Taft Lake
Hennepin County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 27068300
DNR records show 19 stocking entries at Taft Lake since 2016, most recently bluegill sunfish adults in 2025 (125 fish).
- Taft Lake has 19 DNR stocking records across 10 years (2016-2025): bluegill sunfish (8), northern pike (7), yellow perch (3), black crappie (1).
- The most-stocked species by count is yellow perch: 1,504 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 45 ft; surface area 14 acres, 4 littoral acres, 0.7 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 3.0 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), common carp, green sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, tiger muskellunge, walleye, white crappie, and 3 more.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Hennepin County, nearest town Richfield; DNR lake number (DOW) 27068300.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 125 | 20.0 |
| 2025 | Northern Pike | adults | 35 | 59.1 |
| 2025 | Yellow Perch | adults | 700 | 46.7 |
| 2024 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 50 | 10.0 |
| 2024 | Northern Pike | adults | 25 | 66.3 |
| 2023 | Black Crappie | adults | 100 | 30.3 |
| 2023 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 44 | 10.2 |
| 2022 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 400 | 20.6 |
| 2022 | Northern Pike | adults | 24 | 44.1 |
| 2021 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 205 | 33.0 |
| 2021 | Northern Pike | adults | 17 | 12.1 |
| 2020 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 102 | 25.1 |
| 2019 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 208 | 33.5 |
| 2018 | Northern Pike | adults | 36 | 53.7 |
| 2018 | Yellow Perch | adults | 204 | 32.6 |
| 2017 | Northern Pike | adults | 53 | 96.3 |
| 2016 | Bluegill Sunfish | adults | 156 | 50.3 |
| 2016 | Northern Pike | adults | 50 | 76.0 |
| 2016 | Yellow Perch | adults | 600 | 50.0 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| O | city | - One fishing pier and city parkland surround the lake. As of late August 2017, City of Richfield surface use restrictions do not allow boating, fish house use, or snowmobiling on Taft or any other lake within the city. |
DNR fish survey, 2017
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 19.67 | 118 | 0.05 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 7.33 | 44 | 0.17 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 3.17 | 19 | 0.05 |
| Yellow perch | Standard trap nets | 1.00 | 6 | 0.05 |
| Green sunfish | Standard trap nets | 0.67 | 4 | 0.07 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 0.67 | 4 | 1.63 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 0.50 | 3 | 0.30 |
| Walleye | Standard trap nets | 0.50 | 3 | 2.69 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 19.00 | 19 | 0.10 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 9.00 | 9 | 2.80 |
| Black bullhead | Standard gill nets | 9.00 | 9 | 0.17 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 5.00 | 5 | 0.05 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard gill nets | 2.00 | 2 | 1.12 |
| Bowfin (dogfish) | Standard gill nets | 2.00 | 2 | 4.41 |
| TME | Standard gill nets | 1.00 | 1 | 1.40 |
| Common carp | Standard gill nets | 1.00 | 1 | 4.90 |
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.
Taft Lake is a 12.4-acre lake located in the City of Richfield. This pond has been managed as a Fishing in the Neighborhood (FiN) pond since 2002 and is regularly stocked with Bluegill and Yellow Perch. In 2016, the City of Richfield in collaboration with FiN, installed several updates to improve fishing access at Taft Lake. A new handicapped-accessible fishing pier was installed on the Southwest side of the lake, and six groups of fishing blocks spaced evenly throughout the lake were installed. The lake is surrounded by park land and has a paved walking trail around the entire lake. Other amenities include close parking to the pier, restrooms, and ball fields in the park. In 2017, a Standard Survey was conducted to assess the gamefish population. Nine Northern Pike were captured in the single gill net during this survey. Northern Pike measured from 19.1 to 30.9 inches in length, with a mean length of 23.9 inches. Northern Pike averaged 3.04 pounds. The most abundant species sampled during this survey was Bluegill. Lengths of Bluegills ranged from 3.1 to 7.0 inches, with a mean length of 4.1 inches. Black Crappie trap net catches were 7.3 per net. Black Crappie measured from 5.7 to 11.3 inches in length, with a mean length of 7.0 inches. One Walleye was captured in the gill net during this survey, which measured 19.7 inches in length. Three other Walleye were captured with trap nets with a mean length of 19.6 inches. Walleye are not stocked in the lake. Other species captured in low numbers during this survey included Black Bullhead, Bowfin, Common Carp, Green Sunfish, Largemouth Bass, Pumpkinseed, Tiger Muskellunge, White Crappie, White Sucker, Yellow Bullhead, and Yellow Perch.
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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