Upper South Long Lake
Crow Wing County, Minnesota - DNR stocking history, depth and survey data
Minnesota · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) · DOW 18009600
DNR records show 13 stocking entries at Upper South Long Lake since 2017, most recently walleye fry in 2025 (300,000 fish).
- Upper South Long Lake has 13 DNR stocking records across 5 years (2017-2025): walleye (13).
- The most-stocked species by count is walleye: 625,444 fish on record.
- Maximum depth 47 ft; surface area 804 acres, 283 littoral acres, 6.3 miles of shoreline, per the DNR lake survey.
- Average water clarity (Secchi depth) 8.5 ft.
- Fish species DNR lists here: black bullhead, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin (dogfish), brown bullhead, greater redhorse, hybrid sunfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, pumpkinseed, rock bass, tullibee (cisco), and 4 more.
- 1 public access on the DNR list.
- Most recent DNR fish survey: (standard survey).
- Crow Wing County, nearest town Brainerd; DNR lake number (DOW) 18009600.
Depth map
Bathymetric contours from the Minnesota DNR lake survey mapped 8/2/1968 (orig map); depths in feet. Simplified for the web; not for navigation.
Stocking history
| Year | Species | Size | Number | Pounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Walleye | fry | 300,000 | 2.8 |
| 2025 | Walleye | fingerlings | 5,325 | 283.0 |
| 2023 | Walleye | fingerlings | 1,313 | 69.0 |
| 2023 | Walleye2 | fingerlings | 4,648 | 214.0 |
| 2021 | Walleye | adults | 185 | 67.0 |
| 2021 | Walleye | fingerlings | 1,828 | 52.0 |
| 2021 | Walleye2 | fingerlings | 3,816 | 159.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fry | 300,000 | 2.5 |
| 2019 | Walleye | yearlings | 508 | 154.0 |
| 2019 | Walleye | fingerlings | 6,522 | 129.0 |
| 2017 | Walleye | adults | 13 | 19.0 |
| 2017 | Walleye | fingerlings | 30 | 1.4 |
| 2017 | Walleye | yearlings | 1,256 | 387.0 |
2 fish purchased by the DNR for stocking.
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 | Southwest shore off of Co. Rd. 23. |
DNR fish survey, 2025
| Species | Gear | Catch per net | Total catch | Avg lb |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Largemouth bass | Standard electrofishing | 62.43 | 98 | 1.49 |
| Walleye | Standard electrofishing | 3.19 | 5 | 2.24 |
| Bluegill | Standard trap nets | 18.08 | 217 | 0.12 |
| Pumpkinseed | Standard trap nets | 2.92 | 35 | 0.19 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard trap nets | 1.83 | 22 | 1.04 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard trap nets | 1.25 | 15 | 1.04 |
| Black crappie | Standard trap nets | 1.00 | 12 | 0.23 |
| Bowfin (dogfish) | Standard trap nets | 0.83 | 10 | 4.61 |
| Hybrid sunfish | Standard trap nets | 0.58 | 7 | 0.49 |
| Rock bass | Standard trap nets | 0.42 | 5 | 0.52 |
| Yellow perch | Standard gill nets | 6.67 | 80 | 0.10 |
| White sucker | Standard gill nets | 2.92 | 35 | 1.29 |
| Walleye | Standard gill nets | 2.33 | 28 | 1.83 |
| Largemouth bass | Standard gill nets | 1.67 | 20 | 1.36 |
| Northern pike | Standard gill nets | 1.58 | 19 | 3.34 |
| Black crappie | Standard gill nets | 0.83 | 10 | 0.30 |
| Yellow bullhead | Standard gill nets | 0.58 | 7 | 1.21 |
| Bluegill | Standard gill nets | 0.33 | 4 | 0.25 |
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.
Upper South Long is an 804 acre lake 10 miles southeast of the city of Brainerd in Crow Wing County. Walleye is the primary management species, with the lake being stocked every other year (odd years) with 283 pounds of fingerlings. When surplus Walleye fry are available, up to 300,000 may be stocked; this last occurred in 2025. Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, and Black Crappie are other species managed on this lake. A standard survey using gill nets, trap nets, and spring electrofishing was conducted in July 2025 to assess fish populations and provide angler information. The Walleye numbers (2.3 per net) were the highest since 1999. With 57% of the fish measuring over 15 inches and fish up to 28.3 inches sampled, anglers should have a good chance for some quality fish. The Northern Pike numbers (1.6 per net) were the lowest since 1994. Upper South Long is lacking the typical "hammer handle" population that many of the area lakes possess. With fish measuring 21.9 to 29.9 inches, anglers have a great chance at some medium size pike. The Largemouth Bass population still looks good, even with night electrofishing numbers (60 fish per hour) down from last time. A broad range of sizes was captured, with fish ranging from 4.4 to 18.9 inches. With 57% of the fish measuring over 14 inches, there is potential to catch nice fish. Panfish numbers were average for this type of lake, but size didn't offer much for anglers. Only 14% of the Bluegills were over 7 inches and only 31% of the Black Crappies were over 8 inches. Bluegill maxed out at 8.2 inches and the largest Black Crappie was 10.9 inches. Other fish species sampled included Bowfin (Dogfish), Brown Bullhead, Greater Redhorse, Hybrid Sunfish, Pumpkinseed, Rock Bass, Tullibee (Cisco), 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; 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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