darterSurvey seining0.3310.00
Northern pikeStandard gill nets8.75352.49
Black crappieStandard gill nets4.75190.21
BluegillStandard gill nets2.0080.11
PumpkinseedStandard gill nets1.7570.15
WalleyeStandard gill nets0.2513.73
Largemouth bassStandard gill nets0.2513.48
BluegillStandard trap nets4.89440.17
Black crappieStandard trap nets2.89260.35
PumpkinseedStandard trap nets1.0090.15
Northern pikeStandard trap nets0.4442.19
Yellow bullheadStandard trap nets0.2220.62

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.

Sunset is a 67 acre lake with 36 (54%) acres of littoral area and a maximum depth of 54 feet. Sunset Lake is located 5 miles west of Twig, MN off County Highway #7. Sunset Lake has a carry-down access on the north side of the lake. The primary management species is northern pike, with secondary management for black crappie and bluegill. Northern pike abundance of 8.8 per gillnet lift was above average compared to other Minnesota lakes of similar type. Mean length for northerns of 21.5 inches was large. Growth was average with length at age four of 22.2 inches. Analysis of age distribution revealed a strong 1998 year class and all year classes from 1995 through 1999 represented. One northern pike was also aged to the 1992 year class. Black crappie abundance of 2.9 per trapnet lift was average compared to other Minnesota lakes of similar type. Mean length of black crappie was 8.1 inches. Growth was slow with length at age four of 6.7 inches. Analysis of age distribution revealed strong 1997 and 1999 year classes and all but one year class from 1994 through 1999 represented. Bluegill abundance 4.9 per trapnet lift was average compared to other Minnesota lakes of similar type. Mean length of bluegill was 5.8 inches. Growth was average with length at age four of 4.6 inches. Analysis of age distribution revealed strong 1995 and 1998 year classes, with all year classes from 1994 through 1998 represented. Other fish species sampled at low abundance include johnny darter, largemouth bass, pumpkinseed sunfish, walleye and yellow bullhead. Because gear used during the summer assessment is not an effective means to sample largemouth bass, it is speculated that bass are present at a higher abundance than indicated. Due to limited public access on Sunset Lake, fishing pressure is considered light. Future management of Sunset Lake will be limited by its low fisheries management priority rating.

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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